By Carl S ~
Several years ago on this site, a reader mentioned questions he used in conversations with religious believers. The subject was "The problem of evil." Why is there evil in the world? This is explained by the religious as, "Evil came into the world and persists because human beings have free will. Humans freely chose and still choose to do what is wrong." Our questioner pursues this, asking, "So, does this mean humans have the free will to lie?" The answer to this is, "Yes." Our inquirer then comes to the question: "Since humans have free will, how then do you know that those who wrote the scriptures were telling the truth?"
The author does not mention any responses, and we have good reasons to doubt he got any, or ever will, based on our own questions to believers. It is an excellent question, a demanding one that won't go away. Scriptural writers tell the reader to believe what they write because "it's the truth," and the reason it's the truth is because they say it is! (And the believer's hair-trigger answer to the initial "problem of evil" question, "free will," was invented by those same writers!) They have the gall to say the source of their “inspiration" is an invisible, absolutely silent, and unconfirmable spirit, which they claim is also an Absolute Authority. Notice: they have free wills to also fabricate any demands the "authority" makes, any desires it has. To "confirm" what the writers say, hearsay is offered as "evidence." We might come to the conclusion they not only lied in the first place, but, of course, also lied about the motives for their lying.
Those writers created fantastic, grandiose stories. Facts are irrelevant when constructing grand narratives, and make-believe replaces reality. For example, the Egyptians left no record of a Moses in their histories, which are extensive, and the historians of the time when the alleged "Jesus" allegedly lived and performed many miracles, never mention "him." How many lies will scriptural writers be caught in before they are called out?
What if what people WANT to believe is all lies, but they are fearful of using THEIR free wills to investigate those lies? How does this affect others?
The question: If human beings have free will to lie, and human beings wrote the scriptures, how do you know they weren't lying?" needs an immediate answer. Because, if they were lying, then humans who believe they'll gain after-death rewards promised to them by liars should stop exploding themselves NOW. What if it's all a scam? Look first - don't leap! Look at the obvious evidence: bodies don't re-materialize.
At present, many national heads of state sincerely believe what are lies and misrepresentations of reality based on ancient ignorance, promoted as truth. Men who believe, according to their mutual ancient writings, that some human beings floated up, unaided, from Earth through airless space to a celestial wherever, are making decisions about our destinies. Will beliefs in ancient tales, if not examined, lead to international conflicts? What were the consequences when an American president, with a Christian habit of sticking with beliefs no matter what, followed his belief-habit of rejecting evidence to the contrary, and thereby felt justified to invade a sovereign country? We must ask the question NOW, before something like that happens again.
When scriptural writers made up "glorious" histories for their tribes, weren't they exaggerating? Scripture writers portray men who became overjoyed, overwhelmed in glory, after slaughtering their enemies, while standing in their blood. The "glory" of their all-righteous god demanded the slaughter, and brought those celebrations. Envision, as they did, the ultimate ecstasy, the overwhelming of those same feelings, resulting from the destruction of the world itself! What rapture! Thus spoke all the emotionally perverse liars who promise what one writer defined as, "A higher existence, achieved through absolute destruction." The greater the destruction, the higher the existence. This madness has to stop NOW.
Parents are indoctrinating their children to believe what potentially lying writers claimed thousands of years ago is absolutely true. If parents CAN'T PROVE what the writers wrote is true, they should stop NOW. They should cease especially if what was written was the "sincere lying" of the well-meaning. The free-will ability those men exercised to lie must not go on being ignored, for the evil that men promote in lying lives after them, as long as it is unchallenged. Humans should not be kept in the dark of belief because they're told it's the light. The time for questioning, for maturation, is NOW. No more "martyrs," killing and maiming innocents. Not one more human being imprisoned or executed as a "heretic," because that person posts questions challenging the writings of ancient liars. Halt all that. Investigate. NOW.
All people on earth should feel free to eat pork NOW, and no Jewish or Islamic child should be denied that pleasure because some "deity-authority," fabricated by unknown potential liars, forbade it. (Because perhaps at one time, someone got sick from eating undercooked pork?) Why should starving lower caste peoples of India go hungry just because their priests tell them what the lying writers wrote: Don't eat the cows roaming the streets in front of you; they are"holy." (Notice that those who DO eat pork and cow meat are no more virtuous nor wicked than those who don't? In fact, those who are wantonly raping, beheading, and slaughtering, do not eat pork.)
Women have been killed as witches, as cohorts of evil spirits, temptresses of men into evil thoughts and deeds, because men, who felt lustful, naturally occurring desires for them, wrote that their bodily presence alone is morally dangerous. For these scriptural reasons, they must be held under strict control, and even destroyed. Thus, these "holy inspired" writers, by lying to themselves, conveyed their "truths" about the real nature of women. Their motives must be examined NOW.
No woman's body should be covered without her permission. Observe: women all over the world are in various stages of dress and undress, and in those places where they are not covered against their wills, there is neither no more nor less caring of humans for one another. In fact, wherever women are freer to be themselves, there is more caring and mutual respect amongst humans. It is only the ignorant who have eyes but will not see, and liars, who proclaim otherwise. All women need to be free of male-dominated religious traditions, NOW. All women should be respected for their individual self-worth, uncondemned for their sexuality, NOW. Let the investigations begin. Without delay.
Polite society urges us not to confront religious beliefs at all. We are told to "Let people believe whatever they want to believe," as if doing so is always harmless. Demanding exemption from criticism is the stuff on which tyrannies thrive.
The author does not mention any responses, and we have good reasons to doubt he got any, or ever will, based on our own questions to believers. It is an excellent question, a demanding one that won't go away. Scriptural writers tell the reader to believe what they write because "it's the truth," and the reason it's the truth is because they say it is! (And the believer's hair-trigger answer to the initial "problem of evil" question, "free will," was invented by those same writers!) They have the gall to say the source of their “inspiration" is an invisible, absolutely silent, and unconfirmable spirit, which they claim is also an Absolute Authority. Notice: they have free wills to also fabricate any demands the "authority" makes, any desires it has. To "confirm" what the writers say, hearsay is offered as "evidence." We might come to the conclusion they not only lied in the first place, but, of course, also lied about the motives for their lying.
Those writers created fantastic, grandiose stories. Facts are irrelevant when constructing grand narratives, and make-believe replaces reality. For example, the Egyptians left no record of a Moses in their histories, which are extensive, and the historians of the time when the alleged "Jesus" allegedly lived and performed many miracles, never mention "him." How many lies will scriptural writers be caught in before they are called out?
What if what people WANT to believe is all lies, but they are fearful of using THEIR free wills to investigate those lies? How does this affect others?
The question: If human beings have free will to lie, and human beings wrote the scriptures, how do you know they weren't lying?" needs an immediate answer. Because, if they were lying, then humans who believe they'll gain after-death rewards promised to them by liars should stop exploding themselves NOW. What if it's all a scam? Look first - don't leap! Look at the obvious evidence: bodies don't re-materialize.
At present, many national heads of state sincerely believe what are lies and misrepresentations of reality based on ancient ignorance, promoted as truth. Men who believe, according to their mutual ancient writings, that some human beings floated up, unaided, from Earth through airless space to a celestial wherever, are making decisions about our destinies. Will beliefs in ancient tales, if not examined, lead to international conflicts? What were the consequences when an American president, with a Christian habit of sticking with beliefs no matter what, followed his belief-habit of rejecting evidence to the contrary, and thereby felt justified to invade a sovereign country? We must ask the question NOW, before something like that happens again.
When scriptural writers made up "glorious" histories for their tribes, weren't they exaggerating? Scripture writers portray men who became overjoyed, overwhelmed in glory, after slaughtering their enemies, while standing in their blood. The "glory" of their all-righteous god demanded the slaughter, and brought those celebrations. Envision, as they did, the ultimate ecstasy, the overwhelming of those same feelings, resulting from the destruction of the world itself! What rapture! Thus spoke all the emotionally perverse liars who promise what one writer defined as, "A higher existence, achieved through absolute destruction." The greater the destruction, the higher the existence. This madness has to stop NOW.
Parents are indoctrinating their children to believe what potentially lying writers claimed thousands of years ago is absolutely true. If parents CAN'T PROVE what the writers wrote is true, they should stop NOW. They should cease especially if what was written was the "sincere lying" of the well-meaning. The free-will ability those men exercised to lie must not go on being ignored, for the evil that men promote in lying lives after them, as long as it is unchallenged. Humans should not be kept in the dark of belief because they're told it's the light. The time for questioning, for maturation, is NOW. No more "martyrs," killing and maiming innocents. Not one more human being imprisoned or executed as a "heretic," because that person posts questions challenging the writings of ancient liars. Halt all that. Investigate. NOW.
All people on earth should feel free to eat pork NOW, and no Jewish or Islamic child should be denied that pleasure because some "deity-authority," fabricated by unknown potential liars, forbade it. (Because perhaps at one time, someone got sick from eating undercooked pork?) Why should starving lower caste peoples of India go hungry just because their priests tell them what the lying writers wrote: Don't eat the cows roaming the streets in front of you; they are"holy." (Notice that those who DO eat pork and cow meat are no more virtuous nor wicked than those who don't? In fact, those who are wantonly raping, beheading, and slaughtering, do not eat pork.)
Women have been killed as witches, as cohorts of evil spirits, temptresses of men into evil thoughts and deeds, because men, who felt lustful, naturally occurring desires for them, wrote that their bodily presence alone is morally dangerous. For these scriptural reasons, they must be held under strict control, and even destroyed. Thus, these "holy inspired" writers, by lying to themselves, conveyed their "truths" about the real nature of women. Their motives must be examined NOW.
No woman's body should be covered without her permission. Observe: women all over the world are in various stages of dress and undress, and in those places where they are not covered against their wills, there is neither no more nor less caring of humans for one another. In fact, wherever women are freer to be themselves, there is more caring and mutual respect amongst humans. It is only the ignorant who have eyes but will not see, and liars, who proclaim otherwise. All women need to be free of male-dominated religious traditions, NOW. All women should be respected for their individual self-worth, uncondemned for their sexuality, NOW. Let the investigations begin. Without delay.
Polite society urges us not to confront religious beliefs at all. We are told to "Let people believe whatever they want to believe," as if doing so is always harmless. Demanding exemption from criticism is the stuff on which tyrannies thrive.
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