For all non-christians, but Christians may give their opinion on this matter...?

Question

Why do you always ask us Christians not to use the bible or quote scripture when answering your questions? It seems quite ignorant to ask a Christian a biblical question and then expect them not to use the Word of God to defend themselves.

Answer 1

Having been once an atheist myself (although now a devout Christian), I can honestly say that it goes beyond the "Old English" bit (which, BTW- is not Old English, it's Middle English, but I digress).

Let me explain it this way: Try explaining "red" or "blue" to a blind man. You cannot. They don't have the sensory capability to understand it. So you have to explain it in terms of what they do know... "Red" is to "blue" as hot and rough is to cold and smooth. "Red" is the smell of a rose, and "blue" is the smell of blueberries. "Red" is passion, "blue" is calmness. None of those accurately describes red or blue, but in a minimalistic way, portrays what they cannot see into something they know... but fails miserably since that is not what red or blue are.

You see, all atheists know is of what is natural. We know of the supernatural just as much as they know of the natural. They can quantify weight, we can quantify God's presence. They can foretell the weather, we can foretell the end of time. And so on ad nauseum. But since they haven't the senses to comprehend what we do, we are limited to explaining it in terms they can understand. And such, since our abilities to explain the supernatural to a non-Christian are as limited as a sighted person explaining "red" to a blind person, they force us to coming down to their level to explain things, and when we cannot satisfactorily answer (obviously not, since "red" is neither temperature, nor a texture, nor a flower), we tend to get mocked.

Answer 2

I think most people that ask questions on religion are simply trying to illicit a prescribed response or poke you with a stick. They really don't care what you have to say they just want to debate a debatable subject.

As far as quoting from the bible although I am Catholic I never do that for the simple reason it is really only another mortals interpretation of what they think they know and have an opinion of, and since I nor you were there to see it first hand that's all we have to go on now isn't it. Well that and faith.

People that have no faith have a very hard time believing in anything including themselves. They simply live from day to day and try and reduce everything down to 1's and 0's or formulas or theories and are not capable of grasping the concept of faith. They can't function that way because they never learned how and have no interest in it, which is a good thing for us because if everyone believed in God then we would have no place to sit on Sunday.

Answer 3

It is because they feel the book is not valid. So, if you are to validate your religion in some way, then using a book that is seen as invalid means nothing. If someone truly asks a question about the Bible, then an answer from the Bible is acceptable. If someone asks a question about your religion, then they expect you to formulate your own answer based on your own beliefs, NOT to regurgitate some old and worn passage from a book.

Do you understand what I'm trying to say? When people ask you to make an argument in favor of your religion, quoting a book they see as ridiculous immediately invalidates your argument. An example: Q. Why do you believe the Bible is written by God? A. Because the Bible says so. - This is a circular argument.

Answer 4

Actually, on the rare occasion that I DO ask a question, I prefer that Christians back up their, often aggressive, answers with scruipture. I prefer this because 1: the answer makes no sense if it has no basis, and 2: perhaps if the person cannot quote scripture, they may rethink why it is that they are so aggressive about it in the first place.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that ALL Christians are aggressive. Just that the ones that are civil to people of other faiths are too often silent and the ones that are aggressive post too much, often without backing for their opinions.

Answer 5

Because the Bible is not the word of God. He/She did not write it, a group of men wrote it, long before you were born, so how can you know it is all truth? What we mean by asking you not to quote the Bible, is to use other sources of information. As a Witch, I don't use a Book of Shadows, or other Wiccan or Pagan referrence book to support my ideas or beliefs. Faith is in the heart, not a book.

Oh, and just to clarify, I have read the Bible, and parts of the Holy Scriptures, and parts of the Quran. My family on my Grans side were Jewish, my Grandad's were Catholic, my mother is an Atheist and married a Muslim, so I have a very varried knowledge of different religions.

Answer 6

I don't think you should direct this question to non-Christians, but insted to those who have a problem with bible quotes.

As an agnostic individual, I feel like a lot of times people on "yahoo answers" are under the impression that all atheists/agnostics want to challenge other people's beliefs.

I believe that no one should have to defend thier beliefs. Spirtuality is so personal - someone should never have to feel like they're being scrutinized.

Honestly, I don't understand why people get into such deep religious questions on yahoo answers. It seems like most of the time the starting party asks heated questions simply to get a reaction. In which case, the best reaction is to ignore it.

Answer 7

well, many christian answers just cut and paste an entire page of the bible, and thats too much. the other thing is that the bible is not a historical document, in many places, it contradicts itself. look at the story of the last supper, the gospels dont say the same thing about it. one of them says jesus knew he was going to be betrayed, and others say he pointed out the man that would kill him. these were supposedly written by the men that were there. how can they differ so greatly?

the answer - thebible was written by men, and men are flawed. we are not perfect, and the bible teaches this. so, if we're not perfect, how can we write a perfect book? i'm pretty sure if god wanted me to tell all of mankind something, i wouldnt be perfect enough to get it right.

the bible was created originally to be a moral guideline, but eventually it was adopted as a way to control a population. its sad, but its true. and, the bible stories all originate when most ppl couldnt read or write. so, the stories were passed on by word of mouth for hundreds of years, and translated into other languages along the way. theres NO WAY that those stories all stayed the same along the way.

theres lots of other things to point out, but the over all idea here is that even if the bible isnt a historical text, it has a powerful message to many ppl, and helps them enrich their lives. BUT, that does not make the bible the right answer for eveyone. the bible preaches tolerance above all else, but many christians dont allow the room to question and analyze their own beliefs, while instantly dismissing the beliefs of other. its too bad, but all religions are abused by some people.

and, i believe in god, btw. but i cant claim that i have the answers as to how to pray, what religion is the right one. its too bad we cant all just learn to say "what do you believe in? oh, thats cool, tell me about it, and i'll share my beliefs with you if you'd like".

Answer 8

Often Christians use the Bible to answer NON-Biblical questions like "How do you know there is a God" or "Why do you believe the Bible is the Word of God"

When such questions are asked, it is generally by those who DO NOT accept the Bible as a definitive source. They are therefore looking for something else to back up the claims.

Answer 9

I don't ask biblical questions, and so do not welcome biblical or preachy answers, I find it offensive to bring your religion into a subject that is totally un-religious. I am 30 years old, I can make up my own mind about whether or not I need a religion, and if so I will choose that religion myself. I get your point if someone does ask a religious question and then say don't quote scripture, because how are you meant to answer it without showing your reason for your beliefs, but I really do not appreciate religion being brought in to everything.

Answer 10

There is nothing wrong with using the bible to back your position. However, a person who is not convinced that the Bible is truth will need outside evidence in order to evaluate your claim. The Bible will obviously be biased toward the position that you take. For instance, if you claim to be a nice person, and you back it up with "well, my mom says I'm a nice person," then the evidence is suspect. Of course your mom thinks you are nice, but there needs to be evidence outside your family of your niceness in order to substantiate your claim. (I do not doubt that you are a nice person by the way, just an example).

I think if you couple Biblical claims with evidence from outside the Bible as well, your assertions may be met with a better response. Good question.

Answer 11

Well, as a Christian, I think one should be able to make your arguement for god without quoting bible verse. However, referencing events in the bible to prove a point made would be a little different. After all the non Christian would have to provide a source for their answers as well. I am not likely to believe them because they said so any more than they would believe me because I said so.