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Post by LauraJean on Jul 8, 2004 8:06:09 GMT -5
Christianity today teaches prejudice and exclusivity. All religions teach one true path. To characterize that as prejudiced is strange to me. Exclusive, (as in, "this is the truth") maybe, but not prejudiced. But, Kurt, you keep glossing over my main point which is that the path Christianity teaches (salvation by grace) is vastly different from the path other major world religions teach (salvation by works) and that you can't lump them in all together. (well, I suppose you can, but then your credibility suffers) Is this what you think the sum of Christian teaching is? Gosh, no wonder you're so confused about what I'm trying to tell you. Peace, LJ
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Post by kkawohl on Jul 11, 2004 3:02:29 GMT -5
Jesus was a man & died a man; He was a messenger of God. His spirit/soul (He) is now a part of God, so if you say Jesus is now God you are correct. There is no other God besides the God that Jesus is now a part of. God, or Jesus is spirit & owns nothing & created nothing. God guided the development of the universe like a Master Planner. God does not command anything or anyone & "He" does not need to order anyone around. God is self-sufficient & needs nothing from man. A religious ideology that encompkmtyolpes the blending of major religions would require the major emphasis to be on spirituality rather than the dogmas tied to superstitions that have been carried over from medieval times. A reexamination within each major religion would require them to: 1. First Judaism would have to admit that the prophets interaction with God was with their spirit rather than any direct physical contact and that miracles are the results of the mind’s accomplishments. 2. Christianity would accept that Jesus was a man & died a man; He was a prophet, a messenger of God. His spirit/soul (He) is now a part of God, so if one says Jesus is now God one is correct. There is no other God besides the God that Jesus, Muhammad, Abraham, etc. are now a part of. 3. Islam’s claims that Muhammad was the last prophet would have to include the concept that new messengers of God will be reality as long as mankind exists. 4. Buddhism, Hinduism, etc. would encompkmtyolp the possible existence of a God that is spirit. 5. All religions agree that God is spirit & owns nothing & created nothing. God guided the development of the universe like a Master Planner; God does not command anything or anyone & "He" does not need to order anyone around. God is self-sufficient & needs nothing from man. wikibooks.org/wiki/Transcendentalist_Theology
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Post by melinky on Jul 12, 2004 10:44:23 GMT -5
Kurt, You keep speaking about an all-inclusive religion/spirituality, yet you continue to point out how wrong every belief but yours is. I'm sorry, but that feels a bit exclusive to me. Quite honestly, I feel that I, as a Christian, am more accepting of your theology than you are of mine. Peace and God's Love, Melinda
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Post by LauraJean on Jul 12, 2004 12:16:59 GMT -5
Kurt, are you intentionally ignoring my basic point?
Peace, LJ
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Post by LauraJean on Jul 12, 2004 12:24:08 GMT -5
A reexamination within each major religion would require them to:.... Aaah, now I see. All the major religions of the world have to do is put aside everything they believe and agree with you and then they'll be happy. No thanks. What you're selling doesn't sound very attractive. What's attractive about a god like that? I like mine much better. My God made the world. My God gave me life. My God cares about me. My God can beat your god any day of the week. Peace, LJ
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Post by melinky on Jul 12, 2004 12:35:29 GMT -5
You go girl! Since this is a message board with a Left Behind topic, I'd like to bring Left Behind into this thread. This whole one inclusive religion thing reeks of the "Enigma Faith Babylon World Religion" depicted in the series. (Kurt, I mean no disrespect, and I'm not trying to insinuate that you, or your beliefs represent the Antichrist. I guess I just find it an odd coincidence.) Grace and Peace, Melinda
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Post by kkawohl on Jul 12, 2004 13:30:40 GMT -5
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Post by melinky on Jul 12, 2004 13:58:45 GMT -5
Kurt,
I think LauraJean would agree with me that you are missing, or ignoring, what we are trying to say.
We aren't looking for validation of your belief. We feel that our evidence and beliefs through study of The Bible are evidence enough. You keep trying to prove God doesn't exist the way we believe He does. You have your verification, we have ours.
I am curious though, since this is a message board for the Left Behind series, what kind of response were you expecting to your book? As I pointed out previously, what you are suggesting highly resembles the Enigma Faith Babylon World Religion that emerges during the tribulation in the book series.
Grace and Peace,
Melinda
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Post by kkawohl on Jul 12, 2004 15:38:36 GMT -5
My message is that ALL religions have the the same goal. There is only ONE GOD, a God for ALL, but religious conditioning have caused separations, prejudices and killings. In Sudan over 2 million people have died in the past 21 years as the result of fighting between Muslims and Chrisrians plus many more in other regions. As long as Christians, Muslims & Jews continue their prejudicial, exclusive paths the fighting & killings will continue. In U.S.A. there are more than 1500 religious denomination and faith groups, including 900 Christian, 100 Hindu and 75 Buddhist denominations. The God of Abraham, Moses, Noah, Jesus and other Prophets, is the same as the God of today who wants all souls to coexist in peace and tranquility for eternity. For unity & true spiritual enlightenment see: wikibooks.org/wiki/Transcendentalist_Theologywww.near-death.com/forum/nde/001/14.html
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Post by kkawohl on Jul 12, 2004 15:39:59 GMT -5
As time pkmtyolpes and when people eventually transcend their religious prejudices they will no longer say, “I am a Jew, a Muslim, a Christian”; then they will say “I am a Jewish Transcendentalist, a Muslim Transcendentalist, a Christian Transcendentalist”; and thereafter they will say “I am a Transcendentalist”.
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Post by melinky on Jul 12, 2004 16:04:46 GMT -5
My message is that ALL religions have the the same goal. There is only ONE GOD, a God for ALL I would tend to agree with this statement. As long as Christians, Muslims & Jews continue their prejudicial, exclusive paths the fighting & killings will continue. Is this what we want? I can also agree with this statement. However, this is where you begin to sound like what you are preaching against. In my opinion, this statement takes on the tone of Kurt is right and anyone who believes anything else is wrong. I do understand your desire for peace, understanding and acceptance of all religions. This would be my most profound wish also. I have often said that if we could set aside our differences and look at what we believe in common, we would find out that our core beliefs are not that different. Unfortunately, we live in a world of X-treme this and X-treme that, right down to our religions. In the end, we must all chose the path that seems most direct to God. For me, that path is through Jesus Christ. I don't disagree with your basic ideals so much as I disagree with what seems to be your need to prove what I believe is wrong. I can accept your belief for you, can you not accept mine for me? Grace and Peace, Melinda
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Post by kkawohl on Jul 12, 2004 16:24:29 GMT -5
I can accept your belief for you, can you not accept mine for me? Grace and Peace, Melinda I can accept your belief for you. Namaste, Kurt
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Post by LauraJean on Jul 12, 2004 18:55:24 GMT -5
My message is that ALL religions have the the same goal. Isn't that the definition of "religion?" The recognition of a greater power and the response to that power? But, Kurt, you keep ignoring my point. The goal of each religion, true, is to find (and share) the path to God. However, you go one step further --and veer into erroneous thinking-- when you say: This is just flat-out wrong. Christianity does NOT teach this. Why is this so difficult for you to acknowledge? You can't blame all the evil in the world on religious dogma. But even if you could, why do you not understand that bad practitioners of a religion do not mean the religion is bad? You seem to think that if everyone just gave up what they believe and agreed with you that all the wars and killings would stop. How naive can you get? Isn't this a great country? In some countries if you don't believe what the government says you have to believe, they can torture and kill you. I love America, where people are free to disagree, to discuss, and to walk away unharmed if no accord is reached.
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Post by LauraJean on Jul 13, 2004 13:56:59 GMT -5
I can accept your belief for you, can you not accept mine for me? This has really been bothering me. Melinda, with all due respect, if you believe the tennents of Christianity, then you must believe that Kurt appears to be headed for Hell. This is acceptable to you? Blessings, LJ
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Post by LauraJean on Jul 13, 2004 14:02:46 GMT -5
Everything we need to know about Jesus is included in the Canon. Your portrayal of Him contradicts what we know from those early Christian writings. The other writings on your list were not included in the Canon because they were unreliable. I would no sooner turn to the "gospel" of Thomas for spiritual truth and insight than I would turn to Clinton's "My Life" for historical truth and insight. Blessings, LJ
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