h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Help!

Rather than clutter up the QOTD thread (which I've already helped to do - ) any further, I'll ask here...

It goes something like this:

"All the ills of the world pale into insignificance beside the mote in one's own eye"


Rod

Matthew 7;3 the Standard Bibie

What's a mote?

it's like a speck (as in "speck of dust") isn't it? I'm sure there's another thing in the bible about seeing motes in other people's eyes and ignoring the plank in your own?

Bit difficult to see with a plank in ones eye don't you think?

Still what do you expect from the people gave you firmaments made of water, the earth fixed in space, and women made of ribs.

the plank/mote eye one is good though - it's kind of a glass houses/throwing stones thing

" what do you expect from the people gave you firmaments made of water, the earth fixed in space, and women made of ribs" [tucuxii]



That, plus an enormous electric bill when god said "let there be light."

I bet the deity got ribbed a lot when the other deities heard about Eve.

" what do you expect from the people gave you firmaments made of water, the earth fixed in space, and women made of ribs" [tucuxii]

What people might that be

The people who imagined the events of Genesis were long dead by the time Matthew was written. The people responsible for Matthew were also long dead when the committee that decided which new testament books should be part of the canon were weighing in. They then required the destruction of everything that didn't make the cut, not knowing that dozens of such texts had been buried in sand in Nag Hammadi by disobedient monks, not to be rediscovered until 1945. Modern scholars have those plus the so-called Dead Sea Scrolls to aid them in figuring out what went down in the First Century.

I would feel sorry for Jesus if he or his disciples came back to Earth and saw what had been done in his/their name. Chances are, many of the self-styled fundamentalists would refuse to believe that he was who he was.

Some people have less chance of reaching enlightenment than a camel being forced through a knitting needle or something

Of course to be sure we need to examine the originals, understand the language, understand the figure of speeches, understand the context, and understand who it was intended for (e.g. bedtime stories for children) etc. It's like every person has two humps one in the front with your neighbours faults innit and one in the back containing their own faults and the dead camel. You can see the faults of your neighbours in the sack in front but cannot see the plank in the sack in your behind.

Probably easier to get a knitting needle through a camel than the other way around.

>>Some people have less chance of reaching enlightenment than a camel being forced through a knitting needle or something<<

As I always say to the Jehovahs, Mormons etc. that come knocking at my door I do not think a belief that one is created in the image of perfect all powerful all knowing being that takes a personal interest in ones insignificant hum drum life and promises an eternity of bliss to you while damning people who do not agree with you to an eternity of torment is conducive with the humility necessary for spiritual development.

Funnily enough they never come back, not even the one who railed against Darwin and claimed there was no "missing link" between antelope and giraffe who I helpfully showed a picture of an okapi.

It is possible to get a camel through the needles eye, any one else know how?

Supposedly the eye of the needle was the name of a narrow gate in Jerusalem's city walls

well done

Oh, so it's not anything to do with the Isle of Wight, then?

No though the needles lost a bit a few years ago it thankfully did not go through the eye of a camel.

How's the weather thunder storms

....and Old Harry lost all his children and half his wife

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fsupexplorer.co.uk%2Fsup-knoll-beach-to-old-harry-rock-uk%2Fold-harry-rocks-aerial-view-b%2F&h=0&w=0&tbnid=zGIpkXBIeZ7tJM&zoom=1&tbnh=168&tbnw=300&docid=Cc9oZtStie496M&tbm=isch&ei=mcrWU7TyJYHVPIvHgfgO&ved=0CAgQsCUoAg

Thank'ee, thankee all

but - that mote & plank quote from Matthew isn't the one I was looking for ...

it's definitely about the ills/evils/... of the world being small when measured against one's own (minor) discomfort

Unless, of course, you're going to credit me with creating a new quote?
(where do I apply for international recognition?)