[QuantumSuicide]

If religion is man made then who specifically created the Qur'an, Bible, Torah or any other holy script?

Just want some opinions.

[Prime Suspect]

(Original post by QuantumSuicide)
If religion is man made then who created the Qur'an, Bible, Torah or any other holy script?

Just want some opinions.

Uh... man? You kinda answered your own question there dude

[QuantumSuicide]

(Original post by Prime Suspect)
Uh... man? You kinda answered your own question there dude

Hehe. Any specific group?

[Prime Suspect]

(Original post by QuantumSuicide)
Hehe. Any specific group?

Who knows? Could have been anybody! Probably each got edited over time too, so I doubt it was one group sitting down together at a table and bashing out the text. Kinda like a pre-internet crowdsourced novel I guess?

[james1211]

This guy

[Martyn*]

The priesthood usually creates religious texts. In the ancient world the creation of such literature was left to those entering the priesthood, afterall religion is one way of controlling the people and another way of legitimising the King (or Queen) in the eyes of the people. The texts included folktales, popular with the common people, which had their foundation in much older texts of obscure origins, perhaps known only to a priestly elite. The priestly elite would have handed the sacred teachings down through time obscuring them within the shell of a popular folktale. Thus the common people were kept from the truth, or the common people were given a form of the truth they could understand in the guise of a folktale containing universal truths. Some individuals were probably initiated into a group who knew the truth, but sworn to keep it a secret. This is perhaps how Christianity started in the Roman empire, in the wake of the Mystery Cults in Greece. The initiation goes back to ancient Egypt and was perhaps ubiquitious to Sumerian and Babylonian culture.

The modern day equivalent of initiation is, of course, Freemasonry.

[Piprod01]

People. That we can't necessary determine the authors, doesn't mean anything though if that's what you mean. It's no better than saying that because we can't specifically name the people who built the pyramids, they must have been built by aliens.

[Fynch101]

Is your argument really based on

"I bet they can't think of anyone so if they can't name a human being it must be a god who made them"

Seriously?

[Cattty]

it makes me laugh that some people actually believe that god wrote it- so a ready made book fell from the sky did it? it was written by humans, so other the bibles books are called after the author or whoever it was about, there are also different writing styles, contridictions, scientifically and historically incorrect information. for example: king herod (herod the great), dies in 4 BC so either jesus was supposedly born 4 years earlier, or king herod wasnt around and their was also no evidence for a cencus at the time or the massacre of baby boys.

cant believe that people can still see it as the word of god

[ThatOneGuy93]

John from the across the street did.

[QuantumSuicide]

(Original post by Fynch101)
Is your argument really based on

"I bet they can't think of anyone so if they can't name a human being it must be a god who made them"

Seriously?

What makes you think I'm not an atheist too? What a douche.

[RowingGoose]

It's essentially a book of folktales and fables which were probably verbally handed down generations before being written down. It's hard for some people to imagine how such a big book that they lead their lives with could have been written as nowadays stories are written in a year or two, but you have to remember that the population was a lot smaller then than it is now and it was probably written over generations. And with little science to contradict these stories, and stories about our elders being cherished, it's quite easy to see how it passed on. Can you imagine what people would say if others tried to start a religion where a higher power created the Earth, knowing what we know now? Altho look at how crazy Scientologists appear!

[AspiringGenius]

Human beings who suffered from delusions of grandeur. What did you expect, it to be dropped out of the sky?

[QuantumSuicide]

(Original post by RowingGoose)
It's essentially a book of folktales and fables which were probably verbally handed down generations before being written down. It's hard for some people to imagine how such a big book that they lead their lives with could have been written as nowadays stories are written in a year or two, but you have to remember that the population was a lot smaller then than it is now and it was probably written over generations. And with little science to contradict these stories, and stories about our elders being cherished, it's quite easy to see how it passed on. Can you imagine what people would say if others tried to start a religion where a higher power created the Earth, knowing what we know now? Altho look at how crazy Scientologists appear!

Finally, a decent answer. This is what I was looking for. Thank you.

[RowingGoose]

(Original post by QuantumSuicide)
Finally, a decent answer. This is what I was looking for. Thank you.

No problem. I take it you're an atheist or agnostic then?

I should point out, before religious folks bash me, that I'm not ridiculing religious people but religion and the institutions itself. It doesn't make you a bad person whether you're religious or atheist, you can believe what you like and I'm not trying to push atheism in people's faces - I just like to offer my opinion when questions like this arise!!

[Flyteryder]

The people who had the money, power and status at the time of writing needed a way to control people to live how they wanted, so they could remain rich and powerful without fear of being overthrown by people with their own minds, so they created the 'holy' texts.

[TheGrinningSkull]

(Original post by RowingGoose)
It's essentially a book of folktales and fables which were probably verbally handed down generations before being written down. It's hard for some people to imagine how such a big book that they lead their lives with could have been written as nowadays stories are written in a year or two, but you have to remember that the population was a lot smaller then than it is now and it was probably written over generations. And with little science to contradict these stories, and stories about our elders being cherished, it's quite easy to see how it passed on. Can you imagine what people would say if others tried to start a religion where a higher power created the Earth, knowing what we know now? Altho look at how crazy Scientologists appear!

16:24 "When it is said to them, 'What is it that your Lord has revealed?" they say, "Tales of the ancients!" '

[E.Blackadder]

if you want to actually learn something then watch this



it gives a great introduction into the development of both the judeo-christian god and the bible itself.

[RowingGoose]

(Original post by TheGrinningSkull)
16:24 "When it is said to them, 'What is it that your Lord has revealed?" they say, "Tales of the ancients!" '

Again, you're just quoting hearsay, which doesn't really prove anything.

Hearsay doesn't even stand up in court for simple disputes, even if you write down what somebody told you, so I don't get how people can run their whole lives by it.

[TheGrinningSkull]

(Original post by RowingGoose)
Again, you're just quoting hearsay, which doesn't really prove anything.

Hearsay doesn't even stand up in court for simple disputes, even if you write down what somebody told you, so I don't get how people can run their whole lives by it.

I would like to quote this in response to your statement:

it is an illogical argument to say that since there is no historical evidence for an event, then it did not occur. What you should say, rather, is that there is no historical evidence for it. And indeed, that is true for many events and that's why we are here to prove that a revelation is from God. Because once we establish that information is from God, then that becomes our portal into the past and future.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...#post192635491

There's a huge discussion on that link which is quite interesting regarding different topics.