why did people stop listening to the god God?
“Why did people stop listening to God?” asks Rebecca LuElla Miller. I have a few obvious answers that immediately spring to mind. But imagine my surprise when I scrolled down to the comments section and read this:
And concerning your closing question, one would have to ask Eve “Why?” But we know why, so we don’t have to ask her. She got tricked, and fell for it. So, in turn, one can back up what Jesus said in John 3:19 to include Eve. What she did was evil by not believing God over Satan, so Jesus is including her. A bummer for all of us.
This shocked me. I’ve heard of Eve-blaming, and the effect this has on the treatment on women by some sectors in Christianity, but I’ve never read the frank opinion of a real believer.
Let’s break the story down and analyse where to pin the blame:
- Eve got the idea directly from an evil, supernatural trickster that the god God allowed in the garden, therefore women are easily persuaded by talking snakes.
- Adam acted based on hearsay, therefore men commit crimes that affect everyone based on poor judgement and little evidence.
Now we know who’s to blame, let’s look at what this story tells us about the god God:
- The god God created Adam and Eve knowing they were both going to act as they acted, therefore he couldn’t have been that bothered.
- The god God punished Adam and Eve for doing what he created them to do, knowing they were going to do it, therefore he’s either insanely irrational, or the story isn’t true and he doesn’t exist.
So, returning to the original question, Why did people stop listening to God?, according to my scientific analysis there are only two possible answers:
- The god God is insanely irrational and not worth listening to.
- The god God doesn’t actually exist and has never actually said anything, in spite of all the chillingly charming stories in the Bible that tell us otherwise.
I’m thinking option 2 probably just pips it to the post.
Or sadistic and capricious.
LikeLike
I suppose if you’re omniscient there would be a lot of variables to take into account at all times. Perhaps it would be kinder to suggest he’s suffering from the effects of stress and information overload.
LikeLike
We are better off outside Eden.
LikeLike
I take it you’re going for option 1?
LikeLike
What was option 1 again? Oh, that.
Well, the story never happened.
LikeLike
Heresy!
LikeLike
Oh, come on. I read that in the St Andrews Press (CofS) commentary, which is fairly strongly evangelical, but still not literalist about Genesis 1-10.
LikeLike
Really? I honestly don’t know what most ‘normal’ Christians think about it all. I tend to avoid conversations about religion in case I get unnecessarily rude – there’s no pause to consider and delete button in real life.
LikeLike
Is there a normal Christian? Lots certainly believe in the inerrancy of Scripture- six 24 hour days, a flood, all that stuff. Lots don’t.
LikeLike
Your average Christian on the street. I don’t count many of the people I discuss Christianity with on WordPress as being particularly run of the mill in their beliefs. Just like most atheists on WordPress aren’t average atheists, who are people who don’t believe in gods but don’t think anything more about it.
LikeLike
“chillingly charming” I love it! Sun must be shining up there today, eh?
There’s yet another angle here: Beelzebub is the one encouraging humans to learn, to acquire knowledge. Shouldn’t the old Horned One, the Owner of All Infernal Names be then the hero of the tale?
LikeLike
He made us like gods. How wonderful!
LikeLike
Nice chap.
LikeLike
“The god God is insanely irrational and not worth listening to.”
This argument always makes me laugh, because there is an incredible lack of logic behind it. God is good, all of the time, but suppose he wasn’t? In that case it would probably be in your best interests to just humor Him. What kind of a fool would challenge an omnipotent being capable of simply annihilating you?
However, if you look at the beauty of a sunset, the majesty of the mountains, the sweetness in a baby’s face, you can find lots of evidence that God is in fact, very rational, very kind, and very invested in us all.
LikeLike
The sweetness of a baby’s face? You’re getting a bit mushy there Insanity! 🙂
‘What kind of a fool would challenge an omnipotent being capable of simply annihilating you?’ Where’s this being you talk of?
LikeLike
I’m always mushy, Violet.
The fact that we are here discussing whether or not we approve of the omnipotence of God, speaks more to the kindness and mercy of God than the intelligence of human beings.
LikeLike
Really? You seem too fierce to be mushy.
I didn’t realise that was the discussion, I thought it was about the oddness to the point of absurdity of Bible stories. I think we have parallel discussions.
LikeLike
“..oddness to the point of absurdity of Bible stories..”
It’s a love story between God and His people, Violet. Have you met the people?? Oddness to the point of absurdity is a pretty good description of us.
LikeLike
Interesting. A love story. I’ll ponder that.
LikeLike
Love story?
Like Glen Close and Michael Douglas…..
LikeLike
Or the Stephen King classic, Misery.
LikeLike
Yes…saw the movie. Wish I hadn’t.
LikeLike
Well it’s the kind of love that Misery shows for the author really. I remember the hobbling scene very well.
LikeLike
Never been a Stephen King fan. Only watched the Shining because of Nicholson and that gave me a few days of disturbed sleep. The book was better.
LikeLike
Me neither. I hate horror books and films. A couple of clips of Salem’s Lot in my childhood gave me nightmares for years. The Shining was excellent but horrible and I hope never to see it again. I think I read Carrie and realised he’s a good writer, but I wasn’t keen on reading any others about psycho clowns and the like.
LikeLike
I read some time ago that he was smacked out of his head when he wrote some of his most popular novels. How true that is, I couldn’t say. Would not surprise me in the least though!
I can get by on coffee and tea – don’t even need cigarettes any more thank the gods.
LikeLike
Hi, Insanitybytes.
In case you forgot I was waiting on an answer about whether you were referring to Heaven and Hell in our last conversation?
LikeLike
Since the atheist denies the existence of God, there is no way for an atheist to understand God.
And since the Bible is the Word of God, there is no way that an atheist can have any idea what the Bible actually says and means.
Since the Bible is a Catholic tome, its meaning is defined by the Catholic Church.
Consequently, this post is nothing but meaningless, hateful propaganda that purposefully misses the great wisdom taught by the story of Adam and Eve.
To gain a true understanding of what the Bible means, one may read the Catechism of the Catholic Church which was ordered by Saint John Paul II when he was pope and promulgated by Cardinal Ratzinger before he became Pope Benedict XVI.
Gaining true understanding of the world around us is part of the pursuit of happiness.
LikeLike
Thanks for the reference SOM:
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p1s2c1p7.htm
Interesting to note that Eve has a bit part here and the Catholic Church recognises that Adam, the man, is to blame. “By his sin Adam, as the first man, lost the original holiness and justice he had received from God, not only for himself but for all human beings.”
Does it strike you odd that the god God created Adam to do that and to be disappointed in him, or that the god God knew the devil Devil was going to tempt them and let it happen?
LikeLike
The unfathomable concept that the story of Adam and Eve presents to us is the concept of freewill.
Surely, as a parent you’ve know what your kids were going to do before they did it? Did your foreknowledge deprive your children of their freewill?
But God treats us all like adults and respects our free choices.
It is up to us to man up and accept the consequences of our actions.
Critical to understanding the story of Adam and Eve is the part of the story were they began playing the blame game.
Blame an avoidance response.
In that way the atheist is like Adam and Eve who casts blame in order to avoid the responsibility demanded by the truth.
LikeLike
Are you like them too, or just atheists?
LikeLike
Wisp,
We are all like Adam and Eve.
But Christians do their best to take responsibility for their own actions.
That takes a lifetime of effort and training.
Religion is how man learns to take responsibility for his actions. And the Bible is the premiere learning tool.
That is why we see atheists and their leftist brethren creating victims and people to blame in order to explain misfortune.
LikeLike
Sorry, I meant to write that “Blame IS an avoidance response.
LikeLike
I like option two. Option one looks good too anyway
LikeLike
Option 1 is a horror story. 😀
LikeLike
It is the type of god the Stoicss said we shouldn’t worship, if they existed,, in this famous quote
LikeLike
Maka,
The Stoic’s philosophy expressed in your quote can be restated as follows:
“Life’s a bitch. Then you die.”
Jesus taught humanity that the purpose of life is to know and follow God’s will.
Such an existence far surpasses the, “Life’s a bitch. Then you die,” taught by the atheists.
LikeLike
In our last discussion we agreed either you correctly write my name or don’t engage with me.
LikeLike
Maka,
If you are so elite that you feel you must set petty rules before you deign to interact with your fell man, be my guest.
Clearly, you’re just making excuses because you really have nothing of much worth to say and you know it.
I don’t write my comments for you atheists. You people are too far gone and too far beyond caring to benefit from a discussion which includes an opposing point of view.
The thinking, healthy mind rejects atheism in less than a minute.
The fact is that the deranged, barbaric, malignant ignorance puked out by atheists demands unceasing and forceful response from civilized people.
LikeLike
For a person who doesn’t write to atheists, you spend so much time on atheists blogs.
I understand it. You think by spending time around here, our intelligence may rub on you. Unfortunately it doesn’t happen that way.
I hate to call anyone names, but you are a nincompoop and a blockhead. For how would the quote by Aurelius translate to life is a bitch then you die? Are you this dense in real life?
Why do you seek so much attention? Addressing those like me, who you know are not interested in talking with you for whatever reason?
I have in the last one year read your comments. Strange that your thinking hasn’t gone far beyond repeating the line that atheists don’t think or things come from nothing. There are moments I tell myself that just maybe you will apply your peanut sized brain to have a coherent thought then I read what you have written and I tell myself there are many like you. Wallow in your stupidity. Wallow in your arrogance and when you have had enough, you can consider being a priest or pope and continue with the rapine and control!
I have no further comment for you. Do have your way.
LikeLike
Makagutu,
Unlike atheists, I like interacting with people who disagree with me.
Atheists would rather just listen to themselves and others tell them how great they are in an echo chamber that sends all the accolades bouncing off the walls.
LikeLike
P.S. Nincompoop means Dickhead in polite-speak. But we don’t say this any more, so of course, you don’t have to worry even a tiny bit.
LikeLike
I always seemed to have problems with the ‘stories’ that we were told regarding Adam and Eve and couldn’t believe that a ‘loving father’ could do that to 2 people that made a mistake and would have gone with option 1. The worst of all was that the woman and the snake are associated with evil. I think people that believe these stories and takes it literally should be institutionalized. Now I go with option 2. 😆 Great post V! 😀
LikeLike
I know, it’s just so odd that people can believe them. I can’t quite get my head round the fact that I used to …
LikeLike
Wisp,
Is it important to believe Homer’s Iliad?
Of course not.
What is important is to learn the lessons it teaches.
The same with the Bible.
Faith and belief are only possible with wisdom, otherwise you’re just an atheist.
LikeLike
Ah, ok, I didn’t realise you knew the Bible is a mythical ramble of traditional tales designed to control people. Thanks for confirming that.
Logic and reasoning are only possible with wisdom, otherwise you’re just confused Christian.
LikeLike
Wisp,
The Bible is a tome about wisdom, the price of freedom, human nature and the nature of God.
Can you give an actual example of a biblical story that is designed to control people?
I didn’t think so.
LikeLike
Sorry, I must have been thinking of the Koran. You’re right. No control stuff in the Bible.
LikeLike
Wisp,
You just proved that you don’t know you’re talking about.
Typical atheist.
LikeLike
*Wisp hangs disgusting atheist head in shame*
LikeLike