@sonship saidWhy not address the point of the OP? (Rather than just the first sentence).
@Ghost-of-a-DukeBelief in God or gods is a weakness in the moral fortitude of man
So in all human history would you say Jesus of Nazareth must have been in this regard the weakest of all men ?
He said He could do nothing without His Father, God.
I laid out an argument to be agreed or disagreed with.
@chaney3 saidWhich in turn leads to the question, should modern morality be based on such a God, as portrayed in the OT?
There is no doubt that the angry, jealous, killing, tempermental God of the OT is replaced with a "loving Father" in the NT.
It's as if the Council of Nicea was aware that an 'image upgrade' was needed, and constructed the Bible to change God into a "loving Father" as soon as Jesus was introduced.
The OT has distubing events in it, carried out or endorsed by God, and anyone who's rational would question those events, and whether a God could be of that character.
@ghost-of-a-duke saidIt's my personal opinion that modern society has discarded the OT God, and only focuses on Jesus and the Father, and the NT.
Which in turn leads to the question, should modern morality be based on such a God, as portrayed in the OT?
In some churches, they give away Bibles that are only NT, completly removing the OT altogether.
@chaney3 saidThe problem, however, is that the God of the OT can not be easily discarded.
It's my personal opinion that modern society has discarded the OT God, and only focuses on Jesus and the Father, and the NT.
In some churches, they give away Bibles that are only NT, completly removing the OT altogether.
Why is this? Because a Christian will be quick to tell you that it is the 'same God' in the old and new testament. Now, bearing in mind God is unchanging, this means that God still feels the same way as he did in the OT.
@ghost-of-a-duke saidI understand your point, but clearly...very clearly, the God of the OT is completely different than the Father in the NT.
The problem, however, is that the God of the OT can not be easily discarded.
Why is this? Because a Christian will be quick to tell you that it is the 'same God' in the old and new testament. Now, bearing in mind God is unchanging, this means that God still feels the same way as he did in the OT.
The God of the OT is riddled with what appear to be human emotions, the bad ones, while the Father in the NT is balanced and is primarily loving.
An honest Christian must concede this difference.
@ghost-of-a-duke saidIts the same God there isn't a different God in the OT as there is in the NT. If you cannot get that right what makes any of your judgments about God worthwhile?
Which in turn leads to the question, should modern morality be based on such a God, as portrayed in the OT?
@kellyjay saidThis kind of comment is pretty much all you're left with as far as discourse goes.
Its the same God there isn't a different God in the OT as there is in the NT. If you cannot get that right what makes any of your judgments about God worthwhile?
The way the brand new cult of personality and breakaway religion commandeered and weaved itself retrospectively into Judaism, to this day, causes people like you all manner of problems.
You're left wittering on about the Trinity and the New Covenant - and people "of the flesh" being unable to understand you - in your efforts to paper over the elephant-in-the-room sized crack in the edifice of what you believe about the OT/NT thing. "It is because it is", writ large.
Okay, let's narrow down the OP. The Christian God, as presented in the OT, has clearly carried out acts of genocide. (Let's just go with the whole great flood episode). Our well adjusted and moral human being, who would ordinarily abhor genocide in all its forms, will necessarily have to concede it is sometimes justified, if they happen to be a Christian.
Some Canaanite cities were burning children of their despairing parents alive in the iron hands of their god Molech. A huge human figure with the face of a bull smiled down into its hands as some helpless little girl or little boy was being seared to death in the red hot flames.
The god Molech had to be appeased and child sacrifices had be made to the idol. The drums beat louder, hypnotically to drown out the screams of the children. Their helpless parents looked on restrained by the worshippers.
Do you think it was right for God to END such a society, dispersing the villages that did these practices and killing the worshipers who for years ignored warnings not to do this ?
Was it a good thing for God to terminate these civilizations addicted, steeped, enslaved perpetually to these abominations ?
@sonship saidNo.
@Ghost-of-a-Duke
[quote] Okay, let's narrow down the OP. The Christian God, as presented in the OT, has clearly carried out acts of genocide. (Let's just go with the whole great flood episode). Our well adjusted and moral human being, who would ordinarily abhor genocide in all its forms, will necessarily have to concede it is sometimes justified, if they happen to be a Chr ...[text shortened]... God to terminate these civilizations addicted, steeped, enslaved perpetually to these abominations ?