Some serious questions if you believe

dante1 · 04-30-18, 11:47 AM

Oh, I forgot one more important question. Let us say that you make the final cut, you are on the team, you have been given permission to enter paradise. But, the bad news is no one else in your family, no one else that you love has made it. How can you possibly be happy? Everybody you love is either in a not so nice place or just gone forever. What happens now. Does this creator erase all your memories? Is that a good thing that a good creator would do. I have a very serious problem with this question.

What do you think?

Auto Donk · 04-30-18, 11:57 AM

as for erasing memories, it's apparent that even this creator makes mistakes...... and forgets to wipe the slate clean....

kid flat out has a wwII pilot "inside him" .....

dante1 · 04-30-18, 12:06 PM

Originally posted by Auto Donk

as for erasing memories, it's apparent that even this creator makes mistakes...... and forgets to wipe the slate clean....

kid flat out has a wwII pilot "inside him" .....

Some really strange experiences in life AD. These are the types of questions that I would like some answers to. I guess no real answers so far. Some day science, I think, will explain most of them. By then I and probably all of us will be gone.

This is a strange story, but so interesting. Unless it is some type of BS. Who knows???

Auto Donk · 04-30-18, 12:14 PM

Originally posted by dante1

Some really strange experiences in life AD. These are the types of questions that I would like some answers to. I guess no real answers so far. Some day science, I think, will explain most of them. By then I and probably all of us will be gone.

This is a strange story, but so interesting. Unless it is some type of BS. Who knows???

story is totally legit.... and more indepth coverage on how this child "picked" his father and mother when they were in Hawaii on their 1st anniversary or honeymoon, or something like that, was astounding.....

the little kid said something along the lines of "I knew you'd be a good dad, that's why I picked you" as if the former soul was just hovering around waikiki beach waiting to come back, and literally got to choose who he wanted to come back with.....

makes you wonder if there are hundreds of such souls around us at any given time, watching, and waiting to jump back into the game, but only 1 /100,000,000 or so has the "glitch" where they remember their former life....

I don't think we'll ever have an answer to this question totally; but it certainly makes you wonder....

as a friend of mine put it, it's most likely some type of phenom that is totally beyond our comprehension.....

dante1 · 04-30-18, 12:21 PM

Originally posted by Auto Donk

story is totally legit.... and more indepth coverage on how this child "picked" his father and mother when they were in Hawaii on their 1st anniversary or honeymoon, or something like that, was astounding.....

the little kid said something along the lines of "I knew you'd be a good dad, that's why I picked you" as if the former soul was just hovering around waikiki beach waiting to come back, and literally got to choose who he wanted to come back with.....

makes you wonder if there are hundreds of such souls around us at any given time, watching, and waiting to jump back into the game, but only 1 /100,000,000 or so has the "glitch" where they remember their former life....

I don't think we'll ever have an answer to this question totally; but it certainly makes you wonder....

as a friend of mine put it, it's most likely some type of phenom that is totally beyond our comprehension.....

that is very interesting. and I can believe that it is totally legit. Strange things happen.

I think but I am not sure about this I may be wrong, when I was very very young I watched a show called "one step beyond". I think, not positive that they claimed those stories were based on true stories. But, it was so long ago I can't remember for sure. The other day I watched one on youtube and I don't remember the narrator saying it was a true story.

If they are true there are tons of crap that isn't easily explained. So this one sounds like a reincarnation story, that is something I rarely even think about. My god going though this life once is enough, just think if we need to do it hundreds or thousands of times until we get it right. Holy shit!

Auto Donk · 04-30-18, 03:27 PM

an Australian babe I once had fun with used that exact phrase: "we do it over and over til we get it right."

I guess I'll be back again....

and I hope I can remember my "former life"--at least this one, so 1. I can recall all the awesome shit, and 2. not repeat the same mistakes....

dante1 · 04-30-18, 06:49 PM

Originally posted by Auto Donk

an Australian babe I once had fun with used that exact phrase: "we do it over and over til we get it right."

I guess I'll be back again....

and I hope I can remember my "former life"--at least this one, so 1. I can recall all the awesome shit, and 2. not repeat the same mistakes....

wow, your last sentence is a feeling and thought I have had soooo many times. If only we could get another chance, mistakes wiped out. One second chance doesn't sound unreasonable, right? but as you write we must be able to remember good stuff and bad stuff.

slambam · 04-30-18, 08:43 PM

Reminds me of a story from about a year ago, a kid who says he was Lou Gehrig and that his current mother was Lou's mother. There was a video of this somewhere too where they hypnotized (or something like that) the kids mom and she recalled a piece of jewelry Lou gave his mom.

Meet the kid who believes he's the reincarnated spirit of Lou Gehrig

https://sports.yahoo.com/news/meet-the-kid-who-believes-hes-the-reincarnated-spirit-of-lou-gehrig-181953168.html

zam77 · 04-30-18, 09:33 PM

I wonder too what about those you love not all making it to your paradise. Hence the word “your”... maybe heaven for each person who makes it is your own and the people you expect or want there will be there... maybe it’s just like an eternal dream that God unlocks for each person to play out however they choose with whoever they choose as it’s all a dream of your own creation

Seaweed · 04-30-18, 10:28 PM

Most Catholics believe that a combination of good works and deeds and a good life and you are granted entrance. Most Protestants disagree and say in order to reach your final destination you must believe that Jesus Christ was god and worship him. Good deeds mean nothing. Hmmm. Problems???

James 2:26 tells us that faith without works is dead. In Romans 3:22 we see that we are saved by faith in Jesus Christ. Catholic theology supports these teachings of the Bible and holds them in balance.

Man has the ability and obligation to cooperate with God’s grace in securing his own salvation. In the practical order, this means that he must do good and avoid evil in order to be saved. He is not merely a passive recipient of God’s salvation.

The Bible agrees with the Catholic position, not the Protestant one. In the twenty-fifth chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew, Christ our God tells of the judgment at the end of the world. The sheep and the goats, representing the elect and the reprobate are gathered into two groups, one on his right, the other on his left. When He tells the elect that they are going to heaven, He says, “Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred [“hungry,” that is], and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

Upon asking when they had done these things, the elect are told, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

Then, turning to the reprobate, he gives them their awful sentence of damnation, which parallels that of the righteous, this time enumerating deeds omitted: “ye gave me no meat” “ye gave me no drink,” etc. The chapter ends with this verse: “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”

So what have we? Certain people go to heaven because they did certain things, and others are cast into hell because they did not do those things. Can it be any clearer? Does this mean that all one has to do is good works for salvation? Absolutely not. Faith is necessary. To be consistent with the rest of the message of the Gospel, we must say that those who will be sentenced to eternal bliss will all have the Faith. But, for reasons of His own, our Lord did not see fit to mention Faith in this judgment scene. All we are left with is that the good works performed by the blessed caused their salvation, while the omission of the same works merited eternal damnation for the reprobate.

St. Paul teaches the same doctrine of good works in his Epistle to the Romans: “[God] Who will render to every man according to his deeds: To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath.” (Romans 2:6-8

Those who call themselves Christians, whether Catholic or heretic, will all say that to be a Christian is to “follow Christ” or to be a “disciple of Christ.” Both of these concepts have very obvious ramifications. To follow someone, is to go wherever he leads. To be someone’s disciple is to learn his teachings, to belong to his “school of thought.” Both of these concepts imply commitment. When our Lord invited people to follow him, it was never an unconditional relationship in which the follower could “do his own thing.” Now we will see what Holy Scripture tells us about this commitment in terms of our subject.

In the Gospel of St. Luke, Jesus says, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” (9: 23-25)

This tells the would-be follower of Christ that the Christian commitment is a serious one and cannot be entered into half-heartedly. It also establishes a requirement for following Christ: self-denial. Self-denial is an act (or a series of acts becoming habitual). If to follow Christ it is necessary to deny oneself, and if following Christ is necessary for salvation (which it is), then self-denial is necessary for salvation. Since self-denial is a work, then at least this work is necessary for salvation. Consequently, the proposition “Faith alone” fails.

The following passage drives the point home even more clearly: “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. […] So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14: 26-33)

In this passage, the italicized phrases affirm in strong terms that, unless certain deeds are done, then being a disciple of Christ is impossible. If being a disciple of Christ is impossible to a person, so is salvation impossible to that person. Therefore, those deeds (carrying the cross, hating parents, and forsaking material goods) are necessary for salvation.

The objection may be raised that hating one’s parents is not really necessary for salvation. Obviously our Lord meant something by this statement, and He obviously does not want everyone unconditionally to hate his parents, therefore the only sensible conclusion is that if one’s parents stand in the way of his salvation, then he has the duty to oppose them. The same holds true with forsaking all one has. There are conditions where such things are necessary under serious obligation.[5]

Avoiding Sin

Sin is an obstacle to human salvation. Being defiled with sin is, according to the Bible (Apoc., or “Rev.” 21:27), something which keeps one out of Heaven.[6] If being unsullied by sin is a requirement for entrance into Heaven, then the Christian is obliged to avoid sin. This could lead into two possible tangents, namely (1) how believing Christians can be forgiven their sins in this life, and (2) what happens if they are not forgiven. I will avoid these tangents[7] and limit myself to this simple fact, which I will prove with Scripture: To be saved, it is necessary to die without the guilt of a serious sin on one’s soul. From there, we can reason that, to be saved, it is required that the Christian avoid sin.

St. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 6: 9 says, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

Here, St. Paul is saying that people guilty of certain sins will not be saved. It may help to know that in the context, he is writing to believing Christians (“them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus” — 1:2) to exhort them not to do these things. Since even the Corinthian believers will not be saved if they go to their judgment guilty of these particular crimes, then avoidance of them is necessary — even for true believers.[8] Now, “avoidance” is an act — a work. Since it is a work that conforms us to God’s will, then it is a “good work.” Where that leaves us is — good works are necessary for salvation.

sourtwist · 04-30-18, 10:44 PM

I like this thread

dlowilly · 04-30-18, 10:55 PM

You ask "why virtually all people believe in something more"

A part of me looks at it purely logically. For a long, long time people have attempted to explain what they didn't understand through magic and religion. There were gods of wind because they couldn't explain what wind was and where it came from. There was a Sun god before we knew about outer space, planets, and stars. Plagues, storms, and natural disasters were explained by gods or ancestors being angry, because they couldn't understand such abnormal occurrences.

It's no coincidence the last major unexplained mystery, what happens after we die, is the focal point of modern religions. The other religions have become obsolete with scientific discovery and research but science hasn't and will probably never answer what modern religion claims to.

That being said, the more you know about science, especially evolution and anatomy, the more it seems we and the world around us are too intricate and perfect to be a random result. It's just hard to rationalize historically so many people and their beliefs being proven terribly wrong while insisting MY current belief MUST be correct.

Auto Donk · 04-30-18, 11:58 PM

Originally posted by Seaweed

Most Catholics believe that a combination of good works and deeds and a good life and you are granted entrance. Most Protestants disagree and say in order to reach your final destination you must believe that Jesus Christ was god and worship him. Good deeds mean nothing. Hmmm. Problems???

James 2:26 tells us that faith without works is dead. In Romans 3:22 we see that we are saved by faith in Jesus Christ. Catholic theology supports these teachings of the Bible and holds them in balance.

Man has the ability and obligation to cooperate with God’s grace in securing his own salvation. In the practical order, this means that he must do good and avoid evil in order to be saved. He is not merely a passive recipient of God’s salvation.

The Bible agrees with the Catholic position, not the Protestant one. In the twenty-fifth chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew, Christ our God tells of the judgment at the end of the world. The sheep and the goats, representing the elect and the reprobate are gathered into two groups, one on his right, the other on his left. When He tells the elect that they are going to heaven, He says, “Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred [“hungry,” that is], and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

Upon asking when they had done these things, the elect are told, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

Then, turning to the reprobate, he gives them their awful sentence of damnation, which parallels that of the righteous, this time enumerating deeds omitted: “ye gave me no meat” “ye gave me no drink,” etc. The chapter ends with this verse: “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”

So what have we? Certain people go to heaven because they did certain things, and others are cast into hell because they did not do those things. Can it be any clearer? Does this mean that all one has to do is good works for salvation? Absolutely not. Faith is necessary. To be consistent with the rest of the message of the Gospel, we must say that those who will be sentenced to eternal bliss will all have the Faith. But, for reasons of His own, our Lord did not see fit to mention Faith in this judgment scene. All we are left with is that the good works performed by the blessed caused their salvation, while the omission of the same works merited eternal damnation for the reprobate.

St. Paul teaches the same doctrine of good works in his Epistle to the Romans: “[God] Who will render to every man according to his deeds: To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath.” (Romans 2:6-8

Those who call themselves Christians, whether Catholic or heretic, will all say that to be a Christian is to “follow Christ” or to be a “disciple of Christ.” Both of these concepts have very obvious ramifications. To follow someone, is to go wherever he leads. To be someone’s disciple is to learn his teachings, to belong to his “school of thought.” Both of these concepts imply commitment. When our Lord invited people to follow him, it was never an unconditional relationship in which the follower could “do his own thing.” Now we will see what Holy Scripture tells us about this commitment in terms of our subject.

In the Gospel of St. Luke, Jesus says, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” (9: 23-25)

This tells the would-be follower of Christ that the Christian commitment is a serious one and cannot be entered into half-heartedly. It also establishes a requirement for following Christ: self-denial. Self-denial is an act (or a series of acts becoming habitual). If to follow Christ it is necessary to deny oneself, and if following Christ is necessary for salvation (which it is), then self-denial is necessary for salvation. Since self-denial is a work, then at least this work is necessary for salvation. Consequently, the proposition “Faith alone” fails.

The following passage drives the point home even more clearly: “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. […] So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14: 26-33)

In this passage, the italicized phrases affirm in strong terms that, unless certain deeds are done, then being a disciple of Christ is impossible. If being a disciple of Christ is impossible to a person, so is salvation impossible to that person. Therefore, those deeds (carrying the cross, hating parents, and forsaking material goods) are necessary for salvation.

The objection may be raised that hating one’s parents is not really necessary for salvation. Obviously our Lord meant something by this statement, and He obviously does not want everyone unconditionally to hate his parents, therefore the only sensible conclusion is that if one’s parents stand in the way of his salvation, then he has the duty to oppose them. The same holds true with forsaking all one has. There are conditions where such things are necessary under serious obligation.[5]

Avoiding Sin

Sin is an obstacle to human salvation. Being defiled with sin is, according to the Bible (Apoc., or “Rev.” 21:27), something which keeps one out of Heaven.[6] If being unsullied by sin is a requirement for entrance into Heaven, then the Christian is obliged to avoid sin. This could lead into two possible tangents, namely (1) how believing Christians can be forgiven their sins in this life, and (2) what happens if they are not forgiven. I will avoid these tangents[7] and limit myself to this simple fact, which I will prove with Scripture: To be saved, it is necessary to die without the guilt of a serious sin on one’s soul. From there, we can reason that, to be saved, it is required that the Christian avoid sin.

St. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 6: 9 says, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

Here, St. Paul is saying that people guilty of certain sins will not be saved. It may help to know that in the context, he is writing to believing Christians (“them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus” — 1:2) to exhort them not to do these things. Since even the Corinthian believers will not be saved if they go to their judgment guilty of these particular crimes, then avoidance of them is necessary — even for true believers.[8] Now, “avoidance” is an act — a work. Since it is a work that conforms us to God’s will, then it is a “good work.” Where that leaves us is — good works are necessary for salvation.

good stuff, weeder....

particularly if it's original work and not cropped out of some holy roller website....

Snowball · 05-01-18, 07:54 AM

Re: parents

* [14:25–33] This collection of sayings, most of which are peculiar to Luke, focuses on the total dedication necessary for the disciple of Jesus. No attachment to family (Lk 14:26) or possessions (Lk 14:33) can stand in the way of the total commitment demanded of the disciple. Also, acceptance of the call to be a disciple demands readiness to accept persecution and suffering (Lk 14:27) and a realistic assessment of the hardships and costs (Lk 14:28–32).
* [14:26] Hating his father…: cf. the similar saying in Mt 10:37. The disciple’s family must take second place to the absolute dedication involved in following Jesus (see also Lk 9:59–62).

^u “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38and whoever does not take up his cross^* and follow after me is not worthy of me. 39^* ^v Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

--
anyway, can't this thread be subsumed into the "GOD" thread ?

System Error

https://www.sportsbookreview.com/forum/saloon/2925015-god.html?highlight=god

Swinging Johnson · 05-01-18, 09:41 AM

I was certain that this thread would devolve. So far so good. And, with all due respect Donker, I saw your name and immediately thought you would derail it into a tale of debauchery. However, I was wrong. Your open-mindedness on the subject caught me off guard in a surprisingly pleasant way. The fact that you would consider that the WW2 kid may have merit is testament to that, and to be honest, any atheist or religious zealot has not freed his or her mind because the fact of the matter is, no one knows. At least agnostics acknowledge this while atheists do not.

I am a Catholic. A lapsed Catholic I will confess but attendance at Sunday mass does not, in my opinion, make a virtuous man. I have read of people with near death experiences seeing things from above in the operating room that they could not have known about. That gives me hope of everlasting life, although proof is not needed for the truly faithful. I am hopeful yet weak in that regard. I wish I was more resolute in my convictions. I have had the benefit of a good life with an amazing family. I have been "blessed" yet I continue to question. Shameful really.

One thing I truly believe is that we all have free will. If Mother Teresa were to walk in front of a train she would be killed. The holiest among us are not impervious to tragic events. What happens afterwards is the ultimate question. I believe in Jesus Christ...I simply wish any and all doubts were removed. I think I should try harder.

Auto Donk · 05-01-18, 10:28 AM

Originally posted by dlowilly

You ask "why virtually all people believe in something more"

A part of me looks at it purely logically. For a long, long time people have attempted to explain what they didn't understand through magic and religion. There were gods of wind because they couldn't explain what wind was and where it came from. There was a Sun god before we knew about outer space, planets, and stars. Plagues, storms, and natural disasters were explained by gods or ancestors being angry, because they couldn't understand such abnormal occurrences.

It's no coincidence the last major unexplained mystery, what happens after we die, is the focal point of modern religions. The other religions have become obsolete with scientific discovery and research but science hasn't and will probably never answer what modern religion claims to.

That being said, the more you know about science, especially evolution and anatomy, the more it seems we and the world around us are too intricate and perfect to be a random result. It's just hard to rationalize historically so many people and their beliefs being proven terribly wrong while insisting MY current belief MUST be correct.

not to derail the thread, but I couldn't help but notice, suddenly, how terribly small dlo's avvy's juggs are..... everything is relevant, I guess...

Snowball · 05-01-18, 10:46 AM

Originally posted by dlowilly

Plagues, storms, and natural disasters were explained by gods or ancestors being angry, because they couldn't understand such abnormal occurrences.

All these can still be described that way, with God/gods/angels/demons as the root cause,
because what is capable of perfection is somehow corrupted or made present in our eyes
as "damaging". This means no matter how much science says causality depends conditions
of imperfection or physics, there is no perfection, yet we know there is perfection in many
states.. and what about entropy, is it possible life here has devolved to this state instead of evolved ?

I'm not impressed by the reincarnation stories. Those could be impressions, or frauds.. if they are
real, demons and ghosts could be sending the information. Demons make people talk languages
they never knew or even heard before, and reveal secret information.

StackinGreen · 05-01-18, 11:32 AM

Since Roman Catholics and Protestants (their descendants) aren't the original church, you probably won't find what you're looking for --- especially if your intent is rational or mental, some legalistic way to understand things. That's where they go astray, big time.

Regardless, since no one knows the mind of God on things like salvation (yet everyone seems preoccupied with it), it's better to just do what's right to the best of your ability, repent when you do wrong, and remember:

And this is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.

It's not a coincidence that even though people do things "in his name" he says in Matthew Chapter 7 to depart because ... "I never knew you"

Knowing in this sense is experiencing, trusting, and being obedient to God, whom you were created for. That's what the church is for, to show you how to know God, to cooperate with him. We all fail, but if we are honest about our failings, he is sympathetic and merciful, having gone through all these human things and worse, unto death.

dbartinbwgc · 05-01-18, 12:57 PM

Awhile ago there was a story of a child, who would tell his parents about his past life.
His name, family and everything, also he had a scar and he said thats were this man killed me.
When he got a little older he kept talking about it and he says i'll show you where he buried me.
They went there and took police and found a body of a man that was stabbed right where his scar was.
Then he says i'll show you the guy who did it, they took the police to this man.
When confronted about it the man confessed to killing the man.

The Epoch Times | Breaking News, Latest News, World News and Videos

https://www.theepochtimes.com/uplift/3-year-old-remembers-past-life-identifies-murderer-and-location-of-body_681034.html

Get the latest breaking news, in-depth reporting, and insightful analysis on a wide range of topics, including politics, culture, and world events | The Epoch Times is a trusted source for real news and information that is free from influence and bias.

StackinGreen · 05-01-18, 01:06 PM

^ more likely a psychic connection to a different realm, if real and we should all be skeptical

Reincarnation is very simple minded because the universe, and all that God is, makes the planet earth a special, but miniscule focus of the eternal. We will be learning about these things for the rest of ... whatever eternity is, if by the grace of God were are counted worthy in trying to continue to know him, not rebelling against him in our various, fallen ways.

Auto Donk · 05-01-18, 01:08 PM

Originally posted by dbartinbwgc

Awhile ago there was a story of a child, who would tell his parents about his past life.
His name, family and everything, also he had a scar and he said thats were this man killed me.
When he got a little older he kept talking about it and he says i'll show you where he buried me.
They went there and took police and found a body of a man that was stabbed right where his scar was.
Then he says i'll show you the guy who did it, they took the police to this man.
When confronted about it the man confessed to killing the man.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/uplift...dy_681034.html

dammit.... I gotta get my ass to church this Sunday, bigly.....

dante1 · 05-01-18, 03:10 PM

I am glad this thread caused some thought and some really good responses. I didn't intend it to become a referendum on the bible. I do however stand with my basic premise that most Catholics believe in good deeds, faith and confession (unless things have changed considerably which is possible) And many Protestants believe that only faith and acceptance in JC is needed for salvation. However, there are so many P denominations that a specific rule is pretty difficult. Also please keep this in mind as one writer pointed out. The bible that most of us know was not written during the time of Christ. It was written much later and only then by a group of Catholic clergy that got together and decided what books should be included. Naturally I am referring to the New Testament. And also of note is the Catholic Bible and the Protestant Bible are not identical.

Actually what I most appreciate it the fact that many of you have similar thoughts, it is encouraging to me that many of you think about more than just who will cover tonight.

Did any individual attempt to answer the question on prayer? If so I apologize I missed it. Did any individual attempt to answer the question asked in post 2. Again, maybe I missed it, and I am not being sarcastic.

Sometimes you need to explain emotions when you are communicating with people via text. But, you all know this.

StackinGreen · 05-01-18, 03:34 PM

You really have no clue what the (eastern) orthodox church is, dante? It's a pretty important thing to be aware of, if you are Christian. I hope you dont think the Bible was written in Latin, please tell me you're aware it, and the first Christians therefore were "Greeks" or Hellenized "Jews"

no1here · 05-01-18, 07:24 PM

You are a blob of energy which can't be destroyed only transfer, altered, or changed. You are eternal which means w/o beginning or end. You have always been one with God or the whole as there can only be one, one. You are God! You do not have to go through Jesus to get to God. You never abandoned yourself. There is no judgement, no right or wrong. There is no hurt or pain. There is no ego! There is only Love. You are your own creator and Heaven will be what you make it just like here on Earth.

dante1 · 05-02-18, 11:55 AM

Originally posted by StackinGreen

You really have no clue what the (eastern) orthodox church is, dante? It's a pretty important thing to be aware of, if you are Christian. I hope you dont think the Bible was written in Latin, please tell me you're aware it, and the first Christians therefore were "Greeks" or Hellenized "Jews"

of course I do

I spent at least 1/3 of my life searching for answers SG. I spent one ton of time researching, reading and visiting many different Christian faiths. This does not make me an expert I merely scratched the surface. I did learn a bunch of new knowledge for a kid that attended Catholic school and catechism classes weekly for years. You are taught about the "one true religion" and eventually you start questioning those teachings.

Most of my searching came before the internet so it was challenging, every Sunday and Saturday I would watch the various preachers on TV and it started me thinking about other beliefs. I only spent time on the Christian faith and a tiny bit of Judaism. I have lapsed, but I still feel spiritual.

The denomination that I felt got closer than any, and simply my opinion, was the 7th day Adventists. However, I never attended even one service but what I did discover is that they came close to what I interpreted as Christianity. Now this is simply my take and it means absolutely nothing. I am also aware that some very strange people were 7th day Adventists. Even criminals, but for the most part I think the people truly believing in that faith are pretty extraordinary. They are very strict and I doubt if you will find even one on this forum.

StackinGreen · 05-02-18, 12:22 PM

It's just weird when people say "Catholics" and "Christians" referring to Roman Catholics and Protestants, the latter coming from the former. And of course all are christians if they believe in the niceno-constantinopolitan creed, though they may have changed it (lol). Western Christians, though, with their own development of schismatic teachings and practices over time. The eastern christians are the ancient church, and are the only ones that have taught and practiced what the original christians both taught and practiced. They are the ones from the same places the original christians and apostles were located. I'm glad you have heard of them, if you are interested in Christianity, they're pretty important to be aware of. They also use the Septuagint text (old testament and quoted in the new when quoted), which has been shown to be more reliable than the masoretic texts created/changed by the Jews from the 8th to 10th century AD. It's funny how little of this is known, given its importance.

best to all!