Penn & Teller - The Bible Myth

jp306 · Dec 13, 2006, 06:20 AM

Some of you will like this and some will not.

http://www.videosift.com/story.php?id=23917

***temeteus82*** · Dec 13, 2006, 07:50 AM

The Bible and some other religious books has nothing to do with history ...
At least that's my point of view.

Dowaco · Dec 13, 2006, 10:07 AM

I agree with everything that was presented, but disagree with the way it was presented. I would rather listen to the scientist guy speak rationally about the subject than Penn and Teller's disrespectful approach.

It's OK to debunk religeous ideas, but stomping on the Bible in a mud pit is going a little too far. I understand they did it for shock value, but considering how some other religions forbid descecration of their holy objects (for example) by yelling jihad if a cartoon of Mohammad is shown, Christians are pretty tolerant.

Even if we don't agree with what people believe, we should still respect their right to believe what they wish. It's equivalent to having an arguement on a serious subject and calling the other person a moron. Argue the facts and leave the mean spiritedness at the door.

Pluvious · Dec 13, 2006, 01:45 PM

Amen.

Good video..

IMHO, there is more evidence of UFO's then God.

Dark Lord · Dec 13, 2006, 02:05 PM

i knew there was a reason i loved penn and teller so much

SFOSOK · Dec 13, 2006, 10:09 PM

Hey looks its me, and I still believe in God.

And I find it hard to smile after watching this video and reading all of your replies

OmegaRED · Dec 14, 2006, 06:40 PM

Some day I'm gonna have to pencil in some time to read fiction like Harry Potter and The Bible.

jp306 · Dec 14, 2006, 08:06 PM

I have to say that I thought I would get attacked when I posted this, but I'm pleased that I wasn't.

SFOSOK · Dec 14, 2006, 08:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jp306

I have to say that I thought I would get attacked when I posted this, but I'm pleased that I wasn't.

Naw, the only religious assholes on these forums don't believe in God or very much at all

Randomletters · Dec 14, 2006, 09:00 PM

Love thy E-Neighbor Sfosok

jp306 · Dec 14, 2006, 09:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SFOSOK

Naw, the only religious assholes on these forums don't believe in God or very much at all

Yea...I'm just another fool...Like the others in this Video...
http://www.videosift.com/story.php?id=7657

Necrosis · Dec 14, 2006, 11:57 PM

Science is it's own religion even has it's own saints.

SFOSOK · Dec 15, 2006, 01:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Necrosis

Science is it's own religion even has it's own saints.

yep, pretty much my point.

OmegaRED · Dec 15, 2006, 02:07 AM

If science is like religion then I pray to the Mythbusters.

Pompey · Dec 15, 2006, 03:39 AM

Im actually planning to read the old and new testament over the holidays, now I just need to get a hold of copies of them.

None of my religious friends will give me a copy, and I would feel guilty getting one from my religious grandma, knowing that she would get very distressed and "disappointed" when she found out my motives.

Im sure if I walk into a church they will give me copies if I pretend im thinking of converting, I wouldn’t feel guilty lying to them.

But before all that, I need to figure our which version(s) of the truth to get

Then I can desecrate it with highlighters and post-it notes

I think hot pink would me most appropriate, don’t you?

SFOSOK · Dec 15, 2006, 03:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pompey

Im actually planning to read the old and new testament over the holidays, now I just need to get a hold of copies of them.

None of my religious friends will give me a copy, and I would feel guilty getting one from my religious grandma, knowing that she would get very distressed and "disappointed" when she found out my motives.

Im sure if I walk into a church they will give me copies if I pretend im thinking of converting, I wouldn’t feel guilty lying to them.

But before all that, I need to figure our which version(s) of the truth to get

Then I can desecrate it with highlighters and post-it notes

I think hot pink would me most appropriate, don’t you?

You sound very proud of yourself. All I can do is smile at those like you and hope things work out for you in the end. Your more than welcome to have one of my copies of the Holy Bible.

You can desecrate or do what ever you like to what ever book you like. Is your objective to make someone who believes a certain thing angry? Because I know personally I have nothing but compasion these days when speaking about religion keeping in mind those who do not believe the same as me and respecting what they believe.

Pompey, I hope you find what ever your looking for. If its some sort of reaction from your statement I don't believe you will get it here.

I will pray for you.

OmegaRED · Dec 15, 2006, 04:01 AM

If you're going to find inaccuracies in the Bible for your own personal use then have at it but if it's to attack anothers beliefs that's just wrong.

Pompey · Dec 15, 2006, 04:19 AM

I wasnt looking for a reaction, and its not to attack others beleifs.

Im always hearing conflicting accounts of what the bible says. People are constantly using it (or warping it) to justify their own prejudices and attitudes, and I want to read it (or them) myself to see what it actualy does and dosent say. And in addition to the bible, I plan to read biographys and stuff about the various authors of the different parts of the bible to understand the contect each chapter was written in. I will hopefuly do some reading on people like emperor Constantine if I have time too.

I was kind of joking in the last 3 sentacnes, but I am genuinly having trouble figuring out which versions to get. But I am planning to highlight verses that I think are significant.

Maddogg6 · Dec 15, 2006, 11:53 AM

Consider this....
if your being cheated, and someone points out someone cheating you - is the intent meant to belittle to 'cheated' - or to stop the cheater? No one usually cares in this case right?

I didn't see it so much as disrespectful - but as opposing opinion backed it up with facts. Their 'tone' was no different than when they debunk anyone(thing) else. (Actually they seems to have toned it down for that one - watch the one about psychics... )

Now...
Killing people in the name of god/religion...
Guilting grandma out of her estate to buy her way into heaven...
Manipulating people, or using your position for personal / political gains or sexual gratification....

- is SOOOO much more disrespectful - imo. All made possible by 'religion', and the tool of choice is their interpreted text from the bible, that not only helps facilitate the above but offers their justification for doing so.

But it isn't the 'religion' that abuses, its abusive people that use religion to abuse. The bible, in this instance, is just a tool. But is only a tool - if one takes the bible too literally - which was part of the message I got from it.

Matth · Dec 17, 2006, 11:04 AM

I'm sticking with apathetic agnosticism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apathetic_agnostic

All religions twist the unprovable accounts of whatever book they take as their gospel to suit the ends of those who declare themselves to be arbiters of such "truths", then twist their gullible followers that same way.

Sandok · Dec 17, 2006, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Necrosis

Science is it's own religion even has it's own saints.

Yeah... The difference in between religion and science is that in one, everything can be proven... The other, you must close your eyes and believe.

And is Einstein a saint?

I love it when people lose arguments and just try to show that science is a religion in itself... Conspiracy!

Quote:

I can understand the sentiment that science is a sort of religion. I mean, it's impossible for one person to verify every single scientific precept for veracity. No one can hold the whole of science in their heads, so in a sense you do sort of have to have faith that every other scientist is doing his job right.

The situation really isn't analogous, though. It's not like somebody, or a bunch of somebodies, just stopped you on the street and said, "Hey man, have you heard about this new science thing? We're gonna make a better world man!"

Science is dynamic, science is constantly building upon its previous successes. That's why it's reasonable to believe science works, because if science didn't work we'd have never gotten past observing the Newtonian world. We couldn't have gotten this far without a string of consistent successes.

And it's not like there are any equally successful systems competing with science. Any faith you choose has thousands of competing systems that, as far as we can tell, are more or less equally successful in bringing their participants happiness, etc., whatever benefits you might list. The only significant possible difference, ie: the state of your eternal soul in the hereafter, requires faith to perceive. Essentially, any of your religions's demonstrable effects are easily replicated by a similar system with a whole different set of beliefs.

Contrast this with science. Never in history has a drum circle been successfully used to generate the discoveries which precipitated solid state electronics. People don't dance skyscrapers up from the ground. Scientists stand on the shoulders of giants. The reason that we can take the discoveries of the past for granted as descriptive of reality is because the discoveries of the present would not be possible if they weren't descriptive of reality.

You can play a semantic game if you wish. I can not disprove every single case of the statement "Science is a sort of religion," when you get to choose the meaning of the words. However, in every significant sense of the sentence, science is not a sort of religion.

Necrosis · Dec 17, 2006, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sandok

Yeah... The difference in between religion and science is that in one, everything can be proven... The other, you must close your eyes and believe.

And is Einstein a saint?

I love it when people lose arguments and just try to show that science is a religion in itself... Conspiracy!

Um everything in science CAN'T be proven most of it is theory. It's a matter of mathematics but funny enough that all breaks down at a the center of a black hole. I simply stated the belief system is much the same. When science can explain everything (plus do everything) then it'll have a lot more ground to stand on. Mathematically speaking I can disappear right now, and reappear on Mars. However, is that going to happen, nope.

Um he believed in God. You love what now? Yeah I figured as much...

jp306 · Dec 17, 2006, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Necrosis

Um everything in science CAN'T be proven most of it is theory. It's a matter of mathematics but funny enough that all breaks down at a the center of a black hole. I simply stated the belief system is much the same. When science can explain everything (plus do everything) then it'll have a lot more ground to stand on. Mathematically speaking I can disappear right now, and reappear on Mars. However, is that going to happen, nope.

Um he believed in God. You love what now? Yeah I figured as much...

sci·ence
1.a branch of knowledge or study dealing with a body of facts or truths systematically arranged and showing the operation of general laws: the mathematical sciences.
2.systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation.
3.any of the branches of natural or physical science.
4.systematized knowledge in general.
5.knowledge, as of facts or principles; knowledge gained by systematic study.
6.a particular branch of knowledge.
7.skill, esp. reflecting a precise application of facts or principles; proficiency.

You're right everything in science can't be proven, but alot of it can be and it is based from using facts. Unlike blind faith or believing in something with no proof or fact at all backing it up.

Necrosis · Dec 17, 2006, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jp306

sci·ence
1.a branch of knowledge or study dealing with a body of facts or truths systematically arranged and showing the operation of general laws: the mathematical sciences.
2.systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation.
3.any of the branches of natural or physical science.
4.systematized knowledge in general.
5.knowledge, as of facts or principles; knowledge gained by systematic study.
6.a particular branch of knowledge.
7.skill, esp. reflecting a precise application of facts or principles; proficiency.

You're right everything in science can't be proven, but alot of it can be and it is based from using facts. Unlike blind faith or believing in something with no proof or fact at all backing it up.

Indeed but most science is too advanced for laymen to prove it for themselves. So you indeed go the same blind faith since you're incapable to prove it yourself. You do it because some one told you to since they can prove it, and remember quite a few theories have been proven wrong. Just look at String theory for example.

I'm not attacking science saying it's wrong but the point of science isn't to prove if a god exits or not. It's just how "things work". Or at least a limited of view of how they are supposed to with our limited understanding of physics. Either way you can't prove a god exists nor can you prove one does not. Science at it's basic form doesn't care about any religion.

My point is those who do believe use it as their doctrine to prove religion is false, when it does no such thing. It's all based on theory, and formulas to prove if one or more solutions is possible. Just like I said before when every thing can be explained then it will hold more ground for me. For now it's just a manual on how the universe works, not who made it.