Jenn6162

Well I came back, I always thought athiests knew nothing about the Bible and just dismissed it outright. You all showed me that I was very wrong about this assumption. Most athiests I knew, did not know anything about the Scriptures. Thanks for showing me the criticism of those passages. I am amazed by the accuracy of fullfilled prophecy, and when I posted this thread I was looking for a discussion. I definately got one. Thanks for all the replies, and I did not come here to preach as one poster said I did. I like this board, and I hope you guys don't mind if I come back. I would like to hear what you all have to say about some other stuff.

John A. Broussard

Nice to see you back.

Since you seem to be quite familiar with biblical prophecies and descriptive passages, I wonder if I could get you to tell me what happened on the day mentioned here:

JOSHUA10:13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.

Thank you.

Jenn6162

I am familiar with the criticism of this verse in Joshua. It is unlikely that the sun and moon would stand still, but I would say with God all things are possible. For me I take the Bible as a whole, and examine it. I know of four possible explainations of this verse. I tend to take the Bible literally always, so I believe God helped Joshua, and sent the hailstorm. Was this what you were looking for?

Diogenes the Cynic

So you think the sun literally goes around the earth? What does it mean to say that the sun literally "stopped?'

Jenn6162

I take whatever the Bible says at it's word. Some may call that weak or a crutch, but to me it is just faith. If God could create the Earth, to me it is not a stretch to say that He could temporarily alter it's laws.

Lord Emsworth

The NRSV offers the following translation.

Psalm 22
16 For dogs are all around me; a company of evildoers encircles me. My hands and feet have shriveled;

Skeptical

Just to point out, "taking the bible at its word" doesn't mean you have faith in God, it means having faith in a a group of ignorant (by todays standards) bronze-age nomads who, according to Christianity, were, as a group, wrong about the single most important event in their religions history, i.e the appearance of the Messiah. Reason dictates taking any of their writings with multiple grains of salt and a healthy dose of skepticism even among Christians.

You don't have to be a literalist to follow your religion, a healthy dose of common sense and appreciation for multiple levels of meaning (historical, metaphorical, etc) goes a long way. Sometimes a story is just a story.

Jenn6162

I have been a Christian for 10+ years. Studying my Bible daily for 6 years. I agree that not all Christians believe in a literal interpretation of the Scriptures. I do. When Jesus used a metaphor he pointed out such. I was raised in both Catholic and Methodist churches, and as an adult I am a Baptist although I do not attend church. I have found that the deeper into the Scriptures I delve, the more perfect they are as a whole. I have had many difficult questions which have always been answered by digging deeper to understand. I am not saying I have a perfect understanding, but I believe the Word of God to be given by inspiration of God, and profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, as said in 2 Timothy 3:16. So you could say I have faith in the Word of God, and also God Himself.

Wallener

A kosher-keeping Christian. How...quaint.

Diogenes the Cynic

So does the sun revolve around the earth or what?