http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible Comments on 'read the new testament' en-gb team@pledgebank.com 1901-01-01T00:00+00:00 2 hourly http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_3242 Why is this a pledge ? Why do you need anyone else to read the NT as well ? Just read it, if you want to do so. PS, yes, I have. Several times. http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2703 I read the entire Bible when on a long (6 month) sea journey and it IS dry and, in my opinion, boring. However at least I now know it is dry and agree with you Dominic on that. Mind you it did explain why Christians used to hate Jews who do not come out of the Bible with any decent reputation. http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2687 Dominic - sure, I'll make this my last comment on the subject, but please consider carefully what I am about to say. Chris (the founder of this pledge) states: "I think it is so important to search for god.. therefore i really want to read the new testament now." Can you see how completely illogical that sentence is? If Chris (and all you other pledgers) really are *searching* for god, then why are you drawing a fixed assumption about where you should look? If you really are *searching* for god (rather than just trying to fit reality to your preconcieved ideas), then you owe it to yourself to not just read the Bible, but also the Qu'ran, the Torah, the Book of Mormon, the Bhagavad Gita, the Shri Guru Granth Sahib, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, and countless other religious texts too numerous to name here. You might also like to consider reading the Humanist Manifesto, various Wicca and Pagan texts, and perhaps even Professor Stephen Hawking's "The Universe In A Nutshell". Or, is it that you aren't really *searching* for god, because you've already made your mind up? Think about it. http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2650 Dave and Jennifer - may I suggest then that you don't bother to read it and let the rest of us happily waste our time :) http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2648 I couldn't agree with you more http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2601 Sorry to be a bit of a troll on this pledge, but I doubt you will find God anywhere in The Bible, or anywhere at all. "Searching for god" by reading some book, is equally as ridiculous a notion as searching for fairies at the bottom of the garden. You have a void, a question, and you are attempting to fill it with a quick answer that will quell your own internal search for the truth. Would you rather believe a fairytale than simply not have an answer? Don't lie to yourself! The Bible needs to be left in the dark ages where it belongs - the sooner we rid ourselves of organised religion, the better. Organised religion is the dangerous pacifier that gives simple "answers" to complicated questions, in order to stop us thinking and questioning for ourselves. Organised religion is the ultimate in brainwashing. Why are you looking for quick answers in The Bible? A lifelong search for your own answers is far more difficult, because it requires you to be true to yourself, and often admit "I just don't know, but that's perfectly OK". Regardless of religion or none, as far as anybody is able to determine and prove beyond doubt, death is final. The sooner people accept that and start living their lives NOW, the better. Even if you believe there is life after death - can you afford to take the chance that there isn't? Don't waste this life preparing for your "next" life - deal with reality, as you experience it, right here, right now. By all means read The Bible, but if you can honestly and logically evaluate it and come away thinking it's anything but man-made stories, I would question your reasoning abilities, or your honesty with yourself. Life without "god" is much happier and more fulfilling! Do good because YOU WANT to do good. Love because YOU ARE love. Spread peace and kindness because it is the RIGHT THING to do. All of these human things come from within... there is no god making them happen. Give yourself some credit for the good YOU do in life! Equally, take responsibility for your own actions - if YOU do wrong, learn from it, and be your own punishment. Asking for forgiveness from "god" is pathetic buck-passing of the highest order! The buck stops at YOU. Religion is a deadly mind virus, because it absolves us of responsibility for our own actions, keeping us sedated on a bunch of lies that make reality easier to digest. Reality is not easy - test yourself daily by standing on your own feet and dealing with that fact. That is the meaning of life, of living. Finally, to end on a comedy note, as Bill Hicks so wisely said, "Eternal suffering awaits all who question God's infinite love." http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2563 Why just the new testament? I often get the feeling that christians are ashamed of and would like to forget the old testament. http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2391 Planned version is the J B Philips version, for which I have a great deal of fondness (any translation coherent enough that the reader can get through all of Hebrews in one sitting has a lot going for it), though I also love the Amplified and the KJV http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2278 Hi Alex - I feel like John Wesley here! Why not be brave, sign the pledge and give it a go. If you want some juicy bits, go to the last book - Revelations. You'll be amazed at how much of this book is coming true in the world - right now! And it was written a few years ago. If that doesn't make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, then don't read the rest. I think it is a stunning book to read and you should easily be able to read it in a week. But if it does do something for you, then you'll just HAVE to read the rest. Maybe a guide to go with it is a good idea, but have a read first. It's probably the easiest book in the whole world to get hold of. I bet you can find a church near you one lunchtime if it brings up any questions. My preferred version is the NIV - in newspaper terms, it's like reading the Daily Mail: not too "Telegraph", but not the Mirror either. I'd love to know how you get on :) I think at least 15 other people on this page would too. Maybe we could all exchange ideas as we read it - even if we don;t get another 84 to sign the pledge????? http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2265 Fair point there. Good luck to you I say. - maybe if the pledge signers find any lesser known good bits in there you could share them with us non-believers. http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2257 I´ve read the New Testament through before and am intending to do so again. I´ll read it with you. http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2212 Maybe Alex, but at least you'd be able to say "It IS a bit dry" rather than "Isn't it a bit dry?". You never know, it might not be that dry after all???? http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2112 You're seriously planning to read the whole new testament? Isn't that a bit dry? Wouldn't it be better to get one of those reading guides and read the important bits? http://www.pledgebank.com/readbible#comment_2100 let god come into your life