• Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
    • Access to private conversations with other members.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Pretend you're the God of Christianity...

Alceste

Vagabond
I can only hope that America is a skewed representation of the amounts of literalists and non-literalists. The problem is that you're not just talking about those two groups. I think the majority of people fall somewhere in between. There are people like my parents, who don't take everything literally, but believe that the Bible is the word of God, and is to be taken as more than just some stories and myths to guide and teach us. They are also very intelligent, normal people in every respect. I think the way you said that people look at it is a good way, but not many people here see it that way, including my parents.

Well, looking around at the stats, it would seem that out of the 2.2 trillion "Christians" on the planet, the HUGE majority are Catholic (1.1 trillion). The other half are divided - 422 million "Independents", 380 million "Protestants", 250 million "Orthodox." North America has only 220 million Christians - Ie. one tenth of the global population. - source

The US stats seem to indicate over half the Christians there identify as "Protestant" which is the sect that includes everything from Evangelicals to the United Church (which if you're familiar with Christian sects spans a HUGE range of ideology), but there are still more Catholics than Baptists. - source

So really when we are talking about "Christians" in a general sense, we are talking about "Catholics" - who are thinly disguised polytheistic Goddess-worshippers. :D (That's what I like about them!)
 

Random

Well-Known Member
Well, looking around at the stats, it would seem that out of the 2.2 trillion "Christians" on the planet, the HUGE majority are Catholic (1.1 trillion). The other half are divided - 422 million "Independents", 380 million "Protestants", 250 million "Orthodox." North America has only 220 million Christians - Ie. one tenth of the global population. - source

The US stats seem to indicate over half the Christians there identify as "Protestant" which is the sect that includes everything from Evangelicals to the United Church (which if you're familiar with Christian sects spans a HUGE range of ideology), but there are still more Catholics than Baptists. - source.

Fascinating. I did not know there were Trillions of people on planet Earth. :eek:

Alceste said:
So really when we are talking about "Christians" in a general sense, we are talking about "Catholics" - who are thinly disguised polytheistic Goddess-worshippers. :D (That's what I like about them!)

Yes, this is absolutely true. It's what I like about Catholicism too.
 

Tau

Well-Known Member
Its funny coz its true...

But luckily for us the Christian vision of God is not empirical, it cannot be as there are other perceptions equally as valid.

I could never understand how Christians could interpret their God as a God of love, because a quick flick through the bible reveals that clearly He isn't.
 

DallasApple

Depends Upon My Mood..
The thing is if they were innocent..and did not have knowledge of good and evil ..how then did they know it was sin to eat the fruit?..I mean I know God told them not too..But if they were truly innocent how can they be blamed for disobeying?..IOW how can something innocnet and ignorant know any better?

I've wondered the exact same things that you wrote in your OP...Thats when I decided I dont believe every word in the Bible is litteral myself.And it was written by people..Imperfect people in fact.Inspired by God doesnt=perfection.

Blessings

Dallas
 

Heneni

Miss Independent
Hello!

What if the God of the old testament was fed up with having to go to such extremes to get the hardhearted and stubborn and rebellious humans to prosper?

Hard measures had to be used on hard hearts.

And since he was fed up with the human condition, he decided to change things. Now God will not go through such extreme lengths to get the Isrealites or anybody else to listen.

Why was it important for them to listen to Him in the first place? Cause if they did it would go well with them. Not because if they didnt he would throw his toys out of the cot, but instead he would get upset since they kept on doing stuff that was hurtfull to them. God has no ego problem.

Would you keep on trying to help someone that keeps on thinking your a pain in booty and a wet blanket. God kept on trying year after year after year to make mankind soft. Ironically he still makes the sun come up and go down even on those who hate and reject and deny his existance. But that is because He is good.

God created everything, and everything he created was subject to laws. He create everything to live within those laws. The creation opperates on physical and chemical laws, and humankind was created to thrive and succeed if they did only one thing. Love God. It was very hard for humans to do that! And since they kept on rebelling against a God that was FOR them, against a GOD that loved them, against a GOD that provided for them, they kept on going in reverse.

The commandment is still this...LOVE the lord your God.

Why? Cause then you will prosper. In all sorts of ways.

But the human heart is deceitfull above all else, and it was not created to be a robot, and so even though God is love, and god is good, the human heart has found no place for him in there.

Few people really love god. If you dont, ask yourself WHY? What did He do wrong to you? If he did drastic things it was to help humankind out of their state of stupidity. But ALAS, we just dont learn, and we just dont get it!


Dont expect God to swoop down from heaven and make an awesome appearance to you so that you can say...OHHHH so he does exist! OHHHHH so he really is love. Nope, this time if you want to be loved, you need to love Him. If you dont, He is not going to force you. He has had it with those that reject Him even though He cares. If you are destroyed its cause your choices were bad. Because against all good reason, you just wouldnt love Him, though there is no real reason for rejecting Him. He will create a new place for the people that love Him, where he and them, can live happily ever after, somewhere where He and his children are not a thorn or inconvenient truth in the hardhearted peoples sides. For the rest well they will have to wait and see what their choices has instore for them. For them, what they reap is what they sowed. You must have your cake and eat it. The spiritual principles and spiritual laws that God created to govern his kingdom does not and will never change. Those laws are rooted in love, and there is no access to his kingdom unless you love Him too. Not because he forces you, not because he dazzles you, not because he deceives you.

As God said I am what I am..

what are you going to do with HIM? If you reject Him, He will go away for you, you will have no perception or inclination of his existance. He removes himself very politely and very silently from those that hate him, and those that reject Him. But for those that love Him, those who see him for what He is...GOOD, He has an entire world of Love an peace and safety waiting for them.

There is something drastically wrong with the worlds perception of God. And it is not his fault. It is because the human heart is unable to acknowledge their creator as being good.

If you dont like God, its because your eyes can not see Him for what He is. Its because your heart is hard, and your eyes are closed, and you would rather reject Him than persue Him.

The bible isnt a book for the world. It is a book for those that Love god, because unless you love him,you will be disgusted at what is in it, and what is in it will be offensive and stupid to you. Only eyes that look at God in the right way, can understand the intent of the heart of God while reading every page in it.


Love
Heneni
 

DallasApple

Depends Upon My Mood..
Also Adam and Eve could not have been litterally perfect..Or else they woudl have resisted temptaton and obeyed God.Perfect people dont make mistakes.Perfect is perfect not 99% oops I messed up one time.

Blessings

Dallas
 

logician

Well-Known Member
Well, looking around at the stats, it would seem that out of the 2.2 trillion "Christians" on the planet, the HUGE majority are Catholic (1.1 trillion). The other half are divided - 422 million "Independents", 380 million "Protestants", 250 million "Orthodox." North America has only 220 million Christians - Ie. one tenth of the global population. - source

The US stats seem to indicate over half the Christians there identify as "Protestant" which is the sect that includes everything from Evangelicals to the United Church (which if you're familiar with Christian sects spans a HUGE range of ideology), but there are still more Catholics than Baptists. - source

So really when we are talking about "Christians" in a general sense, we are talking about "Catholics" - who are thinly disguised polytheistic Goddess-worshippers. :D (That's what I like about them!)

Your math seems a little off.
 

Tau

Well-Known Member
The bible isnt a book for the world. It is a book for those that Love god, because unless you love him,you will be disgusted at what is in it, and what is in it will be offensive and stupid to you. Only eyes that look at God in the right way, can understand the intent of the heart of God while reading every page in it.


Love
Heneni

That says it all for me really.
There is only one way to look at everything, with objectivity, not with rose tinted glasses.
 

Heneni

Miss Independent
Hello Tau

Im not sure if you agree or disagree with me .True love, loves, regardless of the other one being different. Love ...loves. If you love someone you will always find a way to forgive them, always find a way to see the good in them. It does not mean that you are blind or not objective, it means that dispite the things they do that would go against what we or others think is right, we cannot stop loving them.

And so it is with this type of love that one should read the bible. The words therein will be offensive and maybe terribly desturbing. But none the less, if you love the one it talks about, you will not be distracted by it, but will rather see it as a means to learn about God. And if you love him, you will always see the good in every situation no matter what.

True love is not grounded in illusions. One can only claim to truly love someone if you see them exactly the way they really are. Especially when you know the somewhat nasty side of them. Others might not agree with your love for the other, but you choose to love regardless of what others think. You see within that person something that is beautifull and good.

Its with this same love that God loves mankind. He loves them, regardless of their mistakes and their mishaps. Yet, we find it hard to love God in the same way.

If I had to pretend even for one day that I was God, would I really be able to let go off, and forgive and wipe clean all the offenses and nasty things and degrading things my creation says against me?

I think that God is far better at being God.


Love
Heneni
 
Top