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

Oh...

I've been looking for something about it, without too much success. I'll carry on and let you know if I find anything.

i second what you are saying Bob Grocer. You are a wise man. And certainly wiser than the man who wrote the article.

I would just like to state that I agree that the post or whatever it is called can't think of name right now, is very biased. I have read through the backlog and have noticed a lot of things I would like to comment on so I will start. Most christians believe in God because they have faith, but most true christians believe in God because God has some how worked in there life. I have had two of these experiences and therefore, I fully believe and have absolutely no doubt that there is a God. Also many people have said that the bible is from folk stories, but actually it was written by men who had gotten a message from God. It actually says somewhere in the Bible that it, the Bible, is God-breathed, written by men from what God had told them. There is also many people saying that there is no historical proof about many things in the Bible, but also there is not proof that didn't happen, so how can you be so sure that it didn't happen. For those of you that need God to show you his miracles to believe, take the time to ask him to show you, because I believe he will. Thanks for your time.
Chauncey

I, for one, have absolute faith in the Invisible Pink Unicorn.

Sure, some say he's Green, and some even say he doesn't exist, but I KNOW he exists.

He has worked many miracles in my life. Yes, some of the things he does for me SEEM to be a result of choices I've made, and sometimes he does things completely opposite of how I wanted them (which just means he loves me and knew better than I did), and sometimes, his actions just appeared to be the result of luck or random chance...but I know that everything that happens to me is because of him. I owe the fact that I have a good life entirely to his blessings.

Whenever something good happens to those who don't believe in the Invisible Pink Unicorn, it's because the Invisible Pink Unicorn is trying to show them that he exists, if only they would open their eyes and see the obvious. The proof of his existence is all around us.

It's sad to me that so many people refuse to see how much happiness the Invisible Pink Unicorn could bring into their lives, if only they would believe. All they have to do is ask, and the Invisible Pink Unicorn will show them, in many ways, that he exists. I guarantee it.

In fact, he told me once, in a vision, that he exists, and that was enough for me. But if some require concrete proof, then please read "The Book of the Invisible Pink Unicorn". It clearly states that it is THE Word of the Invisible Pink Unicorn. What more could anyone ask for?

Where can I read more about this Invisible Pink Unicorn?

(If it's invisible, how can it be pink?? )

Forgive me for what I'm about to say.....

I have no problem with the existence of the Lord or Jesus - I know several Christians whose prayers have indeed helped me in ways I wouldn't have expected. I wouldn't describe myself as "proper" Christian, but equally I'm not atheist.

However, one important point should be remembered. The Bible is not necessarily the word of God. It is the word of men.

Over many centuries the Christian Church has diversified into many differing sects - Catholicism, Protestantism (and the many variations thereof)....... Since Christ's existence, the Bible has been translated and edited by powerful people with a vested interest in making the populations do as they wish - the clergy.

I do not doubt the Bible's historical veracity, but I do doubt the general content. I have heard of the 5th gospel's "eradication" from the Bible, so clearly some "editing for tone" went on in the intervening millenia. Therefore I find it hard to believe that a few laws weren't added here and there to subdue the populace.

As a complete ignoramus, I would like to share my favorite Biblical quote. John 8:44. Gotta love the direct quotes from Jesus. There's a man who didn't mince words, and was destined to pay the price. It's nice to imagine he might have been thinking of us when he did it. The jury it still out though, until such time as all those vehicles with the bumper stickers suddenly become unmanned. (Don't make me explain that)

With the laying with brothers and sisters it was allowed back then but after they formed a nation they no longer needed to lay with each other so God made the law against it.

But isn't it very important for Christian doctrine that Adam and Eve were the only two humans around?

This is because there is only one garden of eden (isn't there?)...and so, only one Tree of Knowledge.

I understand that the only reason we need to be "saved" from eternal damnnation is that A+E ate from the tree, thus giving us an ability to sin, and a need to be saved.

If there were a load of other people around at the time, then their descendants must be sinless. Yippee!

Unless of course, Cain managed to somehow impregnate the entire female population alive at the time, in which case either
a) he must have been a randy so-and-so or
b) she must have been jolly lonely.

Just my thoughts!

Cheers

Will

'Nuff said!

Last time I checked Adam and Eve were the only humans on the Earth while they lived in Eden. So that would mean that they most likely did not have any kids until after they were kicked out of Eden. Therefore there kids were no where near the tree or Eden.
Chauncey

Or at least, the only /conscious/ humans...

- Jordan

I think the first bit is a little miss leading. Islam does see the bible as a holy book but not to the same extent to the others and they do not follow it.

Adib

In or around 1980, James Hydrick fooled the world into believing that he had psychic powers. He was filmed turning the pages of a telephone directory, seemingly by the "power of his mind". Hydrick achieved a considerable amount of fame (and cash) from performing these feats. More interestingly, he set himself up as a 'teacher' and took paying 'followers' through a series of quasi-martial arts exercises aimed at helping them develop their minds.

It was later proved (through televised confrontational demonstration) that Hydrick was a fraud who performed his feats by expelling an extremely thin jet of air from his mouth. He was literally blowing the pages.

My point is that if, in this apparently enlightened day and age, the public can be taken in by such a simple confidence trick, then why not thousands of years ago? The uneducated people see something that they can't explain (be it a con trick or just a fluke of nature) and in the telling and retelling it gets blown up into this great miraculous occurrence.

Jesus may well have existed; he may even have been a great man who preached a great number of wonderful ideas. I just cannot believe these accounts of 'miracles' and, until I see evidence of such a thing, I never will.

The argument that we cannot DISprove such events is not very swaying and the standard Xtian argument that we have proof because the Bible says so is laughable in the extreme.

Anyway, that's my 2 cents. I'm off to the pub.

Cheers

You hit one of the problems with christianity there Sir Miles.
But In Islam we believe that it was not a tree of knowledge and secondly more importantly that Eve and Adam repented and was forgiven and so there off spring (us) are free from sin when we are born.
The same way that a bad persons child does not have to make up for his Farthers/Mothers miss deeds.

Adib

"...and the standard Xtian argument that we have proof because the Bible says so is laughable in the extreme."

A lot of people put words in the mouths of Christians. That's because they just /wish/ we'd all say them, so that they can laugh smugly and go home thinking 'what a load of tossers.'

When you say 'standard,' do you mean 'often used by' or 'often attributed to'?

- Jordan

Jesus (pbuh) did exist and he was a messanger of God and did perform miracles. The proff to that for a believing person is to be found in the Bible and the Quran. A none believer may laugh at them but they do not realise they are blind to the truth.
The bible started out as God's word but over time people changed it and so know yes it has errors but it still brings people to worship the one true God. That is what is important.

Adib

Well. The concept of 'original sin' is one that a lot of divisions of Christianity adhere to. However, a good number (most?) of them also believe that Jesus paid for that. And some of us even think that it's a pretty ephemeral concept at best (shock horror! ) and that (a) it doesn't exist, or (b) it's really a representation of the 'unproven' state - that is, you haven't sinned but you haven't actually been properly tempted yet - or even (c) it's there, but it's more sort of an indication of man's natural inclination to run contrary to God's way when tempted. So not everyone thinks original sin is all it's cut out to be!

Oh, and apologies if my last post sounded a bit terse - I was riding out on the edge of a wavelet of anger (in part unrelated to h2g2), which has now diminished somewhat.

- Jordan

I agree that sometimes the bible seems to contradict itself. but one of the main reasons for this is human error. copies ofthe bible originally had to be written by hand and so typos were made. In addition ancient hebrew is difficult to translate accurately especially as places were often named differently to how they're named today. Not only this but some of the words for numbers meant more than one number. to make an example up her. the word hoojob could have meant 'a few' (which would be ambiguous anyway) or 'a thousand'. as stories were passed down by word of mouth (which also leaves room for error and exagerations) it would be assumed that the way it was told would show which number hoojob represented. unfortunately there is no room for gestures and voice tone in writting so we are left in the dark as to what the figures were. Most of teh contradictions are figures anyway and i don't personally think it matters how many people defeated various kings etc it is the story and what it portrays that is the important part.

That's exactly what I'm talking about!

How can the proof of something be that someone wrote a book about it?

You don't believe in Noddy do you? Or, to step aside from fiction, what about the Hitler Diaries? They were alleged to be the actual writings of Hitler, the world went crazy about them even though they were rather implausible and then they were proved to be fake...

Now the Bible is alleged to an accurate account of events from the dawn of time onwards, the world has gone crazy about it even though it seems rather implausible...

I cannot accept the Bible as proof of the existence of God or as proof of any of these bizarre events having actually occurred.

Sorry.