Ok, here are some snippets of your posts, as the thread went on... I bolded some bits that jumped out at me.
Before: I pray that each of you KNOW HIM at some point in your lives.
For those of you that do not attend a Christian church ~ those of us that do will pray for you!
If you do not attend a Christian church I ask you to give it a shot....it WILL change your life!
I understand that not everyone will die a Christian, the Bible is quite clear on that. There are a lot of things that I accept in life but don't agree with.
~~ you are free to choose any religion you want ~~ the only difference is the outcome of the choice.
Most religions tell you to good things from what I have gathered ~~ The difference with Christianity is what GOD DID FOR US!
Seriously, wouldn't you feel that any religion YOU belonged to would be the one that YOU would encourage others to join?
Today: I think if you go back and read my posts you will see that I tried to share what my faith has done for ME ~ I don't believe anywhere did I ask anyone to become christians ~
I tried to share what my faith has done for ME ~ I don't believe anywhere did I ask anyone to become christians ~ ... I started by saying why I didn't go to church as a child ~ then shared what going has done for me ~
Now, really, I read the 'before' stuff as being definitely outreach. So do others. And it also puts Christianity above other religions. Of course, you are free to be a Christian, I have zero issue with that, or talking about how you love God or Jesus... what is setting off bells are the judgements implied in your words. I'm not here to hammer you or your ideas, just to say don't be surprised if you get some negative feedback... that is all... Amen.
I get to Mass about 3x a month and pretty much always make it for the Holy Days. And best part yet---- I get to sleep in on Sundays to boot! (I go to the 5:30 PM Mass).
For me, going to Mass is not just about me showing to God that I love him, but having God repeat that message of Love to ME.
I don't go to Mass to prove something to God......it usually works the other way 'round.
SARAH~DANG IT! I just hate a girl that does her homework
Kuddos to you dear And I mean that sincerely! I understand where you are coming from. I am trying not to be pushy but at the same time share my message. Trying to "invite" and not force....I will always fail to do it correctly I suppose, but I hope I never give up. It doesn't help that I "might" be a wise guy sometimes...STOP laughing JILLYBEAN!
As far as negative feedback goes...HA! Story of my life!!! Just don't like being a team player...unless it is for HIS team...DANG IT there I go again
SHRINKINGCHICA~ I am not Catholic ~~ Lutheran ~~ but we have enough people in our church that cannot make Sunday service for various reasons...we added Saturday night about 8 years ago...gives the wife and I a chance to go then then go to street fairs, 5K's etc on Sunday morning.
FITGAL~~ If the "religions" that you are talking about don't follow the Bible there will be contridictions of course. I read the bible and have attended my church for over 20 years and I have never found anything preached from our pulpit that wasn't in the bible. Your wish that all religions "work" together is nice...but it will never ever happen because religions and people follow different ideals and values.
MUMMY-TUMMY!My dear you may PRAY for me anytime you wish!! I just ask you to ask your GODDESS to be easy on me You "get" my prayer! I also will pray for your blessings as I know you are praying for mine!
Veggielover - For me it's a matter of not believing in organized religion. I do believe in something more powerful than us that is guiding us in the right direction. But I think it's more of a belief in fate, karma, and destiny. I don't believe there was/is a god that created the universe and the world and everything we know. I think some things are already mapped out for us and that the good we do rewards us in the future. That's a big part of why Buddhism looks so good to me.
I knew I wouldn't be "religious" and go to a church when I read a book a priest once gave me. In the first chapter I disagreed with almost every single thing that was said. I don't understand how anyone can just accept what others say as fact and not ask for proof.
I do think believing in something is healthy and helpful. Life is really hard and having that belief that there is something better out there and having that group of people to lean on is wonderful. That is the only thing I like about organized religions. I think anyone who finds a group that cares about each other and shares the same values is lucky. I don't care if it's christian, buddhism, scientology, islam, hinduism, judism, etc. We all need the same feeling of belonging.
My recommendation is to do some research. Find a religion that follows what you believe. You shouldn't have to conform to the mainstream religion. Your religion should fit in with what you already believe. Try doing a search on "finding a religion". This is what I did when I had no idea what kind of religion I am. I found a website that had information on almost every religion out there. I don't know if I can post it here so pm me if you want it. It's a dot org website so they aren't selling anything. There is a test that asks alot of questions on what you believe and will give you a list of the religions that suit you best. When hubby and I took the test, buddhism was at the top of both of our results. (We took the test seperately.) All the christian religions were at the bottom.
Thank you Brandi, I felt like you pulled the words out of my mouth; this is exactly how I felt with the first chapter of the bible! Funny thing, I DID take a test to see which religion I would be most confortable with and it was buddhism. The thing is, my mom is a buddhist and I don't see much spirituality in her... that how I kinda strayed away from it but yes, I can see myself in that sort of religion.
Now scientology.... that's just an oddball religion..... Ron Hubbard, the man who "founded" the church of scientology actually was quoted in a response to an editorial that [he] thought he could make money out of a created religion if he stuck to it long enough. And then before he created the church of scientology he was also quoted (not verbatim, but the quotes are cited all over the net) that Religion was the best money making business. I have to leave that one religion out for me. I just don't see the practicality in spending $300,000 for an assessment and then some more money to be a scientologist!
FITGAL~~ If the "religions" that you are talking about don't follow the Bible there will be contridictions of course. I read the bible and have attended my church for over 20 years and I have never found anything preached from our pulpit that wasn't in the bible.
Gary, she wasn't trying to say that different religions conflict with each other--that's a given...otherwise, all religions would be the same. She was pointing out that a single religion can conflict even with itself. That does not mean that what you hear delivered during mass cinflicts with what is in the bible...it means that there are statements within the bible that are contradictory to one another. I'm sure you've never noticed and will likely disagree, but the contradictions are there. As with any fictional collection of stories, they were not all written by one author or even all during the same time period, so yes, there are bound to be some contradictions among them. The example LadyFire gave ("Let man not do what is right in his own eyes") is just an example of such contradiction, for it basically says, "Don't do what YOU think is right--just do what God tells you to do." And yet, are there not sections regarding man's judgement and having to CHOOSE what is right or wrong? I'm not 100% familiar with the bible (though I have read much of it and even belonged to a bible study/discussion group about a year and a half ago), but I'm sure that with about 5 minutes of research, I could find a bunch more examples for you And if you're okay with (or choose to ignore) these contradictions, then that's great, but for some people, it really does point out the, hmm, irony of an organized religion--that followers believe everyone should follow, and yet even the followers could interpret things differently amongst themselves when they are all supposedly following the same religion. I hope that all made sense
Regarding Scientology--I will NEVER consider that to be a religion. In my book, it has CULT written all over it. And that is NOT because I am narrow-minded or because I am following all the tabloid hype--it's because a true religion should never REQUIRE such large amounts of money from its members. A religion should be about beliefs, not cash flow, and even the poor should be able to attend a church to receive and show support.
I read the bible and have attended my church for over 20 years and I have never found anything preached from our pulpit that wasn't in the bible.
My mom's church has never preached anything that wasn't in the Bible either. You can take any passage in the Bible and "interpret" it in any manner you choose. So which interpretation would be the correct one?
Add to that...which Bible? I mean we can talk about NIV, King James, New King James, New American Standard, etc. etc. etc. And once we determine which of those, we can then decide who translated it from the originals and is the translation exact word-for-word.
Did you know that the original Bible makes no mention of ****? It speaks of several terms (each meaning something different) that were combined into the one word of "****" for the translations. So now which Bible?
Interpretation is everything. I'm often reminded of the old Jerry Jordan's Phone Call From God:
Jerry: What's that? What did the preacher preach on? Well he preached on the pulpit.
That's Jerry's interpretation. And was he wrong? In mom's church he just might be. The preacher there has preached on everything from the floor to the seats, to even walking across the backs of the pews.
Oh yes, almostheaven, I've been in a few services like the ones you describe. The only response I ever had out of sermons like that was FEAR. And I don't believe fear should be a motivation in deciding to follow Christ.
This thread has got me to thinking: I wonder if people who choose a particular religion/denomination as an adult does so because it fits their personality? For instance, a Pentecostal service like the one that almostheaven described does NOT fit me, meaning I don't feel like my spirit gets fed in one. I feel more at home in a service where a message is delivered intelligently and thought-provokingly (is that a word? LOL). Being screamed at by a preacher does NOT motivate me at all.
[COLOR=Indigo]Gary, she wasn't trying to say that different religions conflict with each other--that's a given...otherwise, all religions would be the same. She was pointing out that a single religion can conflict even with itself. That does not mean that what you hear delivered during mass cinflicts with what is in the bible...it means that there are statements within the bible that are contradictory to one another. I'm sure you've never noticed and will likely disagree, but the contradictions are there. As with any fictional collection of stories, they were not all written by one author or even all during the same time period, so yes, there are bound to be some contradictions among them. The example LadyFire gave ("Let man not do what is right in his own eyes") is just an example of such contradiction, for it basically says, "Don't do what YOU think is right--just do what God tells you to do." And yet, are there not sections regarding man's judgement and having to CHOOSE what is right or wrong? I'm not 100% familiar with the bible (though I have read much of it and even belonged to a bible study/discussion group about a year and a half ago), but I'm sure that with about 5 minutes of research, I could find a bunch more examples for you And if you're okay with (or choose to ignore) these contradictions, then that's great, but for some people, it really does point out the, hmm, irony of an organized religion--that followers believe everyone should follow, and yet even the followers could interpret things differently amongst themselves when they are all supposedly following the same religion. I hope that all made sense
Thanks jillybean!~
bible and have attended my church for over 20 years and I have never found anything preached from our pulpit that wasn't in the bible. Your wish that all religions "work" together is nice...but it will never ever happen because religions and people follow different ideals and values.
EZMONEY-- of course you have never heard anything preached from your pulpit that wasn't in the bible, why would they? They are trying to keep followers and keep them believing in the bible. By preaching "outside" your religion they would be going against "god's" word-according to christianity-am i wrong?
I have a question to pose to all those who do follow the bible- and I may be stepping on toes here -I really don't intend to hurt feelings etc...I am just curious about everyone thoughts on this...
But why do people just accept the bible and the "accounts" in it? I mean I know "why" but don't people question whether the stories really are true? I ask this cuz a friend of mine said to me as an answer to a question "Because its in the bible" I thought just becuase its "in the bible" doesn't mean you should just accept it.
Now like I said earlier, I question everything...but I am curious is it becuase your religion "tells you to"?
My mom's church has never preached anything that wasn't in the Bible either. You can take any passage in the Bible and "interpret" it in any manner you choose. So which interpretation would be the correct one?
That is true, but if one interprets the passage wrong then that doesn't make the Bible wrong. Many times mistakes are made because people fail to find out the "who ~ what ~ when ~ where ~ and why" of a particular passage.
Add to that...which Bible? I mean we can talk about NIV, King James, New King James, New American Standard, etc. etc. etc. And once we determine which of those, we can then decide who translated it from the originals and is the translation exact word-for-word.
Personally I like the NIV version. I use a parallel Bible many times when I do a bible study....King James, NIV, The Living Bible and The Revised Standard. As you read across the page with the 4 versions you can see that they all tell the same story just in different ways ~ some more in depth, others a little more basic. It would be like JILLYBEANand I doing a movie review, she is highly educated, I am not...her review would probably have a lot more detail in it than mine, plus she would be using words that I have never heard of ~ my review would be pretty basic ~~ But they would both tell the SAME STORY ~ both versions different but both TRUE.
Did you know that the original Bible makes no mention of ****? It speaks of several terms (each meaning something different) that were combined into the one word of "****" for the translations. So now which Bible?
Not quite sure what you mean about the original Bible. My NIV has plenty of versus that speak of the separation from God as in the lake of fire, lost and doomed, etc.
Interpretation is everything. I'm often reminded of the old Jerry Jordan's Phone Call From God:
Jerry: What's that? What did the preacher preach on? Well he preached on the pulpit.
Didn't see/hear it....sounds like it is similar to Andy Griffith's account of the first time he saw football ~ very funny.
That's Jerry's interpretation. And was he wrong? In mom's church he just might be. The preacher there has preached on everything from the floor to the seats, to even walking across the backs of the pews.
Doesn't really matter where he is preaching from does it? It's the WORD that matters.
FITGAL~~ If the "religions" that you are talking about don't follow the Bible there will be contridictions of course. I read the bible and have attended my church for over 20 years and I have never found anything preached from our pulpit that wasn't in the bible. Your wish that all religions "work" together is nice...but it will never ever happen because religions and people follow different ideals and values.
JILLYBEAN and FITGAL~ Allow me to clarify here. I know religions contridict each other ~ FITGAL was talking about a particular religion she attended and saw contridictions from what she heard at that church and from what she read in her bible ~ at least that was my understanding ~ I didn't want to single out that religion as there are others here that attend that church or have family there ~ I am not looking to bash anyones religion. I have a vague idea of what she is talking about because my wife attended that church her entire childhood. It is "my" belief that that church tells the "truth'"
~ but also has beliefs and practices from tradition and not biblical.
bible and have attended my church for over 20 years and I have never found anything preached from our pulpit that wasn't in the bible. Your wish that all religions "work" together is nice...but it will never ever happen because religions and people follow different ideals and values.
EZMONEY-- of course you have never heard anything preached from your pulpit that wasn't in the bible, why would they? They are trying to keep followers and keep them believing in the bible. By preaching "outside" your religion they would be going against "god's" word-according to christianity-am i wrong?
FITGAL~
You are correct ~ it seemed that you were saying previous that the word you heard in the church you attended was not always like the word you were reading in your Bible ~ my point was that "maybe" another church would be better for you to check out.
I have a question to pose to all those who do follow the bible- and I may be stepping on toes here -I really don't intend to hurt feelings etc...I am just curious about everyone thoughts on this...
But why do people just accept the bible and the "accounts" in it? I mean I know "why" but don't people question whether the stories really are true? I ask this cuz a friend of mine said to me as an answer to a question "Because its in the bible" I thought just becuase its "in the bible" doesn't mean you should just accept it.
Now like I said earlier, I question everything...but I am curious is it becuase your religion "tells you to"?
again I don't mean to hurt or be rude...[/QUOTE]
FITGAL I don't think you are rude at all ~ this is a very good question. There are some things in the Bible that Christians accept by faith ~ this is easy when you have Christ in your heart. The Bible is a History book~ thousnads upon thousands of accounts have been made to prove the stories in it untrue ~ none of those stories are ever proven to be true. People will always try to prove the stories wrong ~ the Bible has held up until now and it always will.
There is a tremendous amount of study books and guides available on-line and at christian book stores that have historical accounts to biblical days.
Be careful, as I suggested earlier to someone, to really understand the "passage" you are reading in the bible ~ the bible is for everyone that is a believer in Christ, but each book in it has a specific purpose of telling the story ~ certain books in the New Testament were letters written to specific groups of people.
Since you admit you question everything, why don't you take something out of the Bible that is "bugging" you and try to prove it either right or wrong by researching it through a study Bible or other resources and see what you come up with.
There were so many books that could have been added to the Bible but didn't make the cut during the Nicene Council of 325 AD. Constantine got all the most influential Christian bishops of the day together and said okay, so long as you can agree on a doctrine, I'll make you the official religion of Rome. So they all set to work, bickering and arguing and changing bits and burning everything that didn't fit with their ideas.
I know that most Christians do not accept this as history and feel that the Bible is the divine word of God, written through men and not BY them. That's cool. I've argued historical evidence with my father to no avail. His faith is strong and I admire him for it.
*sigh* Ahh, Gary...forget it--you still don't understand what Fitgal (or I, in my attempt to explain her post) were getting at. We KNOW religions contradict each other--that's a given. The point was that many religions contradict THEMSELVES (i.e., the Bible itself has passages within it--whatever version you read--that contradict other passages in the SAME version). So it has nothing to do with what your priest/preacher/sermon-deliverer (hey, if Jen can make up words, then so can I ) says--the contradictions are inherent in the religion itself.
About the Bible--I can't speak for all followers, but the BEST answer I've ever heard came from someone in a Catholic bible study group to which I belonged last year. She said she knows the stories are all fictional--obviously, Noah never built a boat big enough or 2 of every animal or whatever--but the stories are still meaningful. Just like many fairy tales, they teach lessons that are important in life. So basically, she KNOWS the stories are all made up, but she likes the messages they send. I can't say I disagree--I mean, in trying to be a good person, I'm sure I follow most of what the bible teaches anyway, whether intentional or not.
That said, riddle me this--obviously, many of the stories in the bible are fictional (according to many historical and scientific studies), even though some may be loosely based on actual happenings (as with any fictional story, the ideas had to come from somewhere). And so, isn't it possible that these stories were written to include a fictional God that really just represents that good little voice inside everyone's head--your conscience, if you will? If we realize that the stories are fake, then doesn't it stand to reason that the characters could be, as well? Just another non-believer's interpretation up for discussion--if you do believe everything in the bible is true, then I'm surely not here to dissuade you of that.
JILLYBEAN~ I do not disagree at all that there are passages in the Bible that seem to contridict each other. When I have come upon them I do some research, ask questions, etc until I see that the actually do not. I have not been a very good student of the bible, although I have had many bible studies over the years, I always need to look things up for clarification.
Feel free to send an example my way and I will see if I can sort it out for you from my point of view/understanding/research/belief.
I am not quite clear on the passage LADYFLYT gave as an example...if you know where it is in the bible share and I will look it up.
MummyTummy - can you recommend some books etc. on history of the Bible? I'm interested in the topic but want to find a real historical based account....
And I mean that sincerely! I understand where you are coming from. I am trying not to be pushy but at the same time share my message. Trying to "invite" and not force....I will always fail to do it correctly I suppose, but I hope I never give up. It doesn't help that I "might" 
be a wise guy sometimes...
And if you're okay with (or choose to ignore) these contradictions, then that's great, but for some people, it really does point out the, hmm, irony of an organized religion--that followers believe everyone should follow, and yet even the followers could interpret things differently amongst themselves when they are all supposedly following the same religion. I hope that all made sense 
