Christians

[Gaz]

If you wish I will quote bible verses to back this up, but since most here dont believe the bible, it wouldnt matter much.

Right lets get things straight, i doubt people don't 'believe' in the bible, i mean i can go to my book shop and get it, so we all know it's there. the thing is, can we trust the content that is in it, written 1800-1900 odd years ago?

Your taking things from this book, and putting them into use in life, which i have no problem with, and infact probably do the same my self, and most people probably should, it would change the whole word, but the fact is, it is just a book, the content could just as easily be false, as it could be true. there is no proof this book is real, we can't prove there is a god. i can't go, oooh yes that expirment/theory backs up god. it exactly the same as me posting from a website called www.falsebutmaybetrueinformation.com

 

[Brawny]

Okay, to NatetheGreat:

My comment was to squall, not you

Ask your grandma more in depth. She probably doesn't think that you only have to be sorry once. You should be sorry for your sins everytime you commit one. I am not saying that you should keep a list of everything you did that day or something, just know that you are sinful by nature and you should try to not do it as much. That is all i'm saying. I am against people who think that they can kill someone, pray, kill another person, pray, and be perfectly right with God. If you truly recognized your sin, you would not murder the next person in the first place. (yes, I know, very dramatic example).

NO! I hate general labels as well. I was just taking his priest instance and turning into a different issue. I just needed two people to use as a name. Doesn't mean anything. Had the same chance of being the other way around. Just an example.

Finally, I was mostly talking to squall. Sorry I'm too lazy to put the names in the quote boxes. I do find you a little wishy-washy though. You seem to like that you, not following any specific religion, can change your basic beliefs on an instance. Your own example of camo/pollution/abortion says that really are "static beliefs" that you hold. Kinda contradicting yourself it seems to me.

 

[Jonnyboy]

I think that mitch2025 hit the nail on the head with everything he said as to what I believe. I am a strong christian and I believe that I have been saved by my Lord Jesus Christ. I respect others who do not but as mitch said I wont push stuff in there face about Christianity unless they what to here about it. Yea I used to have doubts now and then about whether Jesus is real or not but that is normal for everyone. If you have seen some of the things that have gone on in my youth group and my church there would be no doubt in your mind, as there is for me now, that Jesus is the Sof God. I am just offering the oppurtunity for anyone to ask me about my beliefs or are curious about Christianity just pm me. Also if anyone wants pray for anything then they can pm me too because God can heal and I have seen it be done before my very eyes.

 

[motherbrainrulez]

god is sexist and contradicts himself (if he is real)
he made man in his own likeness and hes supposed to be perfect
he says hes all knowing so he allready knew adam and eve would eat the apple so there was no point in puttin the tree there
also hes so alll knowing he asked "where are you" when adam and eve hid in the bush
in conclusion why would he (if he was perfect) bother with humans if he all ready knew what was going to happen
also he can kill you in an instant so why didnt the fat bastard just kill the evil people and not kill all animals in a massive flood

 

[Rabid_Toaster]

Well, what about Baptists? My grandma says "once saved always saved." Why then, must you ask for forgiveness after every sin?

im a little confused. im a baptist, and i beleive that you need to ask for forgiveness after every sin. were you saying your grandma is a baptist and thats what she says? if you are, that isn't what all baptists (not my church anyway) believe.

 

[AW4L]

I don't have anything against someone just believing in a god. What I don't understand is why people live in fear of a god and fear "sinning."

Why do people think that gay marriage is wrong? It doesn't hurt anyone. What's wrong with premarital sex? Once again, it doesn't hurt anyone (except in some cases it emotionally hurts the two consenting people). Is abortion wrong because it's killing a baby or because "God says it's wrong?" I have mixed feelings about abortion. I don't believe in LYKE OMGZ IT'S MAH BODY ILL DO WAT I WANT W/ IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!1111 But I also don't want irresponsible people to be parents. There's more to it than the Bible says, "blah blah blah."

Why do people feel the need to say, "Jesus loves you" or "God bless you?" Why do Christians feel like they need to "save me" from Hell, which may not even exist? Why do people tell me if I'm wrong about God existing I'm going to Hell? If there's one thing I learned being raised Catholic it's that God/Jesus loves me for who I am and will let me into Heaven because I'm a good person, not because I believe in Christ. I just wish people wouldn't live their lives 100% by a fictional book.

see that whole 'rant' right there are your various beleifs. some people on this forum can find you saying "fictional book" very offending. im not a christian myself, but i can see myself being slightly offended if i was a strong beleiver. i could create a whole thread saying just the opposite of everything you just said.

 

[NateTheGreat]

Okay, to NatetheGreat:

My comment was to squall, not you

Ask your grandma more in depth. She probably doesn't think that you only have to be sorry once. You should be sorry for your sins everytime you commit one. I am not saying that you should keep a list of everything you did that day or something, just know that you are sinful by nature and you should try to not do it as much. That is all i'm saying. I am against people who think that they can kill someone, pray, kill another person, pray, and be perfectly right with God. If you truly recognized your sin, you would not murder the next person in the first place. (yes, I know, very dramatic example).

NO! I hate general labels as well. I was just taking his priest instance and turning into a different issue. I just needed two people to use as a name. Doesn't mean anything. Had the same chance of being the other way around. Just an example.

Ah, I see. Couldn't tell if I was an example or who exactly you were talking to. Thanks for clearing that up.

Finally, I was mostly talking to squall. Sorry I'm too lazy to put the names in the quote boxes. I do find you a little wishy-washy though. You seem to like that you, not following any specific religion, can change your basic beliefs on an instance. Your own example of camo/pollution/abortion says that really are "static beliefs" that you hold. Kinda contradicting yourself it seems to me.

I don't change my basic beliefs on an instance, unless it's a life changing event.

"Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes." - Walt Whitman

I'm not saying that quote in a big-headed way, but we all contradict ourselves in some way. It's impossible not to really. I gave that camo/pollution examples not to show "static beliefs," but to show how even when I say I don't like to judge and be judged, I do on occasion. I'm working on changing that. When I said "static beliefs" I was talking about the bible which has static, or unchanging morals and whatnot because it cannot be rewritten or changed and I'm not saying that's a bad thing. If you have faith in the bible, then that's fine for you.

I don't revel in the fact that I can change my beliefs.:shocked: You're making it sound like I'm vain or something, which I'm not. Do I revel in the fact that I can blink? That I can digest food? It's nothing special, it's just the way I am.

im a little confused. im a baptist, and i beleive that you need to ask for forgiveness after every sin. were you saying your grandma is a baptist and thats what she says? if you are, that isn't what all baptists (not my church anyway) believe.

Yes, that's what she believes, and trust me, she's extremely religious. She had been a democrat for most of her life, but after Clinton had that affair, she voted for Bush because he was Christian and had a clean slate in her eyes. She's against gay marriage, abortion, stemcell research, even dancing!!

Yeah, I'm sure not all baptists believe this, but she believes when you are baptized, you are saved, but you must keep faith in the almighty. She believes Catholics are hardly christian at all because they can dance and are generally more liberal and that being able to repent after every sin is bad.

 

[Brawny]

I never studied Baptists. All I know is that their view of baptism is very different. Most protestant churches believe that God is reaching down to you as a baby (yes, before your born) and when you make profession of faith in your teens, you are reaching back up. Just a good explaination from my pastor.

 

[ottoman]

being a proud Muslim, im quite certain that my religion is the correct one, others may think differently, and all i have to say to them is,

"To you your religion, and to me mine." Qur'an

i also respect others beliefs...i wouldn't say "blah blah blah" when referring to someones holy book...nor call it"fictional even tho i dont believe it is correct. this does not mean that i cant show respect.

 

[NateTheGreat]

"To you your religion, and to me mine." Qur'an

Wow, it actually says that? No wonder it's one of the fastest growing religions today.

 

[Squall7]

"To you your religion, and to me mine." Qur'an

I like that. It's short, simple and doesn't have any demeaning connotations.

I have heard other forms which do demean other's beliefs, such as "You believe what you want to believe and I'll know the truth" or "You can believe whatever you want to believe, but I'll be going to heaven".

I think to have a personal purpose is the important thing, rather than who has given it to you (not that I'm against a person holding a belief in their 'creator', just that the creator isn't used to justify one's meaning). Personally, I feel like my purpose is to create. I like to edit footage, and like to create film. I also like to play computer games. It's a purpose of mine, not to be distracted from the important things of life, but to make what I want important. [/rant]

 

[The Zealot]

war does not prove who is right, only who is left

now just think of religious wars

 

[Brawny]

being a proud Muslim, im quite certain that my religion is the correct one, others may think differently, and all i have to say to them is,

"To you your religion, and to me mine." Qur'an

i also respect others beliefs...i wouldn't say "blah blah blah" when referring to someones holy book...nor call it"fictional even tho i dont believe it is correct. this does not mean that i cant show respect.

Hey, congrats on being the first Muslim to speak up. I must ask if my information is correct though. Do you believe that Judaism and Christianity both are misinterpreted versions of the "mother of the book"?

Edit: I forgot to ask you what your position was on all of the previously mentioned issues as a fellow religious person here.

 

[Kelso]

Yay i can't believe i didn't find this thread earlier... religion is one of my favorite debates. Me personally, i am agnostic. Meaning i don't believe in a single god but i am willing to accept the idea there is a god. I think the idea of finding our "creator" is beyond our grasp. Just as ants can never understand gravity on planet earth simply because their brains do not have that capacity, we will never understand the why and how of our universe and therefore our existence. I have to agree with the original idea of this forum saying that "no one should live in fear of sinning." Who is to truly say what is right and what is wrong? We all have a conscience and i believe that will always tell us the true right and wrong, but to continuously clash with fellow man over who is right seems pointless to me when the truth is NO ONE KNOWS FOR SURE!

Calling the bible fictional was unnecessary because i could see where some people would take offence to that. But to all those who do take offence try to keep an open mind. I have a theory about the bible; i'm not sure that i believe it 100% but as i have previously stated the only thing i 100% believe is that we may never know. I find it somewhat ironic that the bible outlines the main laws in society today. I believe that it could have possibly been a way of creating order in an otherwise messed up world. lol (for lack of a better term) Don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal, don't kill, etc. These are all part of the 10 commandments and the overall idea of every story in the bible correct? When the bible came out there was no law, no real order to society and i think it could have been a way to keep people in line. The fear of going to "hell" still scares people today and it would have been a brilliant way to bring order to an otherwise chaotic society.

There are however things that make a person wonder if there was a design. Take for example the number pie, pie can be found all around us in the environment and no one knows why. Coincidence? Maybe not. But to claim we know the creator of this number is a statement based on word of mouth. No one alive today was there when the bible was written. It has been passed down though our ancestors and therefore religious beliefs are based on word of mouth. This also explains why most children take on the religion of their parents and family.

Overall i believe we should stop closing our minds in ignorance. I'm not saying anyone should accept a new god but don't judge others as "wrong." Take a good look at what you believe and why.

 

[Gaz]

Calling the bible fictional was unnecessary because i could see where some people would take offence to that. But to all those who do take offence try to keep an open mind. I have a theory about the bible; i'm not sure that i believe it 100% but as i have previously stated the only thing i 100% believe is that we may never know. I find it somewhat ironic that the bible outlines the main laws in society today. I believe that it could have possibly been a way of creating order in an otherwise messed up world. lol (for lack of a better term) Don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal, don't kill, etc. These are all part of the 10 commandments and the overall idea of every story in the bible correct? When the bible came out there was no law, no real order to society and i think it could have been a way to keep people in line. The fear of going to "hell" still scares people today and it would have been a brilliant way to bring order to an otherwise chaotic society.

i am 100% with you on that, i remember reading something along the lines of, a government brought the bible into play, to control an uncontrolable nation.