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I realized a couple of days ago that i have actually never read the damn thing LOL
I think this weekend im going to sit down for a few hours and start reading it just to see what all the fuss is about more than anything else :)
I mean, guys in to bondage, betrayal and murder, its gotta be a fucking riveting read, right?
So how many of you folks have actually read the bible?
Regards,
Lee
PLEASE...what a question!!!
I must admit to reading some parts. It can be fascinating but just remember that it is nothing but fairy tales. They are moralistic tales like the Brothers Grimm or Aesop's fables but the tales in the bible have very little literary value unlike Homer.
yes, i read it cover to cover. when i was a teenager, i went through a jesus freak phase. go figure!
ironically, it was reading the new testament that made me realize that the people who went to the meetings i was going to were surely not obeying the gentle rules put down by jesus. there was a lot of hostility towards other religions that i saw as totally against what i was reading, so i moved on.
I read it all through high school, I was a Born Again Christian. Read Revelation, it's a good one. Genesis is pretty cool, too. And the book of Job is a good read.
dzinerbear
i like matthew in the new testament - that's where all sorts of magic stuff happens :)
Matthew IS a good one, it's the one where Jesus is eating dinner with some Jews, and they are like "Ewww, aren't you going to wash your hands before you eat?" And Jesus get's all bent out of shape and starts talking about killing kids for talking back to their parents, and how fake and two-faced the people of Jerusalem are.
It's kinda not surprising that Jesus got taken out, he had a big mouth and was quick to call people out on their shortcomings, while professing to have none of his own.
Genesis is cool too, it talks about God doing weird backwards things like creating night and day, THEN creating the Sun.
Revelations is too much, it's like reading a description of the wierd Japanese video games I played as a kid (castles in the sky, flying things with swords, giant monsters, demon kings, zombies...need I say more?)
Overall, not a bad read, but it definately does tend to really, really drag on in parts. If you like stories about giant natural disasters, mass murder, murderous family members, demons, genocide, armaggedon, execution, sacrificing animals, and pretty much everything wrong and evil humans can come up with, check it out.
Yep cover to cover several times and several versions.
Odd duck again I am.
From babyhood through my teen years, our church was a part of family life, as it was for virtually 90% of Long Island, back in my youth. Sunday school, youth rallies, BBQs, camp outs and a Pastor who never wore a watch, all added up to a more than a few times though the Good Book.
If you've never read the Bible, you may not know due to being translated and re-interpreted by whomever held the Power of the day, it has spawned TOO many versions.
Most fundamentalist use the King James Version, the Bible I was raised on. If want your Rules Of How You Must Live interpreted by a bigoted, woman hating, slave owning, all around son-of-a-rich-bitch,
King James is your Editor. He is also the reason a Woman is forbidden to preach from the pulpit in many Baptist denominations.
You will find that most of the ammo for the stone throwing Christians will be found in the Old Testament. They are books from a civilization based on tribe structure with laws built around religion that translate poorly into any modern age. Those teachings, other than the Commandments, hold very little relevance in my life. If the day comes that I want to read the old scriptures again, I will do it with a child's mind that is ready for a good story with a subtle message.
To get a better sense of Christianity as a way of life, read the New Testament. The constant theme through all the books is love, be kind and lend a hand. Not quite what any of us are feeling from a vocal religious-right, manipulating our government and digging into our private lives.
When I'm less like a heathen, and more the good Baptist who reads her Bible, Good News For Modern Man is my favorite. It is written in plain English that is unencumbered and almost poetic. When it was newly released, our HS BYF group caused a little drama by suggesting it replace ole King J.
BUT!
If you are looking for sex, you cannot beat Song of Solomon in the Old Testament, and the favorite study course in any Baptist Sunday School.
LOL! I suppose, you could say, it was my first "porn".
I may have been in a church maybe a half dozen times --- most were to sunday school when i was visiting my grandparents when i was 6 or 7 years old. I know practically nothing from the Bible, just because I was never raised around it.
I once mentioned a few years ago that I thought Judas was black..... simply because I've listened to Jesus Christ Superstar a million times and I didn't know any better. People thought that was funny.
But I also don't judge people who happen to be religious. I just am not. Hey, if it helps you in your own life then why not. We all could use some help probably.
In fact, often I see people who are fervently anti religious, act with similar judgemental faith on opposite subjects, like say environmentalism or other political philosophy.
Steve
Yes.
I am first generation Canadian from an Italian background, and my parents are Roman Catholic (What a stunner, huh!).
Until the age of fourteen, I went to Catholic schools (the worst being Saint Rock, in TO), and as most would know, Religion class is mandatory.
My honest thoughts:
- the 'ten commandments' are merely a set of social standards. A 'greater being' or 'the almighty' was used as a means to defuse rebellion or arguments (pretty hard to argue about or against something so grand, when you can not see it).
- the bible (as with many or most of the other religious literature), filled with so many contradictions, has for taking things WAY out of context.
I believe Buddhism is the only religion worthy of the pages it is written/printed on!
meh... I was one of those Phoney Christians when I was a teenager because I didn't have anything else to do, and the Chapel Folk Group went on a lot of trips.
So yeah, I did a bit of Bible Reading.
but no longer.
I learned how to neck at youth retreats. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Jasun
Were you openly gay when you did your stint with the Folk Group? How come you think of it as phony - isn't youth and early adulthood all about exploration and finding your place? Sounds like that's was the result and had a bonus of travel.
I'm curious because 35 years ago, when I was steeped in religion, I can't remember any mention of homosexuality. I've been trying to think back to those times and pull up any sermon or lessons that even touched on the subject. The Evils of The Johnny Carson Show and Jesus Christ Superstar were 2 winners that come to mind, but no fag bashing.
I do miss the fellowship and music that was once comfort, but I haven't found a church here that isn't fundamental and preaching the same conservative rhetoric that smacks of hate. They are large and rich with ingrained power both in the media and local gov't, as are most old cities.
Man! If I feel hurt by the changes in Christianity- how much more difficult it would be had G-d fashioned me gay?
Sorta like standing at the pitcher's mound at Shay Stadium and its "Free Bag of Rocks Day".
I wasn't out.. really..
And it was phoney because I didn't believe a word of it.. I didn't like the people much and I looked down on them.. I just stayed a member because it meant I could go on trips and hang out and sing and get out of school and hang out with university students (I was in high school).
So.. yeah.. that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lee
Lee,
I haven't posted to this thread yet as I was always told not to mix religion, politics or sex with business and I didn't want this post to appear to be antagonistic. But since sex is the first thing I'm usually talking about in this business followed by the nasty politics of this administration - fuck it - why not go all the way.........
I have read the bible, many times over (even though I am not religious), but I read MY people's bible and this is what my post is about. I always find it curious (but also the norm) as to why I as Jewish person (I can't stand when someone refers to us as "Jews", or when the beautiful, blonde, waspy anchor woman will say "18 Jews were blown up on a bus in Israel today, next up the green grocer with tips on picking the perfect melon") seem not to matter much in this big Christian world. Here's what I mean ... neighbors will invite me to a bible study without any notion that I might not have the same beliefs .... that I'm aware of all the Christian holidays (my parents and religous teachers made sure), but most non Jewish people aren't aware of even the major Jewish holidays or what they're about and further have no respect for those days (my neighbor building a storage shed next to my hedges on the holiest day of the year, a day of quiet thought, contemplation and prayer for me - and this is no low rent district)especially in an educated coutnry like the US - after all how many "Merry Christmas" greetings can I listen to each year without responding "I'm JEWISH" (I know they only wish me the best) but as a non - Jew, would you be thrilled with the prospect of being wished a "Shabat Shalom" by everyone you saw each Saturday, followed by "I'll see you in shul" and thinking to yourself "should I tell them I'm not Jewish each time"... the perception that we're stingy and cheap and all have big noses and a certain Jew look. I guess it's all the same issue when those who are ignorant, suspect all gay men of being perverts and child molesters whose sole "agenda" is to convert their children to the devil's ways. This all brings me to the reason for my original post. Which Bible Lee - yours, theirs or MINE? I'm sure you meant absolutely nothing by the way your post was worded and it was all very innocent (both Lee and Gary know how I feel about them -see ya at dinner Wed.) After all YOU are the majority in this country and in many countries around the world. I just wish people would stop and think about these things first. Think about who they're speaking with before they speak - I always think about the company I'm in and I don't appreciate a "Jew Joke" with people I don't know well, although I find many of the jokes a fucking riot (just don't like that people buy the stereotype). Most of us on this board who don't "look or act" "gay" have also experienced what I speak of, being a minority in a straight world (remind me to tell you the "elevator story" from Internext). And therefore should be aware that not all "Jews" look "Jewish" or act "Jewish" and are a huge part of this world and a much bigger part of the adult business than you might believe or wish to believe. I would like to think that people, especially my fellow businessmen don't just dismiss any beliefs other than their own. The experiences I described above represent the majority of what I percieve, but I'm certianly aware that ALL of you certainly don't fit each of these representations and SOME of you not any at all.
I don't know why I posted these personal thoughts, I'm not a deep thinker, religion isn't an important part of my life (it is however a very big part of who I am) but it seems to be as good a time as any to get one more small piece of weight off my chest before I leave this world and this is the only forum where people in this business will read things thoughtfully and respond to them in the same manner. Thanks for listening to my rambling line of thought.
Always my best to all. Hal
P.S. Lee, add a spell check to this program. I'm to lazy to cut and paste to Word.
i havent..... i guess am a bad mexican catholic :O) i do beleive in god but i no longer consider myself "catholic" i guess. lately ive been trying 2 watch every sunday on trinity broadcasting joel osteen he is AWESOME.
When I'm reading a book or story based on another work, such as another book or movie, I like to check out the earlier work first. So I read the Book of Revelations because I had wanted to read a short science fiction story based on it. Scared the shit out of me. That and the predictions of Nostradamus kept me in a constant state of panic through the ages of 8 until about 20. And you wonder why I'm as weird as I am? LOL!
My thoughts on the Bible are this, and no disrespect meant to anyone who is a firm believer...
Take a work of literature written about 1900. Look at the cultural differences in the text from the way things are worded now and the differences in the social, economic and political norms of that time compared with now. It's quite a difference. People read the original Alice's Adventures in Wonderland like it's some really avant garde children's story, but all the bizzarre characters and situations were really simple parodies of victorian life and not quite as outlandish as they seem to us.
Now consider the huge changes in a work that was made around a hundred years ago and try to imagine the differences in a work that was made over a thousand years ago. Then think about the way words and sentences are warped when trying to translate them from one language to another. So here we have a work that was made over a thousand years ago, in a different language, that was probably quite different than that language is even today. How can you take this book word for word and run your life by it. The book you are reading has to be so vastly different than the book that was written, regardless of wether you belive it was written by the guidance of divine hands or not. Them divine hands would have had to see the book through countless translations, reprints and interpretations to get it to being what it is today.
Since they believe it's straight from the robed-ones own mouth, they think it's unchanging and indisputable. It is impossible for them to believe that anything in the bible could be mistranslated, because that would defeat the beliefs behind the book.Quote:
Originally Posted by WWC-DonMike
I know what you mean about those stories making you nervous, my mom had one of those huge hardback bibles full of scary paintings. To this day I have yet to read a book full of so much blood, violence, and all around nastiness. I mean, pretty much everyone on earth dies in it, more than once! Even the hero is beaten and bloodily murdered.
One of the things that struck me as most crazy and fear inspiring about it, was a particularly nasty story where in the end, a woman is murdered just for trying to sneak one last look at her home as it's being destroyed.
Yup, evil subversive shit.
Designed (and honed) to justify oppression (as are all religions, including buddhism)
Should be forbidden for children under the age of 18.
Had it read out loud during two years in "regular" school, second & third grade.
- And it's taken me till now, not to flinch, when renouncing the drivel.