RE: A question about the flood myth, baraminology, and Pangaea
February 27, 2016 at 1:36 pm
(This post was last modified: February 27, 2016 at 1:40 pm by TheRocketSurgeon.)
(February 27, 2016 at 1:16 pm)Minimalist Wrote:(February 27, 2016 at 8:32 am)robvalue Wrote: Why are Christians trying to convince us that their benevolent master really did drown everyone and everything in a fit of murderous rage at his own incompetence?
Best they can do in the corner they have painted themselves into?
That's really what it boils down to... cultural values have changed. YHWH evolved from El as an attempt to manufacture a more-powerful god for the Israelites at a time when power was a treasured value for such a being. But they stepped over the line in terms of celebrating the brutality of this god, since of course they couldn't have known there'd ever be a time when women would become valued as equals, genocide would be frowned upon, etc.
Edit to Add: It dawns on me that this may have been the primary motivation for the reforms of guys like Paul, in trying to reconcile the brutal war-god of the ancient Hebrews with the Hellenic values he picked up, growing up as a Jewish Roman in a Greek-populated area. The entire New Testament boils down to trying to make those two competing value-sets work harmoniously, with obvious success... since people like us pointing out the clash seems to have no effect upon the believers.
A Christian told me: if you were saved you cant lose your salvation. you're sealed with the Holy Ghost
I replied: Can I refuse? Because I find the entire concept of vicarious blood sacrifice atonement to be morally abhorrent, the concept of holding flawed creatures permanently accountable for social misbehaviors and thought crimes to be morally abhorrent, and the concept of calling something "free" when it comes with the strings of subjugation and obedience perhaps the most morally abhorrent of all... and that's without even going into the history of justifying genocide, slavery, rape, misogyny, religious intolerance, and suppression of free speech which has been attributed by your own scriptures to your deity. I want a refund. I would burn happily rather than serve the monster you profess to love.
I replied: Can I refuse? Because I find the entire concept of vicarious blood sacrifice atonement to be morally abhorrent, the concept of holding flawed creatures permanently accountable for social misbehaviors and thought crimes to be morally abhorrent, and the concept of calling something "free" when it comes with the strings of subjugation and obedience perhaps the most morally abhorrent of all... and that's without even going into the history of justifying genocide, slavery, rape, misogyny, religious intolerance, and suppression of free speech which has been attributed by your own scriptures to your deity. I want a refund. I would burn happily rather than serve the monster you profess to love.
