What IS good, and how do we determine it?

[abaris]

...2000 years of theologians and philosophers constantly studying the bible, studying the culture of the time, trying to gain understanding, etc.

I believe the Church is the main pillar of Truth, not the bible itself.

And often being entirely wrong or bending the historical truth to suit their needs. As I said in a previous post. For one, the church is more the church of Paul than the church of Jesus and secondly, the so called church fathers bending over to get the Roman emperor's attention. So what's called the Catholic church is the result of politics rather than belief or faith.

And that's not even considering the ensuing forgeries of documents such as the Constantinian donation or the celibacy issue which is a political as well as a financial decision more than anything else. They didn't want the heirlooms of the clergy go to their wives and children and decided to impose that law. It also started in the 4th century, but wasn't written in stone until pope Calistus II decreed on the First Lateran Council that clerical marriages were invalid. That was in 1123.