A Critical Look at The Bible
In my ongoing search for truth, I came across this website (banner link above). The author has written a book analyzing the disparity between what the Christian Bible says, and what our scientific knowledge tells us about our world and universe. It is available to read online, just click on banner link at the top of this post.
I am not finished reading this book myself, but I thought others might want to check it out for themselves. Although, I do not agree abosulutely with everything the author has to say, I do find he makes a lot of sense. (Edit – Sep 2: I should have said…He makes some good points.) Nothing personal, I rarely agree with absolutely everything someone has to say. I am an eternal skeptic. All in all, a thought provoking book.
The author has also posted a copy of Thomas Paine’s “Age of Reason“, a webliography, and a bibliography. The author uses two versions of the Bible as reference – The King James Version, and New Revised Standard Version. It seems that the author has done a lot of research, and is concerned with accuracy. This is always a good sign to me.
If you will excuse me, I want to get back to reading some more…
Edit: Oh, Hey, I found the link to some of the author’s YouTube videos! Here is an example:
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About Me
My most treasured value is my freedom. It is one I have been willing to die for. Without freedom, my life is not my own. Why should I live a life not my own?
I served 6 years active duty in the U.S. Army. I served between two wars – Vietnam and Desert Storm.
I have spent most of my life seeking truth. I am still looking and suspect I always will be…
I have a vision of this blog being a place where I can explore the “Devil’s Advocate” position on various topics and share my opinions (and where I get them). My hope is to help myself and others to develop skill in critical thinking.
I am not a scholar. If you are looking for scholarly debates and dissertations, please look elsewhere. I am merely a middle-aged woman on a quest. If you are interested in following my thinking, welcome.
Sometimes I make mistakes. I even make dumb ones at times. So, if you catch me in one, please do point it out. That is how I learn. If you find yourself with an opinion different from mine, by all means, tell me about it and explain why you think the way you do. That way, we can all learn.
In the interest of making fewer mistakes, Logic and Fallacies – Constructing a Logical Argument is a great resource.
It may take me awhile to find my voice, but this is a journey, right?
I took a quick look and concluded it wasn’t worth the time. It’s pretty amateurish stuff that could be quickly rebutted by anyone that had a clue about ancient literature, Simitic culture, use of language, etc.
For example, every morning I can look at the newspaper to see what time they list for “sunrise”. Should I discredit the paper since the sun really isn’t rising or do I understand the common use of language?
It lacks any attempt of intellectual honesty.
Thank you for your comments! I welcome them.
I did say that I did not agree absolutely with everything the author says. In fact, when I read the part you just pointed out, I nearly wrote it off as not worth the bother myself. Out of curiosity and an avoidance of doing some of my chores right now, I read further. I apologize, I should have made that clear when I posted this entry. I just have not yet read enough to give a full review. Perhaps I should have waited to post until after I was ready to review the book.
I do think at times he gets just a little “black and white” and yes, simplistic, in his thinking. Sometimes he elaborates further and makes more sense.
I still think it is worth the read – at least as a starting point for some of the arguments. Some of us need some simplicity when starting out on a topic. Then, one can go on to the references given (and he has a good list) just to see where he got his ideas. References of even an amateur can often have something to offer. Then, if one is still not satisfied, search the topic on the web for other points of view, etc.
I, myself, am one of those who needs a simple start. I am not an academic. Once I grasp what someone like this has to say, I go to the next source. I also create my own arguments for or against whatever I am reading – possibly blogging them at a later date.
I also read the Bible for things to think about. The same claim that the author’s work lacks any attempt at intellectual honesty can be made of the Bible. Yet, it is a starting point in understanding the humans that believe in it. So, too, does this author’s work provide a starting point in understanding those who think like he does. There are many, and they vote.
What may be termed lack of intellectual honesty can also be described as someone who is so concrete in their thinking that they do not perceive the poetry and cultural correctness in such phrases as “the sun rises” and “the sun sets”. This does make those particular arguments void, but I found other places where this was not an issue.
You said, What may be termed lack of intellectual honesty can also be described as someone who is so concrete in their thinking that they do not perceive the poetry and cultural correctness in such phrases as “the sun rises” and “the sun sets”. This does make those particular arguments void, but I found other places where this was not an issue.
Well, if i said I was going to teach you how to be a lifeguard and in the first lesson you found out I didn’t know how to swim would you finish the class?
One must learn to differentiate between those who have the credibility to comment on a subject and those who simply have an axe to grind.
Learning from a lifeguard who can’t swim can be hazardous to one’s health.
Good luck . . .I hope you stay afloat.
[...] at 12:29 am (devil’s advocate, Questioning, heresy, religion) A previous post of mine, “A Critical Look at The Bible“, received some critical comments. They got me to thinking. I think I have made one of those [...]
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Good advice if I were looking to learn how to be a lifeguard.
A better (if not perfect) analogy for me would be cookbooks. I have some that have errors in amounts of ingredients and suggest techniques I find less effective than others. I catch those errors by using my mind and past experience. I keep the cookbooks because other recipes in these books are fine. I often use recipes as a starting point or inspiration and build on them, so I don’t really need my references to be absolutely definitive in all aspects.
As to learning to “differentiate between those who have the credibility to comment on a subject and those who simply have an axe to grind.”, why are we assuming these positions are mutually exclusive? Many, who write these kinds of things, have axes to grind. I have a few of my own. Some with axes to grind have credibility, some gain it as they progress, and yes, some never achieve it. Those axes grow sharper the more you grind them…if you grind them properly.
This exchange of comments has gotten me thinking. So, I am posting a new blog entry – “God vs the Bible” – Revisited
very interesting, but I don’t agree with you
Idetrorce
That is the beauty of a free society. We don’t all have to agree…