So lets start with what the Bible says.......

1. The Bible says in Genesis 1 that Adam was the first man.

2. In Luke 3:23-38, a complete genealogy from Jesus back to Adam is given, it has 77 generations by my count.

3. The ages of several of the folks listed in that genealogy are listed in various places in the old testament, and after the flood the Bible says that humans can only live a maximum of 120 years.



If all three of those pieces of information are true, then man has only been around for 6000ish years. IF man has been around for more than 6000ish years, then at least one of the following must be true.......



1. Some guy named Adam that lived 6000ish years ago wasn't the first man, contradicting Genesis 1

2. The genealogy is incorrect, and there were alot more generations between adam and Jesus, contradicting Luke 3:23-38

3. The ages of the folks listed is wrong and/or some folks after the flood lived waaaaaaay longer than 120 years.


We know that's not true though. Humans have been around more than 6000 years. We've been in North America alone for at least 14,000 years, some estimates say up to 25,000 years.

One other thing to add before I get......I know that many Christians believe that the Genesis creation story isn't meant to be literal, that its a metaphor. The problem with that is that if that were the case, then the genealogy in Luke wouldn't be correct. If the genealogy in Luke is correct, then Adam as the first man must be taken literally. And if Adam wasn't the first man, then the genealogy given in Luke is wrong. The genealogy points to the creation story, or at least the part about adam being the first man, as literal and not metaphorical.

Husky, if your wrestling with whether or not the religion you've been taught is real, trapperman is not the place to do research.

This is true. These threads give me an instant knot in my stomach.
It’s not spirituality and faith that upsets me; it’s the constant battling over who has it all figured out. I certainly don’t.
When something like this is shoved down your throat all your life, you get an aversion to it. Husky I hope you can find peace in your own spirituality.

Heck, it isn’t the place to do research on how you’ve been taught to trap sometimes. Lol

I’ve always thought the Bible was a history of the times, as written by those who lived it, as they remembered it. My big issues have been with its interpretation by priests, ministers, bishops, rabbis, popes, prophets, professors and the like. Everyone has an opinion of who and what their God is. Everyone wants me to believe what they say is what the Bible contains. Every religion thinks it is the true way, and their interpretation is the only way.

I see all religions like trapping: Everything has qualifiers. No one lure catches them all. The wind and rain play havoc with the best laid plans. It boils down to the trapper and individual studying the situation, getting comfortable with the interpretation, and laying steel in a way that works for them.

Now, there are some universal truths in trapping.
1. A trap left in the truck doesn’t catch anything.
2. Otters are non-existent in Washington DC so don’t put your trap in the middle of a cement intersection.
3. Catching your aunt’s favorite cat will guarantee you a dope-slap or even worse.
4. Flooding makes it hard to stay clean.
5. Wet, muddy fur guarantees a low offer by the fur buyer.
6. Tainting bait in the basement makes loved ones less loving.

There are some universal truths about biblical stuff, too.
1. If you don’t open the Bible, you’ll never learn it’s contents.
2. The Bible was written by those who could read and write.
3. The Bible was written based on memories, and memories aren’t always accurate.
4. No one living today was present when the miracles performed by Jesus were done. We’re taking the memories, passed thru generations of interpretations, as truth.
5. The Bible is, essentially, a history book.

History tends to be written by the victors. Some of it is probably accurate but considering how much beverage was consumed from lead goblets, even that is suspect. If someone wants to believe in the words of the Bible, I’m all for it. But the way I see it, no book is perfect.

Every one of us will find out the truth one day.

Teacher, if the Bible is a history book, how do you explain the Book of Revelation? That is about future times not past events.

The genealogy, if incomplete, doesn't mean it's incorrect. You misunderstand the mindset of the writers. Our modern perception is " just the facts, ma'am. " They didn't necessarily think that way.

I hope so, but nobody knows that is true either. Some people believe that a great many don't.

Keith

I will pray for you…..

I have faith in it's reliability. I don't outright reject it, nor do I have to put my "hand in the wound" to believe it. That's just my 2 cents.

…. I always thought it was wild that Jesus would go into a lepor colony only heal a couple of them …. I bet the ones left were po’d lol

Bishop John Shelby Spong (maybe he was an arch-bishop) made an interesting observation in one of his books. For the record, I only read one. In it, he said in the time of Jesus, heaven was thought to be at the level of the clouds. Since then, we’ve figured out how to see 100,000 light years away. Does that mean heaven moved? Or just our concept of it now that we can see further?

I’m still not convinced the earth and all we know took 7-days to make. Or that the sea parted due to a miracle. That may have worked when people didn’t understand the process of tsunamis and tectonic plate movements. Ask the people in the southern states that just went thru flooding if heavy rains aren’t a possibility.

A lack of knowledge doesn’t a miracle make. So says Yoda.

I think the kid just likes to stir the pot. He doesn’t seem to be questioning his beliefs, so much as looking for someone to disagree so he can defend his religion to quell his boredom. Not saying I don’t dip into the whiskey bottle and look for an argument now and again lol

There was the original King James version...then all the 230 some Christian sectors changed the wording to suit themselves. Mankind is good at that.

…. You’re probably right…. I liked it when he made another account to talk in his own posts …. That was pretty funny lol

lol, that is funny.