in da bginnin god cre8d da heavens...

[Heathcliff]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/10/06/text.bible.ap/?section=cnn_latest

Bible group spreads word by SMS

Thursday, October 6, 2005; Posted: 4:40 a.m. EDT (08:40 GMT)

ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) -- "In da Bginnin God cre8d da heavens & da earth," according to a new version of the Bible translated into the text message language of cell phone users.

The Bible Society in Australia launched on Thursday its translation of all 31,173 verses of the Bible in the modern, abbreviated language of text messages, or SMS.

The verses can be accessed over the Internet for free so that the word of God can be spread by cell phone to family and friends, said society spokesman Michael Chant.

"The old days when the Bible was only available within a somber black cover with a cross on it are long gone," Chant said.

[Craig]

I wonder if this Bible will ever be written in book format, and if so, if people discover one of these books in five hundred years, will they think that we're stupid?

[Confucius]

indeed. I'm not a Christain, so I really dont care. But stuff like this, and the 100 minute bible, just show how christianity is not so united and really solid religion. This sort of shows if you will, how seriously people are willing to take the Bible and the religion.

[MikeD4o7]

Christianity's not a tiny religion with one little church. How people want to read their Bible is naturally going to vary greatly depending on a person's background. Kids who have grown up text messaging on their cell phones since they were 10 might appreciate the Bible being brought to them this way. It's just a way of reaching more people. Nothing more, nothing less.

[Duo_Maxwell]

I wonder if this Bible will ever be written in book format, and if so, if people discover one of these books in five hundred years, will they think that we're stupid?

I wonder how in 500 years people won't think we were complete idiots with the massive amount of simple problems we couldn't solve and how we used irrational reasons to justify our incomptence.

[Craig]

I wonder how in 500 years people won't think we were complete idiots with the massive amount of simple problems we couldn't solve and how we used irrational reasons to justify our incomptence.

I agree with the former statement, but I disagree with the latter. If human history is a good indication of how we tend to act, people in the future will still be employing irrational reasoning to justify their incompetence. It happened 500 years ago, and given humanity's penchance for irrationality, it will happen 500 years from now.

[::Major_Baker::]

I actually hope they start spamming my phone witht hat crap, so I can sue them.

[Heathcliff]

I wonder if this Bible will ever be written in book format, and if so, if people discover one of these books in five hundred years, will they think that we're stupid?if the no caps shorthand boys have their way, today's english will be no more comprehensible in a hundred years than the anglo-saxon of beowulf$

[Duo_Maxwell]

I agree with the former statement, but I disagree with the latter. If human history is a good indication of how we tend to act, people in the future will still be employing irrational reasoning to justify their incompetence. It happened 500 years ago, and given humanity's penchance for irrationality, it will happen 500 years from now.

True, but the problems they will be dealing with and hence using irrational reasoning to justify their incompetence will likely be far more complex then our own.

Simply put, I have lost much faith in the human race.

[Craig]

if the no caps shorthand boys have their way, today's english will be no more comprehensible in a hundred years than the anglo-saxon of beowulf$

At least Anglo Saxon has a good reason for being incomprehensible, namely that it was the spoken and written language of England at the time. The only reason why it's incomprehensible is because English became extremely screwed up following the introduction of French (and Latinate words) into the language, and the blending of the Germanic and Romantic forms of language. In contrast, no one speaks in a way consistent with the "no caps shorthand boys" and the writing form consitutes the writing of a minority group within society.

[Craig]

True, but the problems they will be dealing with and hence using irrational reasoning to justify their incompetence will likely be far more complex then our own.


Perhaps, but I might even question this premise. If you look at human irrationality, no matter how complex the situation of the day, the same basic irrational elements remain the same. Essentially, even though times evolve and society becomes much more complex, the fundamental irrationalities remain consistent if we cut through all the superficial differences. After all, this is one of the principal reasons that Shakespeare is read today: his insight into the human condition remains as insightful and valuable today as it did in the Renaissance. Shakespeare was writing over four hundred years ago, and the changes between his era and now have been immense. Yet even today new versions of Shakespeare's plays in a modern context, such as reinvisisioning King Lear as a corporate drama, are being produced, suggesting a fundamental universality of his insight into human relations. In other words, I don't think increased complexity in society fundamentally changes the nature of irrational reasoning, such that future societies will have "better reasons" for irrational reasoning than we do today.

[Kong]

Whatever. Its not like the original text in the bible was written in English.