Justus Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 The newbie Christian wanted to know where to start reading the Bible at? My advice would be to just listen for awhile. The Bible could be the book of knowledge of Good and Evil, y[where does the paper of a book come from but a tree] It is written of all the books in the Garden you can eat from, but the book of knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat of it. If that is what is written, then that should suffice, doesn't mean you can't listen or take notes. It says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. If faith comes by reading why wouldn't it have wrote that faith comes by reading the Word of God? It is your choice So what would your advice be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeThinkerNZ Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 I would either say: 1. Start at the beginning and read the whole thing. (Genesis is usually enough to get them thinking, but the next 4 books are also "interesting" reading.) or 2. Don't read it, don't go to church, cancel the leave you have taken of your senses and return to reality. or 3. (If they seemed incoherent like Justus) See a doctor, preferably one who can prescribe psychotropic medication. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duderonomy Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 The newbie Christian wanted to know where to start reading the Bible at? My advice would be to just listen for awhile. The Bible could be the book of knowledge of Good and Evil, y[where does the paper of a book come from but a tree] It is written of all the books in the Garden you can eat from, but the book of knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat of it. If that is what is written, then that should suffice, doesn't mean you can't listen or take notes. It says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. If faith comes by reading why wouldn't it have wrote that faith comes by reading the Word of God? It is your choice So what would your advice be? My advice would be, "Preach it Brother!", but make sure that you are correct first, or be a Catholic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Question everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bornagainathiest Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 The newbie Christian wanted to know where to start reading the Bible at? Which newbie Christian? Who? A member of this forum? Please provide some information about the person you're asking us to give advice to, Justus. My advice would be to just listen for awhile. The Bible could be the book of knowledge of Good and Evil, y[where does the paper of a book come from but a tree] It is written of all the books in the Garden you can eat from, but the book of knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat of it. If that is what is written, then that should suffice, doesn't mean you can't listen or take notes. It says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. If faith comes by reading why wouldn't it have wrote that faith comes by reading the Word of God? It is your choice Where have you pulled this quote from? Please provide a link or tell us which thread it comes from, if it comes from this forum at all. Thanks. So what would your advice be? I wouldn't give any advice until I knew who was asking - who this newbie Christian is. And if this was a hypothetical question Justus, then you should make that clear to us from the outset. Please clarify. Thanks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justus Posted February 23, 2015 Author Share Posted February 23, 2015 Thanks for the replies I would either say: 1. Start at the beginning and read the whole thing. (Genesis is usually enough to get them thinking, but the next 4 books are also "interesting" reading.) or 2. Don't read it, don't go to church, cancel the leave you have taken of your senses and return to reality. or 3. (If they seemed incoherent like Justus) See a doctor, preferably one who can prescribe psychotropic medication. Wow # 1 response surprised me, The newbie Christian wanted to know where to start reading the Bible at? My advice would be to just listen for awhile. The Bible could be the book of knowledge of Good and Evil, y[where does the paper of a book come from but a tree] It is written of all the books in the Garden you can eat from, but the book of knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat of it. If that is what is written, then that should suffice, doesn't mean you can't listen or take notes. It says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. If faith comes by reading why wouldn't it have wrote that faith comes by reading the Word of God? It is your choice So what would your advice be? My advice would be, "Preach it Brother!", but make sure that you are correct first, or be a Catholic. LOL Question everything. I've heard you say that before and I still agree... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mymistake Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Run! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pratt Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 my advice,,,, make sure you are a true christian,,,,, follow everything in the bible, the OT and NT,,,, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yunea Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Wowsers. This is the first time ever that I hear a Christian say that the Holy Book, Big Book Of Books, Manual Of Life, God's Amazing Love Letter a.k.a the very Bible may not be such a good read after all. And why would that be? Because its paper is made out of trees. Sorry, but what? The advice I'd give to a new Xtian? Listen, yes - listen to your senses and your own heart. Don't force yourself to be like the others. Don't take relationship advice from people who don't know you. Read your Bible and see for yourself what it is, be honest to yourself about how it makes you feel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongWayAround Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 I would either say: 1. Start at the beginning and read the whole thing. (Genesis is usually enough to get them thinking, but the next 4 books are also "interesting" reading.) or I would suggest that they treat their religion like any other important thing in their life; research and learn everything you can about. You wouldn't buy an appliance and only read the positive reviews; why would you do the same when your eternal destination hangs in the balance? Read the bible and research the questions that you have by reading from both apologists and those with opposing views. Learn as much as you can about history and science including becoming knowledgeable about other current world religions as well as religions that are no longer practiced. After you have done all of that, make an informed decision of whether the bible is the inerrant word of god or a collection of writings by men with no god needed. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♦ ficino ♦ Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Leviticus, Joshua and Judges. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravenstar Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 ^^^ I second Ficino, also read the original source material for the 10 Commandments (Egyptian) Genesis (Mesopotamia) and the origin of the flood story too. they all come from older cultures. The Epic of Gilgamesh is where the Flood story is from I believe.. Noah's birth story is from Sargon of Akkad. (Akkadia). Don't forget the story of Jephthath and his sacrifice of his daughter to God, so he could be victorious in war. (Joshua, I believe) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Furball Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 my advice would be to tell that newbie that the god of the bible never keeps his promises, that the bible is filled with the same fictional super hero nonsense that you find in comic books, the over 1001 contradictions and discrepancies in the bible, that the bible prescribes 187 different ways to be saved at present count, and lastly i would tell he/she to run in the other direction and enjoy reality Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Furball Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 i would also instruct that newbie that if he/she were to deconvert at a later stage in life, that it could cause a lot of psychological harm and damage, and could possibly end relations with family and friends 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator florduh Posted February 23, 2015 Super Moderator Share Posted February 23, 2015 The newbie Christian wanted to know where to start reading the Bible at? On the toilet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Furball Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 perfect, then he can flush that religious bullshit down with his own shit. 2 birds - one stone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fweethawt Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Run! This is the exact word that popped into my head when I read the thread title. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mymistake Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Run!This is the exact word that popped into my head when I read the thread title. Seriously I would tell a newbie Christian to stop taking it on faith. If something doesn't make sense unless you assume it is true then it has no foundation and is without merit. The sooner you start questioning and thinking for yourself the sooner you can be free. That gives Christianity less freedom to f*ck up your brain. If you read a Bible passage and it doesn't make sense don't ask a pastor to explain it to you. Instead you think about it and consider the possibility that the Bible is messed up. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugene39 Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 Do you want said newbie to remain a Christian? If so, reading the Bible is a bad idea. Stick with devotional books that support whatever system of theology you want this person to subscribe to. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StJeffTheIncomprehensible Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Tobit. It has a little of everything--sparrows shitting in people's eyes; an adventure trip made with a secret angel as a traveling companion; Asmodeus the evil spirit; perfume made of fish livers that makes such a stink it drives evil spirits all the way to Bumfuck, Egypt; a wicked spirit that's in love with a woman and kills her husbands (7 of them!) before they get a chance to do the nasty; an eye ointment made of fish gall bladder that cures blindness; that's all I can remember for now. Of course, some Christians don't accept Tobit as scripture, but when a book is as entertaining as this one who cares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExCBooster Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Like you would any other book: Open Front Cover. Read From Title Page to Back Cover. (Don't wuss out and skip stuff, either.) If you're going to believe something, you better at least know what it is your faith is based on, and what it consists of. (Small, stupid quibble: paper, specifically, is a Chinese invention from about the end of the Han dynasty. They used it for wrapping things with, before it got good enough to write on. Even then, there's really just the one tree that paper could be made from: the mulberry. Before then, they wrote on wood or bamboo splints, woven together, and sometimes cloth. Europeans and people in the near east didn't have paper. The ancient Egyptians used papyrus, which is a reed laminate. Sumerians wrote on clay tablets. Europeans wrote on parchment or vellum - both animal products from hide and stomach linings. It wasn't until the modern industrial era that wood could be made from processed trees that grew cheaply, such as pine trees. Lots of paper in Europe before this was made of re-processed bleached rags, and tends to deteriorate quickly, because of the acidity in the paper. If you feel an old book, you might notice that it feels slightly fuzzy: these are the long fibers from the cloth. So, no. Books aren't always made of paper at all, and even paper doesn't always come from trees. Books from several thousand years ago, like the Epic of Gilgamesh - were written in clay or stone. Because East Asian cultures had access to paper, and mass-printed books, the literacy rates, especially in urban centers, were astronomically higher than in Europe, or the near East, through the 1700s, even.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravenstar Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Handmade paper is gorgeous Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Furball Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Tobit. It has a little of everything--sparrows shitting in people's eyes; Not to get off topic, but what was that written for? What was the meaning or application of it suppose to be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StJeffTheIncomprehensible Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Tobit. It has a little of everything--sparrows shitting in people's eyes; Not to get off topic, but what was that written for? What was the meaning or application of it suppose to be? I haven't studied it well enough to give a scholarly answer, CeilingCat, but the main theme seems to be something like, "God always bails out his pious followers, even if he lets them suffer for a while." I remember that there's quite a bit about how important it is to give alms--that seems to be a recurring theme as well. I really can't remember much else about it since I haven't read it in a good long while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justus Posted February 25, 2015 Author Share Posted February 25, 2015 Wowsers. This is the first time ever that I hear a Christian say that So you base your opinion that I am a Christian on what, the icon on the left? the Holy Book, Big Book Of Books, Manual Of Life, God's Amazing Love Letter a.k.a the very Bible may not be such a good read after all. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Genesis 2:9 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. Genesis 2:16-17 Because its paper is made out of trees. Sorry, but what? Wendytwitch.gif And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them. Isaiah 10:19 “…and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: “ Rev 20:12 However, tree of knowledge of good and evil couldn’t be a book too… The advice I'd give to a new Xtian? Listen, yes - listen to your senses and your own heart. Don't force yourself to be like the others. Don't take relationship advice from people who don't know you. Read your Bible and see for yourself what it is, be honest to yourself about how it makes you feel. Yet everything written in it is a lie thought? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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