Pope Francis Expected To Instruct One Billion Catholics To Act On Climate Change

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41. That is a simple theological question and he could not answer it????

Last edited Tue Dec 30, 2014, 12:52 AM - Edit history (1)

First there is NOTHING in the bible that Adam and Eve only had Sons, only three sons are mentioned by names but the scripture clearly said they had other "sons and daughters". Thus the sons of Adam and Eve had woman they could marry.

Second, the story of Adam and Eve was clearly allegory. As was the story of Cain and Abel and the rest of Genesis prior to Abraham and Lot. These stories had wide circulation in the mid east and the Jews adopted them and gave them a Jewish spin. There are stories to teach "Truths" not facts and as basis for debate (who was the greater sinner, Eve for being tricked to eating the apple, or Adam who chose to eat the Apple rather then live alone without Eve).

Now, these stories were used to explain how nature operated, why woman have the worse birthing pain of any creature. You may dislike the reason given but it was an explanation that did explain why it is so painful compared to other creatures. The three children on Noah being the fathers of the three "Races" the Jews knew of is another attempt to explain observable facts when you have very limited data.

Being allegory, conflicts in text were viewed as minor. Who really cares if Cain was condemned for being a farmer and his offer to God was considered less desirable then the offer of a lamb by Abel? This part of the tale is obversely from verbal tradition of herders not farmers for the Jews had been Herders before they settle down as farmers in Ancient Israel. The main thrust was Cain had no right to kill Abel out of Jealousy, he should help and protect his fellow man not kill them.

We have to remember these tales were told and told over campfires for centuries. While new stories and get gabbled quite quickly as they go from one person to another, such old tales tend to stay the same for centuries for people know the stories and what them heard over and over again, thus these verbal stories begin to be remembered word for word by not only the person saying the story, but the people hearing it. The stories were to teach lessons NOT repeat facts and allegory was a well known way to teach such "Truths".

My point is everything before Abraham can be referred to as Allegory. Fundamentalist are less likely to embrace this concept (Thus they attack William Jennings Bryan testimony in the Scopes Monkey Trial that this whole section of the Bible was Allegory, such Fundamentalists also attack main line Protestants and Catholic who also hold them to be Allegory as do the Jews Rabbis). Allegory shows up in later books of the Bible (Jesus himself told several tales of allegory, referred to as "Parables" and according to most scholars you get a better understanding of his dogma by reading those stories then anything else in the New Testament).

If this Priest, who can NOT even do the above shows the level of the Priests coming out of the seminaries, we are trouble.