Continuing to twist the Holy Bible

Ness minister Reverend Greg Macdonald is in the right church. The Free Church Continuing is continuing to peddle the delusion that the Bible only orders their style of Sabbath Observance.

Mr Macdonald, a charming fellow I am told, but who has little grounding in reason having admitted elsewhere he has known little but Sabbatarian brainwashing since he was little more than a tot, has a desperately-misleading letter in this week’s Stornoway Gazette.

But then he is vice-chairman of the LDOS too. They are entitled to put their view as are those of us with open minds. That is, of course, not the case in those countries where fundamentalist religionists, of whatever flavour, are in control.

Charming but ...

His letter centres, as is usual for fundamentalist sects, on scare tactics. This week, the line is that people who do not have Continuing-style Sundays must be athiests and are “anti-God”. Whooo-ooh. Come on out and say it, Mr Macdonald. Spawn of the antichrist? That’s what you barmy lot really believe, isn’t it?

Unfortunately, for someone who claims to believe the Bible and that it is relevant today – including the Good Book’s full-on support for sacrifices, incest, child slaughter and slavery, presumably – his argument has more holes than my string vest.

In fact, what the Bible makes clear in many instances is that Sabbath observance is entirely up to the individual. It says any attempt by fundamentalists – like the fun-loving Mr Macdonald – to impose it is just, well, wrong.

It is not enough for the bold Rev that Jesus himself was more than willing to defy zealots like him on the Sabbath question (John 5:16). You would think J C had nailed that one for good. Not on the twisted path followed by the LDOS, he didn’t.

These unbiblical manipulators would do well to actually read their Bible with an open mind sometimes. I suggest: Isaiah 1:13 where they will find: “Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity”.

OK, they did away with the joss sticks but they should follow the rest too. It is iniquity. Geddit?

At Romans 14:5, they would find: “One man esteemeth one day above another; another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.”

What was that? Let us make up our own minds? If only these people would.

If he has time after that, Mr Macdonald should peruse the passage where Paul effectively says we should ignore the extremist interpretations of the blinkered bigots in Colossians 2:16.

Let no man therefore judge you in meat and drink, or in respect of a holy day, or of the new moon; or of the sabbath days. So there.

I put those last two words in, by the way.

There is no interpretation or special knowledge required. We know what is meant. It is clear. The fact that fundamentalists claim it is they who must not be judged is just another groundless interpretation. Sad, really.

As people who publicly claim to believe the Bible, these passages, and the reasonable interpretations of them, are avoided by such as can be found in the ranks of the LDOS.

They just ignore scripture where it doesn’t fit in with the brainwashing of the generations which they live to perpetuate.

Personally, I don’t care what people believe. It should be a matter for them. It is when they start imposing their delusions on other people that I take great umbrage.  And despite the advances in recent years, there are still dark corners in which sinister intolerance lurks and into which a bright light must be shone.

Ach, maybe I should capitulate. Maybe I too should start accepting extremist interpretations of the Bible. Look, there’s something here in Exodus 21 about slavery. Gosh, it says I can sell my daughter. Waow.

Er, darling, you know how you want to go to the mainland  for the long weekend …?