In
A Brief Survey of Biblical Errancy Scott Bidstrup makes a chart of errors in the Bible. He also posts a note for people who want to explain away the errors in the Bible. He says that explaining away the errors by blaming copyists, etc. is the easy way out. In his own words:
Quote:
If you want to take that easy way out, then you're not talking about the inerrant Bible that the fundamentalists claim I can pick up off of my local bookshop shelf. My essay is aimed at them, not you. So PLEASE don't bother to tell me that these are all translator's, copyist's and editor's errors. If it is going to be the reliable word of God, it has to be inerrant, and that means truly inerrant; i.e., devoid of all translational, copyist or editing errors.
Bidstrup's chart has three columns. In the left-hand column he lists problems in the Bible. In the right-hand column he lists the "Rational Explanations," and in the middle column he lists the "The Apologist's Explanation" if there is any. The chart is divided into two parts: "Obvious Impossibilities" and "Direct Contradictions."
Below the charts you will find a summary of
The Crucifixion and Resurrection Mess. He asks "just how contradictory can we make an account of the same events?"
Christians who want to reconvert former Christians will have to find logical ways to overcome these problems, not to mention many others, before they can hope to have any meaningful impact. Bidstrup addresses this in part with "A Note And A Challenge to Fundamentalists Who Read This Essay" still further down the page. All in all, this is a valuable page for anyone interested in fighting--or defending--fundamentalist religion.
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