In a composition class I'm in I'm studying the Bible as literature, to help further understand biblical allusions in everyday life. It's a pretty cool project, I'm not complaining, but I think it's cool to look at this summary sheet of the different stories in the bible that are commonly alluded to in this day and age. This packet summarizes the different stories in the bible (David, Samson, the Miracles, Crucifixion, Genesis, etc.) and it really just further solidifies my current belief that religion should be questioned. Some of the stories are so far-fetched I almost laugh out loud during class and wonder if anyone in the room actually believes some of this hooie. Also, I'm not very educated on the bible in depth, and I'd like anyone who is to help me out with a personal question. When did God stop taking an active role in humans lives? In the Old Testament God actually communicates with people and makes very decisive actions on Earth. Adam and Eve, Noah, and all those characters all spoke to God. God fucks up all of Job's shit in Job (which is a fucking dick move, all because some dare from Satan? Apparently not even God is above Satan's temptation. Why did God have to fucking test Job's fatih, Job hadn't done anything wrong and his crops get fucked up, his family gets killed and shit... Fucking weird) When did God decide to just leave us alone and let us fuck up by ourselves without really taking an active role in human life? tcg
If you look closely to the book of Job, I do believe God is the one who dares the evil one to test Job.
As time went by, we became more and more polluted with sin. Sin separates us from God. With every day that goes by, sin digs its claws deeper and deeper in to humanity, drawing us into it and further away from God.There's a really long version to that answer...and several reasons why. But it all started with sin. God wasn't dared and He didn't dare anyone Himself. In Job's time the world was overwhelmed by heathen ritual. The devil told God that there was nobody left who couldn't be broken--no faith strong enough to overcome evil. Yes, the devil did mess Job up pretty good. He also realized that he was wrong and that scared him. If you think about it...everyone goes through trials...not just Job. But God will never allow more on your shoulders than you can handle. However, the testing of faith is vital. If Job was able to keep his faith through this tragedy then who are we to say anything otherwise?
As with most books of Mythology, the Bible does contain some decent prose and poetry. Just remember the word Myth when reading it, and you won't need to walk around trying to rationalize the contradictions and vicious double standards it espouses. As well as the historical inaccuracies. And the unproveable assumptions. It was written by hundreds of uneducated people over hundreds of years, their suspension of disbelief should be obvious, how many edits does it take to screw up a script? That being said, I do love the plot lines though...needs a little more humor...loses continuity at times...bad ending, very cheap....all in all, I give it a 3 star rating. I might read it on a long flight back from Timbuktu, but I would not base my entire existence on it.
So when the world had so much sin that Noah was the only person who still had faith in God, God created all of that water to kill everyone except Noah and his family and the animals, indicating divine intervention on earth? There was sin there, but God still communicated relatively directly with the entire earth (and absolutely directly with Noah if I'm not mistaken.) Not to mention, why is my life fucked because of that retard Eve? Why don't I get the garden of Eden, and shamelessness, and all of the amenities Adam and Eve had before Eve was tempted by the serpent? I don't understand how her actions thousands of years ago affect me now. Why doesn't God speak to us and warn us about our sin in this age?
(That's the viewpoint I'm approaching it from. I'm just asking questions to the faithful to question their faith. )
I think the collection of texts contained in the bible are of extreme historical value. I hope you manage to get something out of it though. I think way to many people take the bible and go word for word through it, and think that it's a science text book; it is not written in the same type of logic that we are familiar with. It is written to deliberatly make the truth hard to find. For the simple reason that before you have reached a level of 'enlightenment' or 'realization' you won't understand what it's saying anyways. However once you have then all the stories will begin to take on different meanings. The bible is like a pack of tarrot cards, or an astrology wheel. In the Tarrot each card tells a story in a picture, and shows how different archetypes intereact. Similarily in the bible each character in the bible has various characteristics that are applied to him, in order to tell a bigger story. I think you might even find that character descriptions and stories about the 'same' character, often don't even line up with each other. (they aren't even meant to). This is because they are written by different people when the person that they are writing about isn't even alive anymore. However, they are trying to relay some important information. I think people make wayy to big of a deal about the names of the people in the bible, because they are concentrating on the ego of the person, rather than looking at what that person is doing and the message that he has.