Do people really interpret the stories in the bible........literally?

[tru_m.a.c]

right, but IMO that's not even a fair argument because the perception of the text(bible) changes with time. Thus, why there are various versions of the similar text, but most of it is left up to interpretation.

For example: We can watch a movie, then write up a report about the movie. Our accounts of the film will never be 100% the same word for word.

I had something written up about how this conversation is ignoring the philosophical differences of denominations, but I was like....NAH....

It is the word, of God. Why should I accept errors.

 

[WhiteDawg3000]

subs

 

[NoMayo15]

I think the question for believers is, how does one determine whether a story literally happened, or if it's just allegory?

 

[thekingsmen]

You celebrate Christmas every year and youre asking this question?

 

[Black smoke and cac jokes]

I think you guys are missing the point and I see nikkas preaching here, .

Religion is a philosophical concept and when we interpret texts from Nietszche, Kant, Socrates and other philosophers we don't take the events they talk about in literal sense, instead we look at the moral and value behind it. Why it was said, what does it mean, and why did he feel the need to tell it. Shouldn't all religious books be interpreted in the same fashion?

 

[Black smoke and cac jokes]

Christmas is the birth of Christ, a real event. Now his meaning is something to analyze....

right, but IMO that's not even a fair argument because the perception of the text(bible) changes with time. Thus, why there are various versions of the similar text, but most of it is left up to interpretation.

For example: We can watch a movie, then write up a report about the movie. Our accounts of the film will never be 100% the same word for word. Heck they may sound like complete opposites. Point is, perception is really just left up to the interpreter....

And mos def, people would have been killed a 1000 years ago, for this type of blasphemy, but isn't that just another example of how interpretation changes over time

The perception might change but the meaning doesn't. I believe there is a "final" meaning to the text that has been interpreted but due to the amount of people that believe in the religion, they offer different perspectives that collide and left us where we are today.

They killed Jesus, wouldn't that be blasphemy enough?

 

[Brown_Pride]

I think you guys are missing the point and I see nikkas preaching here, .

Religion is a philosophical concept and when we interpret texts from Nietszche, Kant, Socrates and other philosophers we don't take the events they talk about in literal sense, instead we look at the moral and value behind it. Why it was said, what does it mean, and why did he feel the need to tell it. Shouldn't all religious books be interpreted in the same fashion?

not apples to apples.
See YOU view religion that way, that's not how RELIGIOUS people view it. It's not just some idea or philosophical concept it's reality and belief; so to answer your question NO, it shouldn't be interpreted the same way as if it were a philosophical book because it's not it's much more than that.

 

[rapbeats]

people believe its the literal word of god, but then have the nerve to call all the outlandish stories "metaphors.".

It's either all nonsense or its all a metaphor. Pick one and stick with it. Otherwise you're taking it upon yourself to determine what is meant as a metaphor and what is meant literally.

thats not correct sbg.

there are parts of the bible that are intentionally used as metaphors and other portions that are real life events. you dont have to PICK ONE. you can have both.

for example.

Similes and metaphors are often used in descriptive writing to create vivid sight and sound images, as in these two sentences:
Over my head the clouds thicken, then crack and split like a roar of cannonballs tumbling down a marble staircase; their bellies open--too late to run now!--and suddenly the rain comes down.
(Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire)

The seabirds glide down to the water--stub-winged cargo planes--land awkwardly, taxi with fluttering wings and stamping paddle feet, then dive.
(Franklin Russell, "A Madness of Nature")
The first sentence above contains both a simile ("a roar like that of cannonballs") and a metaphor ("their bellies open") in its dramatization of a thunderstorm. The second sentence uses the metaphor of "stub-winged cargo planes" to describe the movements of the seabirds. In both cases, the figurative comparisons offer the reader a fresh and interesting way of looking at the thing being described.
NEXT: Using Similes and Metaphors to

A metaphor, as defined in our glossary, is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between two unlike things that actually have something important in common. The word metaphor itself is a metaphor, coming from a Greek word meaning to "transfer" or "carry across." Metaphors "carry" meaning from one word, image, or idea to another.

Some metaphors are so common that we may not even notice that they are metaphors. Take the familiar metaphor of life as a journey, for example. We find it in advertising slogans:

"Life is a journey, travel it well."
(United Airlines)


"Life is a journey. Enjoy the Ride."
(Nissan)

Now you see all the above proof that we today use tons of metaphors and similes. YET we can also describe things that are actually happening.

for instance. rapbeats is a night owl meaning rapbeats is up at 2 am in the morning still going.

now what if i named my pet owl "RAPBEATS". then i could also say rapbeats is a night owl.

with those 2 statements above. they are both true. one is a metaphor, one is not but still rings true.

so dont tell people they cant have both. they can.


as for the talking serpents(no one said snake for sure), etc. yet you have talking birds that we do know of.

 

[NoMayo15]

thats not correct sbg.

there are parts of the bible that are intentionally used as metaphors and other portions that are real life events. you dont have to PICK ONE. you can have both.

for example.







Now you see all the above proof that we today use tons of metaphors and similes. YET we can also describe things that are actually happening.

for instance. rapbeats is a night owl meaning rapbeats is up at 2 am in the morning still going.

now what if i named my pet owl "RAPBEATS". then i could also say rapbeats is a night owl.

with those 2 statements above. they are both true. one is a metaphor, one is not but still rings true.

so dont tell people they cant have both. they can.


as for the talking serpents(no one said snake for sure), etc. yet you have talking birds that we do know of.

So, how do you determine what's metaphor and what's literal?

Did Noah collect really two of each animal, or is that metaphor? Did Moses and the freed slaves really wonder in the desert for 40 years, or is that metaphor? Was Jesus really dead for three days, then came back to life?

 

[LucaBrasi]

not apples to apples.
See YOU view religion that way, that's not how RELIGIOUS people view it. It's not just some idea or philosophical concept it's reality and belief; so to answer your question NO, it shouldn't be interpreted the same way as if it were a philosophical book because it's not it's much more than that.

So how do Religious people view it?

I'm Christian and I go to church on Holidays, me and the rest of my church interpret the bible as a philosophical book.

Besides I know a lot more so called "religious people" that view it the same way

You seem like the typical brainwashed Fox News viewer who thinks every religious person is a fanatic

 

[MeachTheMonster]

I never understood how the bible is the word of god, but it was written by man. The stories are written by different people. Who decided what is/isn't in the bible? And why do we trust him?

 

[Brown_Pride]

So how do Religious people view it?

I'm Christian and I go to church on Holidays, me and the rest of my church interpret the bible as a philosophical book.

Besides I know a lot more so called "religious people" that view it the same way

You seem like the typical brainwashed Fox News viewer who thinks every religious person is a fanatic

I guess I better stick to how I view it then. Religion isn't philosophy, it's a belief. Sure there are philosophical aspects to it (right and wrong) but it's more than that, there's a super natural aspect to it too (god, angels, etc, etc.)

Now if you're a christian you maintain the view that someone died for you. THis isn't a philosophical argument, it's a literal one. You believe that same person then came back from the dead and then went off into heaven. There's nothing really philosophical about that, it is what it is. How do you "philosophy" the key tenet of Christianity?

Sorry to put it to you but if you're looking at Christianity and you' DON'T believe in that supernatural defeat of death then you're not a christian you're a philosopher who happens to like some of the teachings in the bible.

 

[Black smoke and cac jokes]

I guess I better stick to how I view it then. Religion isn't philosophy, it's a belief. Sure there are philosophical aspects to it (right and wrong) but it's more than that, there's a super natural aspect to it too (god, angels, etc, etc.)

Now if you're a christian you maintain the view that someone died for you. THis isn't a philosophical argument, it's a literal one. You believe that same person then came back from the dead and then went off into heaven. There's nothing really philosophical about that, it is what it is. How do you "philosophy" the key tenet of Christianity?

Sorry to put it to you but if you're looking at Christianity and you' DON'T believe in that supernatural defeat of death then you're not a christian you're a philosopher who happens to like some of the teachings in the bible.

It's the metaphysical aspect of your belief system. Now if you take Jesus existence as reality then you apply it to your philosophical outlook on ethics and morals. I didn't deny that the people in the bible didn't exist, instead I doubt their encounters with animals etc, and instead believe they had a similar experience but want to enhance the subtle meaning by putting abnormal characters in the story.

Being a Christian has nothing to do with following a similar pattern with other believers, you use the same fundamental concept but apply it to your daily life. You can't denounce his belief in the religion man, you know everyone follows the preacher differently.

 

[NoMayo15]

So, how do you determine what's metaphor and what's literal?

Did Noah collect really two of each animal, or is that metaphor? Did Moses and the freed slaves really wonder in the desert for 40 years, or is that metaphor? Was Jesus really dead for three days, then came back to life?

 

[superunknown23]

virgin birth