Monakhoan Me
Apologies for the absence. I do not really have a good reason—just a lack of motivation recently.
I have been thinking a little the past few days about what the next topic on Monakhos should be. I think there has been enough poetry lately, and a book review seems out of place right now. I thought about posting a few short stories, but I am not sure they are quite right for this site. So I am in a bit of a quandry. I just thought I would share.
I am here now. Hopefully I will be good for a spell and actually write on here. Shame on me if I don’t. Monakhoan me will be my new name. I am me, and I am Monakhos. Monakhoan me.
Well, I think I am going to write a little on belief today. It has been glaring at me recently, begging to warrant a bit of writing.
Why spend so much effort defending the historical infallibility of the Bible?
I really cannot figure this one out. I used to believe that the Bible was 100 percent historical accurate. But what if it isn’t? Is it a big deal? Not at all. The purpose of the Bible is not to provide a written history of the past millenia, but to expound upon a way of living for the best end result. It doesn’t so much matter if the stories in the Bible took place as actual literal historic events or if they were slightly altered or even completely fabricated to teach a lesson. Certainly many of the stories are based on fact, but there is no real way to tell if, for example, the sun actually stood still or if the Red Sea actually parted. Does it really matter if God created the world in six literal 24 hour days or if each day was really a million years? Doesn’t the story remain valid? You can accept these stories by faith, but what is the point? The real point is understanding the meaning behind the story. Who cares if it is literally true or not? Does it really matter? I think not.
Don’t bother telling me proofs for any of the historical stories in the Bible. I’ve heard them all before and I am not interested in hearing them. Why? Because I don’t care if the stories are 100% accurate or not! I am far more concerned in studying the point behind the story rather than the story itself.
October 19th, 2006 at 23:24
I, for one, am skeptical about the historical validity of the world! To me, it seems that stories are all we’ve got!
October 22nd, 2006 at 18:14
I like your thoughts here; they echo some I have read on Buddhist holy writing.
October 24th, 2006 at 20:51
Zach,
I’ve come to the same conclusion as you, but from an entirely different perspective. I’ve considered myself Agnostic, for many years and avoided the Bible and other religious texts as much as I could. But recently I’ve been reading a lot of spirituality stuff, and come to realize that there is a lot of value in such “Sacred” texts. I still find it pretty hard to believe that all the events in the Bible actually took place as written. I still do not know that Moses spoke to God or that Jesus was His son. I do know however that both had good advice that it certainly doesn’t heart to learn and consider following.
If you have a chance, check out my blog which discusses my spiritual journey. I’ve been impressed by yours and I’m adding it to my RSS reader. I look forward to hearing what you have to say in the future.
Thanks for listening,
Tristan