Comments | lygophilous: This was probably one of those "Long Time Coming" things.

lygophilous

This was probably one of those "Long Time Coming" things.

Feb 08, 2010 00:39

I can't understand it.

I just... can't. On the whole, I pride myself on taking on a worldly view and striving to see from all perspectives, whether the difference lies in culture, society, politics, race, orientation, or what-have-you. The uniqueness of humanity is dazzling to me, and I adore discovering of differing points of views just so I may ( Read more... )

philosophy, gnosis, in a metaphysical mood

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emelye_miller February 8 2010, 06:41:03 UTC

It's interesting that you bring this up because that kind of rhetoric is exactly what I've been struggling with? against? for the last two years ( ... )

lygophilous February 8 2010, 10:55:53 UTC

I have to go to work and I won't be able to respond properly until this afternoon, so I wanted to say that, first, I enjoyed my preliminary read of your comment, second, I promise a lengthy reply later, and, third, just by the way you approach your faith in thus comment, I certainly don't think less of you. I will write more later!

Response: Part 1 lygophilous February 9 2010, 02:49:12 UTC

So, I'm eking this out semi-asleep as I am still feeling the affects of staying up so late and then not taking a nap this afternoon. It's a rather surreal state of mind!

When I first entered into my "Jesus Phase" as you call it, I was inundated with this sort of language which is a very sloppy way to convey a theological concept... words like hers kept me a prisoner of my own low self esteem...

Whilst reading her blog, I have stumbled upon many references to low self-image and self-esteem. Do you think, perhaps, that overly fervent belief and dependence on god/Jesus lends itself to those who suffer such things?

There is a teacher at my school who is currently struggling against her husband who up and left her and might ask for a divorce. And she is blaming herself, claiming that she wasn't a "Proverbs 31" wife. This perturbs me to no end. Would you agree?

I guess what I'm trying to say is that, yes, the date of Christmas was deliberately chosen to allow pagan converts to continue their tradition...The whole Christmas thing was ( ... )

Re: Response: Part 1 emelye_miller February 9 2010, 03:31:58 UTC

Do you think, perhaps, that overly fervent belief and dependence on god/Jesus lends itself to those who suffer such things? There is a teacher at my school who is currently struggling against her husband who up and left her and might ask for a divorce. And she is blaming herself, claiming that she wasn't a "Proverbs 31" wife.This is one of those areas where the church has failed women entirely. I would agree that the message of humility and repentance is easier to accept for those who already believe they have something to repent and humble themselves about. But there is a big difference between knowing your personal failings and working to overcome them and perceiving that everything you do and are are worthless ( ... )

Response: Part 2 lygophilous February 9 2010, 02:50:46 UTC

... [A] Christian has to believe in original sin or there would be no need for substitutionary sacrifices to be made in payment for sins in order to make our souls... capable of being in God's presence. Christians believe that God himself became flesh in order to serve as a sacrifice large enough to bridge that divide permanently.Do you believe, then, in the tale of Adam and Eve verbatim? That the woman tempted the man and is to blame? That the world was created in seven days ( ... )

Re: Response: Part 2 emelye_miller February 9 2010, 15:59:15 UTC

Do you believe, then, in the tale of Adam and Eve verbatim? That the woman tempted the man and is to blame? That the world was created in seven days? What if there was no original sin? Who is to say that even in such a case humanity would not still need this sacrifice of God's in order to be cleansed of, say, mortality and the errors of humanity that are naturally imbued in us?Do I believe in Adam and Eve, creation etc. verbatim? Not necessarily. Could it have happened as it was written? Sure. I mean, if you're already making the leap that an all powerful creator God exists, then you might as well consider that the world could have been created any way He chose. Including using evolution to get the job done. In fact if you read both creation accounts (which are not actually contradictory, but in fact, a Jewish literary convention) you read that the order in which God creates the world mirrors directly the order of evolution ( ... )

Re: Response: Part 2 lygophilous February 11 2010, 02:13:30 UTC

No, totally makes sense without any obscurity! I get what you believe and what you are saying; I am just completely philosophically opposed to it, apparently.

Like...

Why did God give us the "mortality and the errors of humanity that are naturally imbued in us" aka Original Sin in the first place? Being omniscient, didn't he know that Adam and Eve were going to be curious and disobey him? Did that give him the right to punish them afterward?

It's sort of like a parent setting up their child for failure just so the parent can punish the child.

AND! Just because someone messes up and disobeys someone else, doesn't mean that the someone doesn't love the someone else any more or any less. I rarely listened to what my parents had to say as I grew up, but I have always always loved them so much.

Why create an imperfect race if only to punish us and make us feel inferior. It's like god is subscribing to Machiavelli. We only ever fear or love god, and that makes religion extremely powerful over us. Not a settling thought ( ... )

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