Right from wrong and the arising internal conflict
I'm not talking about the obvious right from wrong - don't steal, don't kill, don't hurt anyone, blah blah blah. I'm talking about what we have been taught as opposed to what we feel inside.
Let me expand. If you've been brought up with any sort of religious affiliation and teachings, then you have been taught right from wrong within the confines of that religion. Your parents molded you, your pastor/priest/cleric shaped you, your like-minded peers kept you in check. But what do you do when what you feel inside conflicts with the teachings and way of life that has been so ingrained in you that you feel so completely torn inside?
I'm speaking in generalizations, not about any one specific event. But let's consider things. I can't speak for any other religion because I was brought up Christian and I remain a Christian, although I have rejected many of the teachings from my childhood regarding the Christian faith. Should I blindly accept that the Bible is the infallable Word of God, despite knowing that men wrote it, and rewrote it, adding and subtracting canons and books based on the fashion of the current ruler or monarchy? I don't think that the ancient writers of the Bible spoke King James' flowery middle English, for example. Obviously with so many intereptations, something along the way was omitted, added, or completely lost in translation altogether. Now, that is not to question God, His existance, or his desire for humankind. It is simply an acknowledgement that the Bible could very well contain what MEN wanted, as opposed to what God wanted.
I suppose I'm not making myself very clear here, and I don't want to dive too much into my personal experiences regarding this since it is a public forum. I guess all I'm really trying to figure out is, if I do something that has been presented as "wrong" or a "sin," is it really? Will I anger God? Will He punish me because I did or did not do something?
I guess one will never really know for sure until that moment comes when you meet Him face to face. I just do not want my life to be dictated by the arbitrary rules of man instead of the divine rules of Heaven.
Let me expand. If you've been brought up with any sort of religious affiliation and teachings, then you have been taught right from wrong within the confines of that religion. Your parents molded you, your pastor/priest/cleric shaped you, your like-minded peers kept you in check. But what do you do when what you feel inside conflicts with the teachings and way of life that has been so ingrained in you that you feel so completely torn inside?
I'm speaking in generalizations, not about any one specific event. But let's consider things. I can't speak for any other religion because I was brought up Christian and I remain a Christian, although I have rejected many of the teachings from my childhood regarding the Christian faith. Should I blindly accept that the Bible is the infallable Word of God, despite knowing that men wrote it, and rewrote it, adding and subtracting canons and books based on the fashion of the current ruler or monarchy? I don't think that the ancient writers of the Bible spoke King James' flowery middle English, for example. Obviously with so many intereptations, something along the way was omitted, added, or completely lost in translation altogether. Now, that is not to question God, His existance, or his desire for humankind. It is simply an acknowledgement that the Bible could very well contain what MEN wanted, as opposed to what God wanted.
I suppose I'm not making myself very clear here, and I don't want to dive too much into my personal experiences regarding this since it is a public forum. I guess all I'm really trying to figure out is, if I do something that has been presented as "wrong" or a "sin," is it really? Will I anger God? Will He punish me because I did or did not do something?
I guess one will never really know for sure until that moment comes when you meet Him face to face. I just do not want my life to be dictated by the arbitrary rules of man instead of the divine rules of Heaven.