Questioning the Bible

 

“I do not wish to be a coward like the father of mankind and throw the blame upon a woman.”

-- Ouida, Wanda, Countess von Szalras

Everybody who has read Genesis, raise your hand.  I’m talking “Old Testament,” not the Hyundai sedan.  You know, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” It is the beginning.  And, it is also the beginning of everything wrong with “Holy Scripture,” as approved by the Councils of Nicaea, that is. 

God created the heavens and the earth for the first 25 verses of Chapter One.  This is the all-powerful, omnipotent creator of heaven and earth.  My question is, who is this other guy?  The “God” that created Adam and Eve, left a snake in the Garden of Eden and had to place cherubim at the eastern gate to guard it so when Adam and Eve were banished, they could not return. Omnipotent?  Really?  Think about it.

This “omnipotent” God had no idea what was happening in the garden.  God should have snapped fingers and created a force field at the eastern gate but, instead, chose to set more than one cherubim to guard the gate. It would seem God can’t erect a force field and has a problem creating “perfect” life forms.  If a guard had to be placed at the gate, why wasn’t one enough? 

Let’s jump ahead.

Cain killed Able, and God marked Cain for the killing of Abel.  Why?  Because Cain says, “It will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me.”  Who is “anyone” in this?  There is just Adam, Eve, and Cain, right? 

Let’s move on.

Adam leaves the presence of the Lord and dwells in the land of Nod on the east of Eden, the “garden” being a separate place in Eden, like the land of Nod, where Cain met his wife.  His what?  Where did she come from?  Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and… a little something for Cain?  A wife?  And, when Cain "knew" her, she bore him a son, Enoch.  I can't find any biblical reference to her name.  Everyone has a name except her? Oh well.

Cain builds a city and names it after his son, Enoch.  A city?  Who, I have to ask, helped him build it?  More important to this post, who will occupy the city of Enoch?  It would seem my ignorant self can't even get through Genesis without finding issues.

It would seem, to me, that this “God” is not the omnipotent God who created the heavens and the Earth.  This “God” seems to make a multitude of mistakes and continues to make the same mistake time after time, learning nothing from the process.  Could it be the ancient historians made a mistake and are actually speaking of two separate entities? God and some "being" that hijacked DNA for the purpose of creating a thinking “human” to populate the earth?

Well, humans did as they were told.  They went forth and multiplied.  Heck, they "shagged" everything by the sound of it.  Babies were squirting out all over.

And, here we are.  Scholars will try to make sense of the story up to this point.  And, I’m pretty certain that before the Councils of Nicaea started picking and choosing texts to call “Holy Scripture” it probably all made some good sense.  But, like everything man touches, we have managed to muck the story up pretty well.

This is why God wrote everything we needed across our hearts and our minds, so we wouldn't be tempted to write it down and muck it up.  It would seem that God gave us more credit than we deserved. The "Bible" is the "good book" that shouldn't have been written.

Like atheists, theists also have little or no proof to back up their beliefs.  This is why both sides have faith in what they believe. Theists simply believe in something more.

Just saying.

“God did create a world without sin. We just screwed it up.”

-- Wesley Miller

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch - it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either view any more right or wrong than the other. Opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form their own opinions, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint.

I fervently hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions, and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion, in an arena of mutual respect, concerning those opinions offered. After twenty-three years of military intelligence, I have come to believe that engaging each other in this manner, and in this arena, is a way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience... and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. Following his service career, he spent 17 years working with the premier and world-renowned Western Institutional Review Board, helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. He also served 8 years on the Board of Directors for the Angela J. Bowen Foundation.

Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As a weapon for his war on intolerance... he chose the pen. He wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's personal, spiritual path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteered as the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

Feel free to contact Pastor Tony at: tolerantpastor@gmail.com