Originally posted by Great King RatTotally predictable and expected response -
Yep. Persecution complex and martyrdom. Familiar traits of most religions. Gives you strenght, doesn't it?
"Now that the Christian refers to personal opposition to him for the name of Jesus immediately attempt to paint him with a martyr complex."
Sorry if you were expecting me to say " Oh THANKYOU for saying I am an idiot to believe in the Son of God."
Is that the well balanced psychological response? Or would you expect me to respond with something TAUGHT by Jesus appropriate to the situation ?
- sonship
Originally posted by gswilmIt may be predictable, but that's because it's an excellent summary.
Totally predictable and expected response -
"Now that the Christian refers to personal opposition to him for the name of [b] Jesus immediately attempt to paint him with a martyr complex."
Sorry if you were expecting me to say " Oh THANKYOU for saying I am an idiot to believe in the Son of God."
Is that the well balanced psychological respo ...[text shortened]... pect me to respond with something TAUGHT by Jesus appropriate to the situation ?
- sonship[/b]
You revel in your victimhood, your feeling of being oppressed, of being belittled. You said so yourself.
And that's a well known trait of many religionists. Apparently the feeling of being made fun because of your wacky religious beliefs strenghtens that same belief. Weird but true.
Would you think that this is some kind of test by God? Is He testing your belief when it is being belittled?
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Originally posted by sonshipI'm in a better mood now, and would say you are "misguided".
Apathist, why am I an "idiot" ?
Religion is based on myth and legend. But there is something about religious instruction (from whatever culture - from whatever religion) that draws in segments of that society.
We could talk about how your bible is incomplete - so fussing about what it says or means is like trying to make a meal when ingredients are missing.
We could talk about translation difficulties, which are profound - and those who think otherwise are clearly fanatic.
We could talk about the wisdom of taking faith guidance from ancient people who didn't know what the lights in the night sky were.
The old testament was for the chosen. So this god is in this place, just as all the other gods are in the other places. New testament tried to change that. Jesus, bless his soul, was the best your god could do! A kinda weak demi-god in the tiny chosen part of the world and whose magic wasn't very impressive and could only help a few random passers-by, before he died as if he were a mere human.
Yeah, you are misguided.
Originally posted by gswilmA less predictable response from you would be to apologise for calling another Christian stupid, rather than pretending you didn't say it.
Totally predictable and expected response -
"Now that the Christian refers to personal opposition to him for the name of [b] Jesus immediately attempt to paint him with a martyr complex."
Sorry if you were expecting me to say " Oh THANKYOU for saying I am an idiot to believe in the Son of God."
Is that the well balanced psychological respo ...[text shortened]... pect me to respond with something TAUGHT by Jesus appropriate to the situation ?
- sonship[/b]
Is your horse too high for that?
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-Removed-I've heard that christians hate other christians (with different doctrinal beliefs) more than they hate atheists. That is true, isn't it.
But hey, maybe you can enlighten us with some more of your wacky-baccy fortune-cookie Mother Nature has all the answers in the bottom of my next booze glass wisdom?
Terra is in your face. Cancer kills the host. Would you like to not be a cancer on the face of this planet?
Christians should be arguing, arguing means intent and passion and belief. What you offer is nothing. Seriously, nothing.
The abrahamic religions offer cancer. Jews huddle down, muslims and christians kill each other. They worship the same god! They have nukes! None of them respect other gods.
I don't think it's hopeless, and there is a good faith belief.
Originally posted by sonhouseBut when examining the human condition, the development of religion is almost a certainty.
Spirituality is NOT about a god with such an inferiority complex it needs constant stroking from humans. Spirituality is or should be, about the spiritual growth of each and every human on the planet with no reference needed to ANY religion.
True spirituality is way above any human intellectual pollution of organized religions.
But of course you will have a bunch of bible verses to 'prove' I am wrong.
People here LOVE to rail against "organized religion", as if it were some boogeyman to be feared or hated. This is just the result of "groupspeak". People will adopt a popular opinion to feel part of the group. A religion should be doing its own "policing" to keep their message pure without being overwhelmed by "popular" opinion. Of course, the problem is that other facets of humanity come into play, such as "the love of money" (or power) and other sins which necessarily (that is, by design) distract from the message.
But because of this disdain for "organized" religion, what we're left with is "pagan" religions, and people who claim their weird, fundamentalist version of some religion is true and all others need to be "silenced".
Originally posted by Ghost of a DukeI might just do that. What was, though, the preceding comment that led to me writing "stupid" in a response ?
A less predictable response from you would be to apologise for calling another Christian stupid, rather than pretending you didn't say it.
Is your horse too high for that?
Now you skeptics are a fine bunch.
Even the Apostle Paul told fellow Christians not to be "unwise."
Do you know that love sometimes can be an adjusting word ?
" Therefore do not be foolish [stupid maybe?] but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Eph. 5:17)
"Look therefore carefully how you walk, not as unwise [stupid maybe?] but as wise..." (v. 15)
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Originally posted by apathist
I'm in a better mood now, and would say you are "misguided".
Jesus had guided me very well through many years.
He is so trustworthy and dependable beyond all that I could ask or think.
Misguided by Jesus Christ ?
I don't think so.
Religion is based on myth and legend. But there is something about religious instruction (from whatever culture - from whatever religion) that draws in segments of that society.
But the way you know a counterfeit is by getting very familiar with what is real.
Sometime you may notice that the New Testament itself cautions about the need to discern between myths and the Gospel.
For example:
"Let no one defraud you by judging you unworthy of your prize, in self-chosen lowliness and worship of the angels,
dwelling on things which he has seen, vainly puffed up by the mind set on the flesh.
And not holding the Head [Christ] ..." (Col. 2:18,19a) [/b]
I don't think you have given nearly enough attention to internal instructions in the Bible about guarding the experience of God from superstition, myth, legend, puffed up visions, idols.
I think this naivete comes from not really reading the Bible.
Peter says they did not follow cleverly devised myths when speaking of the transfiguration of Christ to which they were witnesses:
" For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we became eyewitnesses of that One's majesty." ( 2 Pet. 1:16)
You're rather late in handwaving your warnings about cultural myths.
I got to be warned already in careful reading of the Bible.
We could talk about how your bible is incomplete - so fussing about what it says or means is like trying to make a meal when ingredients are missing.
Then we would be kind of jumping around to another "problem".
I notice how many skeptics cannot sit still to get through ONE matter without handwaving up ANOTHER problem over here or over there.
Maybe in getting into the adequacy of the revelation given to man, you would want to nervously raise another problem over there that we could talk about.
We could talk about translation difficulties, which are profound - and those who think otherwise are clearly fanatic.
You could line up umpteen rationales to not get saved. Yea, you could do that.
I tried it for some time.
Which translation difficulty indicates you have no sins to be washed away in the redeeming blood of Christ ?
Is it the 20,000 horses of Solomon verses the 2,000 horses of Solomon ?
That copyist error prevents you from believing in Christ's death and resurrection for your salvation ?
What translation problem stands in the way of you needing the Savior Christ ?
We could talk about the wisdom of taking faith guidance from ancient people who didn't know what the lights in the night sky were.
How does that effect your need to be forgiven for your sins ?
Was there a problem with the shadow on the moon when you lied, stole, maybe fornicated, maybe dishonored your parents, maybe did something else as a stain on your character before your conscience and before God.
Was the distance from the earth to the moon a problem that effected the seriousness of your injury to someone else ?
You cannot hide your need for redemption behind modern knowledge.
You cannot sweep every moral failure recorded under the rug that we know something better about the way the mechanics of the creation work now.
Don't place too much faith in this.
If you stand before God a thief and another born 1,000 years ago stands before God as a thief, your greater knowledge of micro waves and black holes will not put you in a more righteous place.
You need to be clothed in Jesus Christ as your justification before God the Creator's holiness, and righteousness and glory.
The old testament was for the chosen. So this god is in this place, just as all the other gods are in the other places.
You should read Exodus and on more carefully.
You may notice that God calls to all the ends of the earth to be saved.
What He did with Israel was something like have a representative to be under His law.
Did you read about His judgments of surrounding nations in the book of Amos ?
I don't think you read it. I think you should read more of the Bible for yourself.
You are being misguided probably by Internet critics of the Christian gospel feeding you with their poor reasons to be your own.
You better look into the word of God for yourself.
New testament tried to change that. Jesus, bless his soul, was the best your god could do! A kinda weak demi-god in the tiny chosen part of the world and whose magic wasn't very impressive and could only help a few random passers-by, before he died as if he were a mere human.
These are the words of the blind having been led by the blind.
Both are fallen into a pit of abject ignorance.
Yeah, you are misguided.
No. You're being misguided - the blind leading the blind.