Oh boy! Most Bible-studying Christians have learned to not compare it to science, for obvious reasons. Now the authors of this gem attempt real intellectual acrobatics:
“Let’s show how current science confirms little comments in the Bible are true while ignoring the rest of the body of science which directly contradicts the truly central principles of the Bible...”
We can call it poetry, literature, interpretation, or a plain stretch but this table REALLY takes the cake!
Taking a few minutes to actually read the biblical passages quoted will confirm the existence of HUGE, stretchy and willful interpretations of the Bible with the full use of modern hindsight and cunning omission of the original context.
Every single entry is guilty of a serious twist in words or interpretation of the Bible, the ancient scientific beliefs, and/or the current scientific understanding... every one.
I have no time to annotate it all. Suffice it to say, this table may only be taken seriously by a child with no scientific understanding.
A few irresistible examples:
1) The Bible calls the earth a “circle,” NOT a sphere. Two totally different shapes. Both distinct terms existed at the time, no reason to mix them up.
2) The Bible didn’t say the earth “floated” it said it was “hanging” which implies gravity and thus a gross lack of understanding of outer space.
3) The Bible said the wind has “force”, NOT “weight.” Anyone with a sail boat at the time would know this.
4) The Bible didn’t say that “light moved”, it asked where it lives. It then also asked where the darkness resides. Hardly a scientific explanation of modern optics! And anyone not blind knew that the sun brought light to a dark place, thus light was understood to displace itself.
5) Indeed Leviticus states that the life of a creature is in the blood... which was scientifically wrong then and it is still wrong today. No scientist today would be caught dead claiming that “Blood is the source of life and health”... ever heard of HIV? Transfusions? Leukemia? A heart beat? The brain? The Cell? Transplants? Leviticus could have made the same assertion about the liver, kidneys, lungs, the stomach, rectum, genitals, mouth, intestine, or any other part essential to survival... it would still have missed the principle facts about the definition of life.
6) Bible says to wash hands with running water when dealing with disease. Modern science knows it’s not the “running” part that matters. One needs CLEAN water. The Bible may be based on the fact that in sufficiently dismal living conditions (such as biblical times and the third world today) stagnant water near people will collect bacteria and will attract mosquitoes, which may transmit many deadly diseases. So yes, in those conditions running water is a slightly better bet but only because it takes our disease away from us (and to anyone downriver!). But running DIRTY water does nothing for disease prevention. It’s nonsense.
CONCLUSION:
Better stick to claiming that Science and Religion don’t mix. It's a much safer bet, and far less humiliating.
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