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I have argued elsewhere (Fighting Words: The Origins of…

“I have argued elsewhere (Fighting Words: The Origins of Religious Violence [2005]) that we need to treat ethics in biblical texts just as we treat ethics in any other works of ancient literature. It is a vacuous exercise to pick and choose which atrocities were really ordained by any gods and…” quote by Hector Avalos
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““I have argued elsewhere (Fighting Words: The Origins of Religious Violence [2005]) that we need to treat ethics in biblical texts just as we treat ethics in any other works of ancient literature. It is a vacuous exercise to pick and choose which atrocities were really ordained by any gods and which were not. We should have a zero-tolerance view of any text or collection of texts that at any time endorses genocide, misogyny, and other atrocities. We always judge ancient texts by modern ethical standards, and the Bible should not be treated differently.””

Hector Avalos

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Advocates applying modern ethical standards to ancient religious texts, condemning selective moral judgments and endorsing zero tolerance for genocide and misogyny.

In simple terms: Ancient texts should be judged by today’s ethics.

Key Takeaway

Critically evaluate historical works.

Themes

ethics religion history

Mood

critical ethical

Type

Ancient literature:1 Atheism:0 Biblical-ethics:1 Biblical-morality:1 Books:0 Cherry-picking:1 Ethics:1 Genocide:1 Genocide-in-the-bible:1 Misogyny:1 Morality:1 Myths:0 Philosophy:0 Pick and choose:1 Religion:1 Special-pleading:0 Special treatment:0 Biblical Texts:1 Ancient Texts:1 Ethics Biblical:1 Choose Atrocities:1 Bible Treated:1

When to use this quote

  • academic study
  • policy making
  • public discourse

Key Concepts

morality literature human rights

Questions to Reflect On

  • How do we handle sacred texts?
  • What criteria should guide moral evaluation?
A Different Perspective

Balancing respect for tradition with critique is complex;

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