Atheists: how many times have you read the Bible?

Question

Have you studied it in detail?

I find it cute how Christians here often reference me to the Bible, while clearly showing ignorance of basic theology, soteriology, etc.

I cheated, I was an evangelical for a few years in college. I've read the whole Bible a few times (even the profoundly boring bits, like Numbers and everything from Isiah to the NT), sentence diagrammed my way through the NT looking up almost every word in the original Greek for cultural context, and own perhaps a dozen translations, commentaries, etc.

I smile every time someone asks me "have I read the Bible" and proceeds to tell me "you will believe in God if you do."

I have a faint suspicion the average atheist has read the Bible more than the average Christian.

Answer 1

don't believe in god.
was going to read the bible but figured whats the point, it has being completely altered in translation and over time.
like the idea of reading two versions side by side.

Answer 2

Not being ether atheist or christian but an observer in the ever ongoing battle and a survivor of fundamental christianity... I agree with you good Sir.

Christians seem to think that reading the bible is the answer to every question man ever asked. Reading the bible usually got me in trouble in classes at my baptist bible college. Not because i was reading in class but because i would ask questions that teachers couldn't answer.

To give an example... If science supports the bible(christians claim that it dose) what is the scientific formula for turning water into wine, without touching it. And if Jesus did it why can we not replicate this in the 21st century with all of our scientific instruments? They loved that one... my science teacher turned an interesting shade of red trying to answer it.

I wanted an interesting form of proof... I wanted the bible made into reality. No one can prove it is true, no one can prove its not. I chose not to believe based on the fact that most christians are bigots and racists. If you want proof of that look at history. The council of Nicea, the Spanish Inquisition, the Salem Witch Trials... the list goes on and on.

Answer 3

Many times. I've memorized books of the bible. Taught classes in various things at my church. I translated the koine greek while in bible school. We'll have to talk because I did that sentence diagraming thing too! (See my blog! Oh the pain of Hermenutics).

IT was a studying the bible that made me be an athiest!

Answer 4

Not only the Bible (KJV), but the Bhagavhad Gita and Koran as well. Christian professing bible readers typically gets their dose from what their preachers want them to read. And then there's Daily Bread and Bible for Dummies.

Answer 5

20 times, 12 of those while I was still a believer, 8 afterwards, only counting cover-to-cover readings. KJV, NIV, NASB, including the Deuterocanonicals.

Including partial references, probably hundreds.

Also was working on a degree in Biblical Studies through the local Catholic Dioscese.

Oh yes, I've read it.

Answer 6

Many times... not all the way through in order of front to back but quite a bit in detail. I don't know everything by any means and often cannot quote scripture (I have no real need to) but I know some facts.

Answer 7

Three or Four times. I mostly use an internet version of the Bible, when I make references to verses here on Yahoo Answers. It's easier to search.

Answer 8

I've read the entire Bible once through, and most of the more interesting books several times.


There are parts that aren't worth reading anymore, but there are also parts that are still entertaing, like Genesis.

Answer 9

I've read the Bible and I continue to read the Bible.

Reading the Bible does not make you believe in God. Instead it does quite the opposite. (Which is why for hundreds of years the Catholic Church prohibited the Bible from being translated into a language that people could understand.)

Answer 10

I'm not "atheist", but reading the bible once and spending lots of time in bible study and seminary made me realize that Christianity wasn't true.

Answer 11

Bits and pieces my whole life - mostly the more popular stuff (y'know, Genesis, Exodus, MML&J, Revelations). I've probably covered the entire thing 2 or 3 times, all in all.