I don’t have a problem with most religious people. I know of some people (thinking of a Mormon friend in particular) whose lives were genuinely improved by becoming religious. But I just can’t get past all the inconsistencies and suspension of critical thinking to be religious myself. I don’t have the answers, and sometimes I kind of wish I could be spiritual (because, frankly, magical thinking can be intense!), but it becomes a preoccupation (with all the cognitive dissonance, my brain has to sort through my beliefs and match them up with what I recognize to be facts), I just lose sight of reality.

I too firmly believe religious dogma is just too convoluted and illogical for me to give up my capacity for unfettered freedom of thought and wonder, and I just can’t stand having to conform to an arbitrary set of rules that make no logical sense (maybe it’s because I’m a libertarian lol).

I keep all of the prices as low as possible through zazzle in order to get as much out there as possible and help spread the word that we’re not going to take this shit anymore.

http://www.zazzle.com/briman232*

are we talking commentaries as well? Anchor Bible, NIB, or just what we find in the local Barnes and Noble?

That is why it is very hard for some people to read the Bible, because God says he knows you far better than you know yourself.”

This implies that you believe what the bible says before you read it, more circular logic.

“Of course most Christians are going to say the same things and not “bring anything new to the table”—are they supposed to re-write the Gospel and make a different argument? And of course they are not going to appear very humble. When you say you KNOW the truth it sounds self-righteous—of course it will. That’s why Jesus, John the Apostle and others aren’t very “christ-like” when they say such things as “We right these things so you may KNOW you HAVE eternal life”. That’s a pretty darn arrogant thing to say.”

I think what he is getting at is that when someone quotes scripture as evidence they are missing the concept that the person they are trying to convince doesn’t hold the book they are quoting from in the same esteem they do. Nor do they have the ability to conceptualize the idea the verse or passage implies and bring new meaning to it. They would rather just blindly regurgitate the same meaningless words without having to put any thought into their response. Kind of along the lines of those door to door salesmen that use the same pitch over and over again and expect the product to sell itself.