The last few years of my religious life were pretty good years. To me god was just a spirit that kept the universe in sync. Not a thinking entity that was involved in people's lives. I was bothered by apologists who were always saying they knew what god wanted, and proceeded to try to impose it on everyone around them. That was another nail in the coffin of my religion.
Even though I was raised by parents who believed just like those apologists, I had seen enough evidence to the contrary to think a god was whispering in people's ears telling them how to act. That's not what bothers me about religion though. It's the fact that they think everyone has to behave the way this whispering god tells them to behave. Whether it's telling gays to be straight, or telling women to be servants to men, or telling everyone they have to sit quietly and listen to their prayers, or to hate other religions. Those of us who don't subscribe to their faith don't have to put up with their proclamations in a free country.
This post has no purpose really other than saying what's on my mind this morning.
Bible writings are all static. It means they can only take on new meaning in a modern era by having apologists tell you what it was all about. They want you to think that your god is whispering in every ear and laying ideas and a burden upon the heart, but in the end this is no more than a news analyst telling you what you just read or just heard. It is mere suggestion.
By design, regardless of the religion one believes, it's set up for this way of thinking.
It's not like letting someone enjoy golf while you enjoy tennis. From their perspective, what we believe has dire consequences, as everything we say and every action we take is being judged by a creator, who is punishing or rewarding us during our life on earth and will determine our fate after death.
To them, this is just the dress rehearsal. I used to believe this, at one time, and I felt it was my duty to save the world.