Religions > Atheism > A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus?
| Topic: |
Religions > Atheism |
| User: |
"Jasmine" |
| Date: |
04 Nov 2003 07:34:39 AM |
| Object: |
A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
Survery
Introduction
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am currently
doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible as a part of an
"A" level literature in Singapore and I will appreciate all your honest
feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the MOE in Singapore to include the
bible as part of what the literature student have to study in their "A"
level Literature examination?
The purpose of including the bible for the literature syllabus is as follow:
1) The bible has many poems that are good for study, on a literature basis.
2) Many literature texts in the current "A" level syllabus borrows many
ideas, metaphors and imageries from the bible.
3) Bible will expose the people to much of the thinking of the Western
world, today.
4) Bible offers many themes relating to human's relationship with one
another that are useful for all the people to look into.
5) Still working on it.
Instruction
Take note: When I mean the bible is to be studied as a literature text book,
I mean this: You look at the bible from a purely literature point of view,
treating it like any other literature book with no regard to the religious
side of it. You study the bible just like you will, Shakespeare and all your
other literature books, etc.
How do you answer my questions? I am very free to you answers, and your
creative expression of your answer.
You can highlight your answer in blue. Underline it. Or just put "My
answer....." to indicate your answer. Or just any other method you like.
Thank you.
For those, who need additional information before they will do the surveys,
I include them at the bottom of this survey. This is for people living
outside Singapore or any people who have no idea what I am looking for in my
survey. By the way, I also include a sample answer for my survey for those
who do not know how to go about answering my survey. The rest of you can
just answer the survey without any need to read the "extra" information at
the end.
Qn1) Do you think this it is a good idea to study the bible as part of the
"A" level literature?
Ans: Yes/ No / Both "Yes" and "No" at the same time (Please choose one.)
Qn2) Why? Please give a few reasons (3 to 4 reasons) for your previous
answer:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
Qn3) Do you have any other comment to make?
(Like offering an alternative to studying the bible as a literature, etc)
I will like to know the following background information with regard to you.
A) Your gender:
B) Your age:
C) Your race:
D) Your occupation:
(If you are a student, can you tell me where you are from, too? Refer to
question E and F. For the rest, you can go on to question G.)
E) For student only,
you are from University/Poly/ITE/Secondary/Primary/ others? (Choose
one)
F) For student only,
what subjects are you taking now? Go on to question G.
G) Have you ever study literature before?
Ans: Yes/No (Please choose one.)
H) What are the texts you study during literature? (If you do not remember,
just leave blank.)
I) what do you think should be the criteria for the MOE to choose what book
to study for literature?
J) Are you a Christian/ Non-Christian? (Choose one, please.)
Christian, please move on to answer all the questions under K. Non
Christian, please answer all the questions under L.
K) If you are a Christian,
1) Are you a Catholic or a Christian? (Choose one.)
2) What is your denomination? (Leave blank, if unsure.)
3) How strong is your faith in your God? (Choose one)
A) Very Strong
B) Quite Strong
C) Above Average
D) Average
E) Weak
F) None of the above: (Please indicate why if you choose F in this
survey.)
Reason for choosing F:
4) What is your view of the bible as a book? (Give your own opinion,
please. Your identity will not be revealed to anyone, not even your pastor.
So just say what you want.)
(Examples for those to lazy to think: It is a Holy Book/ It is written by
God/ It is the secret to eternal life/ It is a religious book/ It is a book
of past saints/ It is a history book/ It is a book that has many literature
qualities in it like poems/ It is just a book of myths, and some incredible
stories etc)
Proceed to question M.
L) If you are not a Christian,
1. What are you? (Eg: Muslim/Taoist/freethinkers etc)
2. How strong is your faith in your religion?
A) Very Strong
B) Quite Strong
C) Above Average
D) Average
E) Weak
F) None of the above: (Please indicate why if you choose F in this
survey.)
3) What is your view of the bible as a book? (Give your own opinion, please.
Your identity will not be revealed to anyone, not even your Christian
friends. So just say what you want.)
(Examples for those to lazy to think: It is a Holy Book/It is a religious
book/ It is a book for the Christians/It is propaganda/It is just one of the
many ways God speak to men/It is a history book/ It is a book that has many
literature qualities in it like poems/ It is just a book of myths, and some
incredible stories etc)
Proceed to question M.
M) How do you find this survey? (Choose more than one if you want to.)
A) It should offer more options for me to choose.
B) It is quite well thought out.
C) It is quite racial/gender/religious neutral for a survey that is
conducted regarding a sensitive book like the bible.
D) The questions are easy to understand.
E) It demands too much time from those doing the surveys.
F) The questions are not easily understood.
G) It is too concise and brief.
O) Any other comments? (Feel free to just say out openly any
displeasure/anger/inconvenience/praise you have towards me.)
(Some suggestions:
1) I will like to propose a few ways you can improve on your survey
techniques.
2) I will like to tell you how you can make it more religion-sensitive.
3) Hey, I take part in your survey because I understand just how hard it
is to get people to do a survey. You must thank me!
4) Just to let you know I might be saving out your survey for my own use.
5) I also got a survey I want you to do for me.)
Hahaha! It is really over! Thank you so much for responding. You are my
hero/heroine for the day. (Just today only, lah.) In reward for your effort,
I will freely answer any survey you have in the future for your project as
well. Once again, thank you for your time. Also, if you think of anyone in
your contact list who LOVE doing survey, please do me a favor and forward
this to him or her. I hope to reach the whole Singaporean nation so that I
can have a diverse, multi-racial, fairly thought out response to my survey
questions. Not to mention having to answer dozens of surveys in return and
having a flooding of my e-mail and spending so much time reading all your
responses until I have no time to work on my project. Ah, that is life. Life
in Singapore, anyway. Oh, I appreciate all feedbacks given by all of you. I
will definitely appreciate anybody who has a secret recipe to force people
into doing your surveys-eg making it so colourful and attractive that people
have FUN doing it.
~THE END~
Thank you for your time. :)
For those who receive this survey because your friend decides in his or her
heart that you will enjoy doing survey. You can e-mail the completed survey
to me at solid_heartsofgold@hotmail.com.
This document contains the sample survey answer and the extra information
mentioned in my main survey. The extra information is below the sample
survey.
SAMPLE SURVEY ANSWER
Qn1) Do you think this it is a good idea to study the bible as part of the
"A" level literature?
No.
Qn2) Why? Please give a few reasons (3 to 4 reasons) for your previous
answer:
1) It will mislead the readers to think the bible is just a story book.
2) It will cause religious conflicts for those students who just cannot read
the Bible because it is an insult to their religion.
3) No matter how neutral, the bible will still influence its reader for
better or for worst.
4) It will be unfair to the other holy books of other religions.
5)
6)
7)
Qn3) Do you have any other comment to make?
(Like offering an alternative to studying the bible as a literature, etc)
1) Study it as an extra background lesson to literature, which is
completely optional for the students?
2) Offer other religious books into the literature syllabus as well along
with the bible.
I will like to know the following background information with regard to you.
A) Your gender: Female
B) Your age: 20
C) Your race: Chinese
D) Your occupation: Student
(If you are a student, can you tell me where you are from, too? Refer to
question E and F. For the rest, you can go on to question G.)
E) For student only,
you are from University/Poly/ITE/Secondary/Primary/ others? (Choose
one)
I am from University.
F) For student only,
what subjects are you taking now? Go on to question G.
I am taking Philosophy, English Language, Economics, Malay Study and Why
Study Literature.
G) Have you ever study literature before?
Ans: Yes.
H) What are the texts you study during literature? (If you do not remember,
just leave blank.)
Macbeth, King Lear, Othello, Tempest, Tenant of the Wildfell Hall, Songs of
innocence and Experience, Sense and Sensibility etc
I) what do you think should be the criteria for the MOE to choose what book
to study for literature?
The work must be rich in its languages uses. It must enable one to think. It
must have some themes that can relate to the life of the reader. It must NOT
be boring.
H) Are you a Christian/ Non-Christian? (Choose one, please.)
I) If you are a Christian,
1) Are you a Catholic or a Christian? (Choose one.)
2) What is your denomination? (Leave blank, if unsure.)
Used to be Anglican, but now none.
3) How strong is your faith in your God? (Choose one)
A)Very Strong
B)Quite Strong
C)Above Average
D)Average
E)Weak
F)None of the above: (Please indicate why if you choose F in this survey.)
Reason for choosing F:
4) What is your view of the bible as a book? (Give your own opinion,
please. Your identity will not be revealed to anyone, not even your pastor.
So just say what you want.)
I think it is a Holy Book, divinely inspired by the God of Israel. Although
it does contain many rich literature qualities, it is still the most
respected book in my life. It is a book that offers insights for me as to
whether my pastors are teaching in accordance to the words of God or not.
Although it contains historical, philosophical, some scientific, some
literature views in it, although it offers non-Christians some good advises
on how to live a moral life, it is to me the love letter from God. It is the
book I completely (attempting at least to be able to completely) live my
life by. Need I say more about my stand?
(Examples for those to lazy to think: It is a Holy Book/ It is written by
God/ It is the secret to eternal life/ It is a religious book/ It is a book
of past saints/ It is a history book/ It is a book that has many literature
qualities in it like poems/ It is just a book of myths, and some incredible
stories etc)
J) If you are not a Christian,
1. What are you? (Eg: Muslim/Taoist/freethinkers etc)
2. How strong is your faith in your religion?
A) Very Strong
B) Quite Strong
C) Above Average
D) Average
E) Weak
F) None of the above: (Please indicate why if you choose F in this
survey.)
3) What is your view of the bible as a book? (Give your own opinion, please.
Your identity will not be revealed to anyone, not even your Christian
friends. So just say what you want.)
(Examples for those to lazy to think: It is a Holy Book/It is a religious
book/ It is a book for the Christians/It is propaganda/It is just one of the
many ways God speak to men/It is a history book/ It is a book that has many
literature qualities in it like poems/ It is just a book of myths, and some
incredible stories etc)
K) How do you find this survey? (Choose more than one if you want to.)
A) It should offer more options for me to choose.
B) It is quite well thought out.
C) It is quite racial/gender/religious neutral for a survey that is
conducted regarding a sensitive book like the bible.
D) The questions are easy to understand.
E) It demands too much time from those doing the surveys.
F) The questions are not easily understood.
G) It is too concise and brief.
L) Any other comments? (Feel free to just say out openly any
displeasure/anger/inconvenience/praise you have towards me.)
Obviously, I can't comment for this section. It is my survey. How can I
comment on it?
EXTRA INFORMATION SECTION
The "EXTRA" Information (Sometimes, I wonder if anyone will even bother to r
ead this at all.)
What does "A" level means?
In Singapore, "A" level is the end of year examination for all junior
college students. It is something equivalent to the final year exam for
college students that are preparing to go university, taken in the context
of other countries.
Why should I answer you survey?
Well, your answer obviously matters a lot to me. So, please answer my
survey. Even if you never answer any survey online before, answer mine,
okay?
Where is Singapore?
Firstly, if you do not know where in Singapore, it is not a part of China.
It is a small tiny dot in the world map just below Malaysia. It is a mostly
Buddhist/Taoist country, with a few Christians, Muslims and people of other
faiths.
What will you use this survey for?
It will be used solely for academic reasons, only. It will not reach the
MOE. I will be the only one to read it. My professor will be the only one to
review the final fruit of my work. Beyond that, nothing ever happens. So
just feel free and contribute.
What is MOE?
MOE refers to the ministry of education. They are the government body that
is in charge of what Singaporean students study during their academic years.
What is the purpose and aim of "A" level literature?
http://www.moe.edu.sg/exams/syllabus/2003/9008.pdf
Read here. This is what the MOE aims to achieve through "A" level
literature.
What is KJV version of the bible?
It is the King James Version of the bible written in the year 1611. You can
find more information about it by searching for it in Yahoo.
Why do you choose the KJV version of the bible for your project?
KJV is the most beautiful bible translation in English, if you take into
account the choice of words used etc. It might not be easy to understand,
but it definitely has more literary quality in it than all the other bibles.
Will this survey be used for any other means besides academic purposes?
No.
What do you look for in your answer?
Well, simply this: Honestly, honestly, and more honestly. Creativity,
although not necessary is encouraged as well. It makes reading the answers
to my survey more meaningful and fun.
Why do you want so many people for your surveys?
Scope, diversity in opinions and also I want to be more neutral and fair
towards people of all race, religion and gender, without stereo-typing
people.
What is the purpose of this survey?
Well... simple. To offer a broad and diverse viewpoints from all people from
all races and religion towards my topic, "Studying the bible" as literature
so that I will not be bias, bigoted, accused of being insensitive to other
religions etc in my essay just because I am unaware of their feeling towards
what I am writing.
What is your own view in this matter?
Read my sample survey answer.
Common misconceptions: People think I am doing this survey to brainwash
them. People think I am using it to undermine their religions. People think
I meant the bible to be studied as a religious book in the "A" level
syllabus. People do not know what I mean when I said the bible is to be
studied on a literature basis ALONE. People think I am making fun of the
bible as the Holy book of God. People think this and that. Oh... I am going
mad. Now, let me tell you Go and think what you like but please read my
defense. (Don't take this seriously, please! This is just a lame attempt to
create something humorous for myself.)
1) This survey is conducted for a project of mine.
2) By studying the bible as a literature, I mean this: You can look at
the literature side of it only. That is, you look the choice of words used
to write it, the themes, the characters, the plots etc. Do you read a
novel/Science-fiction/fantasy book or any story book? Studying the bible as
a literature means you look at the bible the way you will any other book you
read, that has a storyline, characters in it and some life lessons to draw
from it.
3) Studying the bible as a literature does not mean studying it as a
religious book where you look at what it said about the spiritual dimension,
what it said about God. It does not deal with the issue of if you are saved
or not, or any other stuffs etc.
4) That means, Moses, David and even Jesus in the bible are being looked
at not as religious figures but rather characters in the story called the
bible.
5) Looking at the bible from the literature way however does not mean
that the bible is not a holy book.
6) The bible is a Holy book. But this Holy book can also be used as a
literature text book.
7) The Holy bible is written by God using men, according to Christian
beliefs. (My beliefs as well.)
8) My survey look at the human authors of the bible when I said the bible
is to be studied as a literature. It looks at the characters in the bible as
if they were fictional.
9) However, it is just one side of looking at the bible. It is not the
interpretation of the bible. I believe God is Holy and cannot be seen using
men's ways. The bible as literature does not question the divine authorship
of God in it. However, it chose to focus only on the bible's human authors.
10)Does this help to make my project nature and survey clearer?
.
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| User: "Mark OPolo" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 08:39:53 AM |
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"Jasmine" <rpggal33@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:3fa7a995@news.starhub.net.sg...
Survery
Introduction
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am
currently
doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible as a part of
an
"A" level literature in Singapore and I will appreciate all your honest
feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the MOE in Singapore to include the
bible as part of what the literature student have to study in their "A"
level Literature examination?
I think so, yes. I think it's an important book from several perspectives.
It, coupled with superstition, megalomania, and some pure cruelty has served
to shape the Western world profoundly. There are sociological,
psychological, historical, religious and literary observations which would
be incomplete without understanding some of the bible's theme's.
That said, I would offer this advice: For the sake of balance, I might also
insist upon the inclusion of some of the other "holy books" of world
religions, plus one or more of the works of, say, Nietzsche or Sartre, as
their impact has also been quite profound in shaping our world.
Just my opinion.
--
================================================
Mark O'Polo
Former fundy. Still wondering, questioning . . . finally agnostic!
" ...the things that you're liable to read in the bible,
it ain't necessarily so!?
~ Ira Gershwin; from "Porgy and Bess" ~
================================================
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| User: "Kevin Aylward" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 08:12:57 AM |
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Jasmine wrote:
Survery
Introduction
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am
currently doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible
as a part of an "A" level literature in Singapore and I will
appreciate all your honest feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the
MOE in Singapore to include the bible as part of what the literature
student have to study in their "A" level Literature examination?
Its just as useful as studying the Brothers Grim Fairy Tales, maybe.
Kevin Aylward
salesEXTRACT@anasoft.co.uk
http://www.anasoft.co.uk
SuperSpice, a very affordable Mixed-Mode
Windows Simulator with Schematic Capture,
Waveform Display, FFT's and Filter Design.
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| User: "Rv Cloim" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 05:30:56 PM |
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On Tue, 04 Nov 2003 21:34:39 +0800, Jasmine wrote:
Survery
Introduction
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am
currently doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible as a
part of an "A" level literature in Singapore and I will appreciate all
your honest feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the MOE in Singapore to
include the bible as part of what the literature student have to study in
their "A" level Literature examination?
Yes. I assume you do not mean that the *entire thing must be read?
The purpose of including the bible for the literature syllabus is as
follow:
1) The bible has many poems that are good for study, on a literature
basis.
Can't comment.
2) Many literature texts in the current "A" level syllabus borrows many
ideas, metaphors and imageries from the bible.
Very possible. Can't say for certain but very possible. Particularly if
your studying English literature prior to the 20th cent.
3) Bible will expose the people to much of the thinking of the Western
world, today.
It won't even expose you to the thinking of modern Christians.
Most versions of Christianity have very little in common with the bible.
It has to be 'interpreted'.
4) Bible offers many themes relating to human's relationship with one
another that are useful for all the people to look into.
I agree. I don't agree that the bible should be used as a basis for human
relationships. But there is value to be had in understanding how people
thought and acted in primitive societies.
I also highly recomend Hesiods "Works and Days". Caution: do not use his
wine recipe.
5) Still working on it.
<snip>
J) Are you a Christian/ Non-Christian? (Choose one, please.)
non-Christian.
<snip>
L) If you are not a Christian,
1. What are you? (Eg: Muslim/Taoist/freethinkers etc)
Atheist, agnostic, libertarian, freethinker, spiritualist (don't ask),
naturalist, materialist, existentialist, but most certainly not an
existential materialist.
To be revised as more information is gathered.
2. How strong is your faith in your religion?
F) None of the above: (Please indicate why if you choose F in this
survey.)
I have no faith in religion.
3) What is your view of the bible as a book? (Give your own opinion,
please. Your identity will not be revealed to anyone, not even your
Christian friends. So just say what you want.)
What if my Christian friends are reading this group?
<looks around suspiciously>
Guess not.
The geneological aspects are boring. Hesiod does a better job with the
genre.
Keep in mind that the 'Bible' is not a book. "Bible" = library or
collection of books. Hence the phrase "Books of the bible" is literally
accurate. e.g. The Book of Psalms *is a book.
Some books are better than others. I haven't read all of them. In fact
I've read very few.
M) How do you find this survey? (Choose more than one if you want to.)
H) It's too long.
<snip>
Thank you for your time. :)
Your welcome.
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| User: "Mark K. Bilbo" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 07:42:15 PM |
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On Tue, 04 Nov 2003 21:34:39 +0800, Jasmine wrote:
The purpose of including the bible for the literature syllabus is as follow:
1) The bible has many poems that are good for study, on a literature basis.
No, they're really pretty awful.
2) Many literature texts in the current "A" level syllabus borrows many
ideas, metaphors and imageries from the bible.
Which is every annoying.
3) Bible will expose the people to much of the thinking of the Western
world, today.
Not likely. You'd do better with Greco-Roman studies.
4) Bible offers many themes relating to human's relationship with one
another that are useful for all the people to look into.
Oh that's too nauseating to even reply to. Sorry.
5) Still working on it.
I can't even see using that crap as "literature." It's really awful stuff.
Badly written, often nothing but droning nonsense (begat this, begat that,
begat, begat, begat, BEGAT!!!!), and relationships? Maybe if one is into
BDSM or something...
--
Mark K. Bilbo
"There is no system but GNU, and Linux is one of its kernels."
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| User: "Yang, What About Overrated White Athletes Like Jeremy Shockey?" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 02:21:48 PM |
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On Tue, 4 Nov 2003 21:34:39 +0800, "Jasmine" <rpggal33@hotmail.com>
wrote:
Survery
Introduction
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am currently
doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible as a part of an
"A" level literature in Singapore and I will appreciate all your honest
feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the MOE in Singapore to include the
bible as part of what the literature student have to study in their "A"
level Literature examination?
Yes, and your survey is waaaaaaaay to long.
Take note: When I mean the bible is to be studied as a literature text book,
I mean this: You look at the bible from a purely literature point of view,
treating it like any other literature book with no regard to the religious
side of it. You study the bible just like you will, Shakespeare and all your
other literature books, etc.
Qn1) Do you think this it is a good idea to study the bible as part of the
"A" level literature?
yes
Ans: Yes/ No / Both "Yes" and "No" at the same time (Please choose one.)
Qn2) Why? Please give a few reasons (3 to 4 reasons) for your previous
answer:
1)
Since Western literature, from Shakespeare to Melville to Bede to
Dante, makes heavy reference to the Bible and Christianity, it makes
sense to read up on it.
Qn3) Do you have any other comment to make?
no.
-----
Yang
a.a. #28
a.a. pastor #-273.15, the most frigid church of Celcius nee Kelvin
EAC Econometric Forecast and Socerey Division
Proudly plonked by Lani Girl and Crazyalec
The Bush 'balanced' budget: -525 billion and worsening
The Bush 'economic' policy: -3 million jobs and counting
The Bush Iraq lie: -377 GIs, one friend's co-worker's son and mounting
Having Bush ***** up my country: Worthless
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| User: "raven1" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 04:27:52 PM |
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On Tue, 4 Nov 2003 21:34:39 +0800, "Jasmine" <rpggal33@hotmail.com>
wrote:
Survery
Introduction
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am currently
doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible as a part of an
"A" level literature in Singapore and I will appreciate all your honest
feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the MOE in Singapore to include the
bible as part of what the literature student have to study in their "A"
level Literature examination?
Absolutely. I think they should also include the Quran, the
Bhagavad-Gita, the Tao Te Ching, a decent version of Greek mythology,
and several other religious texts as well, and for largely the same
reasons as you list. I really don't have anything to add to your
reasons, so I'll skip to the next section.
I will like to know the following background information with regard to you.
A) Your gender:
Male.
B) Your age:
38.
C) Your race:
Human. That's the only answer I normally give; I find the whole
concept of "race" to be meaningless. If you really want to know more,
I'm of Irish ancestry.
D) Your occupation:
Teacher and Musician.
G) Have you ever study literature before?
Yes.
H) What are the texts you study during literature? (If you do not remember,
just leave blank.)
Too many to name: pretty much an overview of Western literature from
Ancient Greece to now. Particular favorites include:
The Oresteia
Aesop's Fables
The Aeneid
The Iliad (and The Odyssey)
Beowulf
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam
The Canterbury Tales
Le Morte D'Arthur
La Chanson de Roland
The Decameron
Don Quixote
The Divine Comedy
Practically anything by Shakespeare
Plus the religious texts I listed above, among others.
Which should pretty much exhaust any student ;-) before moving on to
more contemporary works (Percy Shelley, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain,
Oscar Wilde, James Joyce, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, and JRR
Tolkien are particular favorites of mine).
I know I'm leaving out at least a few works and authors that I'll slap
my forehead and shout "D'oh" immediately after hitting send, of
course.
I) what do you think should be the criteria for the MOE to choose what book
to study for literature?
Works that stand the test of time, and speak to the human condition.
Oh, and that tell a really good story while doing so!
J) Are you a Christian/ Non-Christian? (Choose one, please.)
Non-Christian (atheist).
Christian, please move on to answer all the questions under K. Non
Christian, please answer all the questions under L.
Hate to interject here, but:
K) If you are a Christian,
1) Are you a Catholic or a Christian? (Choose one.)
I'll just mention in passing that you're going to ***** a *lot* of
people off (mainly Catholics) with the way that question is phrased; I
think you might want to rephrase it as "Catholic or Protestant". Much
more on this below.
L) If you are not a Christian,
1. What are you? (Eg: Muslim/Taoist/freethinkers etc)
I am an atheist.
2. How strong is your faith in your religion?
F) None of the above: (Please indicate why if you choose F in this
survey.)
The question doesn't apply; I don't have a religion. Atheism is the
absence of belief in deities; nothing more.
3) What is your view of the bible as a book? (Give your own opinion, please.
Your identity will not be revealed to anyone, not even your Christian
friends. So just say what you want.)
Trust me, you won't find too many people afraid to speak their mind
here! ;-) So here is my uncensored opinion:
As literature, it alternates between mind-numbing banality (have you
ever sat down and tried to read, say, the Book of Numbers? It's a more
effective soporific than any prescription sleeping pill could ever
hope to match), to imaginative mythology (Genesis, Exodus, Isaiah,
Daniel, Revelation), to profoundly beautiful and moving poetry (Song
of Solomon, Ecclesiastes).
As a moral guide, it ranges from the obvious (it doesn't take a rocket
scientist to figure out that people can't go around killing and
stealing in any kind of human society) to the questionable (isn't
"coveting" the basis of pretty much every economic system? Is adultery
wrong if all parties consent? Isn't "turning the other cheek"
effectively asking other people to screw you over?) to the completely
appalling (God both committing and ordering genocide, mandatory
mutilation of infant males, forcing rape victims to marry their
attacker, ordering slaves to submit to their masters and citizens to
submit to tyrannical rulers, the subjugation of women, et al, ad
nauseam).
M) How do you find this survey? (Choose more than one if you want to.)
D) The questions are easy to understand.
O) Any other comments? (Feel free to just say out openly any
displeasure/anger/inconvenience/praise you have towards me.)
(Some suggestions:
1) I will like to propose a few ways you can improve on your survey
techniques.
I gave you one already: Roman Catholics who take this survey will most
likely be angered at the "Are you a Catholic or a Christian" question.
While I know that some fundamentalist sects don't consider Catholics
to be "Christians", Catholics would similarly consider such sects as
heretics and schismatics from the "true" Church of Christ (the Roman
Catholic Church, in their opinion). As an atheist, it really doesn't
matter to me either way who is really a "Christian", but you might
want to rephrase the question as I suggested (to "Catholic or
Protestant") to avoid offending Catholic respondents. In fact, you
might even phrase it as "Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox" to
encompass all of the branches calling themselves Christian.
2) I will like to tell you how you can make it more religion-sensitive.
See above.
3) Hey, I take part in your survey because I understand just how hard it
is to get people to do a survey. You must thank me!
I used to do telephone surveys when I was in college, so I understand.
And you must thank me! ;-)
~THE END~
Thank you for your time. :)
You're welcome. I hope that you weren't only looking for people from
Singapore; I'm from the USA.
.
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| User: "Rv Cloim" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 05:54:39 PM |
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On Tue, 04 Nov 2003 17:27:52 -0500, raven1 wrote:
On Tue, 4 Nov 2003 21:34:39 +0800, "Jasmine" <rpggal33@hotmail.com> wrote:
<snip>
(Some suggestions:
1) I will like to propose a few ways you can improve on your survey
techniques.
I gave you one already: Roman Catholics who take this survey will most
likely be angered at the "Are you a Catholic or a Christian" question.
<snip>
In fact, you might even phrase it as "Catholic,
Protestant, or Orthodox" to encompass all of the branches calling
themselves Christian.
Now that I think of it, it might even be best to remove the question
altogether, since he asks for denomination with the following question.
Do Mormons consider themselves to be 'protestants'? They are not catholic
or orthodox? I know very little about them, but they don't really appear
(to me) to fit into any of those groups.
Just something else to consider...
.
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| User: "Arjen Klaver" |
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| Title: Re: A questionaire: Should bible be included in a literature syllabus? |
04 Nov 2003 02:49:22 PM |
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at news:3fa7a995@news.starhub.net.sg "Jasmine" <rpggal33@hotmail.com>
wrote in news:3fa7a995@news.starhub.net.sg:
Hi, I am a student from the National University of Singapore. I am
currently doing a project about studying the KJV version of the bible
as a part of an "A" level literature in Singapore and I will
appreciate all your honest feedbacks. Do you think it is okay for the
MOE in Singapore to include the bible as part of what the literature
student have to study in their "A" level Literature examination?
The purpose of including the bible for the literature syllabus is as
follow:
1) The bible has many poems that are good for study, on a literature
basis.
But what about the literary value of the poems? I think that is quite low.
No need to read the whole bible, just psalms e.d.
2) Many literature texts in the current "A" level syllabus borrows
many ideas, metaphors and imageries from the bible.
But the amount of metaphors is quite limited. Not many people know the
bible complete, only the highlights. So the references will be always to
the same set of metaphores.
3) Bible will expose the people to much of the thinking of the Western
world, today.
Bwahhaaa, lol.
4) Bible offers many themes relating to human's relationship with one
another that are useful for all the people to look into.
Not really, One book of Jane Austin will contain more information on this
topic then the whole bible. Again not a reason to read the whole bible.
5) Still working on it.
There is no reason to waddle through the whole bible for any literature
student. Just buy a book on the topic 'influence of bible on the
literature' and read that, much faster and easier. It is howver nice to
have a bible at hand for a literature student just to check some passages.
<snip>
Qn1) Do you think this it is a good idea to study the bible as part of
the "A" level literature?
Nope, it won't help a lot, and it just costs a lot of time. You can read a
lot of other things in the time you spent on the bible.
Greetings,
Arjen Klaver
.
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