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Originally posted by TrueBrit
One of the most difficult things about being a believer in christ, is that many of the original scriptures are hidden, either in vaults which the vatican (or associated organisations of varying degrees of legality) control, and quite frankly, I dont think anyone who has studied the faith truely thinks that everything that Jesus wanted in the bible , ended up there. It is truely a leap of faith, because all we really have , are portions of the truth, and the blanks we have had to fill for ourselves.
Originally posted by Salt of the Earth
Originally posted by Yummy Freelunch
Back in ALL our forfather's day, there was a Goddess worship. Things were simple and happy. They lived by the season, sewed their grain, harvested it, and lived by it.
Was there more than met the eye? Of course there was, but everything was grand, why bother?
Then came the introduction of a male god. And religion, and persecution, and slavery by means of SIN!
How can you worship a god that doesn't let you be YOU? That keeps you in fear?
Fear is not good, fear is a negative energy. And dont tell me you arent constantly in fear of committing a sin.
You are NOT a god, you are a human being. You can NOT be perfect, and so you will always SIN, according to your god. What kind of life is that to live? Always living in sin, always feeling repressed, it's like living with a Gestapo!
Look, we all know right from wrong, we've known it always, it was instilled in us. There should be NO Gestapo watching over us, we punish ourselves enough.. Just think when the last time you went to sleep with a clear conscious was.
It makes no difference what sex God is or is not. I don't think God is a sex at all, but God created the sexes. God is above and beyond sex, doesn't need a sex to be God. God is the creator of all. Jesus is God who took the form of a human, as a man, but as a man who came to suffer for us, to give himself to all of us, men and women, to the Jew first and also to the rest of humankind. The Holy Spirit, part of the triune God, who the Bible says proceeds from God the Father and God the Son together, is referred to in the book of Proverbs as female, but again the Holy Spirit is in actuality without sex, and Creator, as is Jesus also Creator.
As to the Gestapo watching over us and keeping us from doing our natural inclinations, it is natural for people to want to kill, lie, steal, to do all kinds of wickedness, and if we did not curb these desires we would be worse than animals.
God's desire for us is that we live in peace and harmony with each other, that we learn to be selfless and good as God is good, and that we allow God to help us to overcome our tendencies to be mean, selfish and hateful to others.
This life is a blip on the radar, and we will have an eternity to reap the rewards of walking with God if we can put our priorities wehre they belong and not live for self and for the moment.
Originally posted by Astyanax
Originally posted by moocowman
It's interesting that you say "showed people how to live " and not "told people how to live"... perhaps that is where the other type of christians are getting it wrong do you think?
No, he expected people to do as he said, not as he did.
If he existed at all and if the Gospel accounts are to be considered credible, Jesus was a freeloader who, for at least three years, never did an honest day's work in his life but leeched off the people he conned with his love-thy-neighbour schtick.
To judge by his actions, Jesus wasn't very loving at all. He set families and friends against one another - and bragged about it. He treated other people's property with contempt, walking his disciples through other people's fields, damaging the crops and letting them eat the corn. He rustled other people's livestock and put a curse on their orchard-trees so that they would bear no fruit. He vilified, beat and castigated respectable merchants who were simply doing their jobs. He was bad-tempered, scolding and self-righteous; he habitually insulted people to their faces, calling them things like 'hypocrite' and 'whited sepulchre' and 'nation of vipers'. He largely ignored his poor old mother; whenever he did speak to her, he was dismissive and rude. He diverted charitable offerings to his personal use. He put his own people, the Jews, in danger by upsetting the Roman authorities.
Moreove, Jesus was quite open about hs agenda of violence and injustice: I bring, he boasted, not peace but a sword.
Originally posted by spellbound
And if he was around now, he would destroy all churches and all banks
What? The same Jesus who told Jews to be good little Roman subjects and pay their taxes? The same Jesus who told investment parables about risk and reward and encouraged speculation? The same Jesus who encouraged his disciples to take no thought for tomorrow, to eschew financial prudence and spend, spend, spend rather than save? The same Jesus whose underwear turned out to be woven out of a single piece of cloth without a seam - the La Perla of its day? You're joking, right?
Originally posted by TrueBrit
reply to post by Salt of the Earth
I am not being funny or anything, but I believe that not all his words are in the bible. Its a sin, but I think certain things have been removed from the original texts from which the bible was translated.You really cant convince me that we have all the available information that was supposed to reach us from two millenia ago.
Originally posted by Yummy Freelunch
IM sorry to disagree, but ive NEVER wanted to kill anything! I even save moths and let them go outside. Im a horrible liar, I tried it when i was younger, and knew I'd never get away with it.
Stealing, NO! I work hard for what I have, and have even gone back to a store to tell them they gave me too much change!
I have to disagree with you. It is NOT in everyone's nature to do bad to others. I would give the shirt off my back to someone that needed it, without blinking an eye. And would NEVER harm another, human or otherwise And who taught me that? It was instilled in me, I have always felt a compassion for life.
My sig says it all.
[edit on 17-3-2009 by Yummy Freelunch]
Originally posted by TrueBrit
reply to post by Salt of the Earth
You havent listened. The bible as we know it is incomplete, missing parts which are crucial to its context as a body of work. Until all the peices are back together, how can we know that we have not misplaced our emphatic faith and vigour?
Originally posted by TrueBrit
reply to post by Salt of the Earth
Thats good. When they ban it we can stop being decadent and foolish as a faith and go back to worshiping in groups in the home. Churches always seem AntiChristian to me anyway. They cost money that could be feeding the poor, they always seem full of middle class folks who look down on the "lower" class types like myself, and above all I cant stand some of the clergymen I have met... I mean theres one guy from my area is a vicar whos been having an affair for years... what the hell kind of leadership is that ?