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IndianaDenny-------------I have worked with many mentally ill, dillusional,paranoid patients over the years. And they all sounded just like you. You have been scared into believing something that cant be proven. You have never seen "God." You have never seen "Jesus." You read a book. And you believed what you read. But that book PROVED nothing. And that book you read was written by human,mortal men who retold stories they had been told. Stories that influential men sitting in Rome decided should or shouldnt be included in that book. If, particularly the New Testament, was accurate, and the men who decided what would and wouldnt be included in it wanted you to have a real close look at the life of Jesus, why then did they exclude the writings of the one person who apparently walked nearest with, sponsored, fed and clothed Jesus? The one whom Jesus called his "most beloved?" Mary Magdelan? Its a book! Written to and used as a tool to keep people scared and in line. "He is a "just and merciful God." And if you dont believe that then you are going to fry forever! Doesnt sound to merciful to me. But isnt it great Denny? That we live in a place where we can be as paranoid as we wish to be and live to tell about it?
IndianaDenny-------------I have worked with many mentally ill, dillusional,paranoid patients over the years. And they all sounded just like you. You have been scared into believing something that cant be proven. You have never seen "God." You have never seen "Jesus." You read a book. And you believed what you read. But that book PROVED nothing. And that book you read was written by human,mortal men who retold stories they had been told. Stories that influential men sitting in Rome decided should or shouldnt be included in that book. If, particularly the New Testament, was accurate, and the men who decided what would and wouldnt be included in it wanted you to have a real close look at the life of Jesus, why then did they exclude the writings of the one person who apparently walked nearest with, sponsored, fed and clothed Jesus? The one whom Jesus called his "most beloved?" Mary Magdelan? Its a book! Written to and used as a tool to keep people scared and in line. "He is a "just and merciful God." And if you dont believe that then you are going to fry forever! Doesnt sound to merciful to me. But isnt it great Denny? That we live in a place where we can be as paranoid as we wish to be and live to tell about it?
I'd wager most who claim Christianity, especially in poor undereducated areas (I.E. a lot of Kentucky & Bible thumping South in general), haven't even went that far & are just following the crowd of their peers. Even if they have read it, it can be interpreted in so many ways that its convoluted anyway. I'd love to give some of these folks a basic knowledge test of their own religion. I bet at least half would fail it wide open.
But yet there are dummies who pick & choose what they want to take at face value from it like its some kind of playbook for life. Yet they skip over the other "rules" like not wearing polyester, not eating fat or they're supposed to be stoning their stubborn children.
It must be a miserable life having no faith in anything except yourself.
So,...all of this world is a accident? Mistake? Just happened? Scientist have for ever tried to find life somewhere else in the vast area of space, and what have they found? Not even a tiny speck of life or even the minute signs of life. The seasons come and go the trees grow the animals grow and EVEN EVOLVE and this is all just an accident? You got to be kidding me. Since the beginning of time all races and cultures of people have known of a higher power...we do have evidence of that. So called scientist have spent millions if not billions of dollars listening to "outer space" for signs of intelligent life. What have they found? Nothing. So this earth is just an event? Come on, you want me to believe that?
Maybe someday you all will have a life altering experience and when all else fails and you have no one to look to for help or anyone that gives a crap about you....I bet I know what you will do.
Oh ya and another thing...Mixing up the old and new Testament laws....oh...I'm sorry "rules", anyone should know better than that except for a dummy or maybe a crazy person.
It must be a miserable life having no faith in anything except yourself.
So,...all of this world is a accident? Mistake? Just happened? Scientist have for ever tried to find life somewhere else in the vast area of space, and what have they found? Not even a tiny speck of life or even the minute signs of life. The seasons come and go the trees grow the animals grow and EVEN EVOLVE and this is all just an accident? You got to be kidding me. Since the beginning of time all races and cultures of people have known of a higher power...we do have evidence of that. So called scientist have spent millions if not billions of dollars listening to "outer space" for signs of intelligent life. What have they found? Nothing. So this earth is just an event? Come on, you want me to believe that?
Maybe someday you all will have a life altering experience and when all else fails and you have no one to look to for help or anyone that gives a crap about you....I bet I know what you will do.
Oh ya and another thing...Mixing up the old and new Testament laws....oh...I'm sorry "rules", anyone should know better than that except for a dummy or maybe a crazy person.
Actually, believing in myself was the best decision I made.
Since the beginning of time people assumed that a higher power existed. Knowing is not the correct word to use, because no one could prove the existence of a higher power. That still holds true today.
Actually, believing in myself was the best decision I made.
Since the beginning of time people assumed that a higher power existed. Knowing is not the correct word to use, because no one could prove the existence of a higher power. That still holds true today.
Could there be a difference in Faith and Believing? I think so, faith is the real thing. That's where the knowing comes in.
Proving....some will never know until it's too late.
Actually, believing in myself was the best decision I made.
Since the beginning of time people assumed that a higher power existed. Knowing is not the correct word to use, because no one could prove the existence of a higher power. That still holds true today.
Location: New Albany, Indiana (Greater Louisville)
11,974 posts, read 25,473,841 times
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Ok, I went there yesterday (Saturday Aug 6, 2011), my thoughts/ impressions are as follows...
Pro
1. They are successful at pointing to some things that don't jive with the current theory of evolution and a multi billion year old earth, such as the ocean's increasing salt level
2. They did hammer home the creationists' strongest theological argument: consequences of believe you exist due to an accident of nature vs being created by a loving God.
3. The museum layout is great, and the exhibits look professional and are very clean.
Con
1. A lot of the stuff there had nothing to do with the Genesis account of creation. Examples include the horse or donkey cross bread zebras (hmmm... they were invented by the British in the 1800s. They wouldn't have been on the ark or garden of eden, so what's the Point), and the really nice botanical garden. It has incredible, but was in no way was (or in reality is) tied to any argument about creation vs evolution.
2. There is nothing in Genesis about there being no carnivores animals, weeds, etc before Adam and Eve ate a bad apple. From a literal standpoint two humans would only take up a small amount of land, does that mean outside the garden was perfect? (as in, no death, weeds, etc??)
3. I would prefer that they has simply done the museum about the history of the Judeo-Christianity and not spent so much time arguing creation vs evolution. No one who believes in evolution and no God would walk of there with a changed mind.
At the end of the day, a museum is not about proving or disproving. It IS about showcasing exhibits and info about what is believed to have happened (from the curator's viewpoint).
What it means to me... I have debated myself about whether or not God (or gods) exist or not. I grew up in an orthodox protestant Christian home were one side (6 day creationist) was believed to be true. I've also spent a few years basically as leaning toward agnosticism.
I have decided to return to being a devout Christian for the follow reasons...
1. IF there is no God/ gods, then what is wrong with believing that there is, if it brings you comfort in difficult situations and gives you peace of mind from having a purpose in life?? If all is vanity, then is religion any more vain than anything else??
2. Although I think a literal interpretation for the Bible pre Abraham is difficult to do, I find the rest of the Bible highly credible and backed up by archaeology and secular historians. I can not believe that thousands of Jews and Gentiles across the Roman Empire would allow themselves to be martyred without throwing a punch if Christianity had not been confirmed with miraculous events (aka Gifts of the Holy Spirit). The mass conversion of pagan Rome and a large percent of Jews to Christianity with 3 centuries can not be explained otherwise IMO.
Atheism will never catch on because it offers no hope, no meaning to life, and no purpose. The low birthrates of atheist further hampers their growth, while devout Christians and Muslims have the world's highest birth rates.
I have decided to return to being a devout Christian for the follow reasons...
1. IF there is no God/ gods, then what is wrong with believing that there is, if it brings you comfort in difficult situations and gives you peace of mind from having a purpose in life?? If all is vanity, then is religion any more vain than anything else??
Just as belief in a god that doesn't exist can give you comfort, it can also cause you to behave irrationally in ways that will lead to poor decision-making. You may begin to focus on some sort of hypothetical "next life" instead of making the best of this life. You may decide that God definitely wants you to live a lifestyle that doesn't make you happy, based on the Bible or Koran or whatever your holy book happens to be. It seems to me that this is a lot to take on just to feel warm and fuzzy whenever you're having a problem or two.
2. Although I think a literal interpretation for the Bible pre Abraham is difficult to do, I find the rest of the Bible highly credible and backed up by archaeology and secular historians. I can not believe that thousands of Jews and Gentiles across the Roman Empire would allow themselves to be martyred without throwing a punch if Christianity had not been confirmed with miraculous events (aka Gifts of the Holy Spirit). The mass conversion of pagan Rome and a large percent of Jews to Christianity with 3 centuries can not be explained otherwise IMO.
None of the supposed supernatural or miraculous events of the Bible have been confirmed by archaeology. If you mean that there is evidence that, for example, there was an ancient Israel, and there were Jews at the time of Jesus, then sure, those things are true, but none of that is evidence for God.
And yes, the fact that Christianity spread far and wide over 3 centuries, as you put it, can absolutely be explained naturally, without any need for God or the supernatural. Islam took off pretty quickly too. Mormonism seems to be doing quite well here in the U.S. Pretty much any religion that looks for converts is going to find them. Christianity was very similar to a lot of the Mystery Religions floating around the Roman Empire at the time, meaning that there was already some sense of familiarity with its concepts on the part of the people, and it offered hope to the largely poor population that embraced it.
As far as folks "allowing themselves to be martyred," there's really no evidence for the truth of anything written in the Acts of the Apostles outside of the Bible, meaning that we really don't know to what extent the original Apostles were martyred or to what extent they even believed in what we now consider Christianity. An excellent book on the subject is entitled The Mythmaker, by Hyam Maccoby, a devout Jew who believes that Jesus and the Apostles were Jews who never believed in any of the doctrines that we now call Christianity. As for the later martyrs, again, if supernatural intervention is required for martyrdom, then today's jihadists in the Middle East must be proof that Islam is true, no?
Atheism will never catch on because it offers no hope, no meaning to life, and no purpose. The low birthrates of atheist further hampers their growth, while devout Christians and Muslims have the world's highest birth rates.
Even if that statement is correct, I'm not sure what that has to do with whether or not Christianity is true. You seem to be saying that you choose to be a Christian because that's what everyone else is. That's fine, but why don't you just say that then?
How long is a 'day' to God, a being that is everywhere at once and has been around since before time existed as we know it? Do we really have to believe that God was speaking in astro-physical specifics when He was laying it all down to people who were extraordinarily primitive (at least by His standards). Or is it likely He was just speaking in analogy, like He and His messengers often did when they were trying to convey a complex message.
When your 4 year old asks where babies come from, do you launch a two hour explanation of meiosis and the mechanics behind DNA replication?
Good point..
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