As opposed to just quoting bits of the bible out of context like Rachyl, I encourage all of you to sit down at a chair, with a nice drink and witness the summit of my insanity.
Today I will be covering a bit of the bible that I personally agree with. While it's historical purpose and usage as a scientific and philosophic cornerstone is flawed at best
(See Revelation 7:1, After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree.), It was still written by wise men. Kings and prophets who understand morality. King Solomon of Israel describes himself as teaching wisdom, however he raised temples to his many wives' gods, which angered Him. What the bible can and should be used for, in my opinion, is a foundation. It is written by sinning men. The detailed story of how pride and greed caused the downfall of each of the Lord's disciples. It is up to the reader to determine what these men did which caused their problems.
Today I wish to talk about the Book of Peter. Specifically,
1 Peter 3 (am I citing this correctly? I hope I am.) Now, this verse can be succinctly divided into two categories. 1-7 and 8-22. I will admit I have not read the full bible, nor have I read all of the Book of Peter. I have, however, attended church inconsistently for ~1/3 of my life, and live in a predominantly baptist household. I have some weight on the topic but someone else would probably be able to deliver a better sermon than I.
In this... verse? Stanza?
I don't know the right term. The disciple Peter writes about his teachings. Peter writes in a very respectable way. He is very considerate, modest, and logical. Peter writes about how it is a christian woman's duty to the Lord that she must convert her husband. He preaches that this should be done through pure behavior. This should not be interpreted as them being submissive, but just as outstanding people and functioning members of society. He teaches that belief in the Lord should be believe in yourself. Remain strong to yourself and to Him. He ends the passage with a succinct message stating it is the husband's duty to respect the wife. Treat them as people.
Now we get to the juicy shit.
Where Peter and the disciples express that they are good people is in this passage. It's a message that should be spread more. And one that I sadly don't see being followed by our friend. Acceptance. Pay particular attention to 3:8-11. Peter says that you must respect people. If they disagree with you, don't hate on them. Shower them with love. It's a beautiful message which even without religious connotation is still something that humans should do. You need to be accepting of other people, even if they are not accepting of you. If we were able to follow this advice as a species then we could advance so far. Not to justify a god, but for your own benefit.
Upon analyzing this, I understand why people look for religion. But you shouldn't need someone to tell you this. This is morality at its basest level. And the fact someone can preach the gospel without understanding that to follow god you need to do more than say how great god is, is frankly depressing to me. I think I've reaffirmed my belief that I don't give two shits, and that there will be bad apples in any community. But I'm thrilled that by spending almost an hour of my time on something that I find somewhat interesting, but makes Rachyl either frustrated or silent for a period of up to 2 weeks then I consider it a good use of my time.
I hope you enjoyed my Magnum Opus. If Rachyl continues to talk shit I'll bring in an analysis of text that I actually find ahead of time to call her out.
