why do religious books like bible, gita, quran etc contain contradicting verses?

Question

is it only the lay persons like me who think so..do religious leaders feel everything is very clear and there is only one message?

Answer 1

Yes,all books contained contradicting verses,some are blatant,some are composed by man so we can not expect it to be perfect and some are genuine contradiction with purpose.

Our lack of understanding in some concepts can also cause contradictions.So make sure you are thorough in your reading,asked question to the experts.Ask the right person.

Answer 2

well, you can make any number of arguments with such large books. What's a contradiction for you may be absolute truth and certainty for someone else.
Also, the Bible was written by many people. They all have different opinions, none of which are necessarily wrong. Jesus said, Do unto others as you would them do unto you. Someone in the old Testament said, an eye for an eye. Two different philosophies, but both good.

As for the actual stories (like floods and whatnot), I don't think there are too many contradictions. They're just a little silly.

Gita? I'm not even sure what that is. lol.

The Koran... I've never actually read the Koran, but if there are contradictions, you can take up with one of 2 people. 1) Mohhamed 2)the angel who supposedly possessed him.

Answer 3

Only the books besides the Bible contain contradictions. The evidence that the Bible is True and these other books are false is that the Bible contains no contradictions while these other books are full of them. The other books contain contradictions because they are man made. The religious leaders of these other books are blinded and think they have the clear unified Truth.

Answer 4

You have posed a very good question!!!

Actually if a religious book is indeed GOD's word, then there can be no error in it. Why??? Simply because GOD has created religion (a way of life) and GOD created Science. GOD alone knows the future, therefore if a Book is really GOD's word, then it can nver contradict with established scientific facts, not even by 0.0001%

Yet The Bible, Vedas, Zend Avesta etc etc contradict with modern science. WHY???

Its because they were Books that were sent by GOD only for a limited period of time. As time passed, they got corrupted by people. thats why they have many errors.

Unlike the Quran it is 100% compatible with Science.
Check for yourself at www.islam-guide.com

And watch the video: "The Bible and Quran in the Light of Science"
A talk by Dr. Zakir Naik - An expert on comparative religion studies; available at www.irf.net

Answer 5

They were written by humans, not gods, and not even the smartest humans, at that. Some morons have the nerve to claim that their pet sacred books have no contradictions. One must be incredibly naive to say such a thing. Believers want to believe so badly that they glibly deny anything that would make them question their beliefs. I took Bible in college, and my textbook listed contradictions in the Bible, e.g. the earliest account of David's census says God inspired it, but parts written after the Persian Captivity blame the Satan. Hebrews didn't have Lucifer, until they borrowed him from Zoroaster of Persia who invented a divine war between good Ahuramazda and evil Ahriman. A serpent tempts Eve in Genesis,and God hardens the pharoah's heart in Exodus. If these parts had been rewritten, the Satan would tempt Eve and harden Pharoah's heart. A book Billy Graham gave me lists more contradictions in the Bible and tries to explain them glibly. Judas dies by hanging and by falling in the Bible. Both cannot be true, obviously. Both books mentioned list many contradictions. If anyone glibly tries to explain them, it soon becomes apparent to anyone awake that the explanations are overly-contrived and collapse under the sheer weight of idiocy.

Answer 6

Mostly context, but difference of authors, particularly in the Bible (due to several authors). And also time, some books in the Bible, and verses in the Koran were "written" before others.

Typically, in the Koran, the newer verses are more binding than the older ones. Particularly in the right and wrong bit.

Answer 7

i do not know about other books but i am sure there must be contradicting verses in them coz they were changed so many times, by different ppl,in different eras.
about Quran i am sure that it is still present in its original shape and writing and not even the punctuations could ever be changed by any one. there wont be any contradicting verses in it but if we find something, thats may be only in our view and due to our narrow approach & lack of knowledge about the circumsantces when they were revealed. we just see one side of the picture, our view is not as broad as God's. HE could see and foresee what we can not. the things that He said in His book is not for a single man, not for a particular nation and not for a limited time period. they are universal and valid in all times, to all humans on earth. so contradiction is between our way of thinking and God's way of thinking.

Answer 8

because nothing is absolute, everything is related with certain conditions that would be mentioned in verses before or after the verse that may sound contradicting to you
you souldnt deal with a verse (in Quran at least) as a single absolute entity, the whole Quran completes the way of life of a muslim

Answer 9

The Bible dosen't have contradictive words, its only what men make out from taking verses out of context.

Answer 10

i can't answer for the other books, but it would make sense if it was for the same reason. the bible was written at different times for different kinds of people. matthew, mark, luke, and john are all essentially the same story (jesus' life) but are totally different. when you are trying to lead people you manipulate your story to fit their beiefs better. that's why the stories are different.

a more recent example of changing religion to suit people of a certain area is how hugely popular mary is with mexicans (yes, i am saying mexicans because i specifically mean people from mexico, not to be slanderous). dogma states that she is not to be worshiped, but essentially in mexico she is at the same level as god. and it's accepted because that's how christians spread. they adapt to the region.