Edward Abbey, environmental advocate and author, once said, “Belief in the supernatural reflects a failure of the imagination.” The famous magician comedy group Penn & Teller once declared, “The characters and events depicted in the **** Bible are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.” One anonymous quote posted on an atheist’s website said, “The Bible –– A Fairytale book of rules brainwashing millions. Obviously used to help create war, kill, hate, judge and discriminate.”
Part of me oddly enjoys these quotes. There is something refreshing about a person who can blurt out what he or she feels without concern for the consequences, like watching the big, fat guy polish off an entire large pizza. But do these Atheists have it right? Is the Bible just a fantastic conflict-inducing fairy tale?
There’s an uncomfortable underbelly to Christianity that suggests that maybe a lot of the stories in the Bible are just children’s stories. Have we avoided critical analysis just so that we can sleep at night? What if we really scrutinized Christianity? Did Moses really part the Red Sea? Did Noah truly build an ark? Did Jesus really walk on water? These stories are asserted as fact in the Bible, not merely parable. Can they be true, or do they merely reflect our naivete as Christians?
(Solicitation of book removed, please read the ToS)
God Bless,
Fez