the bible -- fiction or nonfiction?

Question

now, i am a young atheist, and i may not have enough proof or research to back up what i ask, but this was just a thought that came across my mind. i have never read the bible, i don't know exactly what it says, but has it ever occured to any of you that maybe the bible was just meant to be a book? a book that people read and fascinate over such as any other book? but maybe somewhere down the line, people took a deep belief in it and people started to believe in everything the book said. i'm not saying that did happen, but what if it did? then all of this 'discrimination of religion' was all nonsense. that was just a thought that came into my mind. feel free to discuss about it, but please try not to bash other people or me. thank you.

Answer 1

A bit of both, really.
There are historical bits about the Hebrew people (keeping in mind that the histories that survive are usually told from a point of view of success) and there are mythic/religious aspects - the codification of individual search for meaning. There is also a political intent, and an aspect of social control.

Answer 2

The idea that all revealed truth is to be found in "66 books" is not only not in Scripture, it is contradicted by Scripture (1 Corinthians 11:2, 2 Thessalonians 2:15, 2 Thessalonians 3:6, 1 Timothy 3:15, 2 Peter 1:20-21, 2 Peter 3:16). It is a concept unheard of in the Old Testament, where the authority of those who sat on the Chair of Moses (Matthew 23:2-3) existed. In addition to this, for 400 years, there was no defined canon of "Sacred Scripture" aside from the Old Testament; there was no "New Testament"; there was only Tradition and non-canonical books and letters.




Protestants claim the Bible is the only rule of faith, meaning that it contains all of the material one needs for theology and that this material is sufficiently clear that one does not need apostolic tradition or the Church’s magisterium (teaching authority) to help one understand it. In the Protestant view, the whole of Christian truth is found within the Bible’s pages. Anything extraneous to the Bible is simply non-authoritative, unnecessary, or wrong—and may well hinder one in coming to God.

Catholics, on the other hand, recognize that the Bible does not endorse this view and that, in fact, it is repudiated in Scripture. The true "rule of faith"—as expressed in the Bible itself—is Scripture plus apostolic tradition, as manifested in the living teaching authority of the Catholic Church, to which were entrusted the oral teachings of Jesus and the apostles, along with the authority to interpret Scripture correctly.

Answer 3

I agree with u cause I'm an atheist too but u know the bible was not written by Jeasus it was written by some other people thats why there's diffrent kinds of it so its completely a fiction story about God or sth but u know some people really needed that and already need it because they cannot define the life into matterialist and cannot undrestand if there is no Adam & Eve how did the monkeys changed into human in a snap.
Also in the past (evan now) most of the people need to have a religion because if they don't u know what would happen? U will have the planet exploded by being evil because there is no paradise to appreciate them. LOL.
But our duty in this world is much harder cause we don't belong to that God and as we know everything will be ended being good is too hard but when there is a will there is a way.

I really like finding friends in my beliefs but unfortunately I don't have. so if u like to be my friend just send an e-mail I will be relieved talking to someone who knows what I' talking about.
Contact me here: [e-mail] Thanx.
Hope to see u.

Answer 4

Fair enough question. I have and still do read the Bible and there are some parts of it that I can say without a doubt that History proves that events in the Bible happened. Then there are things that I just don't know and can't prove. There may never be a way of proving everything in the Bible. I guess it is same as other historical and mythological books. Take the Illiad for example. The Greeks believed those books for years. We don't know for sure if there ever was a Helen of Troy or a Trojan horse. History and religion books change through the centuries too. Perspectives change also.

Answer 5

Hi, I promise not to bash anyone as this is a very honest question. The writers of the bible pretty much answered it when they said that they were "given the message" by the holy spirit and wrote as being directed by God. When I became a Christian and started reading the bible, what really impressed me was first how relevant it is even today when the earliest writings are almost 4,000 years old and secondly some of what was written almost 3500 years ago gives us information that has only recently been confirmed by recent science/technology in the past 100 years. I asked myself, how could these writers (especially the book of Job) have known these things unless spiritually given. The bible is so powerful and has changed multitudes of lives and you can read it over and over and each time you will pick up something new. There is no other book like it in the world. Of course, the bible also says that the "natural" man can not understand spiritual things and only those who have been given the Holy Spirit and their eyes have been opened and their ears can now hear will understand the things of God. It is a gift. I'm sorry that you have chosen atheism but hopefully in your quest in life you will give God and his wonderful gift of eternal life a chance. What does anyone have to lose and they have so much to gain.

Answer 6

There is definately some history in the Bible, but it is also a story. It is a story written by many different people at many different times, changed and translated throught the ages. It was also written in a historical context so that it was not aimed at an audience reading it 2000 years later... but still there is much that people reading it today can take from it... i would especially recomend that you try to read the words that Jesus actually spoke (from the New Testament)... he was a kind and good man.

My belief is that the bible was mainly written in a metaphorical sense. Meaning that it was written as a story to get a message across. I think that if we all took the whole of the bible literally, then we'd all be in a lot of trouble. I believe that there is good stuff in the bible, but some of it is utter nonsense... i could give you plenty of quotes, but you only have to open a page and have a look.
To take the bible literally and to believe it word for word is missing the point of it. It tells a story, like any book, and you can take from it what is useful for you and leave what is not useful. We can take from it what we find helps us in our own lives.

Althought i do not call myself a Christian (and i am anti-religious), i personnally think that Jesus was a deeply inspiring prophet. He was filled with love and compassion; and he embraced everyone, no matter their background; he helped heal people and accepted people and he spread a message of love and peace. He was obviously a great man, and i take alot of comfort and strength from his words & actions. (It seems to be very likely that there was a wise prophet called Jesus, but even if the bible is totally made-up, then i still find his story totally inspiring.) It is not his fault that people throughout history, and still to this day, have taken his name and corrupted it and used it to promote their own biggoted and corrupts beliefs, their own pursuit of power and their own hateful messages. These are all the opposite of the message that Jesus gave.

Here is a short extract from the book 'The God Delusion' by Richard Dawkins... have a look at it... it's extremely interesting and shows you exactly why the bible shouldn't be taken literally...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/ne...

Answer 7

You say you are an atheist. Why are you asking about the Bible if you are so sure you are an atheist. In order to formulate opinions, and make EDUCATED decisions about such philosophical questions, don't you think that you should at least read it for yourself? You also say that you are young. It's a shame for a young person to be so close minded. Read the book first, then decide.

Answer 8

The bible wasn't created to be JUST A BOOK. 363CE Council of Laodicea names 26 New Testament books as "inspired word of God"; Book of Revelation is excluded. The council looked at the 28 gospels that were in current circulation and over 2400 'testaments of faith' used by the various 'denominations' of the time period. The bishops ONLY chose the 'books' that suited THEIR orthodox view of what christianity was SUPPOSED to be based on the Pauline terminologies. Hehheee THEN the catholics spent the next several centuries trying to rid the world of the scriptures that they didn't choose. Its only in the 20th century that many of such texts have been found and again circulated to the masses.

The ONLY bash I might say to you is prehaps you might want to know something about what you are introducing a topic on---unless this is how you are looking to learn--then kudos..LA LA

Answer 9

I had a long conversation about this one day with my dad who believes whole-heartedly in the bible. Basically, I think it is akin to a history book much like one you get in school. It's an account of the past by people who interpreted the events of the time in their own words, edited and filtered by those in power at the time. Since none of us were around and there were no video cameras or other definitive recording devices, it is a matter of chosing to believe a particular version of history as written by a group of men.

Answer 10

i am a christian, but i do believe the bible, the church, and the leaders of the church aren't 100% "accurate."

here's my biggest thing lately. i'm bisexual & have gotten into my first real, serious relationship with a guy. now, the bible/church tells me i'm sinning just because i do "homosexual" stuff. BUT, in my mind, there's no reason for God to suddenly just stop loving me, because i'm still the same person i always was. plus, if you do read many of the laws in Deuteronomy Leviticus etc., many arent' applicable anymore.

my final word is always "the Bible was written by man, NOT God."

especially the old testament. Jesus wasn't even on earth yet. who knows... people are people. they see something bad, different... they shy away from it. like gay sex, bestiality (please note, i'm NOT relating the two...lol) and whatnot.

sorry if that doesn't make much sense, but its what i believe. & yes, descrimination between religions IS nonsense. the jews, muslims, hindus, christians, shintos, whatever! no one has any right to say that one is better than the other.

we can only do our best here on earth and let GOD do the deciding, not MAN.

=]

Answer 11

The bible falls right in the middle. There's no fiction or non-fiction book which asks you to have faith in what it says. Fiction books don't claim to be fact, and don't give any proof for what they say; non-fiction books guarantee to be fact, and offer proof for everything they say. The bible is what it is because it does not try to prove anything, it only asks for faith.

I'm agnostic, and I haven't read every word of the bible myself, but I'm pretty sure that's where it falls in the fiction/non-fiction spectrum.