Why do Christians/Catholics choose what to believe in the bible?

Question

Ok lets get this straight, I am an ATHEIST. I am sure that "God" is not real. My parents are catholics though and they tell me that Christians/Catholics should obey everything in the bible right? Well the bible says it's ok to sell your daughter to slavery, anyone who works on Sunday should be put to death, that people will long hair should be ashamed of themselves (which is funny since "Jesus" has long hair), and that we should stay away from women on their period. Don't believe me?
http://bible.cc/1_corinthians/11-14.htm http://bible.cc/exodus/35-2.htm
http://bible.cc/exodus/21-7.htm
http://bible.cc/leviticus/15-19.htm

If you believe it's your "God", and your "God" is infallible, you can't throw out some of the rules just because you don't like them. So why do you Catholics/Christians/Ignorant people pick and choose what to believe in?

Answer 1

Many of them simply do not read the Bible. They don't know that these things exist in the Bible. To tell ya the truth, that was me until 6th grade when I sat down and actually started reading the Bible (I'm now agnostic).

By the way, have you gone to "The Dark Bible" - it's a website that outlines all the darker parts of the Bible people are often unaware of. Google it.

Answer 2

Good secular track is just like secularism--it may be very best in short, it is very shallow, and it may be very needless. However rather, so is countless Christian track this contemporary. Secular track is all approximately guy and his pursuits, and not approximately God. You use your discretion. Some secular monitor is not continually evil, and the additional you learn scripture the less complicated it'll be to recognize what's detrimental and what is not. Apply discernment, now not censorship. The bible does not rather say anything approximately track personal tastes. Horror films are designated. Gazing individuals get slaughtered and tortured isn't rewarding for your brain. It desensitizes you to the horrors of the actual international. Again, the bible says little approximately what you watch however what you position earlier than your eyes performs a function in how you can recall. Sex previous than marriage isn't a grey discipline in Christianity. The bible specfically forbids it. As elaborate as that is to chorus from this contemporary, there is no getting circular it. The bible is seen approximately gay behavior--it is sin. But whoever proficient you that you simply cannot have a gay/lesbian friend is implementing an standpoint upon you that Christ below no situations taught. Christ hung out with all varieties of men and women whose life he did not be given as real with. Prostitutes, tax creditors (who've been close to regarded uncooked sewage by way of utilizing the society of his day), alcoholics, theives, and so forth. I have gay buddies and they know the way I suppose, however I deal with them with admire. They're humans, no bigger or worse then i am. Correctly i have a wide variety of buddies and pals who do matters i do not like, however i am certain that I do matters they do not like both. I wish they might get proper with God, however that's out of my hands. You don't need to be given as real with the whole lot a character does to be their pal--until they are a lunatic and striking others or your self in danger. Recall that. There is a few reality in one of the vital critical issues they proficient you, nevertheless there may be moreover a few nonsense. If you occur to ever wish to speak extra approximately any of this, e mail me. Hope this helped.

Answer 3

Its a very good question.
Back when I was still struggling with my beliefs, I had a debate with a christian. I had been raised extremely religiously and had been having a problem with the inconsistency of the bible.

They then told me that if I believed that the bible was truly the word of god, then I had to believe that ALL of it was the word of god. I couldn't just pick and choose what parts I believed, and what I didn't.

It was really an epiphany for me, I finally stopped feeling bad for doubting the truth of the bible. I told that christian that they were absolutely right. I could no longer go on thinking that the bible was the word of god.

I found it very freeing. I no longer had to bind myself to a 'truth' I didn't agree with and could then explore my options without the guilt I had been raised to have.

I know that the christian's intentions were not to send me away from the church, but that really was for me the final push I needed to get out from under a burdensome dogma.

Answer 4

The Bible can say a lot of primitive things as well as profound. The Bible is only consistent when interpreted by the Spirit-guided Church and in the context of Apostolic Tradition. Otherwise,anything can be justified from the Bible.The Bible was never intended to be isolated from Natural Law, the Church or the Tradition out of which it came.

Answer 5

There is one about hating their family to become his disciple... http://bible.cc/luke/14-26.htm
makes me wonder how can god actually be love since he wants you to hate your family. If you do not you are not allowed to follow him to heaven lmao. Oh boy goes against those that believe god wants everyone to love. Have to love how they "burst your bubble" by telling you to read the bible if you did likely you interpret the wrong way or you need to do research... some how they always win typical. They talk about the biblical times as if they were there to witness it or have a born from the century to tell stories about it.. more to laugh about.

Answer 6

very simply, they believe there is something greater than themselves. Obviously, the only thing great than our own self is mulitply selves. But, they choose the bible as a truth without any credible evidence, because its easier to say that there's an eternal Father like figure who is watching over us then to say that we're subatomic particles under laws of physics. Many Atheists are just as dogmatic as christians though, more so sometimes. They reject without Checking Up, without proof that God doesn't exist. It goes on...

Answer 7

I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming. (John 16:12-13)

The Catholic Church does not use Holy Scripture as the only basis of doctrine. It could not. The early Catholic church existed before and during the time that the New Testament was written (by Catholics).

There were hundreds of Christian writings during the first and second centuries. Which New Testament writings would become official was not fully decided until about 400 AD.

Catholics believe that the Holy Spirit was guiding the early church (and is guiding the church today) to make the correct choices about things like:
+ The Holy Trinity (which is also only hinted at in the Bible)
+ Going to church on Sunday instead of Saturday (which is actually directly against one of the Ten Commandments)
+ The Communion of Saints
+ Which writings include in the New Testament?

Things that are even more modern like
+ Slavery is bad. Slavery is never declared evil in the Bible. This was one of the justifications for slavery in the Confederate States.
+ Democracy is good. The Bible states that either God should be the leader of the nation like Israel before the kings or kings should be the leader, "Give to Caesar that which is Caesar's." This was talked about a lot during the American Revolution.

This second source of doctrine is called Apostolic Tradition.

Do Christians who do not allow the continuing guiding force of the Holy Spirit to make their beliefs more and more perfect, still endorse slavery as Colossians 3:22 commands, "Slaves, obey your human masters in everything"?

Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours. (2 Thessalonians 2:15)

We instruct you, brothers, in the name of (our) Lord Jesus Christ,to shun any brother who conducts himself in a disorderly way and not according to the tradition they received from us. (2 Thessalonians 3:6)

I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold fast to the traditions, just as I handed them on to you. (1 Corinthians 11:2)

With love in Christ.

Answer 8

you make some interesting points here. another good point is that u cant marry that person there because he/she is not christian, and yet god loves all??

why cant i (an atheist cos of the contradictions and general confusions the bible offers, and because of the way that christians treat other religions) be in love with my 'muslim' (also an atheist for similar reasons) girlfreind, who says i cant be with her because she is not christian?

so i said no to this religion and i know im a more open minded person and less confused than i was before.

ps, i have long hair and i work on sundays, oops, death penalty for me is it? but i have love for this world and its people and i genuinly care for the what is good in this world. think again, death penalty for me???
but i am a good person, i do no wrong to others, i respect other people and animals (here is another point, the sacrafice of an animal to cleanse a mans sin), i respect myself. death penalty for me???

Answer 9

what your parents mean is this

believe the word of god, put his word in context from beginning to end to know just what the word of god is. not by selecting verses from one scripture and the other but take it as a whole. as your parents are catholic they and you may enjoy reading "a catholic guide to the bible" by fr. oscar lukefahr c.m your parents as faithful will enjoy it, and for you it will help you understand the culture of the time, something about the author and time period he was writing in, his intended audience and the religious truth that is to be presented. the authors of the old testament were subject to human error but with the inspiration of god were able to portray certain religious truths, these as in every biblical book are what are to be sought after.

try also a catechism and these sites

www.salvationhistory.com
www.scripturecatholic.com
www.catholiceducation.org

catholics don't pick and choose, we go by the bible and we do this in the context of the bible with the fulness of truth christ gave to his church.

Answer 10

Nowhere in the Bible does it say to take itself literally.

The Bible is to be read in context. Some passages are to be taken literally ("Thou Shalt Not Kill" etc.), some metaphorically ("If your eye causes you trouble, gouge it out!"), and some in context to the intended audience. These passages you cite fall under the latter.

I was going to cite a history of development of Christian and Jewish thought on slavery, sacredness of blood, etc., but that is not what you're looking for. Rather, you consider religion in general to be in error and posit your understanding of how we follow (or not) what is in Scripture as proof of your conception.

You are entitled to your perspective, but I tell you we are not ignorant. Ignorance is taking the Bible for what it is not, rather than what it is. If you read Scripture in its context and understand it in its entirety, you find that God's omnipotence (which goes beyond infallibility) does not depend upon our following every law given to the Hebrews 6000 years ago. Later passages in the New Testament (Christian Scriptures) tell Christians that such rules (called "The Law") no longer needed to be followed as regards certain matters of worship (ie, animal sacrifices and adherence to Kashrut dietary laws). Jews likewise have their reasons for no longer sacrificing animals (though I couldn't tell the citations off-hand).

If you have specific questions on certain rules, I am more than happy to respond to them in a private email, provided you ask nicely.