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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]So, this is a discussion in which the parameters force participants to accept a relativistic view of God. That’s not a very open discussion on the existence of the Absolute, is it?[/quote]

No, this discussion is not concerned with the existence of God.

It’s centered on the fact that each person has an individual opinion on the topic of God’s existence, and should be respected.

It also is concerning the fact that science cannot prove or disprove the existence of God.[/quote]

If someone thinks they are God, should that perspective be respected too?[/quote]

This is God.  You must follow exactly as I say...   if only I had given clear, explicit instructions on an indestructible medium so that there would be no doubt of my truth and existence  :roll: [/quote]

Christians believe that is called a Bible.

The point of the thread is you do not have to believe that, and that Christians can choose to believe that.

Why do you think your opinion is superior?[/quote]

The Bible is none of those things.  It is not clear, explicit and undoubtedly the word of God.

It is an amalgamation of stories that originated through oral tradition and were eventually written down. Those texts were then subject to individual styles, copy edit errors, and translations into various languages. Even which books compose the Bible as canon were selected by a voting process.

That does not meet even the most basic definition of being clear and explicit.  That is fact, not opinion. [/quote]

While it is commonly believed that the Bible's canon was determined through a voting process, particularly at the Council of Nicaea, there is no historical basis for this idea.

Instead, the process of selecting the books that compose the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, was a more complex and gradual development.

Here's a breakdown of how the canon was formed: 
Old Testament Canon:
Emergence of the Torah: The first five books of the Bible, known as the Torah or Pentateuch, were recognized as authoritative relatively early in Jewish history.
Gradual Acceptance of Texts: Successive books like historical records, prophetic writings, and wisdom literature were added over time based on their perceived spiritual authority and coherence with existing scriptures.
Pharisaic Canon: By the first century CE, the Pharisees held to a canon of twenty-two or twenty-four books, which eventually became the basis for the Rabbinic Jewish canon.
No Single Jewish Council: Ancient Jews did not have a council in the same way Christians did to decide the canon.

New Testament Canon:
Apostolic Origin: Writings were considered canonical if they were directly related to or under the supervision of the apostles, Jesus' closest followers.
Recognition by Churches: If churches widely accepted a book as authoritative, it was more likely to be considered for inclusion.
Apostolic Content: The content of the book had to align with the doctrine the apostles taught.
Response to Heresies: The emergence of heretical movements in the early church necessitated the definition of a clear set of authoritative writings.
Increased Reliance on Writings: As the apostles died, their oral teaching became less familiar, leading to increased reliance on their writings and those of their associates.
Formal Affirmation by Councils: Regional councils like the Council of Hippo (393 AD) and the Council of Carthage (397 AD) affirmed the canon that was already generally accepted by the churches. 
In summary, the formation of the biblical canon was not a single event determined by a vote, but rather a long process of divine inspiration, community recognition, and affirmation by church councils, especially regarding the New Testament. [/quote]

And none of this refutes the notion that the development of the Bible was clearly a human process.

It is not an undoubted document written in adamantium with clear language that all people can understand written by God. You know, the same entity that's supposedly the creator of all, but he can't or didn't create this?  :roll: [/quote]

Adamantium is a fictional, nearly indestructible metal alloy, primarily known for its appearance in Marvel Comics.

Do you believe the Bible was written in a fictional metal from a Marvel comic book? Or something to that effect?[/quote]

Poster knows that its fictional. Just like the Bible.

However, you are distracting from their premise. An entity capable of creating the universe could have created something - anything - that provided its rules for its creation to follow that was unambiguous and clear for ALL of humanity to follow.

Instead, we have the esoteric writings of various groups of people over various periods of time in various languages with various interpretations of what it all means.

[/quote]

The Bible, in whole or in part, has been translated into over 3,700 languages.

Specifically, the complete Bible has been translated into 756 languages, the New Testament into an additional 1,726 languages, and smaller portions of the Bible into a further 1,274 languages, according to Wikipedia.

This makes the Bible the most translated book in history, according to USC Viterbi School of Engineering.

Not to fear, though – Ulf Hermjakob, senior research scientist at USC Information Sciences Institute (ISI), a research institute of USC Viterbi School of Engineering, and Joel Mathew, research engineer at ISI, are building tools using natural language processing (NLP) to help increase the efficiency of this process and allow for more languages to be reached and translated at a faster rate.

While the relatively small text corpus of the Bible is a challenge for NLP, there are many high-quality translations to hundreds of languages, which provides great research opportunities.

https://viterbischool.usc.edu/news/2023/06/to-the-ends-of-the-earth-bringing-the-bible-to-languages-never-before-reached/#:~:text=As%20one%20of%20the%20oldest,keeping%20the%20mother%20tongue%20alive.[/quote]

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