God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything

Discussion in 'Religion and Spirituality' started by killthesunshine, Mar 19, 2010.

  1. You find as you look around the world that every single bit of progress in humane feeling, every improvement in the criminal law, every step toward the diminution of war, every step toward better treatment of the colored races, or every mitigation of slavery, every moral progress that there has been in the world, has been consistently opposed by the organized churches of the world. I say quite deliberately that the Christian religion, as organized in its churches, has been and still is the principal enemy of moral progress in the world.”
    — Bertrand Russell, Why I am Not a Christian, 1927
     
  2. Just a little name brief with description ... enjoy !


    Jah/Yah
    LORD or Kurios in Greek
    Psalms 68:4 "Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him."
    Isaiah 12:2 "Behold, God <is> my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH <is> my strength and <my> song; he also is become my salvation."
    Isaiah 26:4 "Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH <is> everlasting strength:"
    Jehovah/Yahweh/Yahway or YHVH/YHWH
    LORD, meaning: He will be, eternal, to be, to exist, and always is. Unchangeable. This name is unique to God alone. The covenant-keeping God. (El Shaddai shows God as coverant maker.)
    Exodus 3:13-14 "And Moses said unto God, Behold, <when> I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What <is> his name? what shall I say unto them? {14} And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you."
    Exodus 6:3 "And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by <the name of> God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.
    Jehovah - Adon (singular); Jehovah - Adonai (plural)
    LORD of lords. To judge or rule. Includes meaning of master of owner as well as lord. Emphasizes God as almighty ruler and covenant- keeper.
    Nehemiah 10:29 "They clave to their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in God's law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of the LORD our Lord, and his judgments and his statutes"
    Psalms 109:21 "But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy <is> good, deliver thou me."
    YHVH
    LORD. Used with Adonai Lord in Exodus 4:10
    Exodus 4:10 "And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I <am> not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I <am> slow of speech, and of a slow tongue."
    B]Jehovah - El [/b]
    Singular form - LORD God.
    Psalms 31:5 "Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth."
    B]Jehovah - Elohim [/b]
    Uni-Plural form (3-in-1) - LORD Gods; Strong or mighty and object of fear. The compound emphasizes God as: creator, governing and redeeming man. Also God's direct connection with the nation of Israel.
    Genesis 2:4 "These <are> the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,"
    Numbers 23:22 "God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn."
    Jehovah - Elyon
    The LORD most high.
    Psalms 7:17 "I will praise the LORD according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the LORD most high."
    Jehovah - Jireh
    The LORD will provide.
    Genesis 22:13-14 "And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind <him> a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. {14} And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said <to> this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen."
    Principal of Jireh is fulfilled in the New Testament for any need
    Matthew 21:22 "And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."
    Philippians 4:19 "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."
    Jehovah - Makeh
    The LORD smites, punishes sin.
    Ezekiel 7:9 "And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations <that> are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I <am> the LORD that smiteth."
    Jehovah - Mekaddishkem
    The LORD our sanctifer.
    Leviticus 20:7-8 "Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I <am> the LORD your God. {8} And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I <am> the LORD which sanctify you."
    Exodus 31:13 "Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it <is> a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that <ye> may know that I <am> the LORD that doth sanctify you."
    Jehovah - Nissi
    The LORD my banner or ensign.
    Exodus 17:10-12 "So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. {11} And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. {12} But Moses' hands <were> heavy; and they took a stone, and put <it> under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun."
    Exodus 17:14-15 "And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this <for> a memorial in a book, and rehearse <it> in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. {15} And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovahnissi:"
    Jehovah - Rapha
    The LORD who heals.
    Exodus 15:26 "And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I <am> the LORD that healeth thee."
    Psalms 103:3 "Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;"
    Psalms 107:20 "He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered <them> from their destructions."
    Isaiah 53:4-5 "Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. {5} But he <was> wounded for our transgressions, <he was> bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace <was> upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."
    Jehovah - Roi
    The LORD my shepherd.
    Psalms 23:1 "A Psalm of David. The LORD <is> my shepherd; I shall not want."
    Principal of Roi is fulfilled in the New Testament as shepherd:
    Mark 6:34 "And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things."
    Hebrews 13:20 "Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,"
    Jehovah - Saboath
    The LORD of hosts (angelic armies).
    1 Samuel 1:3 "And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD, <were> there."
    James 5:4 "Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth."
    Jehovah - Shalom
    The LORD our Peace.
    Judges 6:24 "Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it <is> yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites."
    Principal of Shalom is fulfilled in the New Testament for peace:
    John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Jesus's peace.
    Jehovah - Shammah
    The LORD is present.
    Ezekiel 48:35 "<It was> round about eighteen thousand <measures>: and the name of the city from <that> day <shall be>, The LORD <is> there."
    Jehovah - Tsidkenu
    The LORD our righteousness.
    Jeremiah 23:6 "In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this <is> his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS."
    Jeremiah 33:16 "In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this <is the name> wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness."
    Principal of Tsidkenu fulfilled in New Testament righteousness:
    1 Corinthians 1:30 "But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:"
    EL - Elyon
    Most high God. To be elevated. It emphasizes God as the exalted, sovereign one.
    Psalms 21:7 "For the king trusteth in the LORD, and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved."
    El - Gmulot
    The God of recompense.
    Jeremiah 51:56 "Because the spoiler is come upon her, <even> upon Babylon, and her mighty men are taken, every one of their bows is broken: for the LORD God of recompenses shall surely requite."
    El - Olam
    Everlasting God. (Olam means age, or hidden.)
    Isaiah 40:28 "Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, <that> the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? <there is> no searching of his understanding."
    El - Roi
    The God of sight - who keeps watch.
    Genesis 16:13 "And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me?"
    El - Shaddai
    God Almighty. Two roots for the word: 1) to be powerful; and 2) breast, nourisher, sustainer.
    Genesis 17:1 "And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I <am> the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect."
     
  3. I have the book , in a pinch I use it for toilette paper. :eek:

    That way, it serves some purpose other than doorstop. :D
     

  4. Its quite well known that br had a burr up his ass about Christianity as does the idiot author.
     
  5. In the bible there is this little thing called the 10 commandments. So please tell me how following these commandments poisons everything. If everyone followed these rules, please tell me how ruined the world would be.

    Perhaps is not the religion that is the problem,but the rebelious people that do not want to follow Gods law.

    The Godless have the mentality that if there was no law, then there would be no laws broken, hence we would live in a crime free world. That kind of thinking actually makes sense to the Godless. They do not realize that the cause of suffering is sin.
     
  6. jem

    jem

    what a bunch of crap.

    slavery was mitigated by christians. Who do you think demanded that slaves be treated as people and not property?

    the civil rights movement was championed by christians and republicans.

    Criminal law is grounded in some of the 10 commandments.
     
  7. one of the most famous christian songs:

    “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound

    That saved a wretch like me;

    I once was lost, but now I’m found—

    Was blind, but now I see.”


    the rest of the story:
    These are some of the words of one of the most popular hymns ever written. Almost everyone who hears it thinks the “lost” part is about living without sincere Christian beliefs and the “found” part is about finally embracing Christianity. This is all perfectly true. What almost no one knows, however, is who wrote the hymn and when. It was written in 1773 by John Newton. He was a successful captain of a slave-ship.


    http://www.thehappyheretic.com/02-09.htm

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------

    How the Bible was used to justify slavery:
    The Christian church's main justification of the concept of slavery is based on Genesis 9:25-27. According to the Bible, the worldwide flood had concluded and there were only 8 humans alive on earth: Noah, his wife, their six sons and daughters in law. Noah's son Ham had seen "the nakedness of his father." So, Noah laid a curse -- not on Ham, who was guilty of some type of indiscretion. The sin was transferred to Noah's grandson Canaan. Such transference of sin from a guilty to an innocent person or persons is unusual in the world's religious and secular moral codes. It is normally considered highly unethical. However, it appears in many biblical passages. The curse extended to all of Canaan's descendants:

    Genesis 9:25-27: "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers. He also said, 'Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem. May God extend the territory of Japheth; may Japeth live in the tents of Shem and may Canaan be his slave'. "

    Christians traditionally believed that Canaan had settled in Africa. The dark skin of Africans became associated with this "curse of Ham." Thus slavery of Africans became religiously justifiable. Author Anthony Pagden wrote:

    "This reading of the Book of Genesis merged easily into a medieval iconographic tradition in which devils were always depicted as black. Later pseudo-scientific theories would be built around African skull shapes, dental structure, and body postures, in an attempt to find an unassailable argument--rooted in whatever the most persuasive contemporary idiom happened to be: law, theology, genealogy, or natural science -- why one part of the human race should live in perpetual indebtedness to another." 1

    http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_slav1.htm
     
  8. jem

    jem

    The abolitionists were mostly Christian and the movement was started and propelled by Christians.

    Lincoln was a devout Christian

    Yes - some slave holders tried to use the bible to support slavery. But they do not find much support in the new testament.

    As a side note - thanks for pointing it out. Now perhaps you would listen to the words.

    he was amazed God would save a wretched slave trader him.
     
  9. jem you think you are dealing with sunday school sheep that will say amen to whatever falshoods you come up with?

    My earlier views of the unsoundness of the Christian scheme of salvation and the human origin of the scriptures, have become clearer and stronger with advancing years and I see no reason for thinking I shall ever change them.
    -- Abraham Lincoln, to Judge J S Wakefield, after Willie Lincoln's death (Willie died in 1862), quoted by Joseph Lewis in "Lincoln the Freethinker," also appearing in Remsburg's "Six Historic Americans" (Authenticity questioned by some because it allegedly does not appear in Wakefield's papers [Andrew Lutes, persistent picker of insignificant separationist nits]; authenticity questioned by others who claim that Wakefield did not exist [forgotten web site which also featured all the regular and long-refuted arguments for Lincoln's Christian piety]. Go figure!)

    What is to be, will be, and no prayers of ours can arrest the decree.
    -- Abraham Lincoln, quoted by Mary Todd Lincoln in William Herndon's Religion of Lincoln, quoted from Franklin Steiner, The Religious Beleifs of Our Presidents, p. 118

    It will not do to investigate the subject of religion too closely, as it is apt to lead to Infidelity.
    -- Abraham Lincoln, Manford's Magazine, quoted from Franklin Steiner, The Religious Beliefs of Our Presidents, p. 144

    The Bible is not my book nor Christianity my profession.
    -- Abraham Lincoln, quoted by Joseph Lewis in "Lincoln the Freethinker"

    "While it may be fairly said that Mr. Lincoln entertained many Christian sentiments, it cannot be said that he was himself a Christian in faith or practice. He was no disciple of Jesus of Nazareth. He did not believe in his divinity and was not a member of his Church.
    "He was at first a writing Infidel of the school of Paine and Volney, and afterwards a talking Infidel of the school of Parker and Channing....
    "If the Churches had grown cold -- if the Christians had taken a stand aloof -- that instant the Union would have perished. Mr. Lincoln regulated his religious manifestations accordingly. He declared frequently that he would do anything to save the Union, and among the many things he did was the partial concealment of his individual religious opinions. Is this a blot upon his fame? Or shall we all agree that it was a conscientious and patriotic sacrifice?"
    -- The New York World (about 1875), quoted from Franklin Steiner, The Religious Beleifs of Our Presidents, pp. 138-39
     
    #10     Mar 19, 2010