Toto

Hello BCH:

I've been around here for over a decade. At one point, there were highly academic discussions here, involving well read people with extensive backgrounds. Most of our more literate Christian apologists have moved on, and the more academic debate has moved to a few blogs. I think this forum still serves a purpose, but we need to tighten things up a bit.

The following has been proposed as a new set of guidelines for this forum:

Participants in the Bible Criticism and History Forum are expected to comply with the FRDB Terms of Use as any other FRDB registered Members benefiting of posting privileges on FRDB. Please, consult our Guidelines before participating.

1) BCH participants are expected to source or/and document their stated position in order for discussions to meet the intended purpose of the FRDB Mission :

http://www.freeratio.org/misc.php?do=showrules#mission

"Freethought & Rationalism is a privately owned, educational information provider established for freethinkers -- especially for (but not limited to) atheists, agnostics, secular humanists and similar -- to promote rational thought as a better means to access truth."

2) Preaching/proselytizing is prohibited across FRDB. Please, make sure to include your personal commentary when quoting scriptures. Moderators will be removing posts which lack the presence of a personal analysis of the quoted scriptures.


3) In thread FRDB Staff Warnings and Notices are not to be dismissed. Dismissal of such official FRDB Staff Communications may result in a thread locking.

We do not want to overly stifle the discussion, or discourage honest posts or questions. But there is too much noise, too many posts that do nothing to advance the debate.

Your input is requested on:

1. Civility - the rules have never forbidden profanity or disrespect. However, constantly labeling something as "horseshit" does nothing for rational discussion.

2. Hobby horses - in particular the constant repetition of a claim that has been soundly defeated or rejected. (Discussing a new aspect or new evidence is not included here.)

3. Chili - what is he talking about?

stephan huller

here here!

Duvduv

I think the FAQs have to be fleshed out a little more. For example, you mention in #2 the issue of "soundly rejected......" -- this means BY WHOM? WHO is the arbiter of deciding what is "soundly rejected....."??
I think this can be rather stifling itself and involving censorship.
I do think postings have to avoid simply be one liners or chat sessions.
Postings should be substantive EVEN if others disagree.
Plain bickering, and plugging or burying one's favorite or most disliked scholar ("my scholar is bigger than your scholar") should be avoided as well.

stephan huller

= not supported by a reasonable intetpretation of the evidence

stephan huller

A few observations. There are many positions here which get repeated which are so ridiculous and waste everyone's time like:

1. All the writings of the Church Fathers are corrupt and not worth mining for information about the early Church except for Justin Martyr
2. All the writings of Christianity were forged by Eusebius
3. the rabbinic literature is a wonderful and unbiased source of information about Jesus and Christianity
4. the Therapeutae - a Jewish sect - created Christianity by borrowing from the Egyptian mysteries of Serapis and Osiris (and Mithras)
5. anything that comes out of the mouth of Chili
6. anything that comes out of the mouth of sotto voce

All these opinions are silly and should be banned from this forum as - the opinions, not the individuals - are unreasonable and unworthy of serious consideration. FRDB should create a special forum for these discussions - Conspiracy Theories - where the interested parties can indulge their fantasies.

You know the forum has come to a crossroads if I am the voice of reason here. I am not flattering myself by saying this. I admit I often indulge in tenuous attempts to define a tradition. But my field of interest - Marcionitism - is 'the hot thing' in the study of early Christianity, or so Trobisch told me after returning from the Society of Biblical Literature conference. At least I - perhaps an individual just as unreasonable as the rest of the lot here - happen to have decided to ride the right horse. A bad man is often justified by his choice for his wife. So here too I guess.

sotto voce

What's the difference between this and propaganda for the RCC?

It does get very tedious.

stephan huller

I have amended my comments:

stephan huller

I have amended them once more:

Thanks for reminding me.

Chili

As for me, I am here for my own pleasure and write as responder with no ax to grind. I like it here and would be banned from all religious forums including Catholic, or maybe Catholic first. So I have no loyalty there but like their insights that I expose as critic of their poetic line.

stephan huller

Ever thought of trying porn? You see this is a forum where other people have to read your masturbatory musings. It gets in the way of the rest of our discussions. Porn at least doesn't necessarily involve people watching you pleasuring yourself. Or maybe the institution which takes care of you has strict restrictions on what you can view.