Reddit mentions of The Jefferson Bible: The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth

Yes! I own it. Unfortunately, it is as boring as it sounds. The New Testament without miracles is just Jesus wandering around telling people not to be dicks.

The Jefferson Bible: The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth https://www.amazon.com/dp/1604591285/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_QTsSzbXQYPQTB

> I believe that if Jesus was a real person, he taught love and forgiveness...He just wasn't the son of a god

Have you ever read the Jefferson Bible? It is a compilation of the King James Bible, with all supernatural events cut out, only leaving the teachings and morals of Christianity; made by Thomas Jefferson himself.

EDIT: You can buy a copy here

The Jefferson Bible.

Introduce her to the concept of reality starting with subjective perspective.

Introduce her to the Jefferson Bible - http://www.amazon.com/The-Jefferson-Bible-Morals-Nazareth/dp/1604591285

The philosophy of liberty (originally a flash animation but now found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muHg86Mys7I ) is a good starting point (a fundamental) for understanding humanist morality and rules of subjective perception.

Introduction to the concept of falsification is a dangerous but necessary thing - ultimately, falsification and collaboration are important methods by which subjective perception becomes objective observation.

I am sure that other Redditors could contribute to this in a much more creative way, but this is what I think of when this subject comes up.

> Is the Bible compatible with democracy?

That depends on which parts of the Bible you ignore.

The bible is so inconsistent that every Christian must decide which parts to ignore. Ignore the right parts, and things are just fine. Check out Thomas Jefferson's version. It is very compatible.

84 cents on Amazon.

But the best deal is the $4.99 paperback. The perfect Christmas gift for all your rabid right wing Christian relatives and co-workers.

The Jefferson Bible

>small-minded rote "morality" of iron-age religions towards the more utilitarian belief in increasing the greater good through knowledge and technology.

I'm an athiest, but to call the teachings of the past small minded is ignorant and arrogant. Would you say that to iron age philosophers western civilization was also founded on? Would you say the ideas about the duties of the citizen by Cicero is small minded? What about the thoughts written down Marcus Aurelius?

No?

Then just because the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth may include some mysticism doesn't mean the moral foundations are wrong.

>When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.

Western civilization is a combination of Christianity and Secular Humanism. Sadly we're replacing community (the church) with the state. We were SO FUCKING LUCKY that a religion based around a homeless hippie became as popular as it did, humans are shit, Christianity at least help cover up the smell.

I'd suggest the secular

https://www.amazon.com/Jefferson-Bible-Morals-Jesus-Nazareth/dp/1604591285

> what if I'm wrong about everything? It's a lot to consider

Yes, it is, but you need to recognize there are no definitive answers either way. The Age of Reason is a good introduction to Deism and a book I highly recommend you read if you're interested in Deism, it deals with a lot of the questions you have asked.

> why does Jesus have to be divine to be worshipped/followed?

This is often an idea synonymous with Christian Deists, that Christ did a lot of good in the world and this is reason enough to follow him and his moral teachings, he doesn't have to be divine. Read the Jefferson Bible It focuses on Christ's humanity, his morals, and all the good he did in the world, without all the supernatural passages.


> fear/guilt over dismissing his divinity......... Oh, God left AFTER Jesus (A close friend proposed this belief.)

Jesus being 'God in the flesh' causes numerous problems for Deism, most notably because it is a claim that God interacted with people in the world and revealed himself to mankind in the form of Christ.

However, when you say God no longer intervened AFTER Christ, you still have numerous problems to contend with when you try to fit those beliefs into Deism:

• If you know Christ is God, you are making the claim that you know God, you know God's characteristics, and you know who He is.
  
• You're believing in revelation; so you're no longer looking to nature and your own reasoning for your beliefs.
  
• The idea of the Holy Spirit especially causes lots problems to Deism, because if you believe in the HS as the 3rd person of the trinity, then you do have God/HS interacting and intervening in the world and swaying people towards belief. You cannot then argue that God does not intervene.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

The Jefferson Bible is an interesting read indeed.

Christian deism doesn't recognize Jesus as the son of a god, nor as a man speaking the word or intent of a god. It's more about sharing the same values and culture as Christians. A god created the universe, but the god didn't share teachings with humans or interact with humans.

Thomas Jefferson is a good example. For his own reading, he meticulously edited the New Testament, cutting and pasting a new version that focused on the teachings of Jesus, with all of Jesus' miracles removed and most supernatural elements removed. In the end, you just have a book about a philosopher. It's known as the Jefferson Bible. You can buy one on Amazon.

I tend to view deists of that period as almost atheists, even though they would have opposed that notion. Many answers/theories/explanations they'd want about the origin of life and the universe simply didn't exist, and it was a foreign idea to think of these things naturally occurring, so they believed in a god as a necessity for understanding the most basic questions regarding life.

Give it a read! I gift a copy to all devout Christian family members: https://www.amazon.com/Jefferson-Bible-Morals-Jesus-Nazareth/dp/1604591285/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485115764&sr=8-1&keywords=jefferson+bible