"Christianity is not a religion"

Originally posted by FMF
Yes. Spelt 'Bourbaki'. The account is used by my son now to play chess ~ although our 'new' 15 kg board/pieces is more in favour.

I have several nice sets and 4 boys who play chess.

Originally posted by Pudgenik
Your claim to control human destiny is incorrect. We have free will.

I choose to follow the laws of the land, if I do not I will be thrown in jail.

AS with the laws of God, I also choose to follow them.

I assume you mean my "claim" about religion involving "a belief in a supernatural power that controls human destiny" [and not a claim I am making about myself], right?

According to your theology, if I am an unbeliever or a sinner, who controls what then happens to me?

Originally posted by yoctobyte
I have several nice sets and 4 boys who play chess.

This one my sister ordered from a chess shop in London and had it delivered to my friend's house and he [who, incidentally, believes that Christianity IS a religion, so we are still more or less on-topic here] brought it out to me when he visited back in December. He only had a 20 kg baggage allowance and had to borrow a leopard skin style suitcase that was broad enough for the board! Luckily, a few days before departure, his baggage allowance was upped to 30 kg unilaterally. Another friend is bringing a nice backgammon board in May.

Originally posted by Pudgenik
It is true I've said in the past, that the J. W.'s are as children in their theology. God loves children. They certainly don't have my faith, there is a lack of knowledge, but, they love their neighbor as themselves. And this is something really big to God. Sorry if you guys (J.W.'s) feel I'm picking on you, only trying to give a point.

No, they love their neighbor as they love themselves, but only if their neighbor is JW. They can only love themselves as themselves, since they deny that any other Christians are even Christian. To them, only they are Christian. Other Christians are to be seen and treated as 'pretenders'.

As we've seen here time and again.

Originally posted by SwissGambit
Suzianne semi-agreed with it. That's probably all I will hear from the theist camp.

I've always thought of a Christian as simply a follower of Jesus Christ. I think my definition is wider than that of most Christians.

As I said before, of course Christianity is a religion.

It's just become hugely popular lately to claim "It's not a religion, it's a way of life." Well, that's as may be, but yes, it IS still a religion.

And yes, of course you are a Christian if you follow Jesus Christ, that should be clear to anyone. Too many people want to put all kinds of fancy trappings on it to show they are somehow more unique than others, or more "true" than others, but all this is vanity.

But of course, this does not mean that we cannot argue amongst ourselves how Jesus should be followed. But this is all like arguing over what kind of ice cream to have. Be happy that we're having ice cream at all.

Originally posted by Suzianne
As I said before, of course Christianity is a religion.

It's just become hugely popular lately to claim "It's not a religion, it's a way of life." Well, that's as may be, but yes, it IS still a religion.

And yes, of course you are a Christian if you follow Jesus Christ, that should be clear to anyone. Too many people want to put all kinds of fancy t ...[text shortened]... like arguing over what kind of ice cream to have. Be happy that we're having ice cream at all.

I can understand a Christian emphasizing that their religion is a relationship with God. I've spoken to Muslims who have emphasized that when they pray, they pray directly to God ~ not through a Jesus figure, or a Mary figure, or through the Holy Spirit concept, or through saints ~ and that their relationship is a direct one with God. Of course, one would no more accept the assertion of a Muslim that 'Islam is not a religion' any more than one would accept the assertion from a Christian that 'Christianity is not a religion'.

Originally posted by FMF
This one my sister ordered from a chess shop in London and had it delivered to my friend's house and he [who, incidentally, believes that Christianity IS a religion, so we are still more or less on-topic here] brought it out to me when he visited back in December. He only had a 20 kg baggage allowance and had to borrow a leopard skin style suitcase that was broa ...[text shortened]... ance was upped to 30 kg unilaterally. Another friend is bringing a nice backgammon board in May.

I have many sets, but the ones I value most are the ones I've received as gifts. I've bought nicer sets for myself, but I still treasure the ones given by people who thought enough of me to give them to me.

One of these days I should buy a larger good wooden board so that I can play with my nice big soapstone set without crowding the squares.

Originally posted by FMF
This one my sister ordered from a chess shop in London and had it delivered to my friend's house and he [who, incidentally, believes that Christianity IS a religion, so we are still more or less on-topic here] brought it out to me when he visited back in December. He only had a 20 kg baggage allowance and had to borrow a leopard skin style suitcase that was broa ...[text shortened]... ance was upped to 30 kg unilaterally. Another friend is bringing a nice backgammon board in May.

I wish I had the spare time that the kids have (who by the way, also believe Christianity is a religion... So we are good). 🙂 so I could study the game more... maybe I would not get beaten so badly,

Originally posted by Suzianne
One of these days I should buy a larger good wooden board so that I can play with my nice big soapstone set without crowding the squares.

Here are a few of my own specific beliefs and doctrines that I proclaim as real and true without the necessity of proof that would satisfy you or anyone else [so we're still good re: the topic]:

I don't know about "crowding the squares" but I don't like the pieces looking spaced or kind of lost in oversize squares. They need to stand quite tall above the board and their wide bases need to sit quite fat in their squares. Also, in style, they must not stray too far from Staunton.

Originally posted by FMF
I can understand a Christian emphasizing that their religion is a relationship with God. I've spoken to Muslims who have emphasized that when they pray, they pray directly to God ~ not through a Jesus figure, or a Mary figure, or through the Holy Spirit concept, or through saints ~ and that their relationship is a direct one with God. Of course, one would no mor ...[text shortened]... more than one would accept the assertion from a Christian that 'Christianity is not a religion'.

Emphasizing is one thing, to assert it's not a religion is another. I commune with God, how is that not a religion?

I was not raised in the saintly tradition of RC. I believe in praying to deity, not to humans. Usually when I pray, I pray directly to God, in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ. My belief is that Jesus acts as an intercession between us and God, giving God His name is akin to "mention my name and you'll get a good seat". Most of my prayers to God are in the form of intercessory prayers, or prayers for others, or for our nation, although I've been known to ask God for patience, for strength or for His protection.

I do believe in the Triune God, and when I became Christian, I prayed to Jesus Christ, accepting Him as my Savior, to come into my life and intercede with God the Father and to bridge the gap to God, on my behalf. I still pray to Jesus when the prayer is about His relationship with me, asking Him to guide me and to show me how I should go.

Originally posted by Suzianne
Emphasizing is one thing, to assert it's not a religion is another. I commune with God, how is that not a religion?

I was not raised in the saintly tradition of RC. I believe in praying to deity, not to humans. Usually when I pray, I pray directly to God, in the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ. My belief is that Jesus acts as an intercession between ...[text shortened]... prayer is about His relationship with me, asking Him to guide me and to show me how I should go.

My point was that a Muslim cannot claim that Islam is not a religion but that it is, instead, "a relationship with God". The same goes for Christians.

Originally posted by FMF
Here are a few of my own specific beliefs and doctrines that I proclaim as real and true without the necessity of proof that would satisfy you or anyone else [so we're still good re: the topic]:

I don't know about "crowding the squares" but I don't like the pieces looking spaced or kind of lost in oversize squares. They need to stand quite tall above the boar ...[text shortened]... ed to sit quite fat in their squares. Also, in style, they must not stray too far from Staunton.

My favorite piece size to square size ratio is like that found in competition sets, you know, the plastic weighted pieces (Staunton, of course) on a paper or vinyl board with large squares. (I have a few sets exactly like this for study (plus, they're cheap).) I like some space between the pieces. Especially pawns. Naturally, this means the larger the set, the larger the board needs to be, too.

Originally posted by FMF
My point was that a Muslim cannot claim that Islam is not a religion but that it is, instead, "a relationship with God". The same goes for Christians.

I *agree*. It seems obvious to me. But then, a religion *should* be a "relationship with God" also. But it's the "God" part that makes it a religion, by definition.

Originally posted by Suzianne
My favorite piece size to square size ratio is like that found in competition sets, you know, the plastic weighted pieces (Staunton, of course) on a paper or vinyl board with large squares. (I have a few sets exactly like this for study (plus, they're cheap).) I like some space between the pieces. Especially pawns. Naturally, this means the larger the set, the larger the board needs to be, too.

Chess is not a religion for me; it is a relationship with something very big and essentially beyond me. I enjoy playing with my sons and a few friends here, but it is basically an "eternal torment". Having said that about the topic, the Baggage Allowance Buster board I have now acquired is just perfect for me: 60 cm x 60 cm dense, heavy wooden board, 6 cm squares (beige and not-too-dark brown) and the Queen's base 4 cm. The King stands 10 cm tall. Not too big, not too small.

Originally posted by FMF
I assume you mean my "claim" about religion involving "a belief in a supernatural power that controls human destiny" [and not a claim I am making about myself], right?

According to your theology, if I am an unbeliever or a sinner, who controls what then happens to me?

Your assumption is correct.

I live in the USA, land of the free, right? So if I break the laws, say rape someone, should I remain free to do as I want? Put away for a few years. Well what of 1st degree murder, life long sentence?