often used to wonder what I'd go to hell for.
A.J. Jacobs took the opposite tack. In order to better understand religion, Jacobs spent a year earnestly following every single rule in both testaments, as chronicled in his new book, "The Year of Living Biblically." To find out just how hell-bound I am, I got Jacobs to take me out for an afternoon in New York and note my every sin.
As soon as I sat down, Jacobs shook his head, informing me that it was likely that a menstruating woman sat there recently or -- more likely, considering our surroundings -- a man who hadn't bathed since last spilling his seed. Either way, sitting there was very bad, according to Leviticus 15:16-20.
"The lesson I learned is that you're going to break laws every 30 seconds, no matter how hard you try," Jacobs said. And the weird part is that his constant failure has made him more religious -- each sin a little reminder to act better.
clipped from: www.latimes.com