A year or so ago, curious about my heritage, I submitted my DNA for analysis. The results showed my ancestors journeyed across Africa and Eurasia, before finally reaching Jamaica to produce me. This was deduced from ‘markers’, unique DNA on the Y-chromosome, and the mitochondria, a structure in the cell. All males inherit the Y-chromosome from their fathers, who inherited it from their fathers, and so on. Everyone inherits the mitochondria, exclusively through the maternal line.
As expected, the analysis showed my ancestors originated in a small area of East Africa. If this defines the Garden of Eden, we can now say it was a continent away from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the place imagined by the Bronze Age scribes responsible for Genesis.
And this is yet another example of the enormous mountain of fact-based knowledge the Rev Clinton Chisholm must overcome to make a convincing case for biblical inerrancy. How could an omniscient God forget so many important details of creation, including the location of the Garden of Eden?
Unfortunately, none of these flaws matters to some fundamentalist Christians. They are too conditioned to bother with evidence.
We see this disconnect in Rev Chisholm’s attempt to associate Christianity with love, unbothered by the thousands ostensibly burned alive for the trumped-up crimes of heresy, and witchcraft, but actually to consolidate church power and enrich already powerful patrons. But even I was surprised he could also ignore the screams of countless Africans, his ancestors and mine, as they were converted, not by love, but through murder, rape and torture.
This disconnect is also visible in his attempt to associate Christianity with important scientists, implying that an affiliation was consequential in their work. Even he should know that all scientists, religious and secular, operate in precisely the same way. They use evidence, not scripture, to motivate and inform their discoveries. And in the handful of cases where scriptures are the motivator, the result is always nonsense like ‘Intelligent Design’.
Belief is indeed a powerful self-deluding force. What other explanation can there be for expecting a fact-free rant from an apologist, a Kenneth Kitchen, to refute a widely known archaeological finding? More than 40 years of diligent archaeological search has failed to confirm an Exodus-scale migration through the Sinai. Bluster alone cannot overcome the implication: The Exodus never happened.
For what it’s worth, The Theory of Evolution has survived more than 150 years of the most intense scientific scrutiny ever levelled. Its ‘central tenets’ have not only remained, they are now considered foundational to understanding the biological sciences.
What are these tenets? They begin with recognising mutations occur naturally in all organisms. Those that maintain or enhance an organism’s ability to survive are more likely to be passed to the next generation. We refer to this as the ability to adapt, which is part of what we mean when we say a type of organism is ‘alive’.
Part of Darwin’s insight was to realise nature could use selection to weed out plants and animals with less advantageous mutations. In addition, he realised that over a long enough period of time, the cumulative effect of mutations could produce new species. And this process could lead to humans. These insights are supported by a variety of data, including the fossil record and, more recently, by DNA analysis.
Christianity’s divine claims are objectively unsupportable.
At the same time, we allow this religion to interfere with our economy, to thwart reasonable steps towards population control, to irrationally exclude groups of people from participating, and to restrict certain economic activities. We also offer tax abatements, knowing the main beneficiaries are often the clergy, not the poor.
This is one of the reasons why I try to be neutral. Thank you most high creator for allowing nature to teach me, you know my heart, and you see the confusion and distortment among your people.
look inside you the answers lie in you. not the bible!
In truth, I think Jamaica more affected by it. Me know onu ago come fi me, lol.
But, which part the 100s of churches hitch up bout the place improve we life since slavery? Wasn’t it said christianity that assisted n enslaving and conditioning we forefathers-here in the Western Hemisphere?
Look from when bunting a call pon devine intervention…and crime rocketed upwards 😀
More poor people go church dan upper class people…dem still poor or poorer cause dem tek dem last dime gi church like say GOD/Jesus have bank account a scottia.
We don’t need NO church and pastor fi recognize the creator and to respect we fellow man and nature.
Manuska me like you reasoning on this…so it fi go of course.
There is a school of thought that believes everything written in the Bible came out of the imagination of a few men, that none of it ever happened.
For me, as a woman, the Bible to me is not for me, it is a male dominant, male domineering book that is written for the advancement of men and their earthly desires. I have NEVER believed that everything in it came from God, because I know men and their egos and it is blatantly clear that many of the things written in it is completely ego based things for men and written out of their own hearts. I know that for many ppl it is dear to them, so I would never go out of my way to offend anybody and their beliefs. Religion is not perfect because it is created by man and nothing created my man is perfect. However, Christianity for all it flaws has helped many to become better versions of themselves. There is a need in humans to worship, if it is not God it will be a stone or the sky, so it the lesser of the evils. And even among religions, Christianity is not the worst, there is even greater, more evil religions out there. At least Christianity is based on love, and that is the root of it. There is no other monotheistic or world religion that has love as it foundation stone. It ain’t perfect, it will never be perfect, I will never be a Christian, but even in with it flaws there is value in it for those who need the structure of a religion to get through life.
I can agree with you to an extent about mankinds need to worship, but christianity being a foundation base on love I don’t; Love is abstract, to the point we use the term loosely.
For Mono I would go to Judaism if such religions were of interest to me.
*mankind
PP
EVERYTHING IS TRUE IN WHAT HE SAID, IT HAS HELD MOST PEOPLE ESPECIALLY BLACKS BACK FOR A LONG TIME, KEPT US DOWN, HAVE US PRAYING AND HOPING INSTEAD OF DOING.
I was waiting for someone to say Christianity keep us hoping. ” Hope lives on delusion for no hand can grasp a wave or shadow..” can’t remember who quoted that. They say Christians are delusional for hoping to get to heaven ( in the sky) and believing they’ll have a mansion with honey and milk when they can obtain those things here on earth
If the bible was not influenced by a divine power those men were surely more than mortals to have foreseen so much.
They say there are 4 realms in Christianity, I do not recall the names of all 4, however anyone can accomplish anything they desire in those realms except # 4. I’m gonna skip the first two and focus on the last two. Realm 3 is said to provide special abilities such as psychic powers, great achievements and wealth.The fourth realm is described as a realm in which there’s a TRUE divine connection between you and God where you are no longer a carnal christian. In every single realm you must sacrifice something they call offering, they say carnal Christians are bad and no man is without sin. Realm 4 is where they promote freedom from sin, divine connection with God, love, peace, a road paved in gold and reuniting with loved ones. The fourth realm is a realm of death and Christianity promotes that because of the contradictions. Now, it appears as though Christianity is a more recent distorted version of the occult practices because you have to climb in ranking and it was designed and sold to a particular group as a way of mental slavery. There’s truth in everything and we will always find contradiction but Christianity as a whole is extremely questionable and for promoting death
Christianity isnt the only religion promote death.Every spiritual movement and even in the occult world there is death as means of punishment. Divination is powerful but to go as deep as the bible has it would take someone very powerful who was able to travel in time and realms at the same time. No physical body could withstand that and if there were such a person they would be able to keep their spirit in their body forever.It is my belief that because of Christianity’s power, the last nail in the coffin is to get rid of it and in doing so those who want more power will be able to really control the world. No matter what they say, Christianity in its true pure essence encourages a kind of thinking that makes one keep their eye open. Attacking Christianity is the beast attacking its ”enemy”..
It’s hard to find truth. I try not to get cought up in any religion or believe 100% in science. You are absolutely correct with the occult promoting death but it wasn’t/isn’t on a broad spectrum like Christianity. Christianity is the leading religion as for believers
Only God knows on what spectrum they did promote death remember too ..in the occult world they saw twins as evil and to be left to die. Sometimes women, many died innocently too so in a lot of ways the concepts are the same..its ”civilization” that has changed the way people have been ordered to die. I believe as man is ”civilized” our relationship with God changes realms and the demands are different but the concept is the same. Christianity is one of the most discredited religions I believe and it is the most challenged but a lot of what is written can be traced historically and its prophesies are unmatched so before we follow ”them” and throw it totally out…I have opted to hold onto it while I am in pursuit of what else is out there..There is power in that same bible they discredit…there is a supreme being that the spirit relates to when the words of the bible are spoken and used..so it must be more than man made..Science is man so they cant school me with it at all…Science change everyday so who waa believe ina it foolish
The occult killed albino, children who used their left hand and had folks sacrificing their parents. Adaptation is a very skeptical subject because one can say things were strong enough not to adapt while others were weak and adapted. With all the religious practices I don’t see anyone fighting to save Nature and we need it no matter what. Nature is the least respected and the most important
Met, I can’t hang. I’m too tired and my brain is fried. Had a challenging week, it was a pleasure chatting with you. Peace sis
I left early too was tired