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The Year of Living Biblically

post #1 of 63
10/10/07 at 6:03am
Thread Starter 
http://www.ajjacobs.com/books/yolb.asp

I was listening to Fresh Air on NPR and happened upon this story. This guy decided to live his life for one year according to the Bible. He didn't trim his beard, he stoned an adulterer, and didn't sit where an un-clean woman had sat. I'm very tempted to pick up the book and see how it all worked out for him.

What do you think?
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post #2 of 63
10/10/07 at 6:09am
IMO I'd think this was a VERY interesting book - be worth picking up and finding out what happened May put it on the list to pick up. BTW we are Christians, but it would be cool to see what happened.
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post #3 of 63
10/10/07 at 6:14am
I take it that he did everything based on the Old testament? Or the new?

That would be very interesting.
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post #4 of 63
10/10/07 at 6:17am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by lunasmom View Post
I take it that he did everything based on the Old testament? Or the new?

That would be very interesting.
I believe that he attempted to follow every rule the Bible had. Old and New Testament included. (I could be wrong about that)

I just read the section where he stoned the adulterer it was very funny. He threw pebbles at an old man in Central Park. He said that the Bible doesn't comment on the size of the stones so he was okay by just throwing small rocks.

I'm going to have to pick up this book.
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post #5 of 63
10/10/07 at 6:36am
From the intro part - it was he was following the Old Testament - not the New.
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post #6 of 63
10/10/07 at 6:56am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45 View Post
From the intro part - it was he was following the Old Testament - not the New.
Thank you for that clarification.
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post #7 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:29am
Jesus doesn't go for stoning.
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post #8 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Jesus doesn't go for stoning.
true,
however you can find stoning videos on the net, for those that want to see what they are like
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post #9 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:44am
Yes, but it interesting to notice that some people pick and choose laws out of the same books that stoning is in, regardless of how well they conform to Jesus' teachings. Also, he's non-practicing Jewish.
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post #10 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lookingglass View Post
I just read the section where he stoned the adulterer it was very funny. He threw pebbles at an old man in Central Park. He said that the Bible doesn't comment on the size of the stones so he was okay by just throwing small rocks.
however i fail to see what is funny about that, just because someone was old, does not make them a adulterer.

so he abused a old person? sounds like a NPR stunt
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post #11 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:49am
Are adulterers supossed to be stoned or stoned to death?
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post #12 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zissou'sMom View Post
Yes, but it interesting to notice that some people pick and choose laws out of the same books that stoning is in, regardless of how well they conform to Jesus' teachings. Also, he's non-practicing Jewish.
hmm dont think i ever heard of a christen stoning people.....
but hey if they want to make fun of people reglion that ok, but my question is why dont they try it with ISLAM,, the reason is they are to chicken.
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post #13 of 63
10/10/07 at 7:59am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by theimp98 View Post
however i fail to see what is funny about that, just because someone was old, does not make them a adulterer.

so he abused a old person? sounds like a NPR stunt
He doesn't work for NPR.

The man said that he was an adulterer, and he through stones at him. He was following the letter of the law in the Bible.
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post #14 of 63
10/10/07 at 8:12am
Sounds like another Christian/Jewish/Bible bashing fest to me. ***Yawn***
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post #15 of 63
10/10/07 at 8:14am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Sounds like another Christian/Jewish/Bible bashing fest to me. ***Yawn***
I don't think he was "bashing" anyone. I really think he was trying to live following the letter of the Bible to find out more about his faith.
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post #16 of 63
10/10/07 at 8:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lookingglass View Post
http://www.ajjacobs.com/books/yolb.asp

I was listening to Fresh Air on NPR and happened upon this story. This guy decided to live his life for one year according to the Bible. He didn't trim his beard, he stoned an adulterer, and didn't sit where an un-clean woman had sat. I'm very tempted to pick up the book and see how it all worked out for him.

What do you think?
Stoned an adulterer?

Maybe he wrote the book from prison?

EDIT: Our library has this book so I just put in a request for it.
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post #17 of 63
10/10/07 at 8:39am
Quote:
But also, the hundreds of oft-ignored ones.

* Do not wear clothes of mixed fibers.
* Do not shave your beard
* Stone adulterers
Is polyester a fiber?
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post #18 of 63
10/10/07 at 8:42am
If you just read The Rules part on the website, it doesn't appear to be bashing at all. Not everything written by a non-preaching-Christian is bashing. He appears to have truly tried to live by Biblical rules in modern day, which would be very difficult (his examples - mixing cloth types, and not sitting or laying where a menstruating woman has been).

Looks like an interesting read. Has some humor to it, but I bet there is some much deeper meaning to his journey than just laughing at the old "Rules".
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post #19 of 63
10/10/07 at 8:51am
Most Christians know that Christ threw many of those rules out the window when HE made the ultimate sacrifice for us, so no need for stonings anymore.

Did the dude,

1. Love God with all his heart
2. Love his neighbor as himself

because if he follows those 2, all will fall into place and he will be living as Christ wants him to.

Yes, IMO, it is a bash.
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post #20 of 63
10/10/07 at 9:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Most Christians know that Christ threw many of those rules out the window when HE made the ultimate sacrifice for us, so no need for stonings anymore.

Did the dude,

1. Love God with all his heart
2. Love his neighbor as himself
Probably not, because the man isn't a christian...he's jewish.
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post #21 of 63
10/10/07 at 9:22am
The site did say that he followed the 10 commandments.

Besides he also stated that he wasn't a practising Jew either...that he was pretty much agnostic. So I highly doubt it's a book on bashing. I think he was just simply trying to see what it would be like to live according to every rule and law of the bible. Not just the rules and laws that each christian religion picks and chooses for themself.

I wonder which version of the bible he used.
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post #22 of 63
10/10/07 at 9:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lunasmom View Post
The site did say that he followed the 10 commandments.

Besides he also stated that he wasn't a practising Jew either...that he was pretty much agnostic. So I highly doubt it's a book on bashing. I think he was just simply trying to see what it would be like to live according to every rule and law of the bible. Not just the rules and laws that each christian religion picks and chooses for themself.

I wonder which version of the bible he used.
I couldn't find anything on that website that said, but just going by his quotes and references, it seems he was using either the Old Testament or the Torah.
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post #23 of 63
10/10/07 at 9:42am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skippymjp View Post
I couldn't find anything on that website that said, but just going by his quotes and references, it seems he was using either the Old Testament or the Torah.
http://www.ajjacobs.com/books/yolb.asp?id=how

This makes a great point. He learned a lot about himself and others by doing this... check out how he stopped coveting. How cool is that?
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post #24 of 63
10/10/07 at 9:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by theimp98 View Post
hmm dont think i ever heard of a christen stoning people.....
but hey if they want to make fun of people reglion that ok, but my question is why dont they try it with ISLAM,, the reason is they are to chicken.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Most Christians know that Christ threw many of those rules out the window when HE made the ultimate sacrifice for us, so no need for stonings anymore.

Did the dude,

1. Love God with all his heart
2. Love his neighbor as himself

because if he follows those 2, all will fall into place and he will be living as Christ wants him to.

Yes, IMO, it is a bash.
If it's a bash (and it's shelved in the Humor section, not the religion section) then it is a bash against people who chose a literal, rigid interpretation of certain parts of the bible, and completely ignore others.

I didn't say people still stoned anybody, and if you even glance at the site, he threw pebbles at someone in the park.

What he is pointing out is that sometimes the religious rules of the day a couple thousand years ago don't always apply to today, like stoning adulterers, not wearing clothes made from two kinds of fabric, smearing blood around your door, or hating gay people.

You're right Cindy, if more of the people who called themselves Christians would actually strive to follow the teachings of love, tolerance, kindness, and humility of Jesus, rather than using certain bible passages as tools to defend their judgments of other people while ignoring everything else, it would be quite the improvement.
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post #25 of 63
10/10/07 at 9:48am
Everything that Christ said 2000 years ago is VERY applicable to today.
His words are ageless.
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post #26 of 63
10/10/07 at 12:01pm
I think this man is crazy. The things that were laws in the Bible times are not necessarily laws today. I think with the changing times things such as throwing rocks at an adulterer in the park and not sitting next to an "unclean" woman are a bit ridiculous and childish. I am a Christian, and obviously this guy didn't read the WHOLE part about the stoning of the adulteress because he would know that Jesus, the whole reason we have Christianity today, came along and said "let he without sin cast the first stone" and saved the woman.

Why would a Jew want to do this anyway? It just doesn't make any sense.
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post #27 of 63
10/10/07 at 12:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by greenvillegal View Post
Why would a Jew want to do this anyway? It just doesn't make any sense.
The Bible is part of Judeo-Christian tradition. Without Judaism, there would be no Christianity.

I may be way off base here, but perhaps this journalist came up with the idea because of Islamic fundamentalists and their desire to establish or maintain Islamic law? The Taliban are one group I can't comprehend at all. Note: I'm aware that very many "Islamic traditions" are not based on the Koran, but those who follow them may not be; I'm not trying to start a debate about that.

If so, this experiment of his may be little more than an attempt to understand the fundamentalist mindset.
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post #28 of 63
10/10/07 at 12:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by greenvillegal View Post
I think this man is crazy. The things that were laws in the Bible times are not necessarily laws today. I think with the changing times things such as throwing rocks at an adulterer in the park and not sitting next to an "unclean" woman are a bit ridiculous and childish. I am a Christian, and obviously this guy didn't read the WHOLE part about the stoning of the adulteress because he would know that Jesus, the whole reason we have Christianity today, came along and said "let he without sin cast the first stone" and saved the woman.

Why would a Jew want to do this anyway? It just doesn't make any ense.
The Hebrew bible, or Torah, does not include what Christians refer to as the new testament. As far as he is concerned, nothing comes after the old testament, which is what all of his quest seems to have been based on. There doesn't appear to be any Christianity involved in it at all.
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post #29 of 63
10/10/07 at 12:30pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcat View Post
The Bible is part of Judeo-Christian tradition. Without Judaism, there would be no Christianity.

I may be way off base here, but perhaps this journalist came up with the idea because of Islamic fundamentalists and their desire to establish or maintain Islamic law? The Taliban are one group I can't comprehend at all. Note: I'm aware that very many "Islamic traditions" are not based on the Koran, but those who follow them may not be; I'm not trying to start a debate about that.

If so, this experiment of his may be little more than an attempt to understand the fundamentalist mindset.
That's exactly why he wanted to do it! I can't wait to read the book and find out more about what went on. It seems like this may open my mind to a new side of things.
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post #30 of 63
10/10/07 at 12:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by greenvillegal View Post
I think this man is crazy. The things that were laws in the Bible times are not necessarily laws today. I think with the changing times things such as throwing rocks at an adulterer in the park and not sitting next to an "unclean" woman are a bit ridiculous and childish.
They are ridiculous and childish. That's the point, kind of. Some people want some of the out-dated laws to be made into laws in our country right now, and it is as foolish as making women on their periods wash everything they touch for 2 weeks. If what Jesus did forgave those laws, it forgave all of those laws, not just the ones that aren't convenient enough.

Anyway, it also might be that the author thought it was a good premise, kind of like 40 Days and 40 Nights, or Bruce/Evan Almighty, etc.
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