You probably know that I'm in recovery, which means that I have a sponsor. She calls herself a "Jesus girl" and not a Christian for all of the reasons you just described. Sometimes I think that the idea that Jesus was a radical has been lost on a lot of people. In regards to why the perception of being Christian tends to bring up negative stuff in people- you know, I've been thinking a lot about that lately, why it's more common, easier maybe, for us humans to latch on to the negative things, the differences, in other people. Is it easier? Does it protect us from the prospect of being intimate, and therefore the possibility of being hurt? Does it protect us from being uncomfortable and having our reasoning and justification processes challenged? I don't know. It takes effort to engage people
( ... )
i appreciate your "slightly different place" quite a bit ;-)
i suppose that right now i'm in a place where i'm beginning to see these meaningful and oftentimes spiritual interpersonal relations as being "church". church as lifestyle, as vulnerable interconnectivity rather than as a place, a location, a building, an event.
i think you're right on in your questions.
relationship and community are difficult, precisely because you're right - it takes so much effort to engage people, to become willingly vulnerable so as to engender intimacy, and it's so so easy to walk away, disengage. because we tell ourselves that we can make it on our own.
but we can't. i feel rather firmly convinced that though community is very hard, isolation is a slow death. i'm sure you know even better than i.
thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts ;-)
I know what you mean. I'm so afraid that everyone thinks that I am going to "force my religion on them" just because thats what so many Christians do. I know we are supposed to share Christ with others, but most people have already had a bad experience with someone trying to force their views, that it really makes you want to just keep to yourself.
i think we've been fed a faulty model for "sharing Christ" with others. it's this whole idea of conversion, of making people ingest enough information about Jesus so that they'll "make a decision for Christ".
but if we look at the accounts of Jesus' life, he asked people to follow him, he told them that he only did what he saw his Father doing, and he said that people would know they were his disciples by their love of one another. a far cry, eh?
i hold to the idea that just as in my relationship with frenchpress, who helps me to know and to love people that she knows already, so in my relationship with the Father, He shows me how to love the people around me that He loves already. a little wacky, perhaps.
and it can't be about just myself and God, either, 'cause that can get weird. i need people like pendulous to help me look past the irritating customer in front of me and see them as a person
( ... )
thank you for your insight if Jesus is at your center, then everything you do and say and give will be "sharing Christ" with others-- He is well able to love everyone into "making a decision for Him," even as you have done! thank you
It's very hard to give up any pre-conceptions regarding other people, especially having grown up mainly in the south. A place where...
Gamma-Omega-Delta is the only group at my high school allowed to have meetings at the flagpole outside. Also the only non-academic school endorsed group.
There is a "hit list" with point values assigned to non-christians for conversion.
People are told by their church leaders to find a non-christian and make them a "project" to focus their energy on converting them.
But it's just the same as every other grouping of people... A few people out on the edge tend to made everyone else on the inside forget what a great idea it was in the first place. Christianity especially has a great focus on community, and a well thought-out (mostly) moral system.
Perhaps it's just our viewpoint that makes things confusing, or perhaps it's our viewpoing that makes things clear.
have you all tried out mosaic? not just sunday stuff-- sunday is awesome (we say, church isn't about looking at the back of people's heads) but the main community takes place at other times. we're in a bit of transition right now (merged with another local community) and it's been pretty fun. from what i know about all the folks in our community, everyone feels exactly the way you do. or WE do-- i empathize with all you just wrote. anyway, it's a thought. (and it would be freakin rad to see you guys.) :o)
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i suppose that right now i'm in a place where i'm beginning to see these meaningful and oftentimes spiritual interpersonal relations as being "church". church as lifestyle, as vulnerable interconnectivity rather than as a place, a location, a building, an event.
i think you're right on in your questions.
relationship and community are difficult, precisely because you're right - it takes so much effort to engage people, to become willingly vulnerable so as to engender intimacy, and it's so so easy to walk away, disengage. because we tell ourselves that we can make it on our own.
but we can't. i feel rather firmly convinced that though community is very hard, isolation is a slow death. i'm sure you know even better than i.
thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts ;-)
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Reply
i think we've been fed a faulty model for "sharing Christ" with others. it's this whole idea of conversion, of making people ingest enough information about Jesus so that they'll "make a decision for Christ".
but if we look at the accounts of Jesus' life, he asked people to follow him, he told them that he only did what he saw his Father doing, and he said that people would know they were his disciples by their love of one another. a far cry, eh?
i hold to the idea that just as in my relationship with frenchpress, who helps me to know and to love people that she knows already, so in my relationship with the Father, He shows me how to love the people around me that He loves already. a little wacky, perhaps.
and it can't be about just myself and God, either, 'cause that can get weird. i need people like pendulous to help me look past the irritating customer in front of me and see them as a person ( ... )
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if Jesus is at your center, then
everything you do and say and give will be
"sharing Christ" with others--
He is well able to love everyone into "making a decision for Him,"
even as you have done!
thank you
Reply
Gamma-Omega-Delta is the only group at my high school allowed to have meetings at the flagpole outside. Also the only non-academic school endorsed group.
There is a "hit list" with point values assigned to non-christians for conversion.
People are told by their church leaders to find a non-christian and make them a "project" to focus their energy on converting them.
But it's just the same as every other grouping of people... A few people out on the edge tend to made everyone else on the inside forget what a great idea it was in the first place. Christianity especially has a great focus on community, and a well thought-out (mostly) moral system.
Perhaps it's just our viewpoint that makes things confusing, or perhaps it's our viewpoing that makes things clear.
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I'm looking for lj user="hyperkhat". Has his LJ name changed?
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