Reliability of the creation account

[Jenny A]

Psst...it's an allegory.

Psst, I'm glad you think so. But you do realize that not all Christians agree with you about that. Do you think the Hebrew who wrote it thought it was an allegory? How about the early Christians?

[Cyberman]

Allegory for what?

[robvalue]

An allegory? Are you saying God isn't making a direct claim that he created everything, in some manner or other? I wasn't even criticising the particular way he describes it.

Or are you saying the way he describes it was tailored for the audience at the time?

Cool examples guys, thanks. I think it's hilarious in Min's example when it says, "as those creatures were not able to praise him..." showing that creator gods are just like parents who have kids just so the kids will worship them. Then get really mad when they don't.

Oh dear, personal crisis. I realized the irony of the analogy I just made. One of my parents admitted pretty much the same thing to me. And has been throwing a massive tantrum ever since I became emotionally independent and so stopped relying on them for everything. The other parent joined in too with this behaviour after a little while. It's still ongoing, and I'm 37.

So I can sympathise mankind.

[Minimalist]

Psst...it's an allegory.

Perhaps you do not know your fellow travelers as well as you think you do, Chad?

http://www.born-again-christian.info/ans...y-myth.htm

This asshole is one of your pals....not mine.

[robvalue]

There's so many sects now that contradict each other that to be Christian tells you almost nothing about what a person actually believes.

I reckon your average religious joe blogs garden variety Christian just carries around with them some vague notion of Jesus having saved them and that he died for them. If you press them for details, cogs that haven't turned for a long time audibly creek into motion. You see cognitive dissidence develop as ad-hoc rationalizations are produced to cover the now obvious ridiculous nature of the story.

I have listened to many conversations which unfold like this.

[downbeatplumb]

Psst...it's an allegory.

Really! where does it say that, where in the bible does it go "this bit not to be taken seriously".
If it's not clear then you can discount the whole thing as an allegory.
See how that works.

[abaris]

Psst...it's an allegory.

It is. But you're one of the select few believers on this board not taking it literally. That's what you have to keep in mind.

[robvalue]

Wait, what? Chad doesn't think God created the universe?

Now I'm confused. My whole belief system is falling apart.

Or is he just saying God decided to make his claim in dumb Bronze Age man speak?However he made the claim, it's still a claim.

It is odd to me that one Christian can state as fact something which a huge proportion of other Christians would deny completely. Not doing a great job of convincing atheists there. I don't mean just Chad, they all do it.

[C4RM5]

If God is a lair because no one else was around. Therefore does that mean if I said I had cereal for breakfast you would automatically assume I am lying and that I didn't have breakfast, just because no one else was with me?

What?

I didn't say I assume God is a liar. I said its a possibility. And we have evidence he does lie. Christians don't even admit it is possible.

And creating the universe is not a comparable claim to eating cereal for breakfast.

Things are not black and white, when considering evidence there is almost always a degree of uncertainty, and confidence in various sources of information. Which is attributed carefully.

What is the evidence that he has lied?

[abaris]

What is the evidence tgat he has lied?

He started lying when he first told Adam and Eve about the purpose of the tree.