Do you believe ancient history as written in the history books?
Truth is I haven’t studied much ‘ancient’ history (I like history don’t get me wrong, but most of what I’ve actively studied has been colonial America onward) so I don’t really have an opinion on the matter. But ancient texts are frequently accompanied by forensic evidence. A book may tell us Tut was pharaoh, but we also have his body to study as an example. Furthermore, I suspect that there are many errors and falsehoods within the texts of ‘ancient history’ it’s just we have absolutely no way of knowing it.
I don’t think you’d find it preposterous as to how history is handed down to us and how we accept it as fact.
There is a big difference between ‘Emperor Joe Blow called for a census in 150 AD’ and ‘I personally spoke with God and he said…’
The former is administrivia, and in most cases likely documented in multiple places. The latter requires belief that A: God talks to people, AND B: This person is credible and truthful. Since God apparently stopped talking to people some 2,000 years ago, and I’ve never met anyone (credible, nutcases on the subway don’t count) who has actually spoken to him, nor have I ever spoken with him myself, I question the veracity of those who claim to have. (Note: I think you know this, but ‘speak’ in this context means a two-way conversation.)
If God can talk to people, why isn’t he? If he really wants me to follow the Bible (or Torah, or Koran, or which ever holy book is right), can he not just tell me so directly? Believe you me, if he did, and I believed it was legitimate and not some mental illness on my part, I would. No discussion, no debate.
But he’d rather punish me for all of eternity for deciding some guys from thousands of years ago who claimed to speak with him didn’t really do so.
I think you’re confusing Levitical law with Natural law.
No, that’s not what I asked.
Homosexuality is an abomination, right? Says so right there in the Bible, Leviticus 20:18 (I think.) Ergo, because it says so, right there in Leviticus, God thinks homosexuality is an abomination.
But within the lines of Leviticus are other things God thinks is bad. Not stoning disobedient children. He instructs us to put to death anyone who works on the Sabbath. (Sure hope I never have a need for emergency medical care on a Sunday.) The whole multi-crop and multi-fabric things. All right there in the same book where God declares homosexuality as an abomination.
So, is Leviticus the word of God? Do the rules and regulations therein still apply, or no? Cause if they don’t, you can’t point to it and say, see, right there, it’s an abomination. But if they do, why are ya’ll skipping over the other parts? Shouldn’t you be marching in the street demanding justice for those who work the Sabbath? Those who wear cotton and linen together?