that doesn't mean it can't communicate anything at all clearly

the people reading it are flawed

this does not mean they are incapable of understanding any of it

I'm not defending the bible as a book full of truths

I'm saying many different authors wrote it

and they had their original intentions

and that is the meaning of the text

there are not multiple valid interpretations

because one denomination disagrees about one thing doesn't mean anything

it means someone is wrong or no one is right and the meaning is lost

these books or letters etc... poems

they weren't meant to be all grouped together

they were written across hundreds of years

in different languages, places etc

of course there will be contradictions

one correct interpretation

infinite incorrect interpretations

and the correct one might be unknowable even while the author was alive

let alone when long dead

Christians use scripture to interpret scripture

they use one book that has nothing really to do with another to interpret a verse

if there is a verse that doesn't make sense to them

they go to a verse on that same topic that is clearer

and then choose that verse as the verse to go on

the Christians that practice exegesis

exegesis vs eisegesis

exegesis you try and figure out what the text really means as honestly as possible as Christian can

eisegesis you read something into it that is not there

Christians who practice exegesis are usually interested in the original languages of the manuscripts

koine greek/hebrew

cause they actually care about the "real" meaning of the text

doing all this and taking it seriously

is what helped me to not be a Christian anymore

cause it's obvious how convoluted it all is

trying to make it all fit

if I was still Christian no way I would be awake to racial differences

cause there is no room for evolution in Christianity

Christianity has fucked our race

most average IQ whites don't really understand evolution

from my experience

they just believe God created everyone