First of all, I suppose by definition I am a protestant, let's just leave it at that for now. Remember also that these are MY beliefs, based on faith, and what little fact and science I know. It is by no means an attack against anyone else's beliefs.

Why do I believe in God?

When I look at the way this Universe is constructed, from the most massive galaxy clusters, down to the smallest particles like electrons and quarks, it is very clear that this is the work of a supreme intelligence. There is no way in hell this enormously complex structure just appeared randomly, it's far too complex not to have been created by someone, or something. I will not deny the fact that maybe it is random, because nobody knows 100% certain what exactly the universe is, but I have faith that it is the work of God. We can also turn to ourselves and our environment to see strong evidence of a creator.

Why do I believe in the Bible?

The Bible is a compilation of the history of man since the beggining of the universe, all the way to the very end. Science tells us that the universe is billions of years old. They use as evindence mathematicals formulas that may or may not be correct. Science tells of evolution, which to the chandrin of the scientific community has never been proven; kind of like the Loch Ness monster, which has much scientific theory to back up it's existence, but no one has ever found the creature. For me it's easier to believe what the Bible says regarding our creation, than it is to believe what science tries to portray. Another big reason I believe is because of the fact that the history of the world even to this very day can be found in its predictions, and so far everything looks like it's going on schedule.

Why I believe Jesus is God.

Since I believe in the Bible, I also believe its history, and it tells of a man who called himself the Son of God. Either he was the Son of God, or he was crazy. I believe he died on a cross, and also believe he ressurected. Some say that he didn't resurrect. This doesn't make sense to me because if he didn't resurrect, then the Romans would not have payed off their guards to keep quiet (you can read this in the Bible), and if it is true that the Disciples did steal the corpse, then it doesn't make sense to me how they could have had such a commitment to teach and preach Jesus' word, even under extreme persecussion (all the Apostles were martyred except for one)when they KNEW it was all a LIE! I know I wouldn't risk my life on a lie that benefits nobody.

Why has religion being "of God" committed such atrocities?

I won't pretend to understand the full history of what happened. I know that when Constantinople converted to Christianity he declared it to be the official "religion".
This was a huge mistake! because you can't force people to change what they believe in their hearts. This is a big problem even today, where people base themselves on their "religion" but they don't really believe it, they just "go with the flow" so to speak.
Many said to be believers, but were frauds and used religion to do whatever they pleased hurting others, and staining religion's "good name".

What's the point in following something which is backward and ancient, such as religion/faith?

It's not about religion and faith!!!! and I will prove it to you! These are just facts, nothing here is meant to piss anyone off, so I hope it doesn't:

The Catholic church declares itself to be the "True" faith. Yet they insist on taking the place of Jesus and giving it to the Virgin Mary, which is something the Bible was against. The first commandment clearly states that "You shall not honor or worship any images or idols other than myself" (ok, I'm paraphrasing, I can't remember exactly what it says) but the Catholic church insists on having statues and icons of the Virgin Mary, all different types of Saints, etc. There are many other things that they screw up, it's a long list. This involves Orthodox and Anglican, which are essencially all the same.

Then you have a whole bunch of screwed up doctrines, like the Jehova's Witnesses, which DON'T believe Jesus is God, and give him second place. The Mormons, which is essencially a fairy tale made up by some guy who wanted to screw broads. Many others which I will not get into (otherwise this post would turn into a book)

Why does the Bible teach against homosexuality?

This is a loaded one, because it has been used as backbone for many hate crimes. What people fail to realize is that homosexuality is just another sin, like lying, stealing, murdering, etc. Anyone who commits any of these sins is no better than the other, so there is no backing of homophobic behaviour.
As you know, I am a christian, and I don't hate gay people, and neither does Jesus. He wants them to realize their sins and come to him, just like any other sinner.

How can you believe the Bible is 100% true to the original? it must have been changed hundreds of times over the centuries!

Well, I can't be 100% certain that it hasn't, but luckily I can see evidence that it hasn't changed. I can read English, Spanish, and Greek. I have compared all 3 languages, and as far as I can tell (I'm no linguistics expert) they seem to have the same message. Yes, different grammar, but the meaning is the same. I believe the Bible has succesfully been kept intact for the most part (for sure the parts that matter)

Well, I can't think of any other questions at the moment, if you actually read this whole thing, you will probably have questions, I guess I'll do my best to answer them, 'till then, have a nice day...

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"Mr. Phillips, are you honestly telling me that people are really going to believe that I'm the 'before,' and he's the 'after'?"

A: He took 7 days to create the world. On the 7th day he rested which is Sunday. What do men do on Sundays? Rest and watch sports.

i can show you evolution anytime...i can demonstrate it in nature or in a lab...i can show you how strains of bacteria are selected against in the presence of prophylaxis, and how this pressure gives rise to resistant variants...i can show you how darker colored moths increased in number during the industrial revolution in england, due to the pollution altering the natural color of tree bark, making the lighter colored ones stand out for predators...

now if you would like to discuss punctuated equilibrium vs. genetic drift, we can begin the debate...

why do christians have such a problem with evolution, it must really, deep down, challenge their beliefs....

i went to a christian church on christmas eve, i was thoroughly repulsed...its obsessive fixation on jesus christ in relation to god is silly...it offered no moral guidance, the preacher kept mouthing meaningless platitudes that i've heard so many times before...he was also stupid...like most preachers here in the south..with that insincere grin of a used car salesman...ugh, im grossed out remembering it...

ive found attending temple with my jewish mother a worthwhile exercise...rabbi's are a hell of a lot smarter and more interesting compared to their christian counter parts...

judaism is deeply philosophical, with an emphasis on actions over talk..it also addresses the fundamental problems intelligent people have with faith...when you must discard your most powerful tools, reason and logic...

i will never understand why people like yourself believe that their thoughts are truth. i am not putting you down, i would never do that.

religious folks believe their faith is right, and ANYONE and EVERYONE who does not share their beliefs is wrong and bound for hell. what i dont get is each of the major religions has a major following. if their was a god, then would he not have shown himself to each major religion a few thousand years ago? did he show himself different?

why is it that if you are born into a jewish family you would go to hell (according to christians due to the fact they have the same beliefs)? why is it that who and where your born should effect your eternal afterlife? how many jews do you know become christians? how many muslims change their beliefs? MOST people get their religion from their families, its handed down for years and years... forever really. so if i am born into a strict jewish family, i would be hell bound due to them? that makes no sense.

why is it that an ALL MIGHTY, omniscient, omnipotent being would need to be worshipped and believed in? shouldnt he be above that? shouldnt he be beyond the petty praise given to him? seems he has somewhat of an ego that nees fulfillment.

It seems that this ego is a weakness actually, and if he is all powerful he should have no weaknesses. he should show himself to people to PROVE his existance, and before you say he shows himself in everyway, allow me... since he is our creator he should KNOW that the human mind questions things, and many need to actually SEE him in order to believe... i believe iin the sun, its there, i can see it... the moon too... even the stars and dirt and water... but no god??? why not just pop up one day, open the skies, and say hi? why must someone have faith in order to be saved and blessed? he is supposed to KNOW that we need help and faith sometimes just isnt enough.

why should we be punished for a flaw that god gave us? he is perfect, yet made it so we would question him KNOWING the entire time that MANY people who have the sense to question things will conclude that THEY DO NOT HAVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT GOD MAY BE OR IF HE EXISTS... god is flawed in that regard.

i could go on and on, but wont... i could also pull out oodles of books and theories that support or "disprove" gods existance, i wont...

one last comment... the bible was written 30-60 years after the death of jesus... by humans, error prone humans... not the word i want to live by...

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Many things in life will catch your eye, but few will catch your
heart. Pursue those

"Fighting for peace is like fucking for virginity."

"In the 60's people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird, and people take prozac to make it normal."

another thing that gets me, is murderers accepting jesus and repenting for their sins being accepted by the christian (catholic i know of) faith as heaven goers...

yes i'm baiting you into a flamefest...

quote:

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If others don't, or have no direction, I know exactly how that feels and wouldn't wish that on anyone.

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Yet in that statemnent it sounds like you're implying that if someone doesn't believe in god they have no direction.

What to you is direction? Knowing what you want to do in life, or worrying what some guy in the sky thinks about you?

Who are you to judge anyone when you're living your life for someone that you'll never see, ever.

anyway.. wasn't the torah (the old testement) not completely written down and in it's current form until the threat of destruction loomed from Rome.. a good 40 years after Jesus had died?

Yes there were stories before that, but a lot of word of mouth, and different books and versions if I remember my history.

Where's my Josephus book, I haven't seen that in years...

thats not a person/thing/entity, i want to be associated with. that, is an egotistical maniac who wants full and complete dictatorship rule... his word, no opening for discussion, no room for thought and exploration....

You are an inspiration to your fellow brothers and sisters on this board. I feel lately that I've slacked off and is near the path of backsliding. With that in mind, I can understand why everyone is so touchy about religion. There was an earlier post about religion and faith that already touched on this...let me summarize some things. Religion is man-made....faith is not. Your relationship with God is faith, not a religion or any kind of practice. Yes, we can all be judgemental sometimes, and I've had my fair share of sins in life, but I can always be confident that if I am sincere about asking for forgiveness, I will receive it.

Ganggreen:

I don't really understand what you are saying? Can you explain it...all I said in response to your earlier post is that in the end, all the good deeds in life you have accomplished may not mean a thing if you don't have faith. You might ask, "then why do people bother doing good deeds?" Well, if you've ever get a chance to talk to people who believe in God, they don't do their good deeds to earn merit points. Its part of the commission of God. Its that simple. When Jesus walked on the earth, he was doing good deeds, helping people out. Obviously, being a follower of Him, we would want to do walk in the right path as well. And that may mean doing good deeds. The point I'm getting at is this...if you believe in Jesus, the last thing you worry about is doing good deeds because I tell you bro, it will come naturally.

Mr H:

No one knows exactly what happened to the dinosaurs, but there is a brief passage in the Bible that hints at their existence before Noah's Ark.

cutemonkey:

The reason christians go to church on Sunday is because Sunday was the day Jesus ressurected. The Jewish faith believes we are in sin because we have ignored the Sabbath (Saturday). You're right, this is constantly debated. You are also correct, being a model citizen doesn't make a difference. That's like having a tank full of gas, but no battery.

special_bill:

I think you're confusing evolution with the ability many creatures have to adapt.
just because because your body starts to adapt to cold weather, or your eyes start to adapt to bright light doesn't mean we're "evolving". One thing that doesn't make sense to me is this: If we originally evolved from a single cell, was it just one cell?
couldn't more cells have been formed using the same proccess? This would mean that different creatures would be at different stages in their evolutionary pattern. This means that we should be seeing Man, Neandrathal, Ape, and species even below that walking around. So where's the missing link? no live specimens, no fossils of anything that was between man and monkey. Now you could argue that there was only one cell, and therefore every creature evolved at the same rate. So why are there still all different type of monkeys??? they should all be human by now!

GangGreen:

I was going to write a large explanation to your questions, but I will simplify like this: Who are YOU to question God's motives?
If there really is a God, and he is omnipotent and omniscient, then what difference does it make what you think of his plan? you're not in any position to argue why he wants what he wants or does what he does. If you wish to go against him, then you better hope your gamble goes well, and hope that he doesn't exist, because if he does, you're finished...

The Canadian Oak:

Can you be a succesful student without going to school?

TEXASAMM'S GURL:

Interesting, but you don't have to follow God on total blind faith, that's what I'm trying to show in these posts.

Mr. Roarke:

I don't fear death, but you are right that we do need meaning in life. To be honest with you, it would be much easier if when we die, we just dissapear, but unfortunately it doesn't look that way so far.

Keep'em coming boys!

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"Mr. Phillips, are you honestly telling me that people are really going to believe that I'm the 'before,' and he's the 'after'?"

Since we don't live in the same atmosephere of early earth, it would be impossible to start life in exactly the same way. However such living fossils that do breath sulfer dioxide are living today.

For a more recent example, (the out of africa theory) there are evidence in early human habitations of co-existance between early humans and other types of proto-humans hominids, however recent DNA evidence suggests that early humans killed non-human competitors for territory and food, as well as other humans not part of the immediate tribe.

who are you to believe a book written by humans? i mean, humans make a TON of mistakes right? and yet, you take all of the human writings as the word of god...

see, i KNOW who you are future... in short, you were born into a strongly religious family, MAYBE your father has something to do with the priesthood?

christians best answer is always "you must have faith". i need more, i am educated. logic means much more to me then faith.

and people do good things out of humanity, they do not do them so god accepts them, they do them for themselves, cuz it feels good to help. all i need is faith to get into heaven??? gee, i wonder how many postmen who went nutty on a gun rampage had faith and are now in heaven DESPITE what they did...

faith...... or..... proof

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Many things in life will catch your eye, but few will catch your
heart. Pursue those

"Fighting for peace is like fucking for virginity."

"In the 60's people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird, and people take prozac to make it normal."

1. If I were a mass murder killing over 10 million people and before my death I repented and I "really-really meant it" and "accepted Jesus as my savior" - then according to them I go to heaven.

2. If I were the person who invented a cure for AIDS for NO OTHER reason than my own self interest (i.e. money only! I didn't give a shit about the people I cure) then this would be classified as vile and greedy. If I were this person I would go to Hell.

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I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO GO TO MARS..

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"Mr. Phillips, are you honestly telling me that people are really going to believe that I'm the 'before,' and he's the 'after'?"

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Weights before dates

The Pauline Church was the church in the first century AD - St Paul changed much of the Bible to more easily be acceptable to the Roman empire.

The influence of the Roman empire may actually be greater than any other influence on the church. When the emperor Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the empire (c. 315 AD) he did so only to reduce discord.

Additionally (this is little known) Constantine's mother walked through what is now Israel and simply selected sites of significance....for example, she would read a verse from a Bible, walk to a ocation, and say "This looks like where Jesus fell the first time"....these historical things that Christians now worship were chosen haphazardly by the emperor's mother.

The stories of Christian persecution are also woefully exaggerated. Romans didn't only throw Christians to the lions, they threw EVERYONE to the lions. There is recorded evidence that the Romans crucified a Jew from every village during an early Jewish uprising as an example to those who would resist.

NO ORGANZIATION HAS BEEN AS POWERFUL AND UN-PROGRESSIVE AS THE CHURCH IN THE HISTORY OF MANKIND. NO ORGANIZATION HAS HELD US BACK SO MUCH. NO ORGANIZATION HAS BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MISTREATMENT OF MORE PEOPLE....FROM THE CRUSADES TO THE INQUISITION TO THE HOLOCAUST, THE INFLUENCE OF THE CHURCH HAS BEEN THERE.

What I see in these posts is a lot of people who don't know a whole lot about history. Those of you who are non-believers are as a group just as clueless as the others. Me...well - I've been saying for a while that faith and religion are two different things.....