(March 30, 2016 at 12:10 pm)loganonekenobi Wrote: My idea is that people where prone to being superstitious because they didn't understand the world.  A few clever folks used this to help them make claims of rulership and law.  It is easier to get people to follow a god due to fear of its power of the unknown that it is to follow a man that is just as flesh and blood as they are.
The point to the theist is that it is just as likely that the god portrayed in the bible was simply such a tool.
Any help would be appreciated.  I'm doing historical study of other cultures to find such similarities or differences.

Don't waste your time, you are not going to make the case that the God of the Bible was created as a support for any form of government. The Jews had Jewish monarchs in charge far less then they didn't (800 years between Abraham and the first king alone).

(March 30, 2016 at 1:40 pm)SteveII Wrote:

(March 30, 2016 at 12:10 pm)loganonekenobi Wrote: My idea is that people where prone to being superstitious because they didn't understand the world.  A few clever folks used this to help them make claims of rulership and law.  It is easier to get people to follow a god due to fear of its power of the unknown that it is to follow a man that is just as flesh and blood as they are.
The point to the theist is that it is just as likely that the god portrayed in the bible was simply such a tool.
Any help would be appreciated.  I'm doing historical study of other cultures to find such similarities or differences.

Don't waste your time, you are not going to make the case that the God of the Bible was created as a support for any form of government. The Jews had Jewish monarchs in charge far less then they didn't (800 years between Abraham and the first king alone).

explain further please. I will need to understand this point.

No offense, but it seems you have a theory that you have no idea if plausible or not and are looking around for support for it. You should really get to know at least the basics of the OT before you begin your campaign to dismantle it.

(March 31, 2016 at 8:30 am)SteveII Wrote: No offense, but it seems you have a theory that you have no idea if plausible or not and are looking around for support for it. You should really get to know at least the basics of the OT before you begin your campaign to dismantle it.

I am looking for ideas of how best to present it. Also for evidence to point to it. I do believe however that it is plausible to say that the god of the OT is just as likely to be a made up figure as any other god of the world due to it being used to enforce laws. A christian would certainly agree that tactic was used by the pharaohs of Egypt. My idea is to show that the god of the bible is no different.

https://books.google.com/books?id=v9GV0G...es&f=false
not sure if this will cross over. let me know if it does if not ill try to get a better link.

(April 1, 2016 at 8:03 pm)loganonekenobi Wrote: https://books.google.com/books?id=v9GV0G...es&f=false
not sure if this will cross over.  let me know if it does if not ill try to get a better link.

I think this about explains it. My thought now is that atheism could just be a natural human evolution. If nothing else I learned something.