Questioning "my" beliefs...

[endlessblueskies]

I was raised a southern baptist, I now consider myself to be non-denominational. In fact I do not consider myself to be a part of a "religion". I see Islam,Hinduism, Judaism and Christianity (among others) as being religion. I believe in God, I believe in Jesus and the Holy spirit and the basics of Christianity, I also have been saved. But I question what I have accepted for many years in the Bible...like gay people are wrong and are going to hell, it's wrong always to have sex before marriage. It seems that a lot of Christians pick and choose what they want to believe and like in the New Testament where it says women should wear head coverings in church, they forsake this but condemn gay people as wrong. I don't get it? Also I have heard of versions of the Bible in which all the references to God were replaced with "she". I've always been taught that God's word can't be damaged or changed..then why should I believe then that the Bible is totally infallable when it's been translated from 3-4 different languages into English? This is hard for me. I used to believe just from what the church said and the way that I was raised that simple ...stupid things like listening to rock or drinking a bear where terrible sins. I dont believe any of that-it's not in the Bible and I don't believe either is a sin. It confuses me this buffet style Christianity. I love God and Jesus, I know I'm forgiven-not perfect-forgiven. I want to have a relationship with God always and be the best person I can be, I also believe I'll go to heaven-why does the "religion" and the "church" make things so complicated??

[Left in a Lurch]

Because, for example, the bible was written many years after the events occurred and written by people who were not direct witnesses, who are not perfect and may have had an agenda, and also written at a time when they had little practical knowledge of history, the earth, and space. On top of that it's now interpreted by people who are only human with varying degrees of scientific knowledge which means there will be many ways to understand it depending on your personal experiences.

 

Religion in my opinion tends to focus too deeply on the minor details and not the story as a whole.

 

Try telling a friend a story you witnessed 40 years after it actually happened and then having the friend write the story down 20 years later. I bet 98% of the details of your story would be absolutely inaccurate, but the basic outline would be fairly accurate.

[dazzle22]

I also grew up in an extremely conservative Christian home, with basically everything that was fun = SIN.

 

I found it very eye opening to read church history, right from the beginning to current day. You cannot stay the same after that. You must do this to get a true perspective on how what you believe now has 'evolved'....

 

My faith now is very 'generic' if you will, and inclusive as opposed to specific and exclusive. Some days I am not sure I believe in God anymore, but I hope there is one...

[D-Lish]

The never ending examples of contradictions and hypocrisy in the bible point to one conclusion- it is not the word of a perfect being.

 

If the bible was truly divinely inspired as claimed, contradictions would not be so glaringly evident.

 

Even as a child, I was aware that things didn't add up, but I was never allowed to ask questions in Sunday school. I was actually removed from Sunday school because I questioned things.

 

When I was old enough to make the choice not to go to church, I bowed out and never went back.

[Lovelybird]

When I have questions, I ask God directly, then sooner or later HE would let me know the answer.

 

Questioning and seeking is natural part of growth into HIM more. our faith ebbs and flows

[pureinheart]

The never ending examples of contradictions and hypocrisy in the bible point to one conclusion- it is not the word of a perfect being.

 

If the bible was truly divinely inspired as claimed, contradictions would not be so glaringly evident.

 

Even as a child, I was aware that things didn't add up, but I was never allowed to ask questions in Sunday school. I was actually removed from Sunday school because I questioned things.

 

When I was old enough to make the choice not to go to church, I bowed out and never went back.

 

Hey D...what are the contradictions that you see?

[pureinheart]

When I have questions, I ask God directly, then sooner or later HE would let me know the answer.

 

Questioning and seeking is natural part of growth into HIM more. our faith ebbs and flows

 

Yes...this is what I do also:laugh:

[pureinheart]

Because, for example, the bible was written many years after the events occurred and written by people who were not direct witnesses, who are not perfect and may have had an agenda, and also written at a time when they had little practical knowledge of history, the earth, and space. On top of that it's now interpreted by people who are only human with varying degrees of scientific knowledge which means there will be many ways to understand it depending on your personal experiences.

 

Religion in my opinion tends to focus too deeply on the minor details and not the story as a whole.

 

Try telling a friend a story you witnessed 40 years after it actually happened and then having the friend write the story down 20 years later. I bet 98% of the details of your story would be absolutely inaccurate, but the basic outline would be fairly accurate.

 

Wow...this could be a wonderful discussion...all you guys seem like cool people!

 

Anyway, for me, this is where faith comes in and divine inspiration, meaning the Bible was divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit. Would you also question other writings and faiths? Or only the Bible...just courious.

Edited April 17, 2010 by pureinheart

[pureinheart]

I was raised a southern baptist, I now consider myself to be non-denominational. In fact I do not consider myself to be a part of a "religion". I see Islam,Hinduism, Judaism and Christianity (among others) as being religion. I believe in God, I believe in Jesus and the Holy spirit and the basics of Christianity, I also have been saved. But I question what I have accepted for many years in the Bible...like gay people are wrong and are going to hell, it's wrong always to have sex before marriage. It seems that a lot of Christians pick and choose what they want to believe and like in the New Testament where it says women should wear head coverings in church, they forsake this but condemn gay people as wrong. I don't get it? Also I have heard of versions of the Bible in which all the references to God were replaced with "she". I've always been taught that God's word can't be damaged or changed..then why should I believe then that the Bible is totally infallable when it's been translated from 3-4 different languages into English? This is hard for me. I used to believe just from what the church said and the way that I was raised that simple ...stupid things like listening to rock or drinking a bear where terrible sins. I dont believe any of that-it's not in the Bible and I don't believe either is a sin. It confuses me this buffet style Christianity. I love God and Jesus, I know I'm forgiven-not perfect-forgiven. I want to have a relationship with God always and be the best person I can be, I also believe I'll go to heaven-why does the "religion" and the "church" make things so complicated??

 

I think you are totally right about depending on God and not man for your answers...in the areas of gay and sex before marriage, going to God for the answers is definitely the way to go...

 

I could tell you what "I" know and think, where I got it...yada, yada, although until YOU know it then it won't be real to YOU...this is the important thing.

 

Lord have mercy, man seems to make EVERYTHING complicated. I too have gone non-denominational also, yet it makes no difference where I go because I know what the truth is, so I eat the chicked and spit out the bones per se.

 

Seems as if man is not happy and needs to justify existance, so therefore creates a million rules...this is the thing Jesus taught against...not doing away with the Ten Commandments, but fulfilling them with TWO "rules"...Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself...(paraphrasing) that simple.

Edited April 17, 2010 by pureinheart

[allanworks]

the only thing i beleave in is god. he created the universe the universe created our soler system and it created earth and earth created us.there is no 10 commandments or anything. otherwise god would have made shure they didnt disapear no matter what so that all man would know.do what you think is good and stay away from what you think is bad. i also beleave in gia which is the treatment of mother earth.

[dazzle22]

The never ending examples of contradictions and hypocrisy in the bible point to one conclusion- it is not the word of a perfect being.

 

If the bible was truly divinely inspired as claimed, contradictions would not be so glaringly evident.

 

Even as a child, I was aware that things didn't add up, but I was never allowed to ask questions in Sunday school. I was actually removed from Sunday school because I questioned things.

 

When I was old enough to make the choice not to go to church, I bowed out and never went back.

 

 

Haha. Laughed at this one! I also was the kid in SS always asking those annoying questions like how did Cain go to another land and find wives like it says in Genesis if Adam and Eve were the first humans?? And the list I found as a kid was endless!! Definitely not the kid my parents hoped for! Haha!

[Lovelybird]

How do can yo ask God questions directly and how do you know when you have the answer?

 

God is more a concept that a person to me.

By Praying and having conversations with God. If I have something to ask God, I will pray to HIM, then pay attention to what HE is going to say. HE will speak to your heart. There are many ways God communicates with us. When you pay enough attention, and when God answers your question, naturally you will know it is from God, and the answers from God will show God's characters. If the answer shows the opposite of God's character, then pretty sure this voice isn't from God. Such as if a woman asks God if she can have an affair, if she got an anwer of YES, she is pretty much listening to herself, not to God.

 

God's answer is always honest, if you are being unfair to someone, God will let you know. But HE isn't being condemning, in my experience, HE is more of neutral, not biased to anyone, if I was wrong, HE would tell me so, but when HE does this, I won't feel condemned, rather feel relieved, and want to change, because I can feel HE does this out of love.

 

Nothing can hide from God, nor I want to hide from God, it is great feeling that knowing God knows everything about you, and still deeply loves you. In psychological term, they call this "intimate", intimacy means you are being known in every level, and still being accepted and loved.

 

So if one don't want to get wrong voices, getting to know God's characters by hearing and reading HIS words are very important.

 

Seek, you will find, God is not far away from every one of us

Edited April 19, 2010 by Lovelybird

[dazzle22]

I bet they were not happy with all your questions. This is one of my biggest problems with organized religion. Why do some churches feel so threatened when things are questioned?

 

 

Haha! I asked THAT question too. I would ask, well if 'we' have the corner on truth what is to feel so threatened about? Why are you so 'afraid' to go to evil places like bars and movie theaters (yeah, that religious) if we have the 'power'.? You afraid something will rub off.? That is not having a very strong faith is it?"

 

Actually, I think churches are threatened, because religious beliefs are not similar to just whether you like one football team or another, it is the 'root of the tree' out of which everything else about the way we live grows out of. If someone starts 'hacking' at those roots, people get defensive...

[shadowofman]

Choosing to ignore all the scriptures which go against your morality (like the sin of homosexuality or the sin of premarital sex), but still picking the part you like (like the idea that Jesus die for your sins) is the very cherry picking that you claim is wrong with religion. You seem to be clinging to theological concepts with no evidence simply because you can't explain the world without them.

 

It's ok to not know the ultimate answers. And you will still be able to live a good life based on your unique morality. But if your curiosity continues to question big, you might be very surprised to know that humans have discovered a great many things about the universe. Questions that we once answered with a hollow, "God did it." We now know that there is a simpler explanation.

[shadowofman]

By Praying and having conversations with God. If I have something to ask God, I will pray to HIM, then pay attention to what HE is going to say. HE will speak to your heart. There are many ways God communicates with us. When you pay enough attention, and when God answers your question, naturally you will know it is from God, and the answers from God will show God's characters. If the answer shows the opposite of God's character, then pretty sure this voice isn't from God. Such as if a woman asks God if she can have an affair, if she got an anwer of YES, she is pretty much listening to herself, not to God.

 

How do you know you are not always just answering your own question all the time? I believe, in fact I know you are good and willful enough to answer all of your questions honestly. You have the capacity to do all good things without validation from an invisible force.

 

Belief in a God, is in a sense, a thought virus that has infected you at some point in your life. You were not born with this incorrect concept, someone had to have infected your mind with it. Maybe you were at a low point. Immuno-suppressed in terms of your logical response. Maybe you were an impressionable child and you had no mentionable logic at the time. Either way there is no need to ask invisible people for the right reaction to a situation. Your going to do what YOU think is best anyway.