Reply #114: The bible was written as a spiritual text... [View All]

[crawfish]

using the knowledge and understanding of the contemporary author as a method of communicating a universal, timeless message.

Creationists are guilty of adding to their bible because they are using it to infer scientific or historical facts instead of reading them for their intended purpose. For instance, the story of Jonah, originally meant as a satirical story illustrating the forgiving nature of God versus the bullheadedness of man, gets turned into an argument over what kind of fish could a man live in for day. Likewise, the first creation story (Genesis 1:1-2:3) is meant to illustrate the place of God and man in creation, while denying the supernatural elements of the creation stories of their contemporaries (Sumerians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Canaanites). When seen in this light, it becomes a remarkable story that is very differentiated from every other creation story of the time in key ways that allow it to hold meaning today. The attempt to literalize the story not only makes the reader miss out on those elements, but actually flatly deny them since it means that the story would have had to be influenced by them.

So no, I don't hold to the creationist dogma. Science will find what science does; evolution, common ancestry, natural selection are all very well supported and contain elements that we can regard as fact. I see no need for any of it to affect my faith.