God?
Ok, this isn't meant to ridicule the person it was replying to, nor lessen their beliefs. However I thought this post summed up a lot of the things I believe in, or ideas that I have about religions. It is my reply to a post.
"If someone is ashamed of their faith. is it true faith?"
It is not being ashamed. It is either wanting to respect other peoples right to develop their own conclusions, or they aren't comfortable with what they are being told to believe. Just like you can believe in Jesus Christ yet not believe in the bible. Just because they aren't confident in themselves or their religion enough to preach to other people doesn't mean they are ashamed. After all, its how they live their life and who they are personally that matters. People can preach all they like, it doesn't prove their faith anymore than anyone else. It just shows that they lack the integrity to let people make up their own mind,
"If you believe and have faith in an ultimate power that will save you. Shouldn't one fight the "embarrassment" and fess up?"
If believing what you believe is all about being saved, then I feel the point has been missed completely. Jesus' parables are to guide you in how your life and treat people. Not to give you a checklist to tick off to get into heaven.
"we actually don't all believe in the same omnipotent power"
Essentially you do:
First their was Judaism. They had the bible (the old testament), they had moses and abraham. When Christ came and died. Judaism split into two factions. Judaism and Christianity. Judaism was then further split into Islam. Christianity became Catholicism, Protestantism, and mormonism. Christians believe that christ was the Son of God and saved our souls. Jews believe that Christ was not the son of God. Islam believes that Abraham was a prophet, Jesus was a prophet and more importantly Muhhammed was a prophet. Mormons believe in Jesus Christ however they believe different teachings of Jesus Christ. We can assume that if the God the Jews originally believed in is "The God"; God does not change himself to suit our beliefs. Therefore regardless of how the religion has become fragmented and its beliefs changed, God would still be the same. If this was so, we could then assume that Jews, Christians, Muslims, Mormons, Catholics etc. are all trying to get to the same heaven to be with the same God. But the problem is, they all have different Ideas of how to get there and what God taught them. But essentially God hasn't changed, you are still trying to get to a Jewish Heaven, just the same as every other Judaist denomination. You just think your path is more righteous than anyone elses. (and vice versa for the other religions also).
"God loves us all so much he sent his Son to take our sins as his own and pay for them on the cross. Tell me which other "religion" does that."
Once again, religion is not books on shelves in a bookstore that you read the back cover and think that sounds cool I think I'll buy it. You don't join a religion thinking of what it does for you. You join a religious group based on your core beliefs and wanting to know more.
You believe that God loves us and that he sent his son to be crucified on the cross. But that is your belief, not everyons, and moreso you cannot state it as a fact.
In regards to sating what a Sacrifice it was for God to send his son Jesus to be crucified at the hands of man. You can say to an extent that it was God's fault anyway. God gave us free will. God gave us weaknesses. God made Adam and Eve who they were. God also made Satan. Satan tempted Eve by appealing to the weaknesses that God placed in her, and made her eat the apple which gave us original sin which God then cleansed with the birth and death of Jesus. In my opinion it seems like a stupid thing to do in the first place. You don't give something free will and then test it and be upset when they don't do what you want. If God created us in his own image, then he too must be fallible, have weakness and express all of our strengths and weaknesses, God then must also be able to make mistakes. God is essentially at fault for his own sons demise and the corruption of the beings he created. However this is all hypothetical on theexistence of the Judaist God and the birth and death of Christ.
"What matters in the end is more than you are. If I am relying on my own good deeds to save me, then im a goner. because i cannot do enough good deeds to even begin to make up for my bads."
What matters is your character, who you are inside, Deeds don't make you who you are, however they inluence who you will be and they influence other people. Expression of faith does not make you who you are. Devotion to something you cannot see or touch does not make you who you are or a better person. All the things that make you a good person are exclusive of what you believe. Being baptised or confessing your sins does not change a thing. If you are ultimately a bad person, then nothing will save you.
"Its about realising how awesome God is, and once you realise that wanting to praise and worship him"
You can witness the joys of creation without the need to praise and worship something. Respecting and enjoying creation is all the praise and worship in the world. Much like the happiness of a child is all the thanks a mother could ask for.
I believe that a year on your knees is a year blind to the world. I personally find life more awesome the more I look into it and find more out. The theory that the world was created in 7 days with no elaboration just doesn't do it for me. (but thats just me)
"you're right, its not about believing in a book. Its about putting your life in God's hands"
I didn't say that. Because Christianities beliefs are based on a book. The Bible. The book tells you what to believe (basically).
Your basis for what you consider God, is in that book. If you didn't have the bible telling you exactly what to do, how to live your life, what to believe in, what not to believe in I doubt that Christianity would have come to the same conclusion. Moreso, if the bible didn't state that you cannot believe in anything else (false idols) as well as that unless you accept Christ into your life you will be damned where you will gnash and grind your teeth. Then there would be no preaching for the sake of salvation, people would be freer to accept other beliefs to help their own idea of what God is.
If there is a God, we are all in its hands regardless of what we believe or how we act. Forfeiting our lives to an inevitable(according to the belief in God) statement to me seems kind of pointless. Much like a lot of people who find God, find God due to something devastating in their lives, or a question of self. However they never resolve those problems, or their causes, they blind themselves to their pain by consoling themselves with the pointless fact that something they cannot touch see or hear or feel that doesn't even influence their lives: Loves them.
Just like a parent creates and raises a child. I feel that God wants us to find out own way, that he wants us to come to our own conclusions, that he wants us to succeed, that we will learn from our own mistakes. All that he asks is respect. As it has been stated "God helps those who help themselves".
Sorry for the long reply.
- Nath
"If someone is ashamed of their faith. is it true faith?"
It is not being ashamed. It is either wanting to respect other peoples right to develop their own conclusions, or they aren't comfortable with what they are being told to believe. Just like you can believe in Jesus Christ yet not believe in the bible. Just because they aren't confident in themselves or their religion enough to preach to other people doesn't mean they are ashamed. After all, its how they live their life and who they are personally that matters. People can preach all they like, it doesn't prove their faith anymore than anyone else. It just shows that they lack the integrity to let people make up their own mind,
"If you believe and have faith in an ultimate power that will save you. Shouldn't one fight the "embarrassment" and fess up?"
If believing what you believe is all about being saved, then I feel the point has been missed completely. Jesus' parables are to guide you in how your life and treat people. Not to give you a checklist to tick off to get into heaven.
"we actually don't all believe in the same omnipotent power"
Essentially you do:
First their was Judaism. They had the bible (the old testament), they had moses and abraham. When Christ came and died. Judaism split into two factions. Judaism and Christianity. Judaism was then further split into Islam. Christianity became Catholicism, Protestantism, and mormonism. Christians believe that christ was the Son of God and saved our souls. Jews believe that Christ was not the son of God. Islam believes that Abraham was a prophet, Jesus was a prophet and more importantly Muhhammed was a prophet. Mormons believe in Jesus Christ however they believe different teachings of Jesus Christ. We can assume that if the God the Jews originally believed in is "The God"; God does not change himself to suit our beliefs. Therefore regardless of how the religion has become fragmented and its beliefs changed, God would still be the same. If this was so, we could then assume that Jews, Christians, Muslims, Mormons, Catholics etc. are all trying to get to the same heaven to be with the same God. But the problem is, they all have different Ideas of how to get there and what God taught them. But essentially God hasn't changed, you are still trying to get to a Jewish Heaven, just the same as every other Judaist denomination. You just think your path is more righteous than anyone elses. (and vice versa for the other religions also).
"God loves us all so much he sent his Son to take our sins as his own and pay for them on the cross. Tell me which other "religion" does that."
Once again, religion is not books on shelves in a bookstore that you read the back cover and think that sounds cool I think I'll buy it. You don't join a religion thinking of what it does for you. You join a religious group based on your core beliefs and wanting to know more.
You believe that God loves us and that he sent his son to be crucified on the cross. But that is your belief, not everyons, and moreso you cannot state it as a fact.
In regards to sating what a Sacrifice it was for God to send his son Jesus to be crucified at the hands of man. You can say to an extent that it was God's fault anyway. God gave us free will. God gave us weaknesses. God made Adam and Eve who they were. God also made Satan. Satan tempted Eve by appealing to the weaknesses that God placed in her, and made her eat the apple which gave us original sin which God then cleansed with the birth and death of Jesus. In my opinion it seems like a stupid thing to do in the first place. You don't give something free will and then test it and be upset when they don't do what you want. If God created us in his own image, then he too must be fallible, have weakness and express all of our strengths and weaknesses, God then must also be able to make mistakes. God is essentially at fault for his own sons demise and the corruption of the beings he created. However this is all hypothetical on theexistence of the Judaist God and the birth and death of Christ.
"What matters in the end is more than you are. If I am relying on my own good deeds to save me, then im a goner. because i cannot do enough good deeds to even begin to make up for my bads."
What matters is your character, who you are inside, Deeds don't make you who you are, however they inluence who you will be and they influence other people. Expression of faith does not make you who you are. Devotion to something you cannot see or touch does not make you who you are or a better person. All the things that make you a good person are exclusive of what you believe. Being baptised or confessing your sins does not change a thing. If you are ultimately a bad person, then nothing will save you.
"Its about realising how awesome God is, and once you realise that wanting to praise and worship him"
You can witness the joys of creation without the need to praise and worship something. Respecting and enjoying creation is all the praise and worship in the world. Much like the happiness of a child is all the thanks a mother could ask for.
I believe that a year on your knees is a year blind to the world. I personally find life more awesome the more I look into it and find more out. The theory that the world was created in 7 days with no elaboration just doesn't do it for me. (but thats just me)
"you're right, its not about believing in a book. Its about putting your life in God's hands"
I didn't say that. Because Christianities beliefs are based on a book. The Bible. The book tells you what to believe (basically).
Your basis for what you consider God, is in that book. If you didn't have the bible telling you exactly what to do, how to live your life, what to believe in, what not to believe in I doubt that Christianity would have come to the same conclusion. Moreso, if the bible didn't state that you cannot believe in anything else (false idols) as well as that unless you accept Christ into your life you will be damned where you will gnash and grind your teeth. Then there would be no preaching for the sake of salvation, people would be freer to accept other beliefs to help their own idea of what God is.
If there is a God, we are all in its hands regardless of what we believe or how we act. Forfeiting our lives to an inevitable(according to the belief in God) statement to me seems kind of pointless. Much like a lot of people who find God, find God due to something devastating in their lives, or a question of self. However they never resolve those problems, or their causes, they blind themselves to their pain by consoling themselves with the pointless fact that something they cannot touch see or hear or feel that doesn't even influence their lives: Loves them.
Just like a parent creates and raises a child. I feel that God wants us to find out own way, that he wants us to come to our own conclusions, that he wants us to succeed, that we will learn from our own mistakes. All that he asks is respect. As it has been stated "God helps those who help themselves".
Sorry for the long reply.
- Nath