Quote (tumtum4 @ Apr 20 2011 10:47pm)
Thanks for the response.
So, you agree that requesting divine intervention via prayer is, for lack of a better word, pointless?
When you say "to communicate" with God, do you hear responses? Can you actually have a conversation with God? Because believe me, I've tried to actually converse with God, build a relationship with him etc countless times and yet I've come up short every time. Maybe I'm different, but if others are like me, then I don't understand how one could claim to have a relationship with God. It would be like me talking to my wall, then saying I have a relationship with it.
Sorry I don't get what you're trying to say here. Fulfill what?
"I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet." - 1 Timothy 2:12
That doesn't sound like equality to me. Which ties into my original question about contradiction in scripture. If we are to accept the verse you gave as truth, we must reject this one. Vice versa.
I don't agree that prayer is pointless. No one but God knows what is ordained for everyone in every situation. You might believe that something would happen whether or not you prayed, but there is no knowing, only speculation. Prayer is less about getting things than it is communication. You can convey an obedience and humility through it or thank Him when you've been blessed. Prayer is much more than a request form. Trust me though...there have been so many times when I hear nothing from God and feel like it's pointless. That doesn't mean that my prayers are useless or that He isn't answering them before I ever speak them. One of the most uncomfortable aspects of Christianity for many people is that it requires faith. The misconception is that faith is needed to fill in the gaps in existence, but it's actually about the gaps in perception. We can't know all that God does because his very nature is infinite. Personal disbelief doesn't negate truth. i.e. if we existed in two dimensions does that mean that a third doesn't exist because we can't measure it? God tells us that he exists in ways beyond what we can know about. That being said, most of the time people don't experience a speaking voice from God, but there's many ways to see His works. It would be great if he gave individual assurance to every being that he's real (I've wished for that often times), but then there would be no need for faith, trust and, by extension, reliance and humility; the knowledge that humans don't and can't have all the answers while we live on earth.
I've read about many supposed contradictions in the bible and I've also seen a great majority of them answered. There's a number of books that can explain why certain passages seem to contradict themselves much better than one or two people can off the top of their heads if you're seriously interested in that. There's also many differences in culture and language between now and then. An example that comes to me in the word replenish. In modern vernacular it means to fill again, but when the King James version was penned, it meant to fill for the first time (Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth). That's not to say that every supposed contradiction, or even a majority can be written off because of that, but it's best to have someone who understands the differences in modern and old English as well as Hebrew depending on the translation. I've also seen innumerable 'contradictions' taken out of context citing only two or three words of text.
As for gender equality as far as I've understood it the woman/wife is to be submissive to the husband, but that doesn't necessitate inequality. Eph 5 says "22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything." Taken out of context here you'd assume that the wife is inferior in a marriage, but in the same chapter it says "25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church" The man is to love his wife with every bit of himself in the same way that Christ sacrificed for us whom He loves. The submission aspect of the relationship dates back to Genesis, I believe, where God tells Eve after she ate fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil: "Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." Adam and Eve let themselves be deceived and so were punished by God because of it. Adam, too, was given his own yoke to bear: “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food " Do we say that man is less than equal because his role was to be the main worker and provider for a family? The gender roles in marriage as ordained by God were different than they are now, but not less equal. Some gender differences were even enforced by law in some instances: "Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says." You also have to consider whether the passage is an account of the times or a commandment of Jesus.
Long story short, you have way too many factors (culture changes, language changes, context, translation difference, etc.) to trust a 'top 100' list. If you're interested in learning more about seeming contradictions in the bible, I'd look for books with an accredited author or search for a local pastor that has done study on the subject. Looking for answers on d2jsp.org is probably not your best resource
I agree that many churches and Christians do a disservice to themselves and their religion by skipping over some areas of the bible that they can't explain as well as they should. 1 Peter says; "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" It's the reason why studying Christianity and Christ's teachings is a lifelong process. I'll be the first to admit I'm woefully under-prepared in most areas of scripture. That doesn't mean that I have to disregard that which I don't understand for the sake of some semblance of congruity, rather the opposite. Christians should absolutely be more proactive in delving into the areas of scripture that are foreign to them in order to discover their meanings.
This post was edited by Durance Of Love on Apr 22 2011 12:55pm