Anyone?

Jimmyrich

Member
Ok. I have never heard a Christian response to this letter to Dr. Laura. It was paraphrased on an episode of West Wing. To me, it points out rather well, the fallacy of using a strict interpretation of the Bible to justify lawmaking, prejudice, and loathing.  I welcome anyone to respond.  

Dear Dr. Laura,

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and I try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind him that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some of the specific laws and how to best follow them.

a) When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord (Lev 1:9). The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

b) I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

c) I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness (Lev 15:19-24). The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

d) Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

e) I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself?

f) A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an Abomination (Lev 11:10), it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this?

g) Lev 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?

h) Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev 19:27. How should they die?

i) I know from Lev 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

j) My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? (Lev 24:10-16) Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively, so I am confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your devoted disciple and adoring fan.
 
B

BigBrothaCon

Guest
I will respond in due time.  Only thing I ask of you is to listen and understand.
 

andwhat

Member
BBC, I for one will listen and try to understand. thanks for having the guts to try and answer such a tough question, I'm really interested in how you reply to this one.
 

Jimmyrich

Member
Yeah ditto....BBC, I really appreciate you answering this.  I will listen, as I respect your opinion (despite arguing with you on many posts, I DO respect you).  I posted this with a serious question. I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything. I have merely never seen a response to this (to my knowledge, Dr. Laura has never responded...I checked...) and I'm very interested in knowing how Christians resolve what I see to be obvious contradictions and hippocracies in their teachings....I anxiously await your reply and maybe, starting here, we can all have a better discussion with fewer personal attacks...Myself included.
 

PmoneyandTT

New Member
Since we are questioning God - then maybe I should question you..

Why not read LEV 18:22-24
You shall not lie with a male as with a women. It is an abomination. Nor shall you mate with any animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any women stand before an animal to mate with it. ITs a perversion..

If you have any knowledge of the Word.. Those people you are referrring to are the children of Israel.. Once he lead them out of bondage - those were the laws he laid down for them.. Once again - find the info yourself.. But once God sent his son here to die on the cross - that was the ultimate Sacrifice.. No need in burning animals anymore.. Mark my word - the sacrificing of animals will happen again.. At this moment they are rebuilding the tabnernacle in the Middle East.. The jews will go back to the old ways.. Remember they don't believe the Christ has come yet.. Watch the news - research whats going on over there.. And in Sweden they have a computer system called the beast.. It controls all of the banking systems in Europe right now.. Take a look.. Find out.. Instead of finding fault.. Read some information - find out a few things - Cloning of a human - there's only one way to be born and thats of woman.. Man sure has done alot within a 100 years.. Funny how that is..
 
B

BigBrothaCon

Guest
Good Answer TT,

But I will break mine down to each verse and question when I get all things together. very devout christian to respond to this as he is curious about how they deal with it and you start preaching that homosexuality si a sin. Thats in the political forum, not this one. now who's just looking for a fight. Israel is once more, thats great its been around since the late 40's. Switzerland (not Sweden) has a computer system that controls all of europes banking right now. who named it the beast? Taken directly form U.S, News and World Reports:

Over the years, some premillenialists have confidently identified Adolf Hitler, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Saddam Hussein as the Antichrist, Cobra Helicopters as the swarming locusts of Revelation, and credit and debit cards as the "mark of the Beast" without which, according to Revelation 13:17, "no man might buy or sell."


So chicken little, no matter how hard you yell teh sky is falling, someone's already said it and been wrong already.
 

andwhat

Member
Ok thats weird b/c my reply posted on BBC's. Now i'm really confused. anyway so BBC doesn't get blamed for anything I say, evreything on his post starting with you preaching about homosexuality being a sin is mine. BBC, Either you or i have some magical powers b/c that was weird.
 
B

BigBrothaCon

Guest
I don't know what happened there.  We must have posted at exactly the same point and the posts metamorphisized into one.  That's pretty cool if you ask me.
 

Jimmyrich

Member
I was gonna say...cause all the sudden BBC's post sounded like something andwhat would say...and low and behold? It was!
Anyway, BBC, I believe you were going to say something about breaking them down piece by piece...good, that's what I'm looking for. Not TT who comes in and just quotes the homosexuality passage but doesn't address the other "abominations" mentioned....anyway, BBC, I look forward to your response...
 

PmoneyandTT

New Member
You like dishing out stuff - I was dishing something back.. BBC can take the time to break it down.. I have already.. But I refuse to post it.. Somethings will be in vain.. You claim to be a christian at one time... Didn't you learn any of these things?  What do you study?  Things like that - get broken down to us all the time.. Whatever BBC posts - Im sure he and I will have a decision about it before its posted..
 

andwhat

Member
Pmoeny, you have again said absoultely nothing at all. Your entire post said, I'm not answering any of the questions that this forum was created to answer. everyone else on this forum just wants to hear how someone would respond to this letter (check the title of the forum) and you have done nothing but siad I have answers but i'm not going to tellanyone or add anything pertinent to the discussion. i know that many of us are interested in BBC's reponse step by step and how he decides which parts of the bible are to be taken litereally and what parts are not, especially since others who ahve claimed to be christians have essentially said that they're way is the only way and everyone else is wrong. So I'm goign to sit back and wait till BBC can put everythign he wants together, then I'm goign to read it and probably discuss back and forth with him and others what he says. Notice I'm actually going to try and discuss thigns, unlike you who seems to just say This is me not responding to you. look at em i'm not talking to you. blah, blah, blah
 

PmoneyandTT

New Member
Great andwhat has a purpose.. Why discuss something like religion with people that don't care to know anyway.. You want to find fault - and writing down all that information will be a big waste of time.. But this is a forum - so I can say whatever I like - ITs a waste of time..

How many more times do you have to beat a dead horse before you realize its dead?  And to answer my question.. Why don't you find the need to research things for yourself.. Taking a test - or discussing about a topic does take alittle knowledge of the subject.. Do you know anything about the Spirit World - and all that stuff?  So how can you interpret something if you don't have any knowledge of it at all.. You are going to see his answers as questions any how.. I don't know if any of you stepped into a christian book store - Sxyprincess doesn't she avoids them like the plaque.. Anyway - Joyce Meyers has good reading materials - T.D. Jakes - Creflo Dollar to name a few.. They break things down to help you understand the bible on our level - in the world we live in today.. Reading helps your mind grow - you know like exercising.. Since reading the other post - I think JOhn hit a soft spot when he was talking about FAT people.. You can always tell when you stepped on someone toes.. And if you weren't listening to what I have to say.. You wouldn't be in this religion forum any how.. You would pass it by.. I know how to ignore people whose whinning gets on my nerves.. andwhat - your a whiner..  This battle can go on for ever.. I will never back down..
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
Here's what I find interesting:

That some people are so threatened by another's religious beliefs that they must attack them at any opportunity.  These same people consider themselves "tolerant" and go crazy if anyone dares to deplore homosexuality.

That's pretty funny.
 

John

Member
Pmoney,

Actually "I" didn't bring up the fat issue. Jimmy did! I guess maybe I should have found another way to respond to that but in the heat of the moment I went back at him with something he provided!

If I offended anyone with that I do apologize! It wasn't meant to do anything more than just use an example of perception and it's impact on customer relations.

Actually I could stand to lose a few pounds myself.   :)
 

andwhat

Member
ok Pmoney, so now you're calling me fat, I'm sorry you are insuating i'm fat? Thats kinda funny. Yuo want a picture, I'll send it to you, just so you know i'm 6 foot 4 and 195 pounds with 11% body fat. Happy now. Guess your guess on that one was wrong. Yes I have examined these questions, I have come to my own conclusions about them and I've decided that the bible is not to be taken literally, the bible to me is oen big metaphor or parable telling us how we should live. What I'm interested in is someone who takes the Bible more litereally and how they would respond to such things. My attack of Pmoney has never been on religious grounds, its on the grounds that he/she doesn't respond to anything but by saying , b/c the bible says so and my interpratation is the only right one.

As for listening to what you have to say, I'm in this religiosu forum to here someon actually respond to the posted question and learn what they would say, not to listen to you yelling at the wind and saying I have the answer but I'm not telling anyone so there. Pack your bags everyone, we're going on a power trip. You feel the need to constantly respond, though you've essentially said nothign besides this is me responding.
When BBC does post his/her response I look forward to reading it and DISCUSSING it, i.e. both sides bring up valid points that the other side thinks abotu and then either disgards or accepts.
As for being a whiner, yes I guess I am whining. i am whining that you are wasting everybodies time and are just on these forums to hear yourself talk when others off us are actually trying to learn and discuss things.
you said:
..  This battle can go on for ever.. I will never back down

the point is there is no battle besides you constantly trying to ahve the last word even though you're not saying a damn thing. so stop and unless you're goign to add something to the discussion don't bother posting anymore on this forum. Or are you just going to keep posting things to spite me and prove that you can do whatever you want like you did to jimmy on the sermon forum. Once again, pack your bags everyone, we're going on a powertrip.
 

AnonymousPenguin

Lead Penguin
Ok,

This post may not address the subject of the thread, but it seems like the right place to point this out.

John just apologized for offending anyone with his reference to fat people in another thread
If homosexuality is a choice, then why are those same type of references that were made to homosexuals ok?? He apologizes for offending fat people, but he does not feel that it is wrong to offend homosexuals.
Many fat people are fat by choice or laziness (still a choice).... yet you apologize...

I'm in the land of confusion now.
 

Jimmyrich

Member
Good point, Anon...I didn't even realize that had happend but thanks for bringing it to light!

Pmoney,
You're right. At this point, I'm not interested in an explanation on this subject from you. You can take all your notes and research and use them to build a wall around you to keep all the evils of the world away from you for all I care.  You continually miss the point and respond with nonsense or side-stepping.  You didn't pick up on andwhat's saying that he was a philosophy/religious studies major and then you say that he needs to do some "research" before he can step into the religious ring with you?  Get off your horse.  Then, you question my former devotion and wonder if I was taught Christianity properly?  What do you know of my upbringing?  I have yet to question your "research" methods but maybe I should now. Because you walk into a few Christian book stores, that makes you some sort of authority on BOTH sides of the issue? Researching your own point of view does not a balanced arguement make, TT.
And I COULD go into a Christian bookstore and read up on why certain passages of the Bible are taken literally and some as parable.   But I posed the question here so that someone (one of YOU) who claims to be a "true" Christian so STRONG in your faith and confidant in who you are", would respond to the Dr. Laura letter which I feel accurately depicts the problems with Fundamentalist, literal interpretations of biblical text.  That's it. That's why I started this thread. Not to have you come in and quote a biblical passage to me, not to have you just state "I know the answer but it's a waste of time telling you cause you dont' want to know".  Yes I do want to know or why the hell would I have posed the question in the first place. I've NEVER heard this arguement addressed by a Christian and, while I can only imagine where it might come from, that's simply the problem; I can only imagine. I am interested in someone addressing this SERIOUSLY and, frankly TT, you're not gonna be the one. I think you've proven that you don't respect me enough to grace me with the "Findings" of all your "Research". So I'm gonna let BBC do that for me.  He and I may not agree on much but I at least have a moniker of respect for the way in which he handles himself in these arguements. Ok so before this turns into an all out ad hominem attack on TT...I'll stop here.
 
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