RE: Christian answering questions too!
May 1, 2016 at 5:37 pm
(This post was last modified: May 1, 2016 at 5:38 pm by PETE_ROSE.)
(May 1, 2016 at 5:12 pm)TheRocketSurgeon Wrote: Pete, part of the reason they're asking you to which denomination you belong is that it's a favorite tactic of Christians who come here to say something vague about their religion, and then when we address them via the "flavor" we think they're promoting, they turn and say, "HA! That's not Christianity at all! You atheists just don't understand Christianity!"
Usually, they're just parroting some preacher who told them that such is the case. The fact is, however, that most of us come from strong religious upbringings, and the majority of us have studied the Bible and the religion itself (not necessarily the same thing, as you pointed out) in great detail... which is why we can discuss things from the point of view of a Pentecostal, for instance... but they never tell us which they are, in order to keep that game going. And, of course, all of them claim to have unique insight into what the Bible really says. It's quite annoying.
My question for you is, why the KJV? It happens to be my favorite translation, as I think the poetic language therein makes passages like those in Ecclesiastes and Psalms extraordinarily beautiful, compared to other translations. That said, the KJV is considered by most modern scholars (yes, Christian ones) to be a fairly poor translation, overall, compared to several of the new ones. It was written by a council of English bishops, for the purpose of helping to prop up the king's claim to rulership. If you don't believe me about this, go to any number of theological sites and read about it, or WikiPedia, or really any site that isn't claiming from the get-go that the KJV must be the only version used. I will provide links if you'd like, but I prefer to let you do your own Googling, so it doesn't appear I'm trying to "lead" you anywhere but to the facts.
I've never quite figured out from whence this uniquely American fascination with the KJV comes.
I too enjoy the flow and syntax of the words in the KJV. I spent many years in the UK so I find myself imagining the words being spoken with a British accent at times. I have read a few versions and still compare them with the KJV and find the message watered down or in my opinion corrupted upon occasion. I would endorse the Holman Christian Standard Bible as well. I too looked at how both translations of the KJV and the HCSB came to be, I however do not share your conclusion on the KJV being a poor translation.
(May 1, 2016 at 5:37 pm)PETE_ROSE Wrote:(May 1, 2016 at 5:12 pm)TheRocketSurgeon Wrote: Pete, part of the reason they're asking you to which denomination you belong is that it's a favorite tactic of Christians who come here to say something vague about their religion, and then when we address them via the "flavor" we think they're promoting, they turn and say, "HA! That's not Christianity at all! You atheists just don't understand Christianity!"
Usually, they're just parroting some preacher who told them that such is the case. The fact is, however, that most of us come from strong religious upbringings, and the majority of us have studied the Bible and the religion itself (not necessarily the same thing, as you pointed out) in great detail... which is why we can discuss things from the point of view of a Pentecostal, for instance... but they never tell us which they are, in order to keep that game going. And, of course, all of them claim to have unique insight into what the Bible really says. It's quite annoying.
My question for you is, why the KJV? It happens to be my favorite translation, as I think the poetic language therein makes passages like those in Ecclesiastes and Psalms extraordinarily beautiful, compared to other translations. That said, the KJV is considered by most modern scholars (yes, Christian ones) to be a fairly poor translation, overall, compared to several of the new ones. It was written by a council of English bishops, for the purpose of helping to prop up the king's claim to rulership. If you don't believe me about this, go to any number of theological sites and read about it, or WikiPedia, or really any site that isn't claiming from the get-go that the KJV must be the only version used. I will provide links if you'd like, but I prefer to let you do your own Googling, so it doesn't appear I'm trying to "lead" you anywhere but to the facts.
I've never quite figured out from whence this uniquely American fascination with the KJV comes.
I too enjoy the flow and syntax of the words in the KJV. I spent many years in the UK so I find myself imagining the words being spoken with a British accent at times. I have read a few versions and still compare them with the KJV and find the message watered down or in my opinion corrupted upon occasion. I would endorse the Holman Christian Standard Bible as well. I too looked at how both translations of the KJV and the HCSB came to be, I however do not share your conclusion on the KJV being a poor translation.
By the way you should be out riding on this beautiful day!
