Merged (edited) General thoughts about Christianity and the bible

[Rusty Tyler]

Heathen!

I will admit a love for Mozart.
But I don't have a lot to go on.

I love the soundtrack for the movie Amadeus.

 

[Rusty Tyler]

Gods are superfluous, and good for entertainment purposes only.

If you ever meet one, they may remind you that you said that. - LOL

 

[Rusty Tyler]

You can do what is good and right and loving and compassionate and altruistic without any divine instruction at all.

How do you know that what you are doing is any of those things?

 

[Mojo]

How do you know that what you are doing is any of those things?

"I don’t. I have no idea. It merely pleases me to behave in a certain way to what appears to be a cat. What else do you do?"

 

[Rusty Tyler]

Rusty Tyler said:
How do you know that what you are doing is any of those things?

"I don’t. I have no idea. It merely pleases me to behave in a certain way to what appears to be a cat. What else do you do?"

Fair enough.
I attribute it to our God-given human conscience.
The Bible makes an interesting point about that.
(much more to say about this)

Romans 2:14-16 NIV
(Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law,
they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law.
15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts,
their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts
sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.)
16 This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets
through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.

 

[Helen]

If you ever meet one, they may remind you that you said that. - LOL

They don't like entertainment?

 

[Rusty Tyler]

They don't like entertainment?

Not sure.
But those watching may enjoy it.

 

[Helen]

Not sure.
But those watching may enjoy it.

Why? What do you think would happen?

 

[welshdean]

@Rusty Tyler
Just like every other evangelical, you dodge the questions that conflict with your faith. Dishonest to the end and lying for jeebus.

 

[Dave Rogers]

If you ever meet one, they may remind you that you said that. - LOL

And if you ever meet one, the odds are that they're not the one you decided was the only one that exists. I hope for your sake they've got a sense of humour too.

Dave

 

[Rusty Tyler]

I'm a bit of a trouble-maker on Christian forums.
Based on my views they say I am "an enemy of the Christian Bible." (whatever that means)

I disagree with the views regarding the Bible that I was taught growing up in the church.
- Inspiration (as in, every word is inspired) In reference to English translations.
- Inerrancy (no errors)
- Literal history (as opposed to figurative mythology) What were Moses' sources?
- Authorship integrity (who really the Gospels?) Gospel Q?

Additionally, I'm a Universalist. I don't believe in a forever burning hell.
I foresee the ultimate redemption of humankind.

So, here's the question:
Can a person hold these views and still call themselves a Christian?

 

[Darat]

It's a self-given title - anyone can call themselves a Christian if they want, the trick is getting other people to accept that you are, my personal view is that anyone that wants to call themselves a Christian is a Christian, that's not for me to judge. Doesn't mean I can't say things like "that does not represent mainstream Christian theology i.e. RC or EO theology" or "that is not what the bible says" and so-on.

In the end I am of the view there are as many Christian sects as they are Christians.

 

[Steve]

It's a self-given title - anyone can call themselves a Christian if they want, the trick is getting other people to accept that you are, my personal view is that anyone that wants to call themselves a Christian is a Christian, that's not for me to judge. Doesn't mean I can't say things like "that does not represent mainstream Christian theology i.e. RC or EO theology" or "that is not what the bible says" and so-on.

In the end I am of the view there are as many Christian sects as they are Christians.

Exactly this.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

The Christian God doesn't do a very good job of letting it's worshipers know what it really wants.

 

[Belgian thought]

The Bible has approximately 783,000 words

Commentary on them over the years: hundreds of millions to billions of words

That ratio alone tells you something fundamental:

The “word of God” is short. The “word of humans trying to explain the word of God” is endless.

If divine clarity were self‑evident, you wouldn’t need:

councils
creeds
scholasticism
apologetics
counter‑apologetics
reformations
counter‑reformations
centuries of “No, what God really meant was…”

Therefore, your input to the debate is just a continuation of such and not something unusual and probably not that important.

 

[Mojo]

I disagree with the views regarding the Bible that I was taught growing up in the church.
[...]
- Literal history (as opposed to figurative mythology) What were Moses' sources?
- Authorship integrity (who really the Gospels?) Gospel Q?

And yet yesterday you claimed that:

The miracles of Jesus and the Apostles are widely regarded as historical events,
supported by the unanimous testimony of the four Gospels and other ancient writings.

 

[Jack by the hedge]

If I ever met a creator God, I would be very surprised, but I would also know I was thus part of what They had created and so there would be nothing I did or thought which could surprise or disappoint Them. If you make a universe which perfectly conceals your existence, and populate it with beings which can see the lack of evidence for your existence, you don't get to be upset that you succeeded.

 

[Mojo]

If I ever met a creator God, I would be very surprised, but I would also know I was thus part of what They had created and so there would be nothing I did or thought which could surprise or disappoint Them. If you make a universe which perfectly conceals your existence, and populate it with beings which can see the lack of evidence for your existence, you don't get to be upset that you succeeded.

No? The Christian God said "you can eat the fruit from any tree you like apart from that special tree over there" and then acted all shocked at the result.

 

[Rusty Tyler]

It's a self-given title - anyone can call themselves a Christian if they want, .....

Agree.

In the end I am of the view there are as many Christian sects as they are Christians.

There's something to that. Especially in churches where believers are allowed to hold their own beliefs.

I occasionally ask the question:
"Would you surrender your own beliefs in the cause of doctrinal unity?"
Usually answered with a resounding, "NO!"

 

[Thermal]

How do you know that what you are doing is any of those things?

I'm not comparing them to Christian standards, if that's what you are asking. Morality and ethics are independent of religion, at odds with each other at times.