Fundamentalist Christianity. What is it exactly? Well true Fundamentalist Christianity is the belief that the bible is the word of God, written through revelation, without error. It is also the belief that the bible is to be taken literally and not metaphorically.
Before I begin, take note that I am not against Christianity in general... More and more Christian denominations are becoming more accepting of Evolution, Homosexuality not being a choice and the fact that Hell is just a metaphor (which it is, but I'll get into that in another installment). Some Christians even believe that Christianity is only one of the many paths to God. As far as I see it general Christianity is following the words of Jesus, which are full of wholesome and useful philosophy in my opinion. I am heavily opposed to Fundamentalists, however, as they are the most hypocritical, bigoted, and hateful people I have ever met. Many of them even believe that a lot of their fellow Christians are going to burn in hell, perhaps because they believe in evolution, are too "sinful" or belong to a denomination that teaches that the bible is metaphorical... basically anyone who doesn't share the same views as them.
Problem is, for people who claim the bible must be followed to a T, and that the Old Testament is still in play, they aren't really following it too well. If they where they would be stoning me to death in the streets instead of telling me i'm going to hell (not that they would succeed... I'd either go Chuck Norris on their ass and give them a roundhouse kick or Jesus on their ass and yell out "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone!")
Point being I asked a fundamentalist once why it is so wrong to be homosexual, bisexual, or transgendered and they said because the law of moses is still supposed to be followed. However, I see fundamentalists today eat pork and shellfish, shave their beards, go to church on Sunday instead of Saturday and do not stone pagans, gays or disobedient children. What gives? Stone us queers, for gods sake!
I guess everyone has their breaking point. I don't blame em. Giving up seafood, looking like a hobo and getting arrested for murdering someone are not things i'd be willing to do (especially giving up that seafood.) They don't do these things because they know they are immoral or absurd. Even so... if they believe the bible is the word of God, without corruption or mistranslation they cannot pick or choose what to follow, right?
Its not just the old testament either... they pick and choose from the words of Jesus too... while i believe that Jesus was being philosophical when he said that f it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to get into the kingdom of God (Matthew 19:24), Fundamentalist should believe he was literal, right? Since we all know it is impossible for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle it should be impossible for a rich person to get into heaven right?
Then why are there fundamentalist, like Jack Chick (http://www.chick.com) and Ed Decker (http://www.saintsalive.com) who are charging people money for books, videos and tracts? Why do fundamentalist churches have paid ministries if their own messiah says that one must sell all their possessions to become closer to God?
Jesus says in the Bible "Judge not, lest ye be Judged" (Matthew 7:1) yet fundamentalist Christians just love to go out Judging us Skeptics to eternity in hell... Not the best way to convert a freethinker into your religion, thats for sure. Fundamentalists, who are you to judge the non believers, when you yourself are full of sin, as you put it? To take your deities job upon yourself, when you where commanded not to is pretty gutsy and wreaks of hypocrisy.
Jesus drank wine... In fact Jesus turned water into wine at the Wedding in Cana (John 2)... Yet the Pentecostals and other denominations of Fundamentalists are totally against the Consumption of alcohol
This kind of hypocritical behaviour makes fundamentalist Christians look very, very silly compared to the more intelligent Christians who believe that the bible is metaphorical or not completely inspired by God.
Honestly, I'd rather they not follow the bible word for word... That would be awful for us non christians. Even so I can't help but be annoyed at how little these people know about the bible, and how little they are willing to follow....
Or why anyone would want to believe that God is an asshole who will condemn good people to hell because they didn't recite a stupid prayer to his son... who is also him, but not him, at the same time.
I guess there still are mysteries that science just doesn't have an answer for..
Next up: "The Bible is Infallable? Which Translation?"
Friday, January 25, 2008
Sunday, January 20, 2008
#2 - Theism, Deism, Agnosticism and Atheism
Today, class, we will talk about The four main groups of people in this world.
Lets start with Theists because there are more of them in the world than any other group (why is beyond me). Theists include Christians, Mormons, Catholics, Pagans, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and other religions that believe in worship a supernatural god or gods who dictates their life. There are three types of Theists: Monotheists, Polytheists and Henotheists. Monotheists are people who believe that there is only one God. Christians, Catholics, Jews and Muslims are examples of Monotheists. Polytheists are people who believe in and worship multiple Gods. Wiccans and Hindus are both examples of Polytheists. Henotheists only worship a single God but accept the idea of mulitple Gods. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a Henotheist religion. Many theists generally believe in some sort existence after this life whether it be heaven, paradise, reincarnation or something similar. Some theists accept scientific theories like Evolution and the Big Bang, while others reject them.
Deists are people who believe in a god of nature. They generally do not believe in supernatural things like miracles and prophets but instead believe that God created the universe and left it to us to rule over, choosing not to interfere with our freewill. Unlike most Theists, in my opinion, Deists have the right idea of true freewill. They reject creationism as stated in Genesis and prefer to side with the words of science over the words of scripture. They believe that logic and reasoning is the way to the right path and not faith.
Agnostics believe that we cannot prove or disprove that there is or isn't a god. Like deists they generally accept scientific theories. Agnostics, like deists, generally have varying beliefs... For example, from my own beliefs, I believe that Jesus was a real person, but not the son of God. I also believe in supernatural things like spirits, souls, and reincarnation, even though I accept the fact that we cannot prove or disprove them. I accept evolution, a universe that is illions and illions of years old, the big bang and the fact that homosexuality usually isn't a choice. As much as they are present in my Manuverse stories... I do not believe in creation, sin, miracles, prophecy, the power of prayer, heaven or hell. I really do not know where I stand with the idea of God. If I could make that decision i'd either be a Deist or an Atheist. Like I said in the last article there is a 50/50 chance that a deistic god exists and a 50/50 chance that one does not.
Atheists... I bet you are expecting me to say all Atheists are non religious. Sorry but thats not true... Many Buddhists are actually Atheists. An Atheist is a person who does not believe in a god. There are two types of atheists: Religious Atheists and Non-Religious Atheists. Like I said earlier many Buddhists are religious atheists. Non religious atheists reject the idea of god and religion. they believe that there is no logical way that there can be a god. Non religious atheists are the least trusted group of people in world... which is sad because most atheists I've met or talked to have been more charming and moral than the average theist I meet up with. For some reason people have it in their head that you need to have a God to have morals... this is hardly the case (but i will get into that in a future article)
There you go. a brief rundown of the 4 groups I will be talking about in my articles. I will warn you now that my main focus in the earlier articles will be fundamentalist Christianity so if you believe the world is 6000 years old, that Hell is actually biblical, that dinosaurs died on Noah's Ark and that Wicca and Homosexuality are grave sins worse than murder... prepare to be pwned. Eventually i'll get into other topics but for now its all fundamentalism.
Next up: "The Most Likely History of Theism" or "A look back to primitive mankind"
Lets start with Theists because there are more of them in the world than any other group (why is beyond me). Theists include Christians, Mormons, Catholics, Pagans, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and other religions that believe in worship a supernatural god or gods who dictates their life. There are three types of Theists: Monotheists, Polytheists and Henotheists. Monotheists are people who believe that there is only one God. Christians, Catholics, Jews and Muslims are examples of Monotheists. Polytheists are people who believe in and worship multiple Gods. Wiccans and Hindus are both examples of Polytheists. Henotheists only worship a single God but accept the idea of mulitple Gods. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a Henotheist religion. Many theists generally believe in some sort existence after this life whether it be heaven, paradise, reincarnation or something similar. Some theists accept scientific theories like Evolution and the Big Bang, while others reject them.
Deists are people who believe in a god of nature. They generally do not believe in supernatural things like miracles and prophets but instead believe that God created the universe and left it to us to rule over, choosing not to interfere with our freewill. Unlike most Theists, in my opinion, Deists have the right idea of true freewill. They reject creationism as stated in Genesis and prefer to side with the words of science over the words of scripture. They believe that logic and reasoning is the way to the right path and not faith.
Agnostics believe that we cannot prove or disprove that there is or isn't a god. Like deists they generally accept scientific theories. Agnostics, like deists, generally have varying beliefs... For example, from my own beliefs, I believe that Jesus was a real person, but not the son of God. I also believe in supernatural things like spirits, souls, and reincarnation, even though I accept the fact that we cannot prove or disprove them. I accept evolution, a universe that is illions and illions of years old, the big bang and the fact that homosexuality usually isn't a choice. As much as they are present in my Manuverse stories... I do not believe in creation, sin, miracles, prophecy, the power of prayer, heaven or hell. I really do not know where I stand with the idea of God. If I could make that decision i'd either be a Deist or an Atheist. Like I said in the last article there is a 50/50 chance that a deistic god exists and a 50/50 chance that one does not.
Atheists... I bet you are expecting me to say all Atheists are non religious. Sorry but thats not true... Many Buddhists are actually Atheists. An Atheist is a person who does not believe in a god. There are two types of atheists: Religious Atheists and Non-Religious Atheists. Like I said earlier many Buddhists are religious atheists. Non religious atheists reject the idea of god and religion. they believe that there is no logical way that there can be a god. Non religious atheists are the least trusted group of people in world... which is sad because most atheists I've met or talked to have been more charming and moral than the average theist I meet up with. For some reason people have it in their head that you need to have a God to have morals... this is hardly the case (but i will get into that in a future article)
There you go. a brief rundown of the 4 groups I will be talking about in my articles. I will warn you now that my main focus in the earlier articles will be fundamentalist Christianity so if you believe the world is 6000 years old, that Hell is actually biblical, that dinosaurs died on Noah's Ark and that Wicca and Homosexuality are grave sins worse than murder... prepare to be pwned. Eventually i'll get into other topics but for now its all fundamentalism.
Next up: "The Most Likely History of Theism" or "A look back to primitive mankind"
#1 - How I Lost Faith in Religion
This is the first in a series of blogs about religion. Before I begin I would like to state that I am an Agnostic in the fact that I do not believe that we can prove or disprove God, but Atheist in the fact that I do not worship any omnipotent god... I'm also a Satanist (not to be confused with Satan Worshipers), because I believe that in this mortal existence I am my own God.
I guess I should give a introduction as to why I am so fascinated by the concept of God, religion and faith. I was born an atheist just as everyone else is. I was baptized and indoctrinated into a protestant church by my mother and father. I spent the first ten years of my life believing that God was, without a doubt, real. I also believed that everyone in the world believed the same thing.
When I was 11 I discovered that there was no such thing as Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny. Logically the next thing that ran through my mind was "Does that mean the same applies for God?" I had been lied to by my parents about Santa and the Easter Bunny, so what was to say Christianity wasn't a big lie as well.
I was a creationist and a homophobe at first, but as I learned about Evolution and the big bang, and as I realized that I had sexual attraction to both males and females, I realized that i needed to start thinking more logically.
I was probably a deist for all that time, though I originally thought I was an atheist, being that i was so young. A couple times I told my mom that I had doubts about the Christian God but she retorted with info on near death experiences (I now know there is a scientific explanation for these... and also that no one gets into heaven until judgment day, according to the Holy Bible)... which just made me even more religiously confused.
Lets fast forward to March 2007, about one year ago. I don't know what happened here but my logical shield cracked at this time... probably because I desired truth.... Two Mormon missionaries came to my door and talked to me and my friend about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon... Sadly... I believed, or wanted to believe, what they dished out and was Baptized into the LDS faith within two weeks. My friend urged me not to but I was too stubborn to listen to him.
I was happy for a while, but then another good friend of mine got me thinking... "I'm a Transvestite and Bisexual... would these people really accept me if they knew that?" I also started reading the bible... something I did not do in my youth. The old testament disgusted me to the core. Rape, Religious Intolerance, Genocide, Slavery, Sexism... they where all condoned or demanded by the hypocritical and jealous Yahweh. I talked to the missionaries about this and they said "Well we don't know why God allowed these things but we're sure that it was part of his plan." Some plan... At this moment my logical shield began to reform itself. I told the missionaries that I was bisexual... and they said "Well... we know its not a choice but don't do it anyway." WTF?!
I began researching Mormonism and within 3 weeks of looking through hidden Mormon doctrine, praying to God, and reading forbidden "anti-Mormon" material, I came to the conclusion that the church couldn't possibly be true... and never returned.
At this point, while I was still thinking logically I came needy of spiritual growth and tried out other religions, like Paganism and Islam... And since Jesus seamed like less of a prick than his dad I tried out some less extreme forms of Christianity too... Only to realize it was just as much crock as everything else (I still believe that Jesus was a real man... a wise and respectable philosopher, even to the point that his picture is still up on my wall... I just don't believe he's the Son of God.). After Christianity I just gave up on practicing spirituality and decided that religion was a fraud and that it was impossible to comprehend or prove God.. I also decided that if whatever I want to aspire to do or be is within my own power, not the power of some being that doesn't even answer my prayers.
And thats the stand I'm at now... I still study up on different religions hoping that maybe I might find one that will click... but so far they all seam absurd. My parents, as much as i love them (but don't necessarily respect them), are quite ignorant individuals and are not too supportive of my decision to take this path. My mom thinks i flip flop between religions too often and that faith in a god is essential (then again she also thinks that Christmas is exclusively a Christian holiday and that Buddhism isn't a religion)... but honestly, Is that wrong? This is my eternal soul on the line here so I have to do what feels right... and the only way to do that is to learn all I can about religion and God...
Personally I believe that I'm going to be an Agnostic for the rest of my life... at most I'd become a deist... and even thats unlikely. I'll never become a pure atheist because I feel its just a logical that there be a creating force in this universe as there is for there not to be one. Its a 50/50 chance really.
Well I guess this wraps up this essay... Next time I will be doing an introduction on Atheism, Theism, Deism and Agnosticism, just to get warmed up for topics ahead.
Manu Out!
I guess I should give a introduction as to why I am so fascinated by the concept of God, religion and faith. I was born an atheist just as everyone else is. I was baptized and indoctrinated into a protestant church by my mother and father. I spent the first ten years of my life believing that God was, without a doubt, real. I also believed that everyone in the world believed the same thing.
When I was 11 I discovered that there was no such thing as Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny. Logically the next thing that ran through my mind was "Does that mean the same applies for God?" I had been lied to by my parents about Santa and the Easter Bunny, so what was to say Christianity wasn't a big lie as well.
I was a creationist and a homophobe at first, but as I learned about Evolution and the big bang, and as I realized that I had sexual attraction to both males and females, I realized that i needed to start thinking more logically.
I was probably a deist for all that time, though I originally thought I was an atheist, being that i was so young. A couple times I told my mom that I had doubts about the Christian God but she retorted with info on near death experiences (I now know there is a scientific explanation for these... and also that no one gets into heaven until judgment day, according to the Holy Bible)... which just made me even more religiously confused.
Lets fast forward to March 2007, about one year ago. I don't know what happened here but my logical shield cracked at this time... probably because I desired truth.... Two Mormon missionaries came to my door and talked to me and my friend about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon... Sadly... I believed, or wanted to believe, what they dished out and was Baptized into the LDS faith within two weeks. My friend urged me not to but I was too stubborn to listen to him.
I was happy for a while, but then another good friend of mine got me thinking... "I'm a Transvestite and Bisexual... would these people really accept me if they knew that?" I also started reading the bible... something I did not do in my youth. The old testament disgusted me to the core. Rape, Religious Intolerance, Genocide, Slavery, Sexism... they where all condoned or demanded by the hypocritical and jealous Yahweh. I talked to the missionaries about this and they said "Well we don't know why God allowed these things but we're sure that it was part of his plan." Some plan... At this moment my logical shield began to reform itself. I told the missionaries that I was bisexual... and they said "Well... we know its not a choice but don't do it anyway." WTF?!
I began researching Mormonism and within 3 weeks of looking through hidden Mormon doctrine, praying to God, and reading forbidden "anti-Mormon" material, I came to the conclusion that the church couldn't possibly be true... and never returned.
At this point, while I was still thinking logically I came needy of spiritual growth and tried out other religions, like Paganism and Islam... And since Jesus seamed like less of a prick than his dad I tried out some less extreme forms of Christianity too... Only to realize it was just as much crock as everything else (I still believe that Jesus was a real man... a wise and respectable philosopher, even to the point that his picture is still up on my wall... I just don't believe he's the Son of God.). After Christianity I just gave up on practicing spirituality and decided that religion was a fraud and that it was impossible to comprehend or prove God.. I also decided that if whatever I want to aspire to do or be is within my own power, not the power of some being that doesn't even answer my prayers.
And thats the stand I'm at now... I still study up on different religions hoping that maybe I might find one that will click... but so far they all seam absurd. My parents, as much as i love them (but don't necessarily respect them), are quite ignorant individuals and are not too supportive of my decision to take this path. My mom thinks i flip flop between religions too often and that faith in a god is essential (then again she also thinks that Christmas is exclusively a Christian holiday and that Buddhism isn't a religion)... but honestly, Is that wrong? This is my eternal soul on the line here so I have to do what feels right... and the only way to do that is to learn all I can about religion and God...
Personally I believe that I'm going to be an Agnostic for the rest of my life... at most I'd become a deist... and even thats unlikely. I'll never become a pure atheist because I feel its just a logical that there be a creating force in this universe as there is for there not to be one. Its a 50/50 chance really.
Well I guess this wraps up this essay... Next time I will be doing an introduction on Atheism, Theism, Deism and Agnosticism, just to get warmed up for topics ahead.
Manu Out!
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