tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782706867987073426.post7613958162056117314..comments2016-12-14T15:39:59.537-06:00Comments on The Lazy Skeptic: What I don't like about Christianity Part 1: The Old TestamentSkeptigirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09114437797095740146noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782706867987073426.post-19852478051692236492012-02-05T14:13:17.065-06:002012-02-05T14:13:17.065-06:00I LOVE the Old Testament! :) Read my blogpost on i...I LOVE the Old Testament! :) Read my blogpost on it. I didn't really delve too much into why I love the OT, but you may get the general idea:<br /><br />http://whatjoodotoday.blogspot.com/2011/06/judaism-and-mormonism.htmlDr. Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07212507262059979041noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782706867987073426.post-16330543626453311632011-07-25T09:10:57.899-05:002011-07-25T09:10:57.899-05:00Me too. I think I want to see this as them attribu...Me too. I think I want to see this as them attributing to God rationalization, but not sure that I can. I do find these passages hard to reconcile with a loving God who creates. (I tend to not read those passages so much.) But with Sodom Abraham is able to talk God out of destroying them IF there are a number of righteous people, unfortunately there weren't. And the time God wants to kill of the fleeing Israelites and Moses convinces Him to change His mind (and I really don't know where I'm going with this.)<br /><br />I came to faith after being an atheist scientist most of my life. I had a hard time with creationism, a view I thought that I had to accept, but cannot. So I ignored Genesis 1 for a long time. But when I actually read it I didn't see a problem anymore, then I found theistic evolution. Maybe something like that has to happen for these passages where God who is Love tells the people of Israel to kill everyone including the livestock. Until then I live with the dissonance. (and virtually ignore the passages).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782706867987073426.post-32571540667152161392011-07-25T04:47:56.825-05:002011-07-25T04:47:56.825-05:00paul, I agree with you and you make a great point....paul, I agree with you and you make a great point. What about all those times God tells them to do the destrying instead of them missaplying love? I was left with that question after reading what you wrote.Skeptigirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09114437797095740146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782706867987073426.post-5499654973176335662011-07-24T23:29:08.921-05:002011-07-24T23:29:08.921-05:00I understand your aversion to the OT, what with a ...I understand your aversion to the OT, what with a vengeful God, a God who orders His "chosen" people to go into a land a slaughter every living thing, a God who gives very strict laws violation of such was cause for execution.<br /><br />However, maybe the real problem lies with our view of revelation and inspiration. You see I am coming to see that God reveals Godself within faith communities. People within these communities struggle with what this revelation means and how to communicate it for posterity and the other faith communities.<br /><br />In light of this maybe, just maybe God told Israel to love. Love God and love everybody else. Now the community to which God commanded that they love has to struggle with that. As I see the law it is a codification of what love looks like, only instead of saying what love is they say, "Well if you love God then you won't make idols. If you love your neighbor then don't kill him, steal from him, don't sleep with his wife because to do these things means you don't love him." The great rabbi Hillel said, "That which is hateful to you, don't do to others. This is the totality of the law, the rest is commentary." Hillel states it in a negative. Enter Jesus who says essentially what Hillel says when He says, "Do to others what you would want them to do to you." The difference is slight on the surface, yet makes a world of difference. Jesus states the same law in the positive. Instead of defining love as what we do not do, Jesus shows us how to love by what we do do.In this Jesus is the embodiment of the completion of the law, Love. And maybe God tried to say that all along and the communities of faith just didn't communicate that revelation so well?<br /><br />Maybe because they come out of the ancient near east where the pagan tribes are sacrificing to their gods for rain, crops to grow, etc. these faith communities think that love of God requires sacrifices (Isaiah tells us that sacrifices and burnt offerings were not what God wanted, that He wanted us to love one another, to not oppress, etc.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3782706867987073426.post-23781304926373619192011-07-04T18:13:52.616-05:002011-07-04T18:13:52.616-05:00Oh boy I am right there with you. I tried to read ...Oh boy I am right there with you. I tried to read the Old Testament last year and I got seriously depressed half way through. I don't find it inspiring at all. I find it disturbing.<br /><br />I too find the words of Jesus to be my North Star. I don't consider the words of Paul, or any of the other authors, to be 'gospel' truth. Paul wasn't God or Jesus. He never even met Jesus.Michellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12693795343641111526noreply@blogger.com