Conservative Bible Project Aims to Delete Liberal Bias from the Bible

The Unoriginal wrote:

I wonder what they plan to do with the "Let who is free of sin cast the first stone", since that is actually, y'know, a "liberal interpolation".
Pity, it was always something to throw in the fundies' face.

Oh, come on. We all know who was without sin - it was the J-man himself!
He wasn't making a point, he was claiming the first shot.

The Bible is a challenge to people because it seeks to radically transform people into true servants who desire to bring peace, hope and love to other people. Conservatives, as the term suggests, oppose radical changes to their lifestyle and world view. Not just conservatives, but human nature opposes radical change; conservatives are just more extreme.

In the broadest terms, human nature stresses survival and comfort. The Bible challenges humans to overturn survival and comfort in favour of ministering to all people (unconditional love), which will inevitably lead to persecution. Look at Jesus; he was not welcome in his home town, and was executed as a criminal. The Bible promises that those who follow Jesus will share in his fate; Jesus himself stated the same. Various figures throughout history who challenged people to radically transform their lives in a positive direction were persecuted - Martin Luther King Jr. comes to mind. The Bible's promises of persecution are true, and that scares people. Hell, it scares me.

I don't want to lead a life where I will be ridiculed, misunderstood and forsaken, but I must, because I chose to live in the hope of the resurrection. The world has never offered me hope, and it never will, so I continue to choose life, even though it may bring me death. I am willing to sacrifice my survival instinct and desire for comfort if it will bring hope and peace to others. I must speak the truth, always, and never be ashamed, or else my sacrifice will be for nothing, and I will be a greater fool than I am now.

Following Jesus is not an inheritance from your parents. It is not something you do because your community demands it. It is a path that you choose, and it is a damned difficult one, but in that path lies hope. This fact is what confuses and troubles people; they want hope, but in the midst of comfort and security. You're not going to find hope in comfort and security; going out there, helping and loving others, being with people in good times and in bad times - by doing these, you will find hope, and that hope will become your comfort and security.

Manny wrote:

Following Jesus is not an inheritance from your parents.

I'm sorry to contradict you here but in some cases it can be. I've heard of quite a fair number of families where the children were raised in such a manner that Jesus and the following of him is the only thing they're allowed to be taught so it's not so much of a choice as it is indoctrination.* However, I'm sure this is also true of other religions.

*Disclaimer: Yes, I'm aware this is not the case for the majority of Christians. I'm just saying that there are more instances of this happening than one would like.

Aggie wrote:

Manny wrote:

Following Jesus is not an inheritance from your parents.

I'm sorry to contradict you here but in some cases it can be. I've heard of quite a fair number of families where the children were raised in such a manner that Jesus and the following of him is the only thing they're allowed to be taught so it's not so much of a choice as it is indoctrination.* However, I'm sure this is also true of other religions.

*Disclaimer: Yes, I'm aware this is not the case for the majority of Christians. I'm just saying that there are more instances of this happening than one would like.

I agree with you; parents do indoctrinate their children into following a particular religion and lifestyle. What I should have said, therefore, is that following Jesus is not simply an inheritance; it is a choice that you commit to for your entire life, or not at all.

A person shouldn't be a follower of Jesus because their parents were (although, as you said, that's usually the case); it is supposed to be a serious lifestyle choice that you make. Studying theology is necessary; the church is moving further and further away from theology and deeper and deeper into personal opinion. That's why there are over 30,000 denominations of the Christian religion.

tl;dr JESUS IS SRS BSNS