The Bible, re-interpreted

Bart Ehrman is an American New Testament scholar and textual critic of early Christianity. He is the James A. Gray Distinguished Professor and chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

According to wikipedia,

Ehrman became an Evangelical Christian as a teen. His desire to understand the original words of the Bible led him to the study of ancient languages and to textual criticism, to which he attributes the inspiration for an ongoing critical exploration of the basis of his own religious beliefs, which in turn gradually led to the questioning of his faith in the Bible as the inerrant, unchanging word of God. He now considers himself an agnostic.

He is the author of or has contributed to more than 20 books. Last year, he published another book called Jesus, Interrupted: Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible (And Why We Don't Know About Them).

Here's Ehrman being interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR's "Fresh Air".

Part1 of 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HnntlAd2x8

Part 2 of 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoQ54p6j6bc



Part 3 of 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl5K5Vj8Aog



Part 4 of 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRtS81RnU2M

Go to hell, Pat Robertson

Even though I think the title "reverend" is an empty and bogus title, I wouldn't even apply it to you for fear of besmirching it.

That's how low you've sunk in the eyes of all decent human beings. You are a shameful excuse for a human being. You're senile, stupid and a racist to boot. What comes out of your mouth could charitably be described as oral diarrhea.

The death toll from the Jan. 12 Haiti earthquake has exceeded 200,000. In the midst of so much suffering, Pat Robertson had this to say on his show, The 700 Club:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOQrcg9y1iA

Robertson: "Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it. They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the Devil. They said, we will serve you if you'll get us free from the French. True story. And so, the Devil said, okay it's a deal."

What he was referring to, allegedly, was the 1791 slave uprising against the French at Bois Caiman, where the slaves allegedly made a famous pact with the devil in exchange for victory over the French.

Haiti's slave revolt in the 18th century was the first and only successful revolt in the Americas to overthrow oppression. And, as the Haitian ambassador to the United States, Raymond Joseph, pointed out on the Rachel Maddow show, Robertson shows a woeful ignorance of history.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A2q60qg0WA

The only responsible response to the disaster in Haiti is to help in any way you can. Donate money, as I and a lot of Americans have done. Go to Haiti to help with rescue efforts, as a lot of Americans have also done. Go to Charity Navigator to give to agencies and NGOs that work to alleviate Haiti's suffering.

Pat Robertson is supposedly something of an "expert" on Hell. Good, because he's going to be in it when he dies.