Is the Bible?

Question

The biggest stumbling block for the true emancipation of women and gay people?

To all the Christians who gave Bassamsa a thumbs down, does your hatred of any religion different to your own override the Bibles teachings about tolerance. Could there ever be any hope for Peace without learning to tolerate others beliefs? In case you are interested, I may or may not take a look at this site, after all, knowlege is power, but I'm a confirmed athesist, I feel I've seen the light. How long before someone states I'm a terriost?

cdavis99...well put my friend.

I'm British, and there is more to it than legalities

Interesting answer froggy, I'll check him out, thanks

Answer 1

Wow! That REALLY brought them out from under their rocks, waving their little books and screaming hate.

The process seems to be:

1) Decide you don't like X
2) Rummage through the Bible or a Concordance until you find a slightly apposite negative reference or two - not hard in a grab-bag of millions of vague little messages.
3) Declare (and believe) that God supports your position.
4) Condemn anyone who disagrees as a Bible Denier, a hater of Christians and destined for Hellfire.
5) Feel better about yourself.

It's disgusting. These people are beyond real redemption as human beings.

CD

Answer 2

The hierarchical structures of religious organisations (not just christian) dictate that women are unquestionably inferior to men and that attitude has bled into secular culture almost to the extent of becoming an element of universal consciousness. The OT is an integral part of all three major world religions, including Islamic, and so, YES, as far as women are concerned, it is the biggest stumbling block to emancipation and will remain so until the 'trend' of unquestioning tolerance and respect of religious beliefs is abandoned by society.

Society is closer to achieving that goal than one might think. Already, respect and tolerance of OTHER religious beliefs is commonly rejected by religios of all kinds. All that's needed is a cure for religious autism.

The homosexual thing is different. I don't think religion is the biggest block to gay emancipation. There is a natural, instinctual stigma attached to that issue which needs awareness and some education to overcome. Once people realise it is no more of a perverted choice to be gay than it is to be straight, then the stigma, mostly, falls away.

Bassamsaif is a scummy little spammer and everyone should not only thumbs down his answer but report it as abuse. Click his profile and check his other answers. They're all the same irrelevant spam. - Report them, too.

Answer 3

If you understand when the book was written its quite understandable.

Lets face it, it has only been in the last 60 years that some of these issues have been even attempted to be righted. For people to be taking the bible in its literal text rather than a series of parable-type lessons then it will always cause trouble for those that at the time of writing were down-trodden and made to feel menial. I wont get into the contradictions inside the lessons on that (as the previous poster says), suffice to say that I do not think the bible would have been written the same way today.

Answer 4

The thumbs down to Bassamsa may be because of hypocrisy. Islam is much more severe towards gays than Christianity. After all you are not likely to get stoned until you are dead for being gay in the West, but that is so in some Mohammedan countries; the ones holding most firmly to Sharia law.

Certainly gay sexual activity is forbidden in the Old Jewish Covenant, and will seriously damage your fellowship with God if you a christian in the New (Jew and non-Jew)Covenant. God is pure; Christ does provide forgiveness, but fellowship with Christ depends on gradual progressive response to the Holy Spirit convicting us of sins. For this reason leadership positions according to some of the epistles should not be given to homosexuals.

Actually society is not christian ruled, and so I guess if a society wants to enact laws making gay marriage etc legal, thats OK. But God probably won't regard it as marriage imo. The individuals concerned may of course be progressing in their faith in other areas, but the sex issue will block them from the best God has for them - it is regarded as a sin in the New Testament.

Certainly in the UK the churches do not have the power to block such changes. In the past people used to think gay sex was disgusting for religious and other reasons. I guess if the cultural view is that it is acceptable, laws can certainly be changed. God's view is of course different from men's.

Answer 5

Only in America, hun.

In the UK gay/lesbian marriages are legal (civil ceremonies - not religious ceremonies). But this gives them the same LEGAL rights of heterosexual couples. Women are, in law, equal to men and have the same rights also.

Also, although I am NOT christian, I have to say that the christians in the UK are more tolerant of each other and other beliefs. There is very little of the bitching and backbiting. In fact it seems a lot of them are pooling resources (with other faiths too) to help sort out the REAL problems of the world, like hunger, poverty and extremism.

Blessed Be

Answer 6

I'd say people's preexisting prejudices are that stumbling block. If it wasn't the Bible, they'd blame "tradition" or their "gut instinct" or just that they feel like it.

You could convert the whole planet to Bokonism tomorrow and some idiots would still think women were automatically inferior and that Gays need to be kept down etcetera.

There's plenty of Atheists who are still creeps.

Answer 7

As Jesus did so much to emancipate women from the hypocrisy of the day it's odd you wouldn't know this already, so my guess is that you are looking for support by claiming that both women and gays are victimised in the bible.

Not only did Jesus do alot for the emancipation of women, he also is the only true emancipation for so called gays; as the gay movement is a form of spiritual and emotional slavery I'd suggest you really liberate yourself and get some love from heaven rather than let the next person you meet in a bar abuse you and spin a load of duff politics your way just to keep you in the dark. If you really stood up for yourself then you'ld realise how degrading your own politics are.

Answer 8

Yes, but sadly it is the way that any religious book is interpreted by a human being that creates the stumbling block for women and gay people!

Answer 9

It's what's in the Bible but it's the people who swear by that book who are the stumbling blocks

Answer 10

No, I don't think so.I think that the bible is the best excuse that people can come up with to oppose equality for everyone...but I don't think that it is the major stumbling block..I think that they would find alternate reasons. BTW good question.