Do I want to live forever? I'm not sure, but I do NOT want to live forever in a biblical Heaven. An eternity bathed in bright light with a large part of my soul removed and a smile plastered on a face does not sound appealing.
The Bible explains that we will not have any evil in us in heaven. I don’t know about you, but I am in large part "evil". I am filled with “evil” human emotions, lust, greed, anger, you name it. But you know what? I love my self just the way I am. These faults make me who I am. Without them, I'm not me.
In thinking about those I love, I do not love them despite their faults, I love them because of their faults. With those faults removed, who will they be? Certainly not who they were before. As Friedrich Nietzsche said "In heaven all the interesting people are missing."
In Heaven, what kind of life would it be without choices between good and evil? Will it be between good and gooder? Does that mean everything but the goodest will become evil? But there is no evil! No choices then? What will we do?
Will children be born there? If so, think of the population expolsion! We're talking infinity here. If no new children, parenting, the best part of my life on earth, will not be possible. And those children that do end up in Heaven... will the grow? Will we be frozen at our entrance age?
Assuming I don't have to go to Heaven, and instead chosing mortality, coming to grips with the finality of my life has been energizing. I now realize my life on earth must be the best I can make it. If there is no second chance, I better make the best of it! No goofing off waiting for salvation, I better get busy!
But I will live forever, in a very real sense, through my daughters. And them through their children. What a natural thing. That makes me want to be the best father possible!
And for some reason, even if I were to be saved and go to Heaven, billions will be in Hell. How could we celebrate in Heaven knowing even one of our brethren is in Hell? Will we be ignorant of this? I don’t want to be ignorant! How could that be good?
Monday, January 16, 2006
#8: The Passion
“Jesus Had a Bad Weekend for Your Sins!”. This is a parody bumper sticker that is very close to the Christian truth. Assuming biblical accuracy, I have never understood the huge sacrifice that Jesus apparently paid for our sins. On one hand Christians proclaim “Jesus died for your sins!” and then on the other proclaim “Jesus lives!”. Okay then, where is the huge sacrifice? Did he sacrifice, then, his life on earth as a man? But Christians are just waiting for the day when they can rise to heaven and be with God! So it seems Jesus death wasn’t a sacrifice, but rather a favor! Not only that, according to Christianity, Jesus IS God, so how can God kill himself to appease himself?
#7: Atonement
Jesus “paid” for our sins? Even assuming we are unworthy of God’s love, can anyone other than ourselves accept moral responsible for what we are have done? It is a foundation of Christianity, yet morally corrupt. Even our legal system does not allow the substitution of guilt. We can pay the monetary debt for someone else, but never the criminal guilt. Why not? Because it doesn’t make moral sense.
#6: Guilt
We should not be guilty for Adam and Eve’s sin. The Bible itself says that children should not pay the price for their parents sins, yet condemns us for something that Eve did 5000 years ago. Not only that, but at the time Eve committed this ultimate sin, she didn’t even know the difference between right and wrong! Yet if you are a bible believing woman, the very reason that you have child-bearing pain is because of what an innocent Eve did in the Garden of Eden. And because Adam and Eve were tricked by a talking snake, we are all pieces of crap unworthy of God’s love. Absurd.
#5: Salvation
The concept of salvation is nonsensical. Salvation from what? The hideous Hell that the god of the bible himself created? The life that the Bible tells you will end unless you are saved? The Bible saves us from fates of its own creation!
#4: Science
The bible is totally absurd from a scientific point of view. Genesis is a contradictory mess for a reasonable explanation of how the universe was formed. It reflects precisely what was believed by man at the time and shows not even a hint of divine guidance in this area. The earth is flat and held up by 4 pillars. Earth and heaven are separated by a “firmament” with water stored above, and little points of light that are so small they can fall to earth. This is what man believed, not what God knew. God's Word? Hardly.
#3: History
Throughout history, religions have done horrible things to good people, and Christianity is as guilty as any of them. Christian intolerance and the hideous examples in the bible of what god has done to the Un-chosen, has been the fuel for killing millions throughout history, and it continues to this very day. Even our own country, under the guidance of a “Christian” president has invaded a non-threatening nation and killed thousands of innocent people under the proclaimed guidance of God.
#2: Intolerance
Christianity’s intolerance of other beliefs makes it unworthy of my adherence to it. Often quoted to me: "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but through me". To a Christian, this is a loving thing to say, but to an non or ex-Christian it is a nearly unforgivable insult. You might as well say “Unless you believe what I do, God does not want you in his presence”. It is hard for me to imagine a greater damnation. Two thirds of the World’s population will never accept Jesus as their savior (with very good reason I might add), and per Christian beliefs they will be spending eternity roasting in Hell. On this reason alone, I can never again call myself a Christian.
#1: Hell
Hell is the most inhumane, cruel, and immoral place ever imagined by anyone. Ever. Stalin, Hitler, Saddam, you name it, were saints compared to any creator of such a place. A loving god would be totally incapable of thinking of such a place, let alone creating it or sending even one of the creatures he created there. It’s existence, and the Christian belief that god will send the majority of humanity there, is irrefutably a major part of the Bible’s message. On this reason alone, I toss the bible out. Doesn’t mean I toss out Jesus or God, but the bible becomes nothing more than something written by man and does not reflect God’s true nature.
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Quote of the Day
"I think we can all look forward to the time when these three theories are given equal time in our science classrooms across the country, and eventually the world; One third time for Intelligent Design, one third time for Flying Spaghetti Monsterism, and one third time for logical conjecture based on overwhelming observable evidence." —Bobby Henderson
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Quote of the Day
“. . . In all parts of our globe, fanatics have cut each other's throats, publicly burnt each other, committed without a scruple and even as a duty, the greatest crimes, and shed torrents of blood.
. . .Savage and furious nations, perpetually at war, adore, under divers names, some God, conformable to their ideas, that is to say, cruel, carnivorous, selfish, blood-thirsty. We find, in all the religions, 'a God of armies,' a 'jealous God,' an 'avenging God,' a 'destroying God,' a 'God,' who is pleased with carnage, and whom his worshippers consider it a duty to serve. Lambs, bulls, children, men, and women, are sacrificed to him. Zealous servants of this barbarous God think themselves obliged even to offer up themselves as a sacrifice to him. Madmen may everywhere be seen, who, after meditating upon their terrible God, imagine that to please him they must inflict on themselves, the most exquisite torments. The gloomy ideas formed of the deity, far from consoling them, have every where disquieted their minds, and prejudiced follies destructive to happiness.
How could the human mind progress, while tormented with frightful phantoms, and guided by men, interested in perpetuating its ignorance and fears? Man has been forced to vegetate in his primitive stupidity: he has been taught stories about invisible powers upon whom his happiness was supposed to depend. Occupied solely by his fears, and by unintelligible reveries, he has always been at the mercy of priests, who have reserved to themselves the right of thinking for him, and of directing his actions.”
-- Baron d'Holbach, Common Sense, 1772
. . .Savage and furious nations, perpetually at war, adore, under divers names, some God, conformable to their ideas, that is to say, cruel, carnivorous, selfish, blood-thirsty. We find, in all the religions, 'a God of armies,' a 'jealous God,' an 'avenging God,' a 'destroying God,' a 'God,' who is pleased with carnage, and whom his worshippers consider it a duty to serve. Lambs, bulls, children, men, and women, are sacrificed to him. Zealous servants of this barbarous God think themselves obliged even to offer up themselves as a sacrifice to him. Madmen may everywhere be seen, who, after meditating upon their terrible God, imagine that to please him they must inflict on themselves, the most exquisite torments. The gloomy ideas formed of the deity, far from consoling them, have every where disquieted their minds, and prejudiced follies destructive to happiness.
How could the human mind progress, while tormented with frightful phantoms, and guided by men, interested in perpetuating its ignorance and fears? Man has been forced to vegetate in his primitive stupidity: he has been taught stories about invisible powers upon whom his happiness was supposed to depend. Occupied solely by his fears, and by unintelligible reveries, he has always been at the mercy of priests, who have reserved to themselves the right of thinking for him, and of directing his actions.”
-- Baron d'Holbach, Common Sense, 1772
Friday, December 02, 2005
USA founded on Christianity?
A coworker was lamenting about how Target or someone was calling "Christmas trees" "Holiday Trees" or somesuch out of pressure from non-Christian groups. He went on to say that we have let too many Muslims into this country and that this country was founded by Christians. I normally have a "no religious or political discussions at work" policy, but I had to challenge him on his last point at least.
Do you think this country was founded by and/or for Christians? If you do, I would love to know on what you base that belief.
In the meantime, I have a challenge for you. Find "God", "Jesus", "Christianity", "religion", or any form of these words, in the Constitution of The United States. Hint: "religious" is in the Constitution once, and in the Amendments once as well. Homework assignment: Find where they are used, and quote the sentence they are used in.
Here's a link to The Constitution: http://www.house.gov/Constitution/Constitution.html
PS I'm sure you'll be excited to find a date referrence of "the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord". Extra credit: If you find this an endorsement of Christianity, do a little research into where the names of the week come from and report back.
Do you think this country was founded by and/or for Christians? If you do, I would love to know on what you base that belief.
In the meantime, I have a challenge for you. Find "God", "Jesus", "Christianity", "religion", or any form of these words, in the Constitution of The United States. Hint: "religious" is in the Constitution once, and in the Amendments once as well. Homework assignment: Find where they are used, and quote the sentence they are used in.
Here's a link to The Constitution: http://www.house.gov/Constitution/Constitution.html
PS I'm sure you'll be excited to find a date referrence of "the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord". Extra credit: If you find this an endorsement of Christianity, do a little research into where the names of the week come from and report back.
Thursday, November 17, 2005
A Sucker Re-Born Every Minute
Check out this website:
http://www.gentlewindproject.org/
Soak it in for a bit. Check out the products, the descriptions of how they work. Realize that this is a multi-million dollar tax-free organization. Then check out this website:
http://www.windofchanges.org/
Amazing.
I am coming to the conclusion that the human brain has evolved to such a complex level that it is almost unable to function. Kind of like Windoze. How can people buy into this crap? Oh wait, I used to be a Christian. Never mind.
PS A functional knowledge of "The Placebo Effect" is very helpful, not only when going to sites such as this one, but life in general. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_effect
http://www.gentlewindproject.org/
Soak it in for a bit. Check out the products, the descriptions of how they work. Realize that this is a multi-million dollar tax-free organization. Then check out this website:
http://www.windofchanges.org/
Amazing.
I am coming to the conclusion that the human brain has evolved to such a complex level that it is almost unable to function. Kind of like Windoze. How can people buy into this crap? Oh wait, I used to be a Christian. Never mind.
PS A functional knowledge of "The Placebo Effect" is very helpful, not only when going to sites such as this one, but life in general. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_effect
Thursday, October 27, 2005
Questions for Christians, Part Trois
Nothing confirms my feelings about Christianity more than the fact that my basic questions about it go ignored.
In "Questions for Christians, Part Deux", I made an open and honest request for any Christian to explain in secular terms their relationship with Jesus. Not a single taker. I figured maybe someone would at least try it anonymously, where there would be no risk at all, but nooooo.
I love questions that address religion on the most basic level. It’s easy to get a Christian to try to explain such a complex concept as, say, the trinity. But try to get them to explain the very basics, such as a description of what their relationship with Jesus is actually like. I mean, the whole basis of Christianity is that you give yourself to Jesus. Jesus will be your soul mate, your buddy, to be by your side and help you through your difficult journey through life. Yet not one person will explain how this very basis of Christianity actually works. And in the case of Part Deux, I tried to simplify it as much as possible by asking for the simple differences between their relationship with Jesus and a child’s imaginary friend. Seems simple enough. Or is it?
I’ll try it again. This time, rather than a child’s imaginary friend, the scenario will be a demented thug. Bear with me…
Imagine yourself walking along a country road. You are enjoying life, the beautiful scenery, the smell of trees and flowers, and you are minding your own business. Life is good. Then you notice a man has come out from the shadows. He walks up besides you and says hello. You are bit wary, but he looks kind enough, so you say hello back. He puts his arm around your shoulders. You’re very uncomfortable now and you’re not sure quite what to do. You push his arm from your shoulder and tell the man that you would just as soon be by yourself enjoying nature. He looks straight into your eyes, reaches into his coat, and pulls out a handgun. He presses the barrel to your temple and says " As long as you do as I say, I will save you, but if you don’t, I will pull the trigger. It’s your choice."
I’m sure you’ve figured out that this story is my analogy to Christianity. If you are a Christian, I assume you will consider it absurd. Well, that should then make answering a basic question very easy for you then. So tell me, what are the flaws in this analogy?
I’ll be waiting.
In "Questions for Christians, Part Deux", I made an open and honest request for any Christian to explain in secular terms their relationship with Jesus. Not a single taker. I figured maybe someone would at least try it anonymously, where there would be no risk at all, but nooooo.
I love questions that address religion on the most basic level. It’s easy to get a Christian to try to explain such a complex concept as, say, the trinity. But try to get them to explain the very basics, such as a description of what their relationship with Jesus is actually like. I mean, the whole basis of Christianity is that you give yourself to Jesus. Jesus will be your soul mate, your buddy, to be by your side and help you through your difficult journey through life. Yet not one person will explain how this very basis of Christianity actually works. And in the case of Part Deux, I tried to simplify it as much as possible by asking for the simple differences between their relationship with Jesus and a child’s imaginary friend. Seems simple enough. Or is it?
I’ll try it again. This time, rather than a child’s imaginary friend, the scenario will be a demented thug. Bear with me…
Imagine yourself walking along a country road. You are enjoying life, the beautiful scenery, the smell of trees and flowers, and you are minding your own business. Life is good. Then you notice a man has come out from the shadows. He walks up besides you and says hello. You are bit wary, but he looks kind enough, so you say hello back. He puts his arm around your shoulders. You’re very uncomfortable now and you’re not sure quite what to do. You push his arm from your shoulder and tell the man that you would just as soon be by yourself enjoying nature. He looks straight into your eyes, reaches into his coat, and pulls out a handgun. He presses the barrel to your temple and says " As long as you do as I say, I will save you, but if you don’t, I will pull the trigger. It’s your choice."
I’m sure you’ve figured out that this story is my analogy to Christianity. If you are a Christian, I assume you will consider it absurd. Well, that should then make answering a basic question very easy for you then. So tell me, what are the flaws in this analogy?
I’ll be waiting.
Saturday, October 01, 2005
Just for Kids...
Okay, people, I’m pissed off about Christianity again today.
For commuting entertainment, if Howard Stern isn’t on the radio, I’ll sometimes jump over to a Christian radio station. From the sublime to the ridiculous. Or is it the ridiculous to the sublime? You decide.
In either case, there’s plenty to choose from here in the Bible Belt.
Anyway, on the drive to work this morning (Saturday, about 8:00 am), no Howard, so I switched the radio to Bank #2. NPR was, sorry, just too dull for someone half-asleep, so I checked out the God Stations. I found this slick, catchy, Christian radio show geared for kids. Kind of like Radio Disney with God. A song was playing which was a weird combination of Brittney/Christina/Hillary type crapola, but with lyrics about what a great friend Jesus is. Lot’s of bass. The song ended, and some sugary DJ came on, all upbeat, perky, and to me terribly condescending, but then I’m 50. (I’m 50! I can kick, stretch, and kick!) He makes a perky enthusiastic reference to needhim.org. I went back to NPR.
Okay, nothing earth shaking here, so what am I pissed about? Go to http://www.needhim.org/ and click on the link "Kids, here’s something just for you…" and browse through the presentation. Come back and see if you can guess…
Okay, I don’t really expect any responses, at least from Christians, since this is really my own private personal blog/diary thing for some kind of weird personally-imposed therapy, but I’ll act like people really do care about what I say and come here. I’ll wait a day or two, and if I’m still pissed, carry on…
Friday, September 09, 2005
Friday, August 19, 2005
Repeat After Me
"God is good, all the time" is a mantra that is repeated by Christians over and over and over and over. Why? Because it must be repeated constantly to mentally beat down the "truth" of the bible. The bible tells us over and over and over and over that the god described therein is not good. You want some examples?
Genesis 22:2-10: "And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and ... offer him there for a burnt offering.... And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son."
God is good, all the time
Exodus 12:29-30: "The Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon.... And there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead."
God is good, all the time
Deuteronomy 21:18-21: "If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear."
God is good, all the time.
Judges11:29-39: "Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah.... And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands, Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.... And the LORD delivered them into his hands.... And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances.... And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed."
God is good, all the time
2 Kings 2:23-24: "As he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head. And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them."
God is good, all the time
God is good, all the time
God is good, all the time
God is good, all the time
Genesis 22:2-10: "And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and ... offer him there for a burnt offering.... And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son."
God is good, all the time
Exodus 12:29-30: "The Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon.... And there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead."
God is good, all the time
Deuteronomy 21:18-21: "If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them: Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place; And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard. And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear."
God is good, all the time.
Judges11:29-39: "Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah.... And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands, Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.... And the LORD delivered them into his hands.... And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances.... And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed."
God is good, all the time
2 Kings 2:23-24: "As he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head. And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them."
God is good, all the time
God is good, all the time
God is good, all the time
God is good, all the time
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Who Said This? #1
"Secular schools can never be tolerated because such schools have no religious instruction, and a general moral instruction without a religious foundation is built on air; consequently, all character training and religion must be derived from faith . . . we need believing people." - who said this?
Monday, July 25, 2005
Questions for Christians, Part Deux
Several members of my family claim to have a "personal relationship" with Jesus. Some claim that Jesus is their "buddy" that they talk to all day long. Although I claimed for the majority of my life to be a Christian and to know Jesus, I never made the claim that I had a "personal" relationship with him because to me, a personal relationship must be at least partly physical. But that's just me.
If you make the claim that you have a personal relationship with Jesus, I have some forthright questions for you:
Do you actually talk to Jesus? And by "talk" I mean actually form words with your mouth as you exhale and cause vibrations in the air that others could hear? Do you physically see him? Physically touch him? Since it is a relationship, I assume Jesus at least talks back. Is it a physical sound that you hear (that others would hear if they were there)? Does he physically appear and touch you? Okay, if it is not a physical conversation, what is it then? Do you have the conversation in your mind? Do you mentally ask actual question in your mind and hear the answers directly, either physically or mentally? Do you "carry on a conversation" in your head, where your words and Jesus’ words are distinctly different? Or is it more of a "feeling in your heart" where you pray or talk, then have inspired thoughts as a result? Or do you (as I have done in the past) ask a question, open the bible, drop your finger and assume it has been guided?
I never did, but many children have imaginary friends. I believe most child psychologists have said that they are a normal part of development. Yet, as parents, we recognize that they are only in the child’s imagination. We are told, however, not to squash the child’s belief, as it can be very real to them, and maybe even be harmful if we don’t let them run their "normal course" where the child eventually says goodbye and lets their imaginary friend go.
Is there a difference between a child with an imaginary friend and a Christian that claims Jesus is their buddy? Obviously, any Christian would say there’s a huge difference. In that case, it should be easy to explain, and I would appreciate your explanation of what that difference is.
BTW - Please don't answer with something to the effect that "since you're not a Christian, you could not understand" or somesuch. If you are inclined to say that, just admit to yourself that you don't understand it either. I'm looking for someone that is comfortable with their beliefs and is willing to explain them in secular terms. Who knows, maybe you can save someone!
If you make the claim that you have a personal relationship with Jesus, I have some forthright questions for you:
Do you actually talk to Jesus? And by "talk" I mean actually form words with your mouth as you exhale and cause vibrations in the air that others could hear? Do you physically see him? Physically touch him? Since it is a relationship, I assume Jesus at least talks back. Is it a physical sound that you hear (that others would hear if they were there)? Does he physically appear and touch you? Okay, if it is not a physical conversation, what is it then? Do you have the conversation in your mind? Do you mentally ask actual question in your mind and hear the answers directly, either physically or mentally? Do you "carry on a conversation" in your head, where your words and Jesus’ words are distinctly different? Or is it more of a "feeling in your heart" where you pray or talk, then have inspired thoughts as a result? Or do you (as I have done in the past) ask a question, open the bible, drop your finger and assume it has been guided?
I never did, but many children have imaginary friends. I believe most child psychologists have said that they are a normal part of development. Yet, as parents, we recognize that they are only in the child’s imagination. We are told, however, not to squash the child’s belief, as it can be very real to them, and maybe even be harmful if we don’t let them run their "normal course" where the child eventually says goodbye and lets their imaginary friend go.
Is there a difference between a child with an imaginary friend and a Christian that claims Jesus is their buddy? Obviously, any Christian would say there’s a huge difference. In that case, it should be easy to explain, and I would appreciate your explanation of what that difference is.
BTW - Please don't answer with something to the effect that "since you're not a Christian, you could not understand" or somesuch. If you are inclined to say that, just admit to yourself that you don't understand it either. I'm looking for someone that is comfortable with their beliefs and is willing to explain them in secular terms. Who knows, maybe you can save someone!
Thursday, July 14, 2005
A Reflection of God
Anonymous wrote in response to my post "God is Good, All the Time": "If the Bible is not a reflection of God, what is? How are we to learn about who He is? You see, I have just as many questions for Christians as you do and am interested to know where you stand with God. Thanks for respecting my anonymity!"
I wish I had answers for you, but I know far more about what God isn’t than what He is. But this is a very short version of how I feel now. Remember, your opinion is every bit as valid and important as anyone’s, including mine.
You want a reflection of God? Look in a mirror!
One of the strongest spiritual experiences of my life was looking into my daughter’s eyes and getting the overwhelming feeling that I was staring into the eyes of God. I’m not alone in this feeling. Listen to Eric Clapton’s "My Father’s Eyes", a song he wrote after his son drowned at age 4. God doesn’t reside in some distant holy place, unable to co-exist with sinners. He is inside every one of us.
Read the "Conversations with God" series by Neale Walsh. I do not totally agree with the books, but the concept of God presented there is the most logical I have found. It offers by far the most reasonable explanation of why there is evil in the world, and why so many people have strong feelings about prior lives.
You want to learn about who He is? Look around you. Study science. Learn about the universe. My dad always said that the more we know about our world, the closer we are to God. God and science can not conflict. Ironically, the more scientists learn about the building blocks of matter, the more spiritual science becomes.
Faith is an attempt to spiritually grasp what we do not understand about our physical world. That means that religion must change and adapt to survive, as we are learning more about our physical world all the time. This is a message from Bishop Spong, and may explain why Christianity as a percentage of the world population is dropping about 1 percent per year.
The bible attempts to explain what man didn’t understand at the time it was written. In the bible, the earth is held up by pillars, the sky is a big dome with water behind it, and stars are so small that they can fall to earth. Man didn’t know about fossils, dinosaurs, or carbon-dating, so a 6 day creation 6,000 years ago did not conflict with what was known at the time. Since God created the universe, you would think that the bible would reflect some of his creation knowledge. It does not. It's not His Word. The mental gymnastics that a conservative Christian will go through to mesh the bible with today’s science can be quite entertaining.
As much as fundamentalists try to discredit evolution, it is evolving, if you will, into a perfect explanation for how the world and us came to be. Does that rule out God? Absolutely not! Evolution explains how we evolved, not how life got started. Other than the contradictory and nonsensical book of Genesis, there is no reason not to believe evolution is a tool that God created and used to make you and me. And unlike many Christians that think they are crap only worthy of God’s love because God murdered his own son to blind himself, I think God did a fine job with us. Just the way we are. When I think about all the people I love in the world, it is not in spite of their faults, it is because of them. I have no desire to spend eternity with former human beings that have been stripped of everything that made them human. God wasn’t stupid. God didn’t screw up. God made each one of us exactly the way He wanted to.
I love God, I love myself, and I love you, Anonymous, just the way you are.
I wish I had answers for you, but I know far more about what God isn’t than what He is. But this is a very short version of how I feel now. Remember, your opinion is every bit as valid and important as anyone’s, including mine.
You want a reflection of God? Look in a mirror!
One of the strongest spiritual experiences of my life was looking into my daughter’s eyes and getting the overwhelming feeling that I was staring into the eyes of God. I’m not alone in this feeling. Listen to Eric Clapton’s "My Father’s Eyes", a song he wrote after his son drowned at age 4. God doesn’t reside in some distant holy place, unable to co-exist with sinners. He is inside every one of us.
Read the "Conversations with God" series by Neale Walsh. I do not totally agree with the books, but the concept of God presented there is the most logical I have found. It offers by far the most reasonable explanation of why there is evil in the world, and why so many people have strong feelings about prior lives.
You want to learn about who He is? Look around you. Study science. Learn about the universe. My dad always said that the more we know about our world, the closer we are to God. God and science can not conflict. Ironically, the more scientists learn about the building blocks of matter, the more spiritual science becomes.
Faith is an attempt to spiritually grasp what we do not understand about our physical world. That means that religion must change and adapt to survive, as we are learning more about our physical world all the time. This is a message from Bishop Spong, and may explain why Christianity as a percentage of the world population is dropping about 1 percent per year.
The bible attempts to explain what man didn’t understand at the time it was written. In the bible, the earth is held up by pillars, the sky is a big dome with water behind it, and stars are so small that they can fall to earth. Man didn’t know about fossils, dinosaurs, or carbon-dating, so a 6 day creation 6,000 years ago did not conflict with what was known at the time. Since God created the universe, you would think that the bible would reflect some of his creation knowledge. It does not. It's not His Word. The mental gymnastics that a conservative Christian will go through to mesh the bible with today’s science can be quite entertaining.
As much as fundamentalists try to discredit evolution, it is evolving, if you will, into a perfect explanation for how the world and us came to be. Does that rule out God? Absolutely not! Evolution explains how we evolved, not how life got started. Other than the contradictory and nonsensical book of Genesis, there is no reason not to believe evolution is a tool that God created and used to make you and me. And unlike many Christians that think they are crap only worthy of God’s love because God murdered his own son to blind himself, I think God did a fine job with us. Just the way we are. When I think about all the people I love in the world, it is not in spite of their faults, it is because of them. I have no desire to spend eternity with former human beings that have been stripped of everything that made them human. God wasn’t stupid. God didn’t screw up. God made each one of us exactly the way He wanted to.
I love God, I love myself, and I love you, Anonymous, just the way you are.
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