Bart Ehrman is the author of God's Problem, Misquoting Jesus, and several other titles. He is the James A. Gray Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Beliefnet's previous interview with Ehrman appears here. He has written for Beliefnet on women and the early church, and Gnostic Christianity, and more.
Bio: Bart Ehrman
Tuesday April 15, 2008
Categories: Is Our Pain God's Problem?
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There are always at least two sides to every belief. The Beliefnet Blogalogue pairs writers who differ on important questions about faith, and asks them to debate timely topics.
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It is amazing that religious people such as the previous poster simply are wholly unable to look at their religion critically and can do no better than dismiss someone as a "God hater."
Ehrman is an intelligent, sincere man, who did all he could to maintain his religious belief and only gave it up after years of struggle with the evidence, or rather lack of it, and the problem of evil. And we have this patronizing "pray for you" attitude from others. Religious belief seems to be a form of intellectual suicide for some. Whether that must be the case, I don't know but it is for many. I am so often reminded of Nietzsche's line "Christians spend too much time judging."
Unlike Douglas Reed's book The Controversy of Zion which is not freely available, a new book which openly rubbishes Christianity is available right, left and centre!!!
Go to: http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=Jesus%2C+Interrupted%3A+Revealing+the+Hidden+Contradictions+in+the+Bible+&btnG=Google+Search&meta=
The offensive book "Jesus, Interrupted: Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible" is authored by Bart Ehrman who is a professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina and is described as a "leading authority on the Bible and the life of Jesus", or In other words, a fox that was put in charge of a chicken coop!!!
Wake up dormant Christians.
Mr. Ehrman is the kind of individual that would walk into a room full of 6 year olds and tell them there is no Santa, Easter Bunny,or Tooth Fairy, therefore they should stop their whining and go home because their parents lied to them. I don't need to quote Mr. Ehrman the Bible but just remember it says anyone who once believed and then turned his back would be better off to never have believed. I hope for your soul sir that you are right.
I like your ideas and commentaries very much. I wanted to share my comments on a recent Bill Moyers show with you. They need someone like you for a guest!
While watching your TV show last week, Bill Moyers...
...I was appalled by its content. [March 13, 2009] All of the sanctimonious reverence given to the so-called "Abrahamic Religions," of Judaism, Christianity and Islam!
Modern archaeological research confirms the fact that the Abraham legend was probably pure fiction. Even if the story were true, Abraham was a delusional and despicable character and certainly no model to base any religion on. What kind of inspiration made him circumcise himself when he was 99 years old? [Gen 17] It was not original form of mutilation even in those days! What about the ghastly story of Abraham's attempt to sacrifice his son Isaac?[Gen 22] A crazy piece of nonsense which would rightly land a man in jail if he tried it today! The Muslims in their version claim that Allah really prefers first-born sacrifices. They believe that Ishmael, Abraham's illegitimate son, went through this grisly ordeal!. Christian prefer the Isaac story and cheerfully proclaim that Jesus was also a first-born child sacrifice. [John 3:16] This is 2009 and we are still in the intellectual Dark Ages!
As for the Golden Rule and former Sister Karen Armstrong’s campaign to promote it. What a lot of twaddle! You and she both had the Golden Rule wrong. You stated it in its negative form! This is pure nonsense! I grant you that it is a much better aphorism in a negative style. However it is what Confucius said 500 years earlier [Analects 15:23] but it is absolutely NOT what Jesus allegedly said [Matt7:12 and Luke 6] either in the King James Version or the Revised Standard Version of the Bible
The Golden Rule is not a good moral guide but a form of philosophic anarchy. That’s because the rule is no better than the person who applies it. In the hands of a good man or woman it is the basis of reciprocity, but the hands of the evil doer it merely allows him to do unto others what he wants others to do unto him!
Why not get some different talent on your show? People like Sam Harris? [The End of Faith] Prof. Paul Kurtz? [Secular Humanist, Head of CFI,] Fred Edwords? [American Humanist Association] Christopher Hitchens? [God is not Great] Prof Schlomo Sand? [History Department, Tel Aviv University] or Prof Israel Finkelstein? [The Bible Unearthed]? It’s time to open up this whole can of worms with some freethinking fresh air!
Sincerely,
Dr. Rick Rickards
It is better to take a millstone and hang it around your neck then to cause one of these little ones who believe in me to sin. The mother of all sins is unbelief. So sir you are causing others to not believe by your erroneous claims. I would not wnat to be in your shoes on the day of judgement. Amend your ways and recant of your heresies before the God of heaven
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