It looks like it was opened to just about every page
Somewhat unrelated but it’s pretty dumb that Revelations was included in the Bible. It was written like 50-100 years after the rest of the new testament and is basically apocalypse fanfiction.
the choosing of the books in the Bible by so-called church fathers was deeply political and based almost exclusively on what values and virtues would create an orthodoxy most likely to preserve the power and primacy of the Roman state.
politics in my bible?!
is there something I can read about this, sounds interesting
there’s probably a comprehensive book out there, but the first books I read in the general area of the topic were by Elaine Pagels. The Gnostic Gospels, about the significance of the Nag Hammadi Library find (originally published in 1979 but I’m sure there are new editions) and her book on The Gospel of Thomas, originally published in 2003. my perspective was also probably influenced by Hecht’s “Doubt: A History”, which is far more broad of a topic than Christianity.
those will have a lot of names in them of the early orthodox-defining fathers and the murdered “heretics” whose works and histories were eradicated (but sometimes hidden away). we know a lot more about the early church than we did 100 years ago, but precious little has bubbled up into the living Christendom. I think it’s a case of anybody who actually gives a shit about truth is driven away from the church, because it’s mission is the same as it was 1000 years ago: institutional self preservation as standard bearer of a civic religion at any cost.
I will say, from personal experience, I found the texts from the Gospel of Thomas to be very eye opening and prescient about what sort of people “Christians” would become.
But when Thomas came back to his companions, they asked him: “What did Jesus say to you?” Thomas said to them: “If I tell you one of the words he said to me, you will pick up stones and throw them at me, and fire will come out of the stones (and) burn you up.”
Yet another book added to my list from this website
I always heard that Revelations was literally like a coded message between Christians during the persecution under Nero.
It’s definitely related to the fall of Rome. I believe the historical understanding is that early Christianity was expecting the end times to come either within their lifetimes or relatively soon after. They didn’t reform it into a more long term religion until the Council of Nicaea
that ball of mashed-up soggy paper kinda reminds me of someone
tired: Jesus toast
wired: Trump trash
m’lord the holy book doth blowth open to an ominous page from the super storm. - sent from iPhone.I don’t get it.
Doesn’t this symbolize the hurricane’s power over the Bible? It’s destroyed! What’s this supposed to mean to anyone?
No, because, see, if all your reading and other interpretation of thevworld is motivated by trying to confirm your existing beliefs, anything remotely contrary is thrown out, and everything you do is wildly contorted to that end with no regard for material reality or whether thats a war crime, it makes perfect sense.
Whereas our cucked soy commie brains just see this as the storm symbolically making their holy relics its bitch, yes. But we aren’t very smart at confirming their beliefs, are we?
WITNESS, MEN OF MAIZE, HURACAN WHO IS HEART OF SKY
YOUR BOWLS OF CLAY ARE SHATTERED, THE THATCH IS STOLEN FROM YOUR ROOFS
the hurricane is god, so he blew the book away into a pole just to the right page open. Turns out, we all gotta burn while the righteous go to heaven. how bout that.
I guess we’re worshiping hurricanes now? 🤷♀️
‘Reap the whirlwind’
charges Hitachi
Who you gunna worship? Some old codger or the divine winds that hurl trees like spears through your window?
I was never raised religious so coming at it from the outside i always wondered why people stopped worshipping the things that actually materially affect things. The Sun, the wind, animals, water etc
