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2012-02-03 God doesn’t screw around in Exodus 22:20. You won’t just be put to death if you make sacrifices to other gods, you will be utterly destroyed! Damn, that’s hardcore! Of course, I’m not really clear on the difference between death and destruction, but I’m pretty sure they both end in the same manner. But does this make any sense at all? Monotheistic religions, like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, insist that their god is the only god in existence. Which means that if you make a sacrifice to another god, you’re essentially making a sacrifice to nothing at all. So, where’s the harm in that? Well, whatever the harm is, God demands your complete and utter destruction if you do it! Okay, so God’s a jealous god, and, as far as believer’s are concerned, being extremely jealous is all part of being perfect. Ignoring the inanity of that for a moment, I have to question God’s demand for capital punishment. One of the Ten Commandments is, “Thou shalt not kill,” and yet currently the following crimes demand the death penalty: Murder Hitting a parent Kidnapping Enslaving a free man Cursing a parent Allowing an animal to kill a non-slave Killing a thief (during the day) Witchcraft Bestiality Sacrificing to other gods This list will be increased ten-fold before we finish the Torah, but already, that’s an obscene amount of killing for a god who commands people not to kill. Now, to any rational person, this is a contradiction, plain and simple, but to a believer, there are still plenty of crazy arguments to be made. First, they claim that the commandment doesn’t mean what it says it means. Thou shalt not kill, really means, thou shalt not murder. I’m fine with that, but if killing a zygote is murder, then surely killing a fully-grown person is murder? Wrong again. This is where the semantics argument comes into full swing. It’s not murder, it’s self-defense. I’m all for self-defense. If someone is preparing to kill me, I have no ethical problems with killing them first. But it’s incredibly dishonest to claim that this is about self-defense. Self-defense requires that your life be at risk, but how is your life at risk if your rebellious teenager yells, “I hope you burn in Hell!” How is your life at risk when your neighbor is caught having sex with his dog? These crimes are obviously minor infractions, so I’ll up the ante, how is your life at risk from a convicted murderer incarcerated in a maximum security prison? The self-defense argument is really just meant to cover up the fact that the bible contradicts itself, and that believers would much rather see people be put to death than admit that killing is wrong.

Comments Samael writes:   My favorite one is still coming up. Deuteronomy 13 is the most bloodthirsty part of the Bible. "If another prophet comes to town and suggests you worship another god, KILL HIM. If your brother, son, daughter or wife suggests you worship other gods, KILL THEM WITH NO MERCY. If another town is worshipping another god, KILL THEM ALL." Thou shalt not kill, but thou SHALT commit genocide at the slightest provocation! Deuteronomy 17 goes a step further. It says that if you believe someone is worshipping another god and you can find at least one other person who agrees with you, go ahead and put them to death. Two people can do what one can't alone -- stone someone to death! Imagine if Christians still followed this law. TBman256 writes:   @ samael spoiler warning please Samael writes:   When we're talking about a book that's about 2500 years old, I don't think there's such a thing as spoilers. :P Agnos writes:   And people still wonders why I'm an agnostic. Samael writes:   Actually, that doesn't necessarily follow. Most people who reject Christianity and/or the Bible, also tend to reject the idea of God as well. Agnosticism isn't the first natural outcome to the rejection of established religion -- usually atheism is. I know why I'm an agnostic though -- I'm an optimist. I still believe there's SOMETHING out there. It's just not what most people think it is, and it's far from incompatible with the established sciences, the way Christianity has tried so hard to make itself. Make A Comment Name: Comment:   HTML is disabled.

Oh the irony!