By sorting data in different ways (or quotes in Bibles' cases) you can easily support any claim you like. There are so many vague quotations in any religious text that are open to interpretation, that it is logically difficult to state any claim based on any Bible definitively. Two Bible scholars may see a similar quote in different contexts and yet claim the Bible means the same thing across the board.
As an example, Catholics and Jewish people use the same book to say (albeit very similar) different things. My question, how do logical religious scholars rationalize this?
2006-08-31 03:11:06 · 4 answers · asked by Timmy G 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
devilsadvoct. Didn't mean to offend any statisticians in here! But what I'm saying is, numbers can be gathered, sorted, put into matrices and generally manipulated in ways that can create desired effects, without lying about the numbers themselves. Example, politicians gather polling statistics from specific areas of the country to bolster their constituents into believing they are succeeding. Math itself is a rule-based, static science, but can be fluidly utilized.
2006-08-31 03:27:05 · update #1
yes, that's right. that's why you cannot pick the bible apart. you have to take it in its entirety, and why there's actually a verse at the end warning against taking parts out... catholics and jews do not use the same book. the O.T., which is the law jews follow, is not a rule book for catholics. it's a book of stories. (catholics also include more in their O.T. than others) anyway, the N.T. offers doctrine in Christ's teachings. it's all about Christ for the Christians. we do not follow the same as the jews.
2006-08-31 03:21:36 · answer #1 · answered by practicalwizard 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Whoa there on the statistics thing.
I'm something of a statistician myself and take exception to that.
Statistics don't lie. People lie by misinterpreting statistics.
Classic example:
There is a strong positive correlation between the monetary damage done in a fire and the number of firefighters who respond to the fire.
Some people would make the mistake of concluding that it is better for FEWER firefighters to show up at a fire based on this.
Of course, this is confounded with the *severity* of the fire, which leads both to more damage and more firefighters showing up.
So what was tha problem?
Did the statistics lie?
No. The positive correlation is completely valid
The person interpreting the statistics make a mistake in their logic.
Sorry, but as you can probably tell you poked one of my pet peeves! ;)
Not to sound like the NRA, but:
Statistics don't lie. People do.
2006-08-31 10:22:14 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You've got a strong point here, and an excellent question.
Are there any serious religious scholars in the house?
2006-08-31 10:19:14 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Statistics is based on real world data.
2006-08-31 10:14:27 · answer #4 · answered by bonzo the tap dancing chimp 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋