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

That's the one. Anybody keep the QI clip handy?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Snc5AOYt1Ak

Here you go.

This one?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSm7YPMQOSo

I would be quite interested to hear a Christian rebuttal.

None of the passages quoted by SWL mean much. If you are a slave or servant, this is how you should behave. Ones directed at slave-owners would be more to the point.

TRiG.

Popular clip!

Oh really!

What kind of God exhorts you to be scared of your boss and treat your owner with the same respect as God?

What kind of God tells you that living a life of fear is ok? The same God that preaches all men are brothers?

If it's the new testament it's nothing to do with god - I would imagine the slave caveat would be in response to slave owners saying something along the lines of "Oi! Our slaves are getting uppity since they've got a direct line to a new lord and master - have a word will you!"

So rather than saying 'No, sorry, can't do that, all men are brothers and keeping slaves is wrong', the great and the good responsible for the New Testament put in a couple of clauses designed to keep down the workers?

Nice. Raises some questions about the polirical and social standing of these mouthpieces for the Abrahamic God, but doesn't really rebut the point, does it?

Hi Blues Shark -

"So rather than saying 'No, sorry, can't do that, all men are brothers and keeping slaves is wrong', the great and the good responsible for the New Testament put in a couple of clauses designed to keep down the workers?

Nice. Raises some questions about the polirical and social standing of these mouthpieces for the Abrahamic God, but doesn't really rebut the point, does it?"

It wasn't meant to - I think you may have mistaken me for an apologist - I have no god or religion myself, I was just trying to point out how books of law end up being written (as if I need to tell you). Emperor Constantine was largely resposible for the format of the New Testament, and deciding which gospels were included - as the boss of the second biggest empire at the time, you'd hardly expect him to allow anyone to legislate against slave ownership in one of his own documents!

Oh I agree. I was probably paraphrasing, rather than disagreeing, in my own clumsy way.

My point really was that as guide to ife the Bible is pretty...anachronistic, as well as loaded with a horde of social and political baggage that we can't be aware of of 2000 years later - not eating pork in ancient palestine probably made sense given the parasites it can carry. It's of little practical use as an injunction now because we can ensure we cook the stuff properly

True - if it, as a body of text, had just been dicovered and translated I doubt many people would think it was a relevant document for use as a guide to 21st century living.

WJH - Just recycling my christmas cards and saw one that shows a shepherd running out of a stable shouting "ITS A GIRL"


Oooops sorry wrong thread............