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Christianity is based on the stories and claims of the Bible. If the Bible is not largely accurate history, then Christianity has no foundation. Thus, either the Bible is dependable, historical truth or Christianity is just superstitious mumbo-jumbo. |
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The following is an extract from an article written by Galen on exchristian.net |
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How could we prove the authors of the Bible were superstitious myth-believers and not skeptical, genuine wise men? We could begin by considering some of the creatures they wrote about in the Bible such as witches, wizards, sorcerers, spirits, ghosts, giants, dragons, sea monsters, satyrs, and unicorns. Modern science can't come up with the slightest trace of evidence that any of these creatures exists or has ever existed.
Other mythical oddities of the Bible include a talking snake, a talking jackass, a talking bush, 900-year-old men, a man whose super-human strength resided in his hair, three men who walked unharmed through fire, a man who lived three days in the belly of a whale, a wandering star which somehow led to a particular building, and a corpse which stood up and walked away after three days in a tomb. Were these stories just meant as metaphors? If so, wouldn't the Bible authors have made this clear? After all, whenever Jesus spoke in parables, he announced it first.
No one who was not indoctrinated in this stuff since childhood could take it seriously or would consider even for a moment that this stuff is really history. Christians obviously use a double-standard when it comes to judging the Bible as history. |
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 Jesus claimed a true-believer could command a mountain to move and it would move (Matthew 17:20). He can't.
Jesus claimed that whatever one asks of him in his name, he will do it (John 14:13). He doesn't.
He said he would return with the Kingdom of Heaven before all of his generation was dead (Mark 9:1). He didn't. |
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So, why is this stuff in the scriptures since it can be used to prove Jesus was making stuff up? Because Jesus and the authors believed the end of the world was coming very soon — a message he repeated over and over. Well, the world didn't end and all this embarrassing misinformation is still in the Bible. But many Christians don't actually read the Bible and others simply choose to ignore it. Often they will say something like, "It’s in the Bible so I believe it." This is simply another way of saying "You're right, this makes no sense at all, but I believe it anyway. I'm just not going to think about it."
But at least the Bible provides sound moral guidance — right? Wrong! Not once does God or Jesus or anyone in the Bible say a word against the practice of slavery. Some of the other moral "wisdom" of the Bible includes:
Kill disobedient sons (Deuteronomy 21:18-21)
Kill those who work on the Sabbath (Exodus 35:2)
Kill blasphemers (Leviticus)
Kill non-virginal brides (Deuteronomy 22:20,21)
Kill homosexuals (Leviticus 20:13)
Kill adulterers (Leviticus 20:10)
Kill witches (Exodus 22) — where it clearly implied that they do exist. |
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None of the "wisdom" of the Bible was ever overruled or superseded by Jesus or anyone else — or could ever be:
 The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever. — Isaiah 40:8. |
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If the Bible is the "Word of God," why does it strike us as so morally repugnant? All this stuff is primitive, brutal nonsense. If these commands constitute moral wisdom revealed by God, then shouldn't our laws be based on them? Shouldn't we be searching out witches and killing blasphemers, adulterers and homosexuals?
If the Bible is truly the "Word of God," why is there no definite, unambiguous evidence of this fact in the bible? Why are there no scientific facts in the ancient Bible which would have proved it was revelation from God? There is nothing in it that was not generally known by literate men of that age, and there is a great deal of misinformation (Jesus thought disease was caused by evil spirits — Matthew 8:16). Why wouldn't God have put into it a few startling facts that no normal man of the time could have known — like the earth goes around the sun, micro-organisms cause disease, nothing can travel faster than the speed of light, etc?
In the face of such ambiguity, each religion has come up with its own "holy books," and each depends on miracles like virgin births and faith healings and such. Why doesn’t God or Jesus provide unambiguous proof to each generation and all over the world? After all, man's arguments over religion have caused the deaths of millions over the ages; how could a god who loves mankind just stand aside and allow this to happen? If the people of Jesus' generation needed miracles to believe, why should we, living 2000 years later, be expected to believe with nothing but ancient, un-testable claims and the words of others to go on?
Yes, the Bible instructs us to just believe without questioning, but how can this be sensible advice if the Muslims and Hindus say exactly the same thing about their "Holy" books? If someone we don't know says, "Just trust me," shouldn't we be suspicious? |
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Do you think it is reasonable to conclude that the Bible is simply primitive nonsense? |
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I agree, totally right. — Vera |
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The
God Delusion: Richard Dawkins
In
The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins presents a hard-hitting,
impassioned rebuttal of religion of all types. As the author
of many, now famous, classic works on science and philosophy,
Dawkins has always asserted the irrationality of belief in
God. Dawkins attacks God in all his forms, from the "sex-obsessed,
cruel tyrant of the Old Testament" to the more benign,
but still "illogical, Celestial Watchmaker favoured by
some Enlightenment thinkers". He eviscerates the major
arguments for religion and demonstrates the "supreme
improbability" of a supreme being. "Everyone should
read it. Aethists will love Mr Dawkins's incisive logic and
rapier wit and theists will find few better tests of the robustness
of their faith." — The Economist
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God
Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything
Christopher
Hitchens delivers another in the recent rash of atheist manifestos.
The same contrarian spirit that makes him delightful reading
as a political commentator, even (or especially) when he's
completely wrong, makes him an entertaining huckster prosecutor
once he has God placed in the dock. Hitchens's one-liners
bear the marks of considerable sparring practice with believers.
Yet few believers will recognize themselves as Hitchens associates
all of them for all time with the worst of history's theocratic
and inquisitional moments. The book's real strength is Hitchens's
on-the-ground glimpses of religion's worst face in various
war zones and isolated despotic regimes. But its weakness
is its almost fanatical insistence that religion poisons "everything,"
which tips over into barely disguised misanthropy.
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50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God: Guy P Harrison
Guy P Harrison has written a persuasive and frequently humorous book about an important topic. This thoughtful work should be read by religious practitioners, political leaders, and the general public and should be taught as a foundation for explaining the role of religion in society. The author — a journalist with worldwide experience and thorough scientific knowledge — doesn't ridicule supernatural beliefs. He seems fond of believers. But he quietly employs logic to show that invisible gods, devils, heavens, hells, miracles and the like belong in the superstitious past, and cannot be taken seriously by educated modern people. A fine addition to the recent surge of non-believer books. This one is a kinder, gentler version, and fun to read — with this disclaimer from the author: "No gods were harmed in the writing of this book".
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Letter to a Christian Nation: Sam Harris
Modern religions serve many social goods such as health care for the poor. The problem is that it also services many reprehensible ideas. Sam Harris blows the whistle, pointing out the religions of the world are based on human generated vengeful stories. Harris fearlessly describes a moral and intellectual emergency precipitated by religious fantasies – misguided beliefs that create suffering, that rationalize violence, that have endangered our nation and our future. His argument for the morality, the honesty, and the humility of atheism is galvanizing. It is a relief that someone has spoken so frankly, with such passion yet such rationality. Please buy two, one for you and one for a friend you care about.
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In his new book Guy Harrison details such reasons for god-belief as the obviousness of God, "playing it safe," the fear of hell, that belief in gods brings genuine happiness and comforts, and the fact that so many people are religious.
50 Reasons People Give For Believing In A God |
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Rick Warren's The Purpose Driven Life has sold more than 25 million copies and been translated into dozens of languages. Until now, its premises have gone largely unchallenged by mainstream Christians. Former Baptist pastor Robert Price offers the first parody and critique of Warren's bestseller.
The Reason Driven Life: What Am I Here on Earth For? |
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Albert Einstein is best known for his theories of relativity and for his famous equation that describes the equivalence of mass and energy, but his thoughts on religion have long attracted conjecture. His position on God has been widely misrepresented by people on both sides of the atheism/religion divide.
Einstein and God
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Buses with the slogan "There's probably no God" will soon be running on the streets of London. The posters are the idea of the British Humanist Association and have been supported by prominent atheist Richard Dawkins, bestselling author of The God Delusion.
Atheist Bus Campaign |
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Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate? These are the questions at the heart of Daniel Karslake’s award-winning documentary For The Bible Tells Me So.
For The Bible Tells Me So |
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