Goliath

No, I am merely stating the obvious fact that if a person learns enough of a language to communicate in it, then said person must have at least a slight bit of interest in said language.

I did, and my remark stands.

And I've pointed out why I don't consider said things to have anything interesting for me, whence you have failed.

Ah, so you are trying to shift burden of proof. No, you have the task of naming one thing in the bible that I can find worthwhile and that I can't find elsewhere.

Your extreme condescension is noted. {Comment deleted}

Fourteen years, not 15.

No I don't.

Please stop projecting your failure of meeting the challenge I put forth onto me.

Sincerely,

Goliath

Goliath

Damn right, I don't.

Sincerely,

Goliath

Celsus

Funny then, the amount of time you've spent explaining why all this is uninteresting.

The Bible is interesting (to me) and even potentially useful the same way I find all ancient history and mythology interesting. As spin pointed out at the beginning, some people here can't seem to distinguish the ancient historical artifact from its Chosen Interpreters (tm). In other words, they're taking on very similar presuppositions to those Chosen Intrepreters (tm).

Joel

spin

What you call an obvious fact is merely conjecture, based on conflating medium with message. So, you can communicate in it. So what?

This was you earlier comment: Whether you think I'm a dimwit for not believing that the bible is worthwhile is irrelevant. The fact remains that you have yet to point out one thing that is worthwhile to me that I can take away from the bible and not readily get anywhere else.

If you must be spoon-fed everything like this and you are not even prepared to open the book again which you show such aversion to, so does my remark stand.

And how would you know if you haven't opened the book in (excuse me) 14 years?

Actually, I'm not constrained by your desires. As I said, "I pointed at things which I considered showed merit in the bible, if you wanted to read them."

If you want someone to force you into anything, you've got the wrong person.

At least you watch films. You won't even open the book you're commenting on.

{Deleted}

When stuck for content, split hairs.

Commenting on other people's opinions is no substitute for dealing with the text.

You miss the use of logical consequence when you separate an "otherwise" from what preceded it, so you make illogical conclusions.


spin

Goliath

So at some point, I had to learn the language. Thus at some point, I had to have a bit of interest in the language.

Again, I need not open the book, when the book is online, and secondly who said anything about "spoon-feeding"? {Deleted}

Just because I haven't opened the book, that doesn't imply that I haven't read some of it since then.

I never said you were. However, if you cannot point out a single thing in the bible that I'd find worthwhile and that I couldn't find elsewhere, then why are you still posting in this thread after being so soundly trounced?

And as I said, I found none of them to have any merit. Do you enjoy repeating yourself for no apparent reason?

See above.

Who's stuck for content? Not I. I just prefer to battle on as many fronts as I possibly can.

Apparently you've never been to the site. It is a copy of the bible. Thus I am able to read parts of the bible (or the whole thing, if I wish) without cracking open a single book.

Since I've pointed out a few times now that I can read the bible without cracking open a book, my remark stands.

You seem like an intelligent enough person, and who knows? You might actually be friendly (or atleast not an arrogant curmudgeon). Why you are defending such a vile and disgusting book is beyond me.

Sincerely,

Goliath

Goliath

I haven't spent so much time on this thread doing that as I have been laughing at spin's inflated and arrogant statements.

Good for you. Please realize that not everyone feels the same way.

Sincerely,

Goliath

Postcard73

Please remember that personal insults violate the IIDB rules, and complaints about moderation are not to be made in the discussion fora. Start a thread in the Bugs forum if you do not approve of moderator actions, and please tone it down. Additional problems may result in closure of the thread.

Scott (Postcard73)
BC&H Moderator

spin

You were probably right for whatever it was I wrote. I shouldn't have continued the exchange after I had gleaned the intentions of my interlocutor.


spin

The Evil One

No, no, not an accurate worldview. Heaven forbid! As a source fo factual knowledge about how the world works the Bible is worth significantly less than the paper it's printed on. But if I want to know what the ANCIENT HEBREWS thought about their world, then the Bible is the best, most extensive primary source.

Rymmie1981

Q: Can any bit of wisdom/knowledge/mythology/etc. in the Bible be gotten from extra-biblical sources?
A: Yes.

Q: Is it worthwhile to comb those sources in order to find the bits among the immense loads of other information?
A: Usually not.

Q: Is it worthwhile to know about from whence the Western worldview came?
A: Yes.

Q: Where did the Western worldview come from?
A: Many sources, though almost all sources have been greatly influenced or absorbed to fit the worldview of the Bible. Ref: Christmas, Easter, Halloween, and all their trappings to just scratch the surface.

Q: Is it worthwhile to get the views that have shaped your world from their source(translated or not)?
A: Only if you care to not make the mistakes of those who came before you.


I present this as a sort of proof. There is nothing logical about the Bible(except that it was written) or the way our world got from there to here(except that it happened), so I dispensed with the logical proof format. Sure, Western society does not condone the genocide of a group of people because their women were hot(Midianites), but it still looks down on women in many places. Why? Because of the Bible.

If you seek to break free from the social and political constraints imposed by the way of thinking brought about by the Bible, you must read it. Much like a fear of the dark or of heights, one overcomes it by facing it. The greatest weapon against ignorance is knowledge. How do you overcome your own ignorance unless you arm yourself with the knowledge of what you seek to resist? It is worthwhile to bring to light the atrocities and inconsistencies of the Bible so that others can live without fear and guilt from the Sky Fairy.

How does one do that unless they parrot the beliefs of someone else? They open the thing and read it. If you comment on the Bible and say this or that about Moses or David or Jesus or Peter, and you have not read it, then you are no better than the fundies. That's what seperates us from them mostly. We don't take another's word for it. We find out for ourselves.

And one last thing, which will be directed at a specific person...
Goliath, that is just semantics. Obviously, it must be worthwhile if you read it online(book or not).