3 ms·

It's always interesting to see Scientists use the Bible, when much of the western world has described it as fiction. I otherwise, believe it to be non-fiction.

jmts 9y ago
You're conflating the theology of the Bible with the history of the Bible. A (non-believing) scientist/historian might very well decline that Jesus has any supernatural connection, but agree that it is plausible that he was an actual person, born of non-supernatural causes, and had his story confused through time. I have read theories that God and the Angels just happened to be an race/community of people that impressed those who met them by their size, prowess, or their artifacts, and told their story. This sounds entirely plausible to me as an explanation for the existence of some earthly being who either became or actually was named God. Similarly, I have read of the supposed existence of ancient birthing/funeral rituals whereby the spirit of one individual is tranferred into the body of another. I can completely rationalise this as an explanation for how Methuselah and his peers were able to 'live' as long as they did. Though I no longer remember the book I read these things from, and I do not claim that they are scientifically or historically accurate, I think it is a mistake for anyone to suggest that the Bible does not have some historical importance distinct from religion when the correct context is applied. I am not sure whether this is the same non-fiction you refer to.
- mamon 9y ago
  >> how Methuselah and his peers were able to 'live' as long as they did Another possible explanation is that ancient Jews used "Moon years" aka months as unit of measurement :) Then Methuselah's 969 "years" would translate to 80 years, 9 months.
kbart 9y ago
Scientists also look at the old children fairy tales for historical facts[0], but that doesn't make them to be true. The story that has been passed from generation to generation for ages accumulates a lot of secondary knowledge not necessarily related to the primary topic. 0. http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/04/some-fairy-tales-may-be-6000-years-old http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/04/some-fairy-tales-may-...
intellectronica 9y ago
When looking at ancient texts, there's a continuum between "fiction" and "documentary". The biblical texts are not fiction in the same way that, say, Harry Potter is fiction, but they are also not very accurate documents and in the way that Will Durrant's The Story of Civilization is a documentary work. You need to read the bible much more critically if you want to use it to learn about history (absolutely fine to read it uncritically if it is an important part of your faith, of course).

jmts 9y ago

You're conflating the theology of the Bible with the history of the Bible. A (non-believing) scientist/historian might very well decline that Jesus has any supernatural connection, but agree that it is plausible that he was an actual person, born of non-supernatural causes, and had his story confused through time. I have read theories that God and the Angels just happened to be an race/community of people that impressed those who met them by their size, prowess, or their artifacts, and told their story. This sounds entirely plausible to me as an explanation for the existence of some earthly being who either became or actually was named God. Similarly, I have read of the supposed existence of ancient birthing/funeral rituals whereby the spirit of one individual is tranferred into the body of another. I can completely rationalise this as an explanation for how Methuselah and his peers were able to 'live' as long as they did. Though I no longer remember the book I read these things from, and I do not claim that they are scientifically or historically accurate, I think it is a mistake for anyone to suggest that the Bible does not have some historical importance distinct from religion when the correct context is applied. I am not sure whether this is the same non-fiction you refer to.

mamon 9y ago
>> how Methuselah and his peers were able to 'live' as long as they did Another possible explanation is that ancient Jews used "Moon years" aka months as unit of measurement :) Then Methuselah's 969 "years" would translate to 80 years, 9 months.

kbart 9y ago

Scientists also look at the old children fairy tales for historical facts[0], but that doesn't make them to be true. The story that has been passed from generation to generation for ages accumulates a lot of secondary knowledge not necessarily related to the primary topic. 0. http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/04/some-fairy-tales-may-be-6000-years-old http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/04/some-fairy-tales-may-...

intellectronica 9y ago

When looking at ancient texts, there's a continuum between "fiction" and "documentary". The biblical texts are not fiction in the same way that, say, Harry Potter is fiction, but they are also not very accurate documents and in the way that Will Durrant's The Story of Civilization is a documentary work. You need to read the bible much more critically if you want to use it to learn about history (absolutely fine to read it uncritically if it is an important part of your faith, of course).