You chr*stians read your bibles all out of order. First you read the “new testament,” then you read the Prophets, and finally you read that “low” and boring Torah.
Which, for a Christian, is a perfectly valid way to read it, because Christians believe that the Old Testament was fulfilled by Christ, and that what Christ wants his followers to do is defined intact in the New Testament.
Then, since your chr*stianity isn't based on the teachings of the Bible but rather because you assume it a priori, how do you know it is true?
> Then, since your chr*stianity isn’t based on the teachings of the Bible but rather because you assume it a priori, how do you know it is true?
Two can play that game. Since you make the same assumption of the validity of the Pentateuch, how do you know *it* is true?
BTW Christians do believe in the Bible, in its entirety, and that the parts of the Bible most important for us today are found in the New Testament. This does not invalidate the Old Testament — the one flows naturally on from the other.
Belief in the New Testament without the old is to lose much of the context. Such as “Where did the Pharisees come from?” and “Why would Jesus be upset with them?” And “Why was it important for the Jews to recognize Jesus as their Messiah?”, and “Why was the rejection of Jesus by the Jews as their Messiah both a tragic fatal mistake AND a fulfillment of prophecy?”
These answers are all found in the Old Testament. You can certainly get by without knowing any of these answers, but it makes for a much rougher ride.
Belief in the Old Testament without belief in the New Testament is like watching a great movie only half-way thru. You can get some value from it, I guess, but all the important bits — like the climax — will be found at the end.
And you won’t know that there’s an important twist to the plot that might have changed your opinions on the movie, if only you had watched the second half.