Hello! New member introducing himself!

[an anarchist]

Welcome Xavier



how does that fit into your understanding of morality?

just kidding, you don’t need to answer




i think I see where you’re going here

i am wondering which government more than whether

i am wondering if the better path is a government NOT of this world

just wondering




i have a feeling you will be successful in your ambitions

I reasoned with myself that the governments are the bad guys so the books are better in my hands
As to which government, I would say government as a concept. So, that's why I say whether, because I believe they should all be abolished.
Government NOT of this world.... HMMM that's gonna rack my brain a bit [:
Appreciate the good vibes

 

[an anarchist]

Hi, welcome.
Interesting thesis. Maybe you are in danger of looking for evidence and seeing the evidence for your own beliefs and pov (which we all seem to do) instead of just looking at the evidence and following where it points.

Perhaps, that is a path one needs to continually make sure they are not on. I know for myself, what has led me to my belief in syncretic anarchism is that I let myself have an open mind. 5 years ago, I was a stern Baptist, believing that all other people who weren't like me were gonna burn in Hellfire, and that GOD LOVES USA. I used to bleed red white and blue. It wasn't till I made the conscious realization that I might not have it all figured out that I started to break free from the beliefs instilled on me from a very early age. I believe that it was allowing the idea that i could be wrong is what led me here, and I'll keep going down that path [:

 

[Nimos]

Well, as for the markets, for it to be truly "free" there needs to be no state interference at all.

I agree that is the idea of a true free market.

Imagine I was a drug dealer, so I buy or produce drugs and sell them to school kids. At least where im from, that is not allowed. So there is no interfering in my business, laws I have to follow and so forth, im basically operating in a true free market.

It is also known that within this environment, people tend to have gangs wars fighting over who should sell drugs in which areas and so forth, in fact I live in middle of such area myself, where they occasional shoot or try to shoot each other in the middle of the street fighting over these things. So personally I don't think it seems to work very well, as I don't really think these people care what they sell, if its drugs or anything else, if it makes them money they are happy. And if the whole society was like that what should prevent everything else from ending up like that? Because it would be fairly easy to see, how someone would make a business out of "protecting" areas much like the mafia does. In fact that is also an issue here to some degree, that these gangs might demand money from legal shops as "protection" money.

The theory is that a truly free market will make available the best product.

It might be the case, if we assume that everyone plays by the book. But I also think evidently that we know that is not the case.

As for approval, customers would approve it themselves, decide what is fit to put in their bodies.

I can tell you straight up, that I by no means are qualified for making such decision, I might as well roll a dice. Then one could argue that a company might specialize in that and you could pay them to advice you. However I would not trust that such company wouldn't get paid by a medical company to simply approve their products. We know that such things already happens in various fields, where there are no regulations. People are constantly caught and charged for things of this nature.

Which leads to how legal matters would be handled? Let's say I sold you and a friend some bad drugs, which I assume would be legal, when there is no government and your friend died, who is going to run a case against me? and why should I even agree to meet up in court and not simply ignore you?

And yes. I'd say it is a huge conspiracy. Janurary 2020 the top scientists of the world from many countries (Taiwain, Japan, Phillipines) said right away that Covid19, was in there opinion, a biological weapons.

And a lot of scientists have said that it weren't a manufactured virus, because that they can see that.

Despite top medical officials and researchers debunking the conspiracy theory that the virus originated in a lab, it continues to thrive. Scientists have repeatedly said that the genetic sequence of the virus and its similarities to SARS, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, prove that the virus was not made in a lab or engineered. In a paper titled “The proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2” published in Nature in March, scientists with Scripps Research who studied the genome sequence of the virus concluded that it originated through natural processes. By looking at the virus’s molecular structure, they were able to determine that the backbone of the virus differed from coronaviruses already known to scientists and rather it resembled viruses found in bats and pangolins.

Scientists have said that if the virus was made in a lab then its structure would reveal that it would have been created from viruses that are already known and there would be signs of manipulation.

“These two features of the virus, the mutations in the RBD portion of the spike protein and its distinct backbone, rules out laboratory manipulation as a potential origin for SARS-CoV-2,” Kristian Andersen, an associate professor of immunology and microbiology at Scripps Research and one of the authors of the paper, said in a news release in March.

Im not qualified to say whether that is the case or not. But I have a difficult time, seeing how governments across the whole world, which can't agree on anything, come together to agree on this conspiracy, convince scientists and medical personal also across the world, that this is the way to go.

What are these people trying to achieve with it? What is the goal here?

 

[Batya]

Hi, I go by Xavier. I joined Religious Forums as I'm hoping to expand my perspectives. I'm 22, with the ambition of making a career out of writing. I am currently working on a hypothesis called Syncretic Anarchism. Below, I have my thesis statement as well as the introduction. Perhaps this isn't the most proper place to post this but I feel like this is the best way to introduce myself to this community. Would be most grateful for any feedback. To be honest, working on this theory and writing a cohesive book in which all the evidence and arguments are thoroughly fleshed out is going to take the remainder of my life. In my day-to-day life, I have no one to show this to, so other perspectives are what I'm after! I'm not college-educated, my education comes from the Books I've stolen from my Library religious section


Thesis

I hypothesize the theory of Syncretic Anarchism (SA). The eschatology of SA theorizes that humanity can physically emanate Heaven on Earth through collective conscious morality. Alternatively, humanity can bring about our own extinction through collective immorality. The route which humanity will take is dependent on whether government retains authority over the world.


Introduction

Syncretic Anarchism (SA) is readily understood through the definitions of its name. Syncretism is the fusion of two or more spiritual philosophies into a singular one. Anarchism holds that society should be stateless, i.e. there should be no government. SA comes about by viewing the varying world religions (as outlined below) through a singular lens. SA holds that division of religion has come about due to purposeful, doctrinal pollution by ruling governments. Furthermore, SA holds that government is inherently sinful.


There is an eschatology that develops when studying SA. This eschatology holds that humanity has a conscious choice, in regards to the fate of our species. Through collective morality, we can physically emanate Heaven on Earth, bringing about the eternal Kingdom of Christ consciously. Alternatively, through collective immorality, we will invoke events with similar consequences to that of Noah’s flood. Humanity, save a righteous seed, will be annihilated. The new race of humans that descend from the survivors will be left with the same option that we are currently presented with.


As for the present human race, the route which we take is dependent on how we handle our current political situation. Using scriptural and spiritual arguments, SA argues that government is inherently sinful; the ultimate evil. It is through government that evil is perpetuated in every aspect of life. It is through government that humanity continually devolves from its once enlightened state. It is through government that religion is hijacked and polluted. It will be through government that humanity will be annihilated. Eliminating the government’s presiding global influence is a necessary step in physically invoking Heaven on Earth.

CATEGORIZATION OF RELIGIONS (in progress)
1. Abrahamic: 1a Judaism 1b Christianity 1c Islam
2. Universalist 2a Zoroastrianism 2b Sikhism 2c Baha'ism
3. Meditative 3a Hinduism 3b Buddhism 3c Jainism
4 ???? 4a Confucianism/Taoism 4b Shinto/Indigenous 4c Platonism

Currently, I am working on defining all the religions from a Syncretic Anarchist perspective. For example, SA holds that the Hailie Selassie Bible, which includes five additional books besides traditional canon, is the Bible to use. Also, SA views the Quran as the holy text of Islam, while disregarding the Hadith as a government's way of hijacking and polluting Islam.

I have so so much to research and study, I am by no means an expert. My views are continually expanding as I intake more information and philosophies. Thanks for your time!

Welcome to RF! Quite an interesting view, I hope you enjoy your time here.

 

[Jeremiah Ames]

I reasoned with myself that the governments are the bad guys so the books are better in my hands
As to which government, I would say government as a concept. So, that's why I say whether, because I believe they should all be abolished.
Government NOT of this world.... HMMM that's gonna rack my brain a bit [:
Appreciate the good vibes

ohhhh, I’m glad I was able to rack your brain

you sound like the kind of guy who enjoys thinking

 

[Deeje]

Perhaps, that is a path one needs to continually make sure they are not on. I know for myself, what has led me to my belief in syncretic anarchism is that I let myself have an open mind. 5 years ago, I was a stern Baptist, believing that all other people who weren't like me were gonna burn in Hellfire, and that GOD LOVES USA. I used to bleed red white and blue. It wasn't till I made the conscious realization that I might not have it all figured out that I started to break free from the beliefs instilled on me from a very early age. I believe that it was allowing the idea that i could be wrong is what led me here, and I'll keep going down that path [:

Hello and welcome to RF....Good for you!.....interesting reading through your thoughts, and anxious to know if you have ever studied the Bible (apart from religion) concerning these things, because you are closer to the Bible's view than you are to any religion IMO.

The Bible says that "the whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19) because God "handed over" world rulership to the devil in Eden to prove his case. He made that claim to Jesus when he tempted him, and it was never refuted. (Luke 4:5-8) This world has his stamp all over it. Those who serve Christ cannot serve the interests of any governments that go against his teachings. That includes patriotic sentiments concerning one's nation and what a person will do in the service of that nation that is contrary to what Christ taught. He told us to "love our enemies",(Matthew 5:43-44) which precludes going to war. It even precludes training in the military as it shows intent....we would be expected to kill if instructed to do so.

This is how you tell the real Christians from the pretenders. Didn't Jesus say that the "wheat and the weeds" would grow together in the world? The "weeds" are not genuine Christians...only pretend ones.
The "wheat" are those who obey Christ, even when it is not in their best interests to do so. No government can tell you to do what Jesus taught us not to do....nor can they forbid us to carry out our commission as Christians to preach "the good news of the Kingdom" as man's only hope for a better world. (Matthew 24:14; Matthew 28:19-20)

Even in the Lord's Prayer, Jesus told us that with the coming of God's Kingdom, only then can his will "be done on earth as it is in heaven".

Since the devil is pulling all the strings backstage, the governments of this world are basically his puppets.
Power corrupts human beings, and nowhere is this more obvious than in government.

Looking forward to hearing more from you....

 

[an anarchist]

Hello and welcome to RF....Good for you!.....interesting reading through your thoughts, and anxious to know if you have ever studied the Bible (apart from religion) concerning these things, because you are closer to the Bible's view than you are to any religion IMO.

The Bible says that "the whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19) because God "handed over" world rulership to the devil in Eden to prove his case. He made that claim to Jesus when he tempted him, and it was never refuted. (Luke 4:5-8) This world has his stamp all over it. Those who serve Christ cannot serve the interests of any governments that go against his teachings. That includes patriotic sentiments concerning one's nation and what a person will do in the service of that nation that is contrary to what Christ taught. He told us to "love our enemies",(Matthew 5:43-44) which precludes going to war. It even precludes training in the military as it shows intent....we would be expected to kill if instructed to do so.

This is how you tell the real Christians from the pretenders. Didn't Jesus say that the "wheat and the weeds" would grow together in the world? The "weeds" are not genuine Christians...only pretend ones.
The "wheat" are those who obey Christ, even when it is not in their best interests to do so. No government can tell you to do what Jesus taught us not to do....nor can they forbid us to carry out our commission as Christians to preach "the good news of the Kingdom" as man's only hope for a better world. (Matthew 24:14; Matthew 28:19-20)

Even in the Lord's Prayer, Jesus told us that with the coming of God's Kingdom, only then can his will "be done on earth as it is in heaven".

Since the devil is pulling all the strings backstage, the governments of this world are basically his puppets.
Power corrupts human beings, and nowhere is this more obvious than in government.

Looking forward to hearing more from you....

I have read through the Bible several times throughout my life. Perhaps a few minor prophetic books and The Song of Solomon I have not read. I have read Joshua all the way through 2 Kings dozens of times, obsessively at some points. I would go as far to say that I believe that anarchism is the central theme of the Bible. I'll point to the Book of Judges, such as when Gideon was offered Kingship by the Israelis. He rejected it, as he wanted the Hebrew people to continue serving God and not a King. In 1 Samuel, When the Israelis came to Samuel and asked for a King, it is stated explicitly that this is sin. At the end of 2 Samuel, when King David is dying, he orders Joab to do a census of Israel. This is explicitly stated as a sin, and God unleashes mighty plagues on Israel as a direct result of this. The reason why the census was considered evil was because it gave future Hebrew kings the capacity of tax and conscript, just like all other nations.
As for the syncretic portion, I believe that Jesus Christ directly quotes figures such as Buddha and Confucius, and simply repeats what they had already established.
Appreciate the reply!

 

[Estro Felino]

Welcome aboard

 

[oldbadger]

Hello and welcome, Xavier Graham SA....

And 'good luck' with the concept of lawless morality.....

 

[Valjean]

The simplest answer to that is that I believe that the free market could provide any goods and services that is needed in a society in a much more efficient manner than a state. I'd argue that the involvement of the State in industry only drives up cost and lowers quality, such as in the field of medicine. The book "A Spontaneous Order: The Capitalist case for a Stateless Society" goes into the specifics of how markets would operate in the absence of a state.

But don't unregulated, free markets become predatory and avaricious? This has been the historical experience.
Doesn't lack of oversight lower costs at the expense of safety?

Business selects for the greedy, unprincipled, self-serving and sociopathic. Altruistic humanitarians don't generally become CEOs.

I agree that "the government" has been largely bought off by corporate interests, as it was in the 1920s, but this is a result of deregulation, not caused by it.
Without careful monitoring and control, the Social Contract will be lost, income inequality will increase, and the middle class will be lost and you'll end up with a society of haves and have-nots, rich and poor. You won't have a democracy.
Personally, I think we should make America great again, by reïnstituting the oversight and regulation that produced the growth and prosperity of the post-war years,

Government is supposed to be us. It's supposed to be a democratic co-op -- of, by and for the people. No leaders, just representatives and coördinators.

And, personally, I view the entire Covid pandemic with suspicion, as well as any vaccines associated with it. I have a "Zero trust policy" when it comes to governments. So in regards to the pandemic, I view it as purposeful government manipulation being used to further consolidate their control over the global populace. (i think the official story is a bunch of poo!)

Whose interest would a Covid conspiracy serve? How could so many unrelated interests, scientists, medical personnel and other specialists, manage to pull off such a massive deception -- with no apparent end? Why are the "experts" wearing masks and getting vaccinated?
This conspiracy seems to benefit noöne, especially the corporations that usually call the shots.

Sorry, but ordinary people are just not that organized or disciplined.[/QUOTE]

 

[Deeje]

I have read through the Bible several times throughout my life. Perhaps a few minor prophetic books and The Song of Solomon I have not read. I have read Joshua all the way through 2 Kings dozens of times, obsessively at some points. I would go as far to say that I believe that anarchism is the central theme of the Bible. I'll point to the Book of Judges, such as when Gideon was offered Kingship by the Israelis. He rejected it, as he wanted the Hebrew people to continue serving God and not a King. In 1 Samuel, When the Israelis came to Samuel and asked for a King, it is stated explicitly that this is sin. At the end of 2 Samuel, when King David is dying, he orders Joab to do a census of Israel. This is explicitly stated as a sin, and God unleashes mighty plagues on Israel as a direct result of this. The reason why the census was considered evil was because it gave future Hebrew kings the capacity of tax and conscript, just like all other nations.

You have a good handle on the OT, but what about the teachings of Jesus Christ? You can obviously see how far the churches have deviated from his teachings? Just as Judaism deviated from the teachings of Moses.

I am interested to know why you feel that Christianity can have any relationship to worship that is contrary to Jesus' teachings. Why would God speak through other prophets, outside of his own, when he had appointed his own son to lead his people out of a corrupted Jewish religious system?

Wasn't Jesus the "prophet like Moses" who would lead God's worshippers out of spiritual captivity, like Moses led Israel out of physical captivity in Egypt? How interesting that history repeats without people really noticing....?

I believe that he is again leading his disciples out of a corrupted system...Christendom. These I believe are the "weeds" that he warned us about. (Matthew 13:24-30) The devil was the sower.

As for the syncretic portion, I believe that Jesus Christ directly quotes figures such as Buddha and Confucius, and simply repeats what they had already established.

Can you give examples of this? And why you think that the son of God needed to quote anyone but his Father?

I am at a loss as to why you would take a syncretic approach when the one thing that God repeatedly warned his people against was adopting the religious beliefs and practices of the nations....especially those who practiced idolatry. When they did, he punished them....sometimes very severely.

Very early in their history, right at the outset in fact, when God led Israel out of Egypt and they saw first hand his many miracles, and yet they still couldn't do as he requested....their complaints and disobedience led to them wandering in an inhospitable wilderness for 40 years, until the complainers were no longer around. How sad to be led out of slavery by God's own hand, only to perish in the wilderness and miss out on the promised blessings that were sure to come.
A new generation entered the Promised Land but only after they were tested by the immoral Midianite women.
24,000 perished right on the brink of entering into a prosperous and beautiful future.

I see all these biblical events foreshadowing things that are happening again. I believe that we are again on the brink of entering a 'promised land'...with the imminent return of Christ (Matthew 24:37-39).....this beautiful Earth was designed originally to be a paradise for all humankind to enjoy, forever....all they had to do was obey God's commands....none of them were difficult, but they allowed the devil to take it from them by leading them into disobedience. It's what always happens.

So, taking human nature into account.....all God has ever asked of his children is that they obey him....so, what do they need to do in order to gain entry into the new "Promised Land", ("the new earth where righteousness is to dwell" 2 Peter 3:13) ruled over by the "new heavens", God's Kingdom?

The Kingdom will "come" and God's will can then be "done on earth as it is in heaven".....but how? What can we expect to see in the future, according to your understanding?

Appreciate the reply!

Appreciate yours too......

 

[Aupmanyav]

On a political level, I believe in anarchism. On a spiritual level, I believe in complete submission to the Abrahamic God.

Well, we will have our differences. I am neither an anarchist nor would submit to the imaginary ideas like that of God, soul, heaven, hell, end of days, judgment, etc.; least of all to an Abrahamic God.
However, welcome to the forum.

 

[an anarchist]

You have a good handle on the OT, but what about the teachings of Jesus Christ? You can obviously see how far the churches have deviated from his teachings? Just as Judaism deviated from the teachings of Moses.

I am interested to know why you feel that Christianity can have any relationship to worship that is contrary to Jesus' teachings. Why would God speak through other prophets, outside of his own, when he had appointed his own son to lead his people out of a corrupted Jewish religious system?

Wasn't Jesus the "prophet like Moses" who would lead God's worshippers out of spiritual captivity, like Moses led Israel out of physical captivity in Egypt? How interesting that history repeats without people really noticing....?

I believe that he is again leading his disciples out of a corrupted system...Christendom. These I believe are the "weeds" that he warned us about. (Matthew 13:24-30) The devil was the sower.


Can you give examples of this? And why you think that the son of God needed to quote anyone but his Father?

I am at a loss as to why you would take a syncretic approach when the one thing that God repeatedly warned his people against was adopting the religious beliefs and practices of the nations....especially those who practiced idolatry. When they did, he punished them....sometimes very severely.

Very early in their history, right at the outset in fact, when God led Israel out of Egypt and they saw first hand his many miracles, and yet they still couldn't do as he requested....their complaints and disobedience led to them wandering in an inhospitable wilderness for 40 years, until the complainers were no longer around. How sad to be led out of slavery by God's own hand, only to perish in the wilderness and miss out on the promised blessings that were sure to come.
A new generation entered the Promised Land but only after they were tested by the immoral Midianite women.
24,000 perished right on the brink of entering into a prosperous and beautiful future.

I see all these biblical events foreshadowing things that are happening again. I believe that we are again on the brink of entering a 'promised land'...with the imminent return of Christ (Matthew 24:37-39).....this beautiful Earth was designed originally to be a paradise for all humankind to enjoy, forever....all they had to do was obey God's commands....none of them were difficult, but they allowed the devil to take it from them by leading them into disobedience. It's what always happens.

So, taking human nature into account.....all God has ever asked of his children is that they obey him....so, what do they need to do in order to gain entry into the new "Promised Land", ("the new earth where righteousness is to dwell" 2 Peter 3:13) ruled over by the "new heavens", God's Kingdom?

The Kingdom will "come" and God's will can then be "done on earth as it is in heaven".....but how? What can we expect to see in the future, according to your understanding?


Appreciate yours too......

In regards to syncretism, and the inclusion of other religions. There is a very fine line I think that I have to be careful not to cross as I develop this theory. That line is giving honor and worship to other gods. I believe specifically that God was thoroughly against paganism. I believe that these other religions are not pagan, rather they are directly from the God of Abraham. From my understanding, paganism is ascribing honor and worship to anything that is not God. Let's say sun worship, for example (Baal was the pagan god of the sun), a pagan would believe that the sun in itself has power. They say that it does not derive it's power from any source other than itself.
Beliefs such as Taoism and Buddhism, the God that they preach about is specifically "The ONE". They describe "The ONE" as the source of all energy, and is responsible for the entirety of the universe. They equate "The ONE" as being the soul. Christianity teaches that our soul, in it's pure form, is perfectly united with God. Religions such as Shintoism does start crossing into pagan territory, but I believe that God is still in the religion.. Now this is an assumption, but I believe that God would make Himself available to everyone in all time periods. So the natives with their indigenous beliefs and the Japanese with the belief of Shinto. Yes, one can make the argument that they are pagan, but I do believe that God showed Himself to these people. What I intend to do is thoroughly sift through them and remove the pagan elements.
Confucius was the one who coined the golden rule. "Treat others how you want to be treated." Jesus was the one who made the phrase famous, but He was quoting Confucius. Buddha taught to turn the other cheek, as Jesus did. Not extensive list by any means. I would say that the core of the philosophies is practically identical. The philosophy that God is Love, is central in many of the religions that I have categorized. In the future, I will have studied the religions categorized above more, I will be able to hopefully fully elucidate how I believe they fit together perfectly.
as for your other questions, I will get back to you soon! just strapped on time at the current moment [:

 

[Meow Mix]

Welcome to RF

 

[Mock Turtle]

Welcome to RF. I think many might be more appreciative of your views if you stole or borrowed some science books along with the religious ones - and had a scientific education - rather than perhaps coming across as just another possible science denier (or conspiracy theorist) - the Covid bit. And I doubt Confucius created the Golden Rule even if he might have given name to it. Such behaviour previously existing most likely.

 

[Deeje]

In regards to syncretism, and the inclusion of other religions. There is a very fine line I think that I have to be careful not to cross as I develop this theory. That line is giving honor and worship to other gods. I believe specifically that God was thoroughly against paganism. I believe that these other religions are not pagan, rather they are directly from the God of Abraham. From my understanding, paganism is ascribing honor and worship to anything that is not God. Let's say sun worship, for example (Baal was the pagan god of the sun), a pagan would believe that the sun in itself has power. They say that it does not derive it's power from any source other than itself.

Have you studied the timeline of events in the Bible? How do we get from Eden to the flood for example? Why was the flood brought upon the world of that time? What happened to the world as a result? Why did Jesus use that time period to prefigure another catastrophic event way into the future?

What happened after the flood and how long did it take for rebellion to reoccur? Where did it go from there?
Its a fascinating journey to take and it gives us an idea of how history repeats because humans sadly do not learn from past mistakes.

Beliefs such as Taoism and Buddhism, the God that they preach about is specifically "The ONE". They describe "The ONE" as the source of all energy, and is responsible for the entirety of the universe. They equate "The ONE" as being the soul. Christianity teaches that our soul, in it's pure form, is perfectly united with God.

Buddhism does not actually preach about any god....in fact this quote says it quite succinctly...
"Buddhism teaches the way to perfect goodness and wisdom without a personal God; the highest knowledge without a ‘revelation’; . . . the possibility of redemption without a vicarious redeemer, a salvation in which everyone is his own saviour.” quoted from The Message of Buddhism, by the Bhikkhu Subhadra

Does that sound like something God would recommend that you accept?

What about Taoism or Confucianism ?
To understand why Taoism and Confucianism came to wield such a deep and lasting influence on the Chinese people, as well as on those of Japan, Korea, and other surrounding nations, it is necessary to have some understanding of the fundamental Chinese concept of Tao. The word itself means “way, road, or path.” By extension, it can also mean “method, principle, or doctrine.” To the Chinese, the harmony and orderliness they perceived in the universe were manifestations of Tao, a sort of divine will or legislation existing in and regulating the universe. In other words, instead of believing in a Creator God, who controls the universe, they believed in a providence, a will of heaven, or simply heaven itself as the cause of everything.

So none of those religions or philosophies pertained to the one God of the Bible....not even close IMO.

You do understand that the devil is a very clever mimic though? Whatever God does, satan will go one better and invent better 'gods' or faiths that sound really good and offer pleasant sayings and apparent wisdom. But beware....

2 Corinthians 11:14-15...
" No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds."
This is a clever con artist who has had millenniums to perfect his craft. He knows what we want and will make sure we find his counterfeits before we ever find the truth....he controls the world and everything in it.
You can already see that.

Religions such as Shintoism does start crossing into pagan territory, but I believe that God is still in the religion.. Now this is an assumption, but I believe that God would make Himself available to everyone in all time periods. So the natives with their indigenous beliefs and the Japanese with the belief of Shinto. Yes, one can make the argument that they are pagan, but I do believe that God showed Himself to these people. What I intend to do is thoroughly sift through them and remove the pagan elements.

Now this interests me because if we consult the Bible, up to the time of Abraham, there was the Patriarchal system where the family head led his clan in worship of the true God...ones like Job and Abraham are mentioned as faithful ones of old. So, from the time of Abraham onwards, God went about organizing the birth of his Messiah by foretelling the events that would lead Israel as a clan to Egypt and for how long they would remain there and his liberating of them as a nation in spectacular fashion about 400 years later.

To Abraham he gave the privilege of having the promised seed come through his family line....long before he even had a family, he was chosen for that role....but none of it would come about in his lifetime. In fact all the faithful ones of old only had glimpses of what was to come in the future. The Bible record concentrates on the people whom God would use to bring his firstborn son into the world as a human.

As God's purpose unfolded, people of faith and people without faith lived and died. Hebrews 11 tells of the faithful ones and it also says...in verse 13 (ESV)...
"These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth."

These all knew what we had lost in Eden due to Adam's disobedience, and felt as if this world of sin and death was alien to the one that God meant for them to live in. But they had hope that God would bring it all back, and make the world a beautiful place to live once again. All of the restoration prophesies in Isaiah would give Abraham's descendants a glimpse of things to come. There was no mention of heaven in their hopes.

IMO, God did not have to use people who were not his worshippers for anything. He could allow them to live and die in their own lands and according to their own cultures, because he would give them opportunity in the future to attain to life in his "new earth"...not on a new planet, but a new earthly society who have been tried and tested as to faith in their Creator to receive his wonderful promises. This he would do by resurrection....something held by the Jews as an assured event in the future under Messiah's Kingdom. They had no belief in an afterlife. Yet Buddhists, Hindus and other Asian religions who believed in ancestor worship, all believed in an immortal soul that departed from the body at death......the ancient Jews did not hold this belief. (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10) Does that surprise you?

Confucius was the one who coined the golden rule. "Treat others how you want to be treated." Jesus was the one who made the phrase famous, but He was quoting Confucius.

He was not the only one to quote that sentiment, it is actually found in a few ancient cultures. Its one of those universal truths.

Buddha taught to turn the other cheek, as Jesus did. Not extensive list by any means. I would say that the core of the philosophies is practically identical. The philosophy that God is Love, is central in many of the religions that I have categorized. In the future, I will have studied the religions categorized above more, I will be able to hopefully fully elucidate how I believe they fit together perfectly.

I would have issues with that. Similarities do not necessarily mean that something is the same. God cautioned his people all through their existence NOT to mix true worship with false worship. But the Jews seemed to fall for it. Never did it please their God.

as for your other questions, I will get back to you soon! just strapped on time at the current moment [:

No pressure...its nice to have something different to discuss....later then....sorry to bombard you but I find your thinking interesting and different....

 

[an anarchist]

Have you studied the timeline of events in the Bible? How do we get from Eden to the flood for example? Why was the flood brought upon the world of that time? What happened to the world as a result? Why did Jesus use that time period to prefigure another catastrophic event way into the future?

What happened after the flood and how long did it take for rebellion to reoccur? Where did it go from there?
Its a fascinating journey to take and it gives us an idea of how history repeats because humans sadly do not learn from past mistakes.


Buddhism does not actually preach about any god....in fact this quote says it quite succinctly...
"Buddhism teaches the way to perfect goodness and wisdom without a personal God; the highest knowledge without a ‘revelation’; . . . the possibility of redemption without a vicarious redeemer, a salvation in which everyone is his own saviour.” quoted from The Message of Buddhism, by the Bhikkhu Subhadra

Does that sound like something God would recommend that you accept?

What about Taoism or Confucianism ?
To understand why Taoism and Confucianism came to wield such a deep and lasting influence on the Chinese people, as well as on those of Japan, Korea, and other surrounding nations, it is necessary to have some understanding of the fundamental Chinese concept of Tao. The word itself means “way, road, or path.” By extension, it can also mean “method, principle, or doctrine.” To the Chinese, the harmony and orderliness they perceived in the universe were manifestations of Tao, a sort of divine will or legislation existing in and regulating the universe. In other words, instead of believing in a Creator God, who controls the universe, they believed in a providence, a will of heaven, or simply heaven itself as the cause of everything.

So none of those religions or philosophies pertained to the one God of the Bible....not even close IMO.

You do understand that the devil is a very clever mimic though? Whatever God does, satan will go one better and invent better 'gods' or faiths that sound really good and offer pleasant sayings and apparent wisdom. But beware....

2 Corinthians 11:14-15...
" No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds."
This is a clever con artist who has had millenniums to perfect his craft. He knows what we want and will make sure we find his counterfeits before we ever find the truth....he controls the world and everything in it.
You can already see that.


Now this interests me because if we consult the Bible, up to the time of Abraham, there was the Patriarchal system where the family head led his clan in worship of the true God...ones like Job and Abraham are mentioned as faithful ones of old. So, from the time of Abraham onwards, God went about organizing the birth of his Messiah by foretelling the events that would lead Israel as a clan to Egypt and for how long they would remain there and his liberating of them as a nation in spectacular fashion about 400 years later.

To Abraham he gave the privilege of having the promised seed come through his family line....long before he even had a family, he was chosen for that role....but none of it would come about in his lifetime. In fact all the faithful ones of old only had glimpses of what was to come in the future. The Bible record concentrates on the people whom God would use to bring his firstborn son into the world as a human.

As God's purpose unfolded, people of faith and people without faith lived and died. Hebrews 11 tells of the faithful ones and it also says...in verse 13 (ESV)...
"These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth."

These all knew what we had lost in Eden due to Adam's disobedience, and felt as if this world of sin and death was alien to the one that God meant for them to live in. But they had hope that God would bring it all back, and make the world a beautiful place to live once again. All of the restoration prophesies in Isaiah would give Abraham's descendants a glimpse of things to come. There was no mention of heaven in their hopes.

IMO, God did not have to use people who were not his worshippers for anything. He could allow them to live and die in their own lands and according to their own cultures, because he would give them opportunity in the future to attain to life in his "new earth"...not on a new planet, but a new earthly society who have been tried and tested as to faith in their Creator to receive his wonderful promises. This he would do by resurrection....something held by the Jews as an assured event in the future under Messiah's Kingdom. They had no belief in an afterlife. Yet Buddhists, Hindus and other Asian religions who believed in ancestor worship, all believed in an immortal soul that departed from the body at death......the ancient Jews did not hold this belief. (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10) Does that surprise you?


He was not the only one to quote that sentiment, it is actually found in a few ancient cultures. Its one of those universal truths.


I would have issues with that. Similarities do not necessarily mean that something is the same. God cautioned his people all through their existence NOT to mix true worship with false worship. But the Jews seemed to fall for it. Never did it please their God.



No pressure...its nice to have something different to discuss....later then....sorry to bombard you but I find your thinking interesting and different....

(I gotta figure out the multi quote thingy)
The Hailie Selassie Bible, (the canon of the Rastafarian faith as well as the Ethiopian Orthodox Church), includes 1 Enoch and the Book of Jubilees. Enoch gives a very detailed narrative of the time before the flood, which is only mentioned in passing in Genesis 6. Enoch says that angels rebelled, mated with human females, and had giants as babies. When these giants souls died, a tenth of their souls were left on Earth to act as demons to tempt mankind to sin. I believe that 1 Enoch is an authentic prophetic account of the events leading up to the flood. The Epistle of Jude directly quotes Enoch and attributes the passage to "the prophet Enoch." I believe manipulation in the translation of the Bible was done in order to discredit Enoch as canon. Leviticus 16:6-10 is about Yom kippur. The KJV version uses the word "scapegoat". Traditionally, and currently by many translations, the word "scapegoat" is instead translated into "Azazel". Azazel was the lead angel of the rebellious ones. At the end of Enoch, God splits open the Earth, casts Azazel in chains, throws him in the earth, closes it on him, and deems that he will be there until the final day of judgement. This is where Jesus went when he died on the cross I believe.

Your perspective on indigenous peoples souls reincarnation existing parallel to the Hebrew's lack of reincarnation is exciting, I will be exploring this concept in depth as time goes on.

With developing Syncretic Anarchism, I am going to be altering the base view of every religion. I am not doing this in order to warp them to my theory, rather, these are the conclusions I am coming to as I study them.
To elaborate
Confucianism, at its core, is a moral socio-political philosophy. It is often understandably viewed as a political philosophy, rather than a religion. Confucius taught that in order to change the world, one must only be a good son, and a good younger brother. If one could do this, everything else would fall in place. If one cannot do this, how can one exert his influence over the world? For the first thirty years of Jesus's life, He was simply a good son, and a good brother. If He was not able to go through this period with absolute purity, He would not be Messiah. It's concepts like this in which I am attempting to synthesize the religions.
Confucius, when teaching on what he thought about spirituality, put his emphasis on worshipping "the Supreme Deity". I recognize this as the God of Abraham, the Eternal God. He also recommended the use of the I Ching, a cleromancy book that is recognized as Confucian canon. Confucius spent his life trying to become a politician in order to implement his ideas. He also travelled and talk to the various feudal kings, in an attempt to bring social order. When he was old, he voiced regret that he spent his life on that pursuit, dismissing it as a waste. He laments that he should have spent all of his time studying the I Ching instead. I personally use the I Ching every time I pray. The idea behind the I Ching, is, that you are asking your soul the question. Your soul has an objective view of the universe and is in perfect unity with God. Therefore, as long as you have faith that your soul is listening and will give you an intelligent answer through the coin tosses, it will work. It always does for me. In this respect, I argue that Confucianism had indeed discovered God.
I believe that Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism have discovered God through meditation. Such is the power of the human mind. Buddha claimed that his teachings would be surpassed, and future generations would travel further down the road in discovering the truth. I believe he was prophesizing of Jesus Christ.
In my personal practice, Buddhism is the vessel in which I practice my Christianity. It is a discipline. God the Trinity is my Buddha. In Buddhist prayers, I replace his name with Theirs. I believe that the people of the Dharmic religions had indeed discovered God, because when I practice their meditative disciplines, I discover God through my soul.

I have an elementary level of knowledge on most of the religions I have listed in my categories. I have done plenty of surface research, but few have I gone down the rabbit hole with. That's what I'll spend my life doing. It is through reading their sacred texts, and experiencing the practices, that I am convinced that they all share the same author. If there is one thing that I can say that ties all of these religions together, it is that they teach God is Love!

 

[metis]

Welcome!

 

[Deeje]

(I gotta figure out the multi quote thingy)

Just highlight the portion you want to respond to and you will have the option to “quote”. Select it and keep doing that until all the points are selected, then moving down to the dialogue box you will see the prompt to insert your multiple quotes. Click on that and they will all come up. Select “quote” and they will all be there to respond to. Hope that makes sense....

 

[Deeje]

Sorry for the long post again, but you raise so many interesting points...ones that I have already addressed in my own spiritual journey over many decades, so I am keen to explore these with you ...but please tell me if I am overstepping.

For the first thirty years of Jesus's life, He was simply a good son, and a good brother. If He was not able to go through this period with absolute purity, He would not be Messiah. It's concepts like this in which I am attempting to synthesize the religions.

Recognizing that Jesus was a perfect, sinless human, who was sent into the world by his Father to redeem sinful mankind by offering his life for ours, we can understand that his perfection (devoid of sin) was what kept him obedient, right to the end of his life, even though he had free will, he never once abused it.

I do not believe however that he had unlimited knowledge of his past life in heaven with God, until his baptism. If you read the account, you will see that “the heavens were opened up” which I believe was connected to his anointing as Messiah. He then disappeared into the wilderness for 40 days, communing with his God and Father in preparation for his assigned ministry, which he knew would not end well for him. Satan was never going to let his death be anything but torture.

Jesus never once claimed to be God, and his assignment as Messiah required that must die in order to give life to others. Since God is immortal, he cannot die. Jesus was 100% mortal and died faithful to his God having completed his assignment successfully.

Jesus then became a High Priest and an appointed King of God’s kingdom. Both are positions that were assigned to him by his Father. So I believe that the truth of any matter pertaining to worship, in a world where it’s fake god is out to deceive, (2 Corinthians 4:3-4) we have to be careful to keep the one God of Israel as a single entity. (Deuteronomy 6:4) The Jews never held a concept that their God was a trio. That idea came hundreds of years after Jesus died...and in the circumstances of a foretold apostasy.

So right from the get go, we have to know the God we worship as he presented himself to the one person ever to be called “Yahweh’s friend”. Abraham never knew a triune God. Jesus never mentioned him, or ever claimed equality with him.

We can explore that subject in detail if you wish....?

Confucius, when teaching on what he thought about spirituality, put his emphasis on worshipping "the Supreme Deity". I recognize this as the God of Abraham, the Eternal God.

Regardless of the concept of God revealed in various cultures, the God of Abraham revealed himself to be the God of Israel exclusively. Yahweh ruled out any other worship as unacceptable to him.

When the Israelites were to take possession of the Promised Land, they were to remove from the land all those who practiced false worship. In fact the worship they practiced was so disgusting that all trace of them was to be obliterated. So the devil has a range of different forms of worship to cater for all religious tastes in his world.....from the very opposite of what God requires, to the ones who are appear to be very close to it....his “angel of light” trick. He doesn’t care what god you worship, as long as it’s not the God of Abraham.

The one thing that confirms that for me was the fact that anyone who was outside of the nation of Israel, who heard about their God, and wanted to worship him, had to abandon their former worship and accept Yahweh as their God exclusively....and thereafter to live according to all the laws that God gave to his people. This to me, rules out any other kind of worship as unacceptable to God in any way.

He also recommended the use of the I Ching, a cleromancy book that is recognized as Confucian canon. Confucius spent his life trying to become a politician in order to implement his ideas. He also travelled and talk to the various feudal kings, in an attempt to bring social order. When he was old, he voiced regret that he spent his life on that pursuit, dismissing it as a waste. He laments that he should have spent all of his time studying the I Ching instead. I personally use the I Ching every time I pray. The idea behind the I Ching, is, that you are asking your soul the question. Your soul has an objective view of the universe and is in perfect unity with God. Therefore, as long as you have faith that your soul is listening and will give you an intelligent answer through the coin tosses, it will work. It always does for me. In this respect, I argue that Confucianism had indeed discovered God.

Now we get to the meaning of the word “soul”....and that the practice of spiritism in any form was forbidden to God's people unless it was performed by those authorized by God to determine his will.
The reasons for this become clear when you understand whose power is invoked under those circumstances. The deceiver is going to present these dangerous practices as harmless...even beneficial.

The meaning of the words translated "soul" are also very important to our understanding because the Jews were never taught about the soul being a separate part of the human person. The word in Hebrew never means a disembodied spirit....it is only used with reference to a living, breathing creature. The expression "my soul" then can be understood as meaning "myself". This is also a good subject to explore.

I believe that Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism have discovered God through meditation. Such is the power of the human mind. Buddha claimed that his teachings would be surpassed, and future generations would travel further down the road in discovering the truth. I believe he was prophesizing of Jesus Christ.

And the subject of “meditation” is also vital to understand what it means to a Christian, as opposed to what it means to a Buddhist or any other religious practitioner.
Meditation as it is described in the Bible is the kind of deep, concentrated thinking in which a person seriously reflects on past experiences, ponders and muses over current matters, or thoughtfully contemplates possible future events. Rather than emptying the mind, and repeating sounds that cancel out thought, it seeks a quiet place to contemplate serious matters. It involves deep and serious thinking whilst communing with the Father in prayer, asking his assistance is sorting out things that are of concern. They may even involve deep thinking about the wonders of creation in order to show deep gratitude.

In my personal practice, Buddhism is the vessel in which I practice my Christianity. It is a discipline. God the Trinity is my Buddha. In Buddhist prayers, I replace his name with Theirs. I believe that the people of the Dharmic religions had indeed discovered God, because when I practice their meditative disciplines, I discover God through my soul.

But who is the god of those religions....I believe that is a very important question. The fact that they appear to be harmless or even beneficial, is what con artists present to get people to accept their lies. How many people would accept a deception if they knew that it was based on lies? Who is "the father of the lie"?

I have an elementary level of knowledge on most of the religions I have listed in my categories. I have done plenty of surface research, but few have I gone down the rabbit hole with. That's what I'll spend my life doing. It is through reading their sacred texts, and experiencing the practices, that I am convinced that they all share the same author. If there is one thing that I can say that ties all of these religions together, it is that they teach God is Love!

Ah...rabbit holes.....I have been down many of those, but never did I find the true God in any of them. It is satan’s MO to create confusion by deception....he is an expert. Counterfeits are everywhere, causing much confusion. But in order to identify the fakes, you must first know what the genuine article looks like. That way, the counterfeits are easy to spot and discard. The more you discard, the less confusion there is...and confidence builds.

Abraham never labored under any such confusion. He knew his God well and nothing could sway him in any other direction. Remembering that this was before his descendants formed into a nation, before the Law was written, and that the nations around him already had their gods and modes of worship....he remained steadfast and loyal to Yahweh alone. We can see by the stories related in Genesis that even marriage alliances were difficult in those times. Genuine worshippers of Yahweh were sought for both Isaac and Jacob.

Take your time, and let me know what you think about these things.....