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I've been on both sides of the ET vs. UR debate and there is something I need to share....as a ETer I DESPISED UR's and I became very angry, confrontational and extremely un-Christlike. I left the forum on several different occasions but always came back to take another swing at the UR's. It is my own unique personal experience that allows me to see both sides of the coin, and now that I am a UR I see quite clearly who is doing the battling here.
UR's are simply looking for a voice, a way to be heard and C-D is it. We get called all sorts of things and Christian Universalism gets misrepresented all of the time on here. But I don't see the hatefulness and outright lies being told by the UR's that I see coming from the ETer's. Remember, I've been on both sides and I can speak personally about both, and as an ETer I was angry, bitter and resentful of anyone who disagreed, especially UR's.
Since I have become a UR, anyone who has been here for any length of time knows and sees the difference in me and my posts. I haven't had an infraction for months now, and I used to get them all of the time as an ETer!! That to me speaks volumes about the truthfulness of UR and how it truly changes people into what we are called to be....more Christlike. UR is all about love, the real love of God and we get defensive of that loving God when someone wants to portray Him as a monster who fries people for all of eternity.
I can only speak of what is inside of me now, and that's more love than I've ever known and ever would have known believing in ET. That needs to be talked about, it needs to be shared how someone so grotesquely stubborn and mean could be transformed into light and love.....it's the truth of UR. I'm not just here supporting UR, it's the truth. LOVE.
I think, for me, it's because I want to save people out there who have lost hope. I want people to know the madness of the doctrine of eternal torment can end. I want people to know that God doesn't torture grandma for eternity. I want others to know that they don't have to live in a fear-induced state of mind their entire lives.
I feel there are just too many religious bullies out there, and without somebody to balance out their bible bashing and their fear tactics, this place would go right back to Calvinists fighting Arminians anyway. Or pre-tribbers fighting post-tribbers. Or Catholics fighting Protestants. Or whatever.
Really.
I want people to understand who God is and what justice really means.
If we just allowed ETers to rule these boards, it would be one less place to go to find hope, and there aren't many other places to go. It's just too dark in the religious world, and I'm trying to make a dent.
There are thousands of people out there looking for light and grasping for straws, and I'm not going to just sit by and pat ETers on the head over these horrible doctrines.
I'm not going to do it.
The doctrine of ET has damaged FAR too many souls and has tormented millions of minds throughout the history of the church. It has to stop.
herefornow, I completely understand where you're coming from.
Oh eternal torment is easy to explain. It is separation from God for all time. I believe it is real and no God does not send anyone to hell we will send ourselves. After all sin cannot be allowed in heaven so those who die in sin will not go to a sinless place. It's not possible. BUT I also believe in purgatory where sin can be atoned for.
Separation from God would feel like a fire. Haven't you ever been separated from a loved one? Had a beloved pet die or a close friend, a parent? The fire will feel like that, only worse.
I think a Christmas Story of Scrooge is a very good idea of it. Lost souls moaning and in torment because they can't be in heaven and need to roam for all time.
It doesn't matter what we think will happen. You can also guess what will happen before a person goes to trial for commenting a felony. You might think the jury will let him walk free but they may also put him in jail for his whole life.
You truly were a handful as DOTL, Ilene. But I saw a spark of hope when you went to the mountain and communed directly with God without all the external trappings and triggers of your religious indoctrination.Watching your transformation has been a privilege . . . as is that of Thrill and SC. Thank you for your witness. The animus does truly seem to be primarily on the ET side . . . as you confessed in your case. God Bless you Ilene . . . in Christ's love,
Mystic
Thanks Mystic, your words mean so much to me. And thanks to everyone else who commented on my post. And you're right, I truly was a handful as Dotl!!! She's nothing but a distant memory now and I praise God for that. And you're right, that trip to the mountain was the beginning of a new phase in my life, although I didn't know it at the time. I would suggest that kind of "trip" for anyone who is questioning their beliefs, not just about ET but about anything.....to take a trip into the depths of nature and just sit for hours, reflecting and writing. It's truly the only way to clear the mind, body and spirit and start with a clean slate.
God bless all my brothers and sisters, I don't care what you believe!! Because now I know the truth and it is so very comforting. I'm so happy that ET is wrong. It puts everything into a new perspective and you can go along in life knowing that that person who did you wrong or that person who is evil and mistreats others will eventually feel the power of God's love. It makes my day.
God bless all my brothers and sisters, I don't care what you believe!! Because now I know the truth and it is so very comforting. I'm so happy that ET is wrong. It puts everything into a new perspective and you can go along in life knowing that that person who did you wrong or that person who is evil and mistreats others will eventually feel the power of God's love. It makes my day.
YES!!
THIS is what it's all about.
This is the POWER of love!!!!
God IS love!!
Overcoming the non-love within us ALL.
Anything less would rob God of His glory.
ALL GLORY to God...
GOD IS ALL-POWERFUL.
LOVE is ALL-POWERFUL.
LOVE CONQUERS ALL.
What a beautiful picture of absolute, COMPLETE... victory.
I think, for me, it's because I want to save people out there who have lost hope. I want people to know the madness of the doctrine of eternal torment can end. I want people to know that God doesn't torture grandma for eternity. I want others to know that they don't have to live in a fear-induced state of mind their entire lives.
I feel there are just too many religious bullies out there, and without somebody to balance out their bible bashing and their fear tactics, this place would go right back to Calvinists fighting Arminians anyway. Or pre-tribbers fighting post-tribbers. Or Catholics fighting Protestants. Or whatever.
Really.
I want people to understand who God is and what justice really means.
If we just allowed ETers to rule these boards, it would be one less place to go to find hope, and there aren't many other places to go. It's just too dark in the religious world, and I'm trying to make a dent.
There are thousands of people out there looking for light and grasping for straws, and I'm not going to just sit by and pat ETers on the head over these horrible doctrines.
I'm not going to do it.
The doctrine of ET has damaged FAR too many souls and has tormented millions of minds throughout the history of the church. It has to stop.
Amen, Herefornow. It is as if you took the very words out of my mouth. I think of those who are suffering clinical depression and hopelessness because of the religious fear-mongers in the world and it motivates me to share my own deliverance from bondage to see the true and glorious image of our heavenly Father. LOVE is the best and most pure motive for any action.
Thanks Mystic, your words mean so much to me. And thanks to everyone else who commented on my post. And you're right, I truly was a handful as Dotl!!! She's nothing but a distant memory now and I praise God for that. And you're right, that trip to the mountain was the beginning of a new phase in my life, although I didn't know it at the time. I would suggest that kind of "trip" for anyone who is questioning their beliefs, not just about ET but about anything.....to take a trip into the depths of nature and just sit for hours, reflecting and writing. It's truly the only way to clear the mind, body and spirit and start with a clean slate.
God bless all my brothers and sisters, I don't care what you believe!! Because now I know the truth and it is so very comforting. I'm so happy that ET is wrong. It puts everything into a new perspective and you can go along in life knowing that that person who did you wrong or that person who is evil and mistreats others will eventually feel the power of God's love. It makes my day.
Bless you, Ilene. Your post immediately made me think of the song, "Because You Loved Me":
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