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What distinguishes a fantasy book from the bible?
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(July 29, 2011 at 7:22 am)Emanuel Wrote: Do you seriously consider that there isn't much diference between the Bible and The Chronicles of Narnia? Both are fairytales, only one is recognized as such. I for one would rather follow Aslan than God. He's much cooler and kinder When I was young, there was a god with infinite power protecting me. Is there anyone else who felt that way? And was sure about it? but the first time I fell in love, I was thrown down - or maybe I broke free - and I bade farewell to God and became human. Now I don't have God's protection, and I walk on the ground without wings, but I don't regret this hardship. I want to live as a person. -Arina Tanemura
Still don't understand how people can't pick up this concept of "fantasy".
Religion is like a Penis, you shouldn't whip it out in public and you shouldn't shove it down your child's throat.
Are you really surprised, Miles? I'm not
When I was young, there was a god with infinite power protecting me. Is there anyone else who felt that way? And was sure about it? but the first time I fell in love, I was thrown down - or maybe I broke free - and I bade farewell to God and became human. Now I don't have God's protection, and I walk on the ground without wings, but I don't regret this hardship. I want to live as a person. -Arina Tanemura
Lol no I'm not that surprised, I'm just amazed
Religion is like a Penis, you shouldn't whip it out in public and you shouldn't shove it down your child's throat.
How about the dune books with the messianic central characters.
In the later books one turns himself into the semblance of a god to control his empire. Or the many colored land books with the guiding poweful telepath. You can fix ignorance, you can't fix stupid. Tinkety Tonk and down with the Nazis.
I share the sentiment of the OP. It amazes me that Christians can hold up the Bible and say with a straight face, "historical documents". It reminds me of that sci-fi spoof movie where an alien race watches and earth TV show and thinks it's all real.
These same Christians give me an incredulous look whenever I use the term "mythology" to describe the Bible and can't understand why I would compare it to the Iliad and Odyssey. Then they use their folklore about the suffering martyrs of the "early church" as proof of their own mythology. Then they give you that same deer-in-the-headlights look when you ask how the alleged early Christian martyrs were any different from Jim Jones, David Koresh and other cultists who "died for their lies". It's like they're completely oblivious to the massive special pleading at work in their own minds. Quick review of the major events contained in these "historical documents":
First, we have the myth of the Creation in Genesis, or two separate myths rammed together, the junction being in Gen 2:3-4. If you look closely, you can almost see the splice marks between these two verses. Do I really need to elaborate on this one? Even many Christians now regard it as a metaphor, a view not shared by Paul or the Gospel authors. Second, we have a tower that was going to reach up into Heaven. Yahweh is frightened by that and curses humanity to have many languages. We know that towers can't be built to reach the sky and languages formed over time as populations are separated. Third, we have the supposed Jewish slaves in Egypt who went from 70 to 1.2 million in four generations, a figure which only makes sense if every Jewish female was constantly pregnant with twins. There is no historical proof of the supposed ten curses, which included such dramatic events as the Nile turning to blood and every first born being killed. Nobody recorded these events? There is also no proof of the Jewish march across the Sinai despite an extensive search by archeologists. There is no record of any swath of destruction led by Joshua. Neither is there any proof of a Jewish empire that spanned the eastern coast of the Med. Finally, there is no evidence of a wonderworker who brought back the dead, healed the sick, cast out demons and flew up into the sky at the end. If there was a character on whom the myths are based, nobody seemed to notice him at the time. I would like to live in a truly rational world where anyone who seriously holds up the Bible and claims it proves anything about history would simply be laughed out of the room.
Atheist Forums Hall of Shame:
"The trinity can be equated to having your cake and eating it too." ... -Lucent, trying to defend the Trinity concept "(Yahweh's) actions are good because (Yahweh) is the ultimate standard of goodness. That’s not begging the question" ... -Statler Waldorf, Christian apologist
Fantasy books...or any fictional work really...have editors who make sure that the story maintains some cohesion. The bible looks like it was slapped together by a bunch of drunken frat boys.
Fantasy authors are most times proud of their work as well, they sign it. This way disgruntled consumers can write to the author and impress upon him how steaming a pile of shit his book was.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
RE: What distinguishes a fantasy book from the bible?
July 29, 2011 at 3:19 pm
(This post was last modified: July 29, 2011 at 3:24 pm by Statler Waldorf.)
(July 29, 2011 at 3:41 am)Ziggystardust Wrote: Imagine if a book like The Lord of the Rings and a religion which formed around it became the dominant force in western civilisation. That is a reason why say the works of Scientology are dismissed by almost all people as fiction, while the bible is not. I wonder if you could convince someone that the Lord of the Rings are accurate historical accounts, teach them to read and speak the Elf language. That'd be pretty funny. As far as fantasy and fiction goes though, the Origin of Species and Descent of Man are both pretty good works. Darwin is one of my favorite science fiction/fantasy authors. :-) |
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