Who the Bible was written for

[RobbyPants]

A common apologetic I hear is that the Bible is the way it is, because it was written for a different culture. This is almost always invoked to get around something uncomfortable the Bible says. Maybe it's a part that condones something terrible like slavery or genocide. Maybe it's something that's provably wrong, like pi equaling three, or the world being flat. The argument goes that the Bible was written in a way that the people of that time would have understood. So, rather than explaining the germ theory of disease or parasites, the Bible says "don't crap in your camp" and "don't eat pork".

Three problems:

1) What about side effects?
Take the germ and parasite examples above: Unsanitary living conditions can spread germs, and those can make you sick. Pork can have parasites. If you don't cook it correctly, you can get sick. Surely, it's easier to just tell people to avoid those things all together, right? Wrong.

I mean, yeah, there's no way people back then knew anything about germs. It would have been a leap of faith to accept that... just like about any other thing in the Bible. The whole thing hinges on people just blindly accepting unsubstantiated claims. Why not rely on people to just blindly accepting the truth!?

Also, this type of prohibition is problematic both in that it leaves people open to other vectors of infection, and it denies them bacon for no good reason!


2) What about moral issues?
When it comes to killing all the Hittites or having slaves, this approach doesn't really deal with that. The Christian is left just having to look uncomfortably at their feet and mumble something about it being "different times" or something.


3) What about later?
So, even if we ignore the last two things I said and just accepted that this is a good way to convey complex ideas, what about later? What about now? Why did we stop getting updates for 2,000 years, when the Bible has been becoming increasingly irrelevant at a faster and faster rate? Shouldn't the additions and redaction been huge? Why did Galileo have to go up against the church for something that was provably wrong? Why didn't he get to add a book to the Bible? Why did YHWH leave the Americans to themselves to argue over slavery (both using the same Bible!) and to fight a civil war over it?


Just assuming that an uncomfortable part was meant for some bronze-age goat herders doesn't make any sense, once you dig beneath the surface.


Of course, the real reason for all of this was the Bible was written by a bunch of bronze and iron aged zealots, not that it was written for them. My point is, this is a really crappy apologetic.

[onlinebiker]

It wasn't witten for the average person - as through 95 percent of human history, 95 percent of the population was illiterate.

[Ravenshire]

An omniscient god could easily relay it's message in language that would be universal to all people in all ages. There would be no need for interpretation or hand waving by way of "they were different times."

"Don't take people as property" or "Don't force your dick into her" are fairly lacking in abiguity. They're also lacking from the buy-bull.

[Minimalist]

It wasn't witten for the average person - as through 95 percent of human history, 95 percent of the population was illiterate.

There is every evidence to suggest that these silly stories existed as oral tales in various Canaanite communities.  We have no indication that any of this shit was written down prior to the Ptolemaic Greeks drafting the Septuagint in the early 3d century BC.

Get ready for the assholes to scream!

[Bahana]

After the Babylonian exile it was compiled, or written, by the Jews to preserve their cultural heritage. Paul just wanted to write some letters and who knows what happened to them after the fact. The gospels are like an advertisement.

[brewer]

Once the bible stories were written it became a tool of the elite to control the masses.

[no one]

Apparently, the creator of the universe, is very short sighted.

[Drich]

Glob.. I guess you are trying.. but I see alot of contempt in your words without a lot of real thought..just regurgitated anger from other anti God leaders being parroted back under your screen name.. However if these are you concerns then they are easy enough to answer.

A common apologetic I hear is that the Bible is the way it is, because it was written for a different culture.

this is the contempt.. no tolerance for any culture but your own or do not see any real difference between your culture and anything you know to compare it to. This ignorance is what makes me angry fro the start. this has nothing to do with scripture or God just intolerance for people you do not understand so you dismiss everything as an excuse rather than a point to study. I grew up in a korean/Slave (first generation born outside of slavery) but my grand parents lived under the boot of imperial Japan. Who raised me.. then on the other end we had the duke boys/red necks. that is a cultural clash. that is a place or time where you learn all the crap you are dismissing because you don't care to know anything about the way people had to live aside from the freedoms you enjoyed. You like to sit in judgement of everything not main street america and in a biblical context even show contempt for the idea that they way these people HAD TO LIVE/WITH SLAVES, and other things you don't have to live with.

This is almost always invoked to get around something uncomfortable the Bible says. Maybe it's a part that condones something terrible like slavery or genocide.

like this.. let's say there is a group of people like isis who from birth are trained to hate you and people like you and literally as children are taught to strike kill and attack your people till all are gone? Imagine is ISIS was not 1/2 across the world but in your own back yard. and the hunted you and took out whole families who lived on the outskirts of town.. and the law and reason had very little control as they looked like everyone else aside from what was in their heart. how do you combat such a people? now take away all your modern facilities like jails prisons and internment camps, your long range defense mechanisms your 911 your street lights your security system hell even take away your windows and door locks.. Now tell me killing everything that wants you dead is a bad thing. It is easy for you to make a judgement when you are protected by your culture.. it is a lot harder to make that same judgement when you are exposed.

Maybe it's something that's provably wrong, like pi equaling three, or the world being flat. The argument goes that the Bible was written in a way that the people of that time would have understood. So, rather than explaining the germ theory of disease or parasites, the Bible says "don't crap in your camp" and "don't eat pork".

not only that but the foot prints of that culture is also available which give us today the reason why they could not eat pork.. it's not about how it was said but why, and the fact that they knew better.

Three problems:

1) What about side effects?
Take the germ and parasite examples above: Unsanitary living conditions can spread germs, and those can make you sick. Pork can have parasites. If you don't cook it correctly, you can get sick. Surely, it's easier to just tell people to avoid those things all together, right? Wrong.I mean, yeah, there's no way people back then knew anything about germs. It would have been a leap of faith to accept that... just like about any other thing in the Bible. The whole thing hinges on people just blindly accepting unsubstantiated claims. Why not rely on people to just blindly accepting the truth!?

Sport.. the people were told. Pork itself was eaten all over the region so it was not death food. Even after Christ when the food probition went away there wasn't refrigeration... it had more to do with how pigs were farmed. They were 'unclen' and God and his people were to be set apart/clean. even if they did not understand germs they knew the difference between clean and dirty.
everything they did centered around cleanliness.

Also, this type of prohibition is problematic both in that it leaves people open to other vectors of infection, and it denies them bacon for no good reason!

bacon don't just happen.. bacon are pickled/brined pork bellies.

2) What about moral issues?
When it comes to killing all the Hittites or having slaves, this approach doesn't really deal with that. The Christian is left just having to look uncomfortably at their feet and mumble something about it being "different times" or something.

Again your morality is based on the comforts your society afford you to have. You are so comfortable that you an not even imagine life without having the freedoms and rights you grown up with. so much so you will not allow others who actually grew up in a time where their society did not afford them the safety and comfort you are accustomed to. life for those outside God did not mean as much, as a result one had to live differently.

3) What about later?

why? are we smart enough to know or can figure out why what was done, was done? If the bible was written for us why would the ancients have kept it? huge cost in time money and lives.. who would pay that if they had no idea what any of it meant?

So, even if we ignore the last two things I said and just accepted that this is a good way to convey complex ideas, what about later? What about now?

OMg.. you don't know what basic Christianity is about.. God stop speaking through prophets because of what Christ did... Now (since acts 2) God now speaks to us directly. no more need for prophets or high priests. The Holy Spirit has been poured out on the people.

Why did we stop getting updates for 2,000 years, when the Bible has been becoming increasingly irrelevant at a faster and faster rate?

"we" didn't.. you never got them because you never knew to seek the Holy Spirit.. too busy petitioning for money cars and girl friends..

Shouldn't the additions and redaction been huge? Why did Galileo have to go up against the church for something that was provably wrong?

because by that time the church wrongfully became the central seat of power and corrupt men sought out those seats and occupied them for a very very long time. Why to teach us the 'church' is not the institution most thought it to be. God does not need the filter of a priest or church to interact with the people. and it took several hundred years of corruption and evil rule for most of us to figure that out.

Why didn't he get to add a book to the Bible?

because the whole of the bible is about how to come into direct contact with God. not how to be a christian version of a pharisee.

Why did YHWH leave the Americans to themselves to argue over slavery (both using the same Bible!) and to fight a civil war over it?

the civil war was not about the morality of slavery. in fact only crazy right wing fanatic known as abolitionists wanted to free the slaves. The problem was about western expansion and slaves not being allowed west of the mississippi (the north wanted to send the influx of european immigrants from philly nyc and boston west for paying jobs which would be nullified if slaves were doing the work for free.) and the southern (democrats) not having enough congressional representation to repeal the mandate. then when they lost the presidency to the first republican (lincoln) the southern states seceded separated themselves from the union. Lincoln in a letter to the new york post editor explained he did not care one way or the other about the freedom of the black slave.
"
I would save the Union. I would save it the shortest way under the Constitution. The sooner the national authority can be restored; the nearer the Union will be "the Union as it was." If there be those who would not save the Union, unless they could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with them. If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree with them. My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union. I shall do less whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause, and I shall do more whenever I shall believe doing more will help the cause. I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors; and I shall adopt new views so fast as they shall appear to be true views.
"

Ultimately.. he freed the slaves 100 days later in an effort to turn the tide of the war. (they were loosing)

If lincoln wanted to free the slaves as the reason for the civil war why did he wait till 2/3s of the war had gone by and they were loosing before he emancipated them?

Further more if he had lived he would have seen all these slaves back to africa and or colonies in the caribbean or south america.

Slavery was not a moral issue for anyone except abolitionist in that day as it was what built and maintain the american ecconomy. Even today we have slavery to thank for the louisiana purchase and maintaining our current way of life.

Just assuming that an uncomfortable part was meant for some bronze-age goat herders doesn't make any sense, once you dig beneath the surface.

what an ignorant short sighted world view. hopefully you never have to leave your state.

Of course, the real reason for all of this was the Bible was written by a bunch of bronze and iron aged zealots, not that it was written for them. My point is, this is a really crappy apologetic.

what a moron.. still do not understand the purpose of anything. Again it is about finding God... not a manual on life

[Brian37]

Worldwide every religion in antiquity were written for the people back then. They were all written in an age of ruling classes/families and or kings. No religion back then worldwide had any modern knowledge of the nature of reality.

[Minimalist]

I told you the assholes would be screaming.  And dripshit never fails to fail!

I call it a prophecy which came true.  Puts me one up on fucking jesus!