texts which various religious traditions consider to be sacred, or central to their religious tradition.
Questions tagged [religious-texts]
53 questions
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votes
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Did Moses live?
Moses is, arguably, the most significant prophet in Judaism and is credited with leading the enslaved Jewish population out of Egypt and into the promised land.
Aside from the Torah, are there any verifiable records or concrete evidence that there…

Scott Mitchell
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Does the Quran advise men to beat their wives if they disobey them?
I found this post on Reddit in which it is mentioned that the Quran advises men to beat their wives if they do not obey them.
This is a quote from the link:
Surah 4:34: "Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allah has
given one over the…

Green Noob
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Is there a place in the world where two oceans meet and they don't mix?
This picture is currently being spread virally:
Some Muslims were saying that this is mentioned in the Quran where it is said:
He has set free the two seas meeting together. There is a barrier
between them. They do not transgress. (Quran,…

TheTechGuy
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Are there textual deviations between the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Old Testament?
This article claims:
Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls has increased the faith of
Bible-believers. Why? Because they prove that the hand-copied texts
that have come down from the Masoretic scribes are accurate. ...
... The Dead Sea Scrolls,…

Sakib Arifin
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Has a "chariot army" been found at the bottom of the Red Sea?
It's apparently quite a popular story to "disprove doubting Atheists" regarding the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea by the Israelites during the Exodus of the Hebrew bible that in the late 1970s, archaeological evidence was found at the bottom of…

Flimzy
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Are rape victims forced to marry their rapist, according to the Old Testament?
(Copied from http://www.theliberaloc.com/2012/05/14/traditional-marriage-according-to-the-bible/)
Relevant portion of the text:
Marriage = Rapist and His Victim (Deuteronomy 22:28-29)
Virgin who is raped must marry her rapist.
Rapist must pay…

Andrew Grimm
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Are any notable biblical characters historical figures?
Are any of the *main** characters who appear in the Bible that are real historical people, their existence supported by multiple sources.
In addition do their actions in the Bible support or contradict accepted history.
**Kings, princes, leaders,…

Richard Stelling
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Did the Quran predict the speed of light?
It appears to be popular to claim that the Qur'an predicted the speed of light before it was scientifically well understood. Although none of the sources state that outright, that is what they imply.
Example:
Moslems (Muslims) believe that angels ……

user50849
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Did the Hebrew exodus from Egypt ever happen?
The Book of Exodus describes a movement of the Hebrews from Egypt, through the desert, and into the Palestine/Israel region.
It also describes a number miracles, such as the ten plagues and the parting of the Red Sea, but they are not the subject of…

Himarm
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Is the Bible the most read book?
I have often heard that the most popular book is the Bible, but it seems to me that, for example, classical Indian books as the Mahabharata or the Chinese Four Books and Five Classics may be more popular. Does any one have any source related to…

Zenon
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Does the Torah-encoded age of the universe match science?
Dr. Gerald Schroeder published an article in Aish.com about the age of the Universe and the Jewish bible:
So the only data I use as far as Biblical commentary goes is ancient
commentary. That means the text of the Bible itself (3300 years ago),
…
user4951
26
votes
1 answer
Do the majority of Americans take the Noah's ark story from the Bible literally?
From Most Americans take Bible stories literally:
An ABC News poll released Sunday found that... ...Sixty percent believe in the story of Noah’s ark and a global flood
This claim is often repeated, including in a number of lists such as The 10…

Brian M. Hunt
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Has the Quran (the recitation) been preserved since Muhammad?
Islamic scholars claim that Quran's preservation is the one of the most miraculous aspects of Quran. In fact, a major reason for muslims to believe in the Quran was the preservation of Quran, which is a promise from God.
For example:
It is an…
user14754
23
votes
1 answer
Has anyone ever memorized the entire bible?
I remember hearing an old legend growing up that Noah Webster (author of the American Dictionary) memorized the entire bible. The claims seem dubious and difficult to prove.
Has anyone ever memorized the entire bible and proven it somehow? Either by…

LCIII
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Is the IKEA catalogue being distributed in more prints than the Bible?
According to IKEA
The 2010 edition [of the catalogue] is the world’s third
most printed publication (next to the
Bible and Harry Potter)
But Martin Roth wrote an article in 2002 where he was pretty sure that IKEA was close to beating the…

Oliver_C
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