The only thing older than Adam is Mental Illness.
I have been getting updates about the kid I mentioned in an earlier blog. Hes now claiming not to be just a prophet but God. The GOD. Even telling people to take Him into their hearts. I stand by my suspicion that he is schizophrenic.
Before I go any further in my thoughts I want to make it clear that I am a spiritual person. I have a personal relationship with God. I am not an atheist. I do believe that faith (NOT religion) is a deeply personal thing and I respect others in their beliefs. I have to draw the line at people, groups and organizations that encourage others to harm themselves or others in the name of their God. Thats a hate group not a religion. But I digress...
When I was little we lived briefly with my grandparents. My grandpa came home every evening from work handed me his lunchbox. (He always saved a ho-ho for me!) He then went to his recliner, flipped on the table lamp and began to read his bible. Every night. I always wondered just how many times he read it front to back. I asked my grandma once and she said something I will never forget. It was "The bibles messages change as you change. You can read it a million times and each time will be different." At the time I had no idea what she meant but she was a very smart woman.
I started reading the Bible myself. I wont lie, that book is more dramatic than any soap opera I have ever seen. The stories, they are so hard to believe. I always kept that to myself because I was taught to have blind faith. To question was to mock Him. I kept reading though, it was too compelling to put down. A lot of it I just didn't even understand. It was before the Internet age and before I could google anything. I just remember what my grandma said and figured it will make sense the next time I read it.
The older I got the more I really couldnt get past the nagging questions. The stories, the accounts...were they possible? I also became really interested in human behavior and mental illness. The more I learned of science and the mind the more understandable the bible became.
Were the possessions seizures? Were prophets schizophrenic? The bible has been translated so many times and revised how much of it was misinterpreted? The people who translated...how was their mental health? Did they have a personal agenda?
Moses head voices. He went up on a mountain and came back down with the ten commandments. Was he really hearing from God or schizophrenic? After delivering the Commandments he ordered the killing 3000 people. It confuses me because it clearly states not to kill people in the tablets. A burning bush talked to him too. I absolutely believe in the Ten Commandments, not in religion but in human decency. I am not so sure I believe in the story of how they came to be.
Abraham's voices told him to take his son up on a mountain and kill him. How many parents have done this in current times? None of them have been able to use that "God told me to do it" excuse and get away with it. But somehow the story is taken as is.
Paul, a guy who was a devout Jew and persecuted early Christians . He fell off a donkey hitting his head. He said he saw a bright light and thats when God spoke to him. Told him to change his ways. He then became responsible for a big part of the New Testament of the Bible. It could have been God, or a seizure brought on by the fall causing temporal brain damage. The second half of the bible could have been written by someone with brain damage.
There was a kid in the New Testament who fell in fire and water all the time, shook and foamed at the mouth and quickly came to when the demons were released. That what we call a seizure today. I am not saying the story didnt happen but they had no idea about neurological disorders back then. To them it may have seemed like possession.
The Book of Revelations? Come now. You know, authors often prey on a person's fears, fear of the unknown. Only a person a little off could come up with it but it did have its benefits. Its served as a great plot in many many scary movies through time.
More strange stories? David asks Saul to marry his daughter. He agrees but only if he brings Saul 100 foreskins. WHAT? What sort of father in law demands this? And who is desperate enough to do it? I am not sure exactly WHAT the illness is there but its all sorts of messed up.
I think Meatloaf sang about this. I would do anything for love...but I wont do that.
There is a story about a man and his concubine traveling and they stop at a house, the own lets them stay. A mob of men show up at night and demand to have sex with the house guests. He refuses and offers up his virgin daughter instead. ...That seems healthy. But the mob comes back after that and gets the concubine. They left her dead on the porch. The concubines husband came alone and found her. He chopped her up and sent her to the tribes of Israel. She was already a hooker but her husband was offended she was raped. Several shades of wrong.
In Exodus Moses says God mooned him. He said no one could see his face and offered up his "back side" instead. Again Moses is a suspicious character.
Before Shrek or Mister Ed, there was a talking Donkey in the bible. I think he told his master to stop spanking him. I am pretty sure that's where the phrase "I'm going to spank your ass" came from. If it didn't...it should have. People believed the story. I mean....its still in the Bible.
So I guess what I will finish with is that after a lot of soul searching, I can say proudly that you can be devout in your relationship with God and still not buy the bible stories. If any of the above situations should occur to you please seek professional help. It could be God or you might just be crazy. Crazy is okay. God loves crazy, if you don't believe me...READ THE BIBLE!
Before I go any further in my thoughts I want to make it clear that I am a spiritual person. I have a personal relationship with God. I am not an atheist. I do believe that faith (NOT religion) is a deeply personal thing and I respect others in their beliefs. I have to draw the line at people, groups and organizations that encourage others to harm themselves or others in the name of their God. Thats a hate group not a religion. But I digress...
When I was little we lived briefly with my grandparents. My grandpa came home every evening from work handed me his lunchbox. (He always saved a ho-ho for me!) He then went to his recliner, flipped on the table lamp and began to read his bible. Every night. I always wondered just how many times he read it front to back. I asked my grandma once and she said something I will never forget. It was "The bibles messages change as you change. You can read it a million times and each time will be different." At the time I had no idea what she meant but she was a very smart woman.
I started reading the Bible myself. I wont lie, that book is more dramatic than any soap opera I have ever seen. The stories, they are so hard to believe. I always kept that to myself because I was taught to have blind faith. To question was to mock Him. I kept reading though, it was too compelling to put down. A lot of it I just didn't even understand. It was before the Internet age and before I could google anything. I just remember what my grandma said and figured it will make sense the next time I read it.
The older I got the more I really couldnt get past the nagging questions. The stories, the accounts...were they possible? I also became really interested in human behavior and mental illness. The more I learned of science and the mind the more understandable the bible became.
Were the possessions seizures? Were prophets schizophrenic? The bible has been translated so many times and revised how much of it was misinterpreted? The people who translated...how was their mental health? Did they have a personal agenda?
Moses head voices. He went up on a mountain and came back down with the ten commandments. Was he really hearing from God or schizophrenic? After delivering the Commandments he ordered the killing 3000 people. It confuses me because it clearly states not to kill people in the tablets. A burning bush talked to him too. I absolutely believe in the Ten Commandments, not in religion but in human decency. I am not so sure I believe in the story of how they came to be.
Abraham's voices told him to take his son up on a mountain and kill him. How many parents have done this in current times? None of them have been able to use that "God told me to do it" excuse and get away with it. But somehow the story is taken as is.
Paul, a guy who was a devout Jew and persecuted early Christians . He fell off a donkey hitting his head. He said he saw a bright light and thats when God spoke to him. Told him to change his ways. He then became responsible for a big part of the New Testament of the Bible. It could have been God, or a seizure brought on by the fall causing temporal brain damage. The second half of the bible could have been written by someone with brain damage.
There was a kid in the New Testament who fell in fire and water all the time, shook and foamed at the mouth and quickly came to when the demons were released. That what we call a seizure today. I am not saying the story didnt happen but they had no idea about neurological disorders back then. To them it may have seemed like possession.
The Book of Revelations? Come now. You know, authors often prey on a person's fears, fear of the unknown. Only a person a little off could come up with it but it did have its benefits. Its served as a great plot in many many scary movies through time.
More strange stories? David asks Saul to marry his daughter. He agrees but only if he brings Saul 100 foreskins. WHAT? What sort of father in law demands this? And who is desperate enough to do it? I am not sure exactly WHAT the illness is there but its all sorts of messed up.
I think Meatloaf sang about this. I would do anything for love...but I wont do that.
There is a story about a man and his concubine traveling and they stop at a house, the own lets them stay. A mob of men show up at night and demand to have sex with the house guests. He refuses and offers up his virgin daughter instead. ...That seems healthy. But the mob comes back after that and gets the concubine. They left her dead on the porch. The concubines husband came alone and found her. He chopped her up and sent her to the tribes of Israel. She was already a hooker but her husband was offended she was raped. Several shades of wrong.
In Exodus Moses says God mooned him. He said no one could see his face and offered up his "back side" instead. Again Moses is a suspicious character.
Before Shrek or Mister Ed, there was a talking Donkey in the bible. I think he told his master to stop spanking him. I am pretty sure that's where the phrase "I'm going to spank your ass" came from. If it didn't...it should have. People believed the story. I mean....its still in the Bible.
So I guess what I will finish with is that after a lot of soul searching, I can say proudly that you can be devout in your relationship with God and still not buy the bible stories. If any of the above situations should occur to you please seek professional help. It could be God or you might just be crazy. Crazy is okay. God loves crazy, if you don't believe me...READ THE BIBLE!
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