Christianity Not A Religion But A Philosophy? (believe, born, debate)
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Did anyone happen to catch a segment on O'Reilly last night where he started a debate with an atheist by stating that Christianity is not a religion but a philosophy?
I know that O'Reilly likes to distort the facts, but did he really go out of his mind to say this?
So all of you Christians, do you agree that this is not a religion, making you all, what?
Did anyone happen to catch a segment on O'Reilly last night where he started a debate with an atheist by stating that Christianity is not a religion but a philosophy?
I know that O'Reilly likes to distort the facts, but did he really go out of his mind to say this?
So all of you Christians, do you agree that this is not a religion, making you all, what?
Your thoughts please?
I think the idea is that Christianity is a "way of life" and or the literal etymological sense that Christianity is a "love of wisdom." And that Christianity is not a "set of dogmas" or "set of accepted mythology."
Christianity is a religion and we use the gospels "Good News" of Christ as the way of truth, love and life.
Us Christians follow Christ, and get inspired of him. However, they may be times where we sin, but we pray to God to forgive us.
O'Reilly's opinion was not at all absurd and in fact a good argument can be made supporting it.
Here's how:
A person who calls themselves a Christian would, of course, attempt to live their lives in concordance withthe teachings of the great teacher Jesus of Nazareth. Right?
And, just so, one who called themselves a devotee or a follower of a certain pholosopher like Frederich Nietzche or Soren Kierkegaard would also try to pattern their lives and action in a semblance of the teachings of those two fellows.
One could easily say: "My philosophy on life is to love my neighbor as much as I do myself. And to try and forgive others who wrong me."
This is almost a direct teaching of Jesus.
I think you could also say that a specific denomination like Lutheran or Catholic is a religion, but that if you were not a formal church member, chosing instead to read the teachings of Jesus on your own, your guiding philosophy in life was that of Christianity.
O'Reilly's opinion was not at all absurd and in fact a good argument can be made supporting it.
Here's how:
A person who calls themselves a Christian would, of course, attempt to live their lives in concordance withthe teachings of the great teacher Jesus of Nazareth. Right?
And, just so, one who called themselves a devotee or a follower of a certain pholosopher like Frederich Nietzche or Soren Kierkegaard would also try to pattern their lives and action in a semblance of the teachings of those two fellows.
One could easily say: "My philosophy on life is to love my neighbor as much as I do myself. And to try and forgive others who wrong me."
This is almost a direct teaching of Jesus.
I think you could also say that a specific denomination like Lutheran or Catholic is a religion, but that if you were not a formal church member, chosing instead to read the teachings of Jesus on your own, your guiding philosophy in life was that of Christianity.
I suppose you could have "philosophical Christians" who adhere to the moral guidelines of Jesus. If someone picked up a Jefferson Bible and used that, he would be this "philosophical Christian."
But the second a person, whether he belongs to a church or not, believes that Jesus was holy/son of god/etc, then it goes beyond the realm of philosophy. The second you yoke on the idea of a God at all, it goes beyond philosophy.
I highly doubt Bill O'Reilly would fall under the "philosophical Christian" heading. He most assuredly also accepts the religious claims involved too.
So no, if a person is a Christian, in the true sense of the word (as in, Jesus died for my sins), then that is his religion, not philosophy, regardless of what organized church he belongs to.
I believe Christianity to be a religion, not a philosophy because in the strictest sense, Christians are people who not only try to emulate the life of Jesus but also believe that he was the Son of God who was crucified in mystic ritual to atone for the sins of all humanity, that he was born of a virgin according to a mistranslated passage in Isaiah (7:14) and lived a completely sinless life (the sin offering described in the Torah must be "without blemish"). Thomas Jefferson believed none of this, but thought that it was worthy to follow Jesus example and teachings, excluding any references to Heaven and Hell and miracles. Thomas Jefferson may have been publicly a "christian", but in his private thoughts and correspondence with intimate friends, referred to himself as a deist. That is, he believed there was a God who created the Universe, but that God did not interfere with workings of his creation. He also believed that the human soul was entirely corpuscular and died when the body did.
I think the idea is that Christianity is a "way of life" and or the literal etymological sense that Christianity is a "love of wisdom." And that Christianity is not a "set of dogmas" or "set of accepted mythology."
Bill O'Reilly, like many talking heads, bloggers, and similar folk, needs to make provocative statements to maintain the interest of his viewers. I seriously doubt he literally believes this particular drivel.
Not that I like Bill or anything because I don't but a Christian can hold a personal philosophy regarding his beliefs. He can certainly be the wiser of what those guys wrote down in what they call the bible. But, as a whole heard, it's a religious belief. IMO of course.
To the OP,
Did anyone happen to catch a segment on O'Reilly last night where he started a debate with an atheist by stating that Christianity is not a religion but a philosophy?
I know that O'Reilly likes to distort the facts, but did he really go out of his mind to say this?
So all of you Christians, do you agree that this is not a religion, making you all, what?
Your thoughts please?
I am not a Christain. I don't believe in any God whatsoever.
I think you posted this in the wrong place too.
And I do NOT watch Fox Noise.
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