It would have been cheaper to buy bibles.

ditto

I wonder what they would give you for a Tijuana Bible?

i dunno. I paid a lot more for my bible than i do for porn. that doesn't sound like an even trade to me.

DAMN my parents have a shitload of bibles at their house.. looks like i may take a small trip to texas...

I never thought I'd call Ted Koppel and Jake Marley kindred in any way. But you both made my sentiments exactly.
Same with Quartz.
Christianity is a religion based on good. Lots of them are. The various texts have been twisted and added to over centuries by the zealots, saints driven by money, power and personal agendas.
It would be nieve to think that everyone in history who was given such titles really deserved or earned them.
As specialy when you look at the downright evil people nowandays who do horrible things in the name of god.
People blindly following some vague text they interpreted from a bible that's been translated eight ways from sunday or written by some guy like King James or Captain Mormon or whatever his name was.
No matter that their actions go against words that their god... And I dare say, my god... Said himself.
Examples: People still taking thie 'Go forth and reproduce' bit with a touch too much fervor when there's all ready to high of a population and plenty of homeless kids and orphans to go around.
Or Peter Popoff Practicaly Peddling snake oil
as an 'Anointing water' Which you recieve free when you buy some pamphlet of his which he doesn't go into. Just goes to stories of 'real people' and how their lives were changed by this anointing water which you recieve free when you buy some over priced dealy from Peter Popoff. How is that not evil?

My point is that denouncing a faith because it's a faith is pretty fucking hypacritical.
People want to be free to not believe in god, yet they don't want others to be free to to believe in it.

I have a pretty good sence of humor, but saying that ancient text which many believe to be holy, others call some of the finest stories ever written, and either way is many culture's mythology, is worth smut, is pretty harsh. How would you like a story you wrote traded for a 70's issue of playboy?

This sounds like something you would joke about with your fellow non-religious friends, but to actually go through with it is pretty lame.

porn. porn. porn. porn.
porn. porn. porn. porn.
give me your bi-ble. ...
i'll give you some boo-bies...
porn. porn. porn. porn.
but seriously, i have to agree with ted on this one. do it because it's pointless or don't do it. you are not changing anyones ideas? you're just getting a bunch of porn hounds to steal their roomates bible to get some soft core porn.
can you imagine the conversation though?

zealot: hey, where's my bible?
roomate: (while flipping down the centerfold looks around page at zealot.) ninja's man...
Zealot: ninja's? (he looks at the floor sadly.)
roomate: yeah ninja's man...
zealot: (sighs) ninja's.... (zealot walks out to buy third bible today while roomate rubs hands and giggles evilly...)

Some points: one, there's nothing hypocritical about atheists denouncing faith. There may be another word you want there, but I'm not sure what it would be.
Two, if one is (as I am), convinced that faith is a fundamentally negative force, there's nothing even strange about denouncing faith for being faith.
Three: There are no doubt atheists who would like to deny other people the right to follow their own path, be it religious or secular. I am not one of them, nor are these people. Note that they are certainly not compelling anyone to make this trade. They are simply making it an option.
You may feel that my statements in two and three are contradictory. Not at all. I believe that faith, and especially organized religion, are fundamentally negative, as they are based on a falsehood. However, I ultimately believe that people have to be free to make their own decisions, however self-destructive they may turn out to be. I can only offer my input and hope they act upon it.
Four: Consider, from another perspective, this is quite the endorsement of the value of the Bible. Why, it's as good as porn!

Not just "as good as porn," it IS porn!


(That's supposed to be Samson and Delilah, by the way)


linky - for those who speak German.


[Edited on Dec 07, 2005 by skeptik]

Huh?

Are irreverent atheists less credible than "serious atheists?"

Apparently they aren't embarrassed as easily.

I've got a little tear of pride for my alma mater...UTSA was always looked down on as a commuter college with no scene...they've attracted some attention with this, I caught Tucker Carlson (how serious can you take a grown man in a bow tie?) trying to bait the spokesman for the Atheist Agenda in a Crossfire shouting match last night, my boy kept his sense of humor while still making his point.

What he means is Everyone believes in SOMETHING, Be it Jesus, Gaia, The Force, Uni-mind, Life After Death, Aliens, UFOs, String Theory, etc. Basically all the unproven stuff people can only guess at whether it be Scientific Theories or Theology. Under this guise, I do believe in something, by my money is on Aliens and the Universe, Infinite, (:

If The Bible, Religion didn't exist, there would have been something to inspire the great works, but it just would have been about something else. Instead of the Sisteen (sp?) Chapel we would have have "The Building of Man" or something. Look at the great artwork of the Greeks and Romans: they did great things without one god. Look at the Eygyptians, the Chinese. Great works driven by something else.

Today, culture and looking at ourselves drives artwork. Maybe you don't consider it on Par with Religiously driven works, but time will tell. Theism is a strong influence and brings about strong artwork. But It's not going to be one religion that happens to be in the sweet spot. Society is the soil from which great things spring forth, the environment only shapes the form it takes.

Bleh!

The point is moot. It doesn't matter that something else would have inspired such works, the fact is that religion did. Is, say, the Wright Brothers achievement any less because if they didn't do it someone else would have?

hmm intresting concept. Although I actually enjoy reading the bible. Not a very religious person, but when one reads the bible with the mentality of it being a story book, it gets to be entertaining i guess.

No, I'm saying cretinous college assholes are less credible than "serious atheists".