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So should science accept everything that can't be disproven as fact? Science is based on facts. When the facts can be backed up, science will jump on board. Otherwise we have to take aliens and psychics and astrology and all those other pseudo-sciences as truth because they cannot be disproved.

Tell me this, for those of us who believe Noah's Ark is a story that was meant to teach us a moral lesson and not a historical fact doomed to a fiery grave?

First of all, what is the moral of the story of Noah's Ark? God is great? Listen when God speaks? Why didn't God just come out and say it, instead of weaving the moral into some fantastic story? After all, he was pretty contrite with the Ten Commandments. No storyline about how bad adultry is, or how murder is bad. Why not a metaphor for these? The reason: It's because Noah's Ark HAPPENED!...The problem is, science is ALWAYS trying to disprove the Bible. For years, the so-called learned men of science have pooh-poohed everything in the Bible that they couldn't explain using the Laws of Nature that they were familiar with. Hence the parting of the Red Sea did not happen, not in their eyes. Water into wine? Forget about it! Loaves and fishes? Just a story. Jonah and the Whale? Impossible! As the veracity of the Bible is questioned, it must be defended. It is NOT a storybook. It is a history book, as in His Story! Have you read Leviticus or Deuteronomy. How dry can you get? NO story here. Just facts. Call that entertainment? And for who's benefit? If you question the truth of any part of the Bible, then are ANY parts to be left unquestioned?

We've been through this before, but let's try again. Just as Jesus used parables to teach a lesson, it's not inconceivable that the OT writers used stories to teach lessons as well. The lesson from Noah's Ark? God is all powerful, God punishes the wicked, He saves the just. Keeping in mind that at the time the OT was written there were many gods worshipped by many peoples. There was a sense of competition to make your god the best one, so it's not inconcievable that stories may have been embellished before they were written down.

I do believe all parts of the Bible are relevant and have something to teach us about God, but I continue to look at it as a religious book, not a history book.

Since you didn't answer last time, I'll ask again.....are those of us who do not take all parts of the Bible literally doomed to hell?

If you don't take the Bible literally, are you doomed to hell? Tough question. Here's the problem: If you go back a couple of hundred years, everyone took the Bible literally. Mainly because it is true, not a storybook. Anyway, the Bible has NOT changed in content or translation since then. Genesis 1 still reads the same as 100 years ago... Now, in 1963 a Gallup poll showed that 2 out of 3 Americans believed the Bible should be taken literally. Today, that has fallen to 1 out of 3. So you can see what's happening. People are pooh-poohing the contents of the Bible. They are picking and chosing which parts of the Bible to believe in, disregarding those in which they don't believe in.... So what 's happening today with this type of attitude toward God's Word? Well, as a nation, we NO LONGER fear the Lord. What's there to be afraid of? Heck, how can God send anyone to Hell. He is a loving God. He is merciful, all-forgiving. In fact, I'll bet very few people think that Hell exists. How can I be turned down when it's time to enter heaven? I'm a nice guy. Never hurt anyone. Don't all nice guys go to Heaven? And we should not criticize anyone, or punish anyone. Why, What Would Jesus Do? Isn't that the latest craze. He wouldn't be mean. He would give blanket forgiveness to everyone, whether they asked for it or not......So you see what has happened. It may have started out by someone saying that Noah and the Ark was only a story. Then how could the Adam and Eve story be true, in light of what science tells us. Then, I can't believe that Lazarus rose from the grave. He probably was in a coma and woke up. What is next, Jesus was NOT born of a virgin? You see, the entire foundation of Christianity is now in jeopardy. Pretty soon, you don't know what to believe, so you don't believe anything at all. Are you doomed at this point? What do you think?

*DCPassarelli falls out of his chair roaring with laughter*

My my, aren't we self-righteous tonight.

Romans used to believe in Zeus and took those stories literally, mainly because they were true. Right? I still can't believe you used the proof, "Because people took the Bible literally, everything in it happened!"

What runner was saying is that he takes the Bible seriously. He believes in the lessons and moral values contained therein. He just doesn't believe everything happened word for word. He never said anything about picking and choosing.

The way I see this is, most of the stories that were put in the Bible were meant to teach us and show us the way God can help us in situations. I believe the whole Bible...but back in Bible times, there were different representations of things. I believe the stories happened, but people might interpret them differently than they were meant to be. I don't know if I'm right, but one of the examples I use is...when Jesus was crucified, the Bible says his hands were nailed, but some people believe his wrists were. If that's true, then the people back then probably considered the wrist part of the hand and just wrote it as His hands being nailed. Nobody will really ever know, and it will be argued about until they find the answer. Every story in the Bible is meant to teach a lesson, but my suggestion would be to really know what the story is talking about and what the meaning behind it is before trying to apply it to your life.

what part of relying on JESUS to make straight your path is self righteous? what part of believing the bible is all true all the time is self righteous?

i personally agree with thebackwall on everything he jus said! it definately depends on how things are interpreted.. what happened back then is so different of how we do things now.. ! i believe the WHOLE Bible to be true..

even the part that says if you have faith as a mustard seed you can say to this mountain pull yourself up and throw yourself into the sea.? c'mon now that seems a little far fetched don't you think.or how about the part of the bible where jesus says you can lay hands on the sick and they will recover,and if you drink any deadly thing it will not harm you. what do you christians think you have super powers or something.?

That was back then though...and if Jesus would give you the power to, then you could do that. It is very very unlikely, but how do you explain some people just miraculously recovering from a fatal disease? I have a cousin that happened to, she had major cancer...we were all praying for her, and she was healed. It wasn't because of therapy or any drugs, the doctor's didn't have any explanation for it...it just happened. I mean, nobody came in, laid hands, and she was instantly healed...but it was still miraculous. I say believe in what you want to, but in the end, if you're wrong, you're going to have to deal with the consequences. I stand firm in my belief and if I'm wrong, then I'm wrong and I'll have to deal with it, but nobody is going to convince me that their way is right. The same is true for other people too. I post here because I like to here other people's ideas and beliefs. I personally find them interesting, I might not believe the same thing, but I don't criticize people because I think they're wrong. Everyone's entitled to their own opinion.