Religion & Spirituality - 25 May 2007

I invite you all to say something you admire about a faith other than your own. To preface, I am a born-again Christian. But I can see merits in other people's faiths. So I will begin.
I admire Jewish people for being true to scripture as they understand it.
I admire Muslims for their devotion; I wish I stopped to thank God for His blessings as many times a day as they do.
I admire Mormons for valuing a tight-knit, devoted family.
I admire Agnostics for their honesty. It's okay to say you don't know when you really don't know.

There, I've done it. Next?

Oh, and you know what your mom said- "if you can't say something nice..." :-) Blessings! Everyone have a great night.

2007-05-25 14:40:00 · 16 answers · asked by hoff_mom 4

Genesis 2:1-3, Exodus 20, 8-11, Isaiah 66:22-23, Mark 2 :27, Note not for the jews but for man,, Psalms 111:2-4,,Ezekiel 20:20, John 17:3, Exodus 31: 13,17,Ezekiel 20:12,Revelation 4:11,Acts 14:15, Acts 17:23,24, Mark 2:28, this is the LORD'S DAY, not sunday. HE identifies it here.

2007-05-25 14:36:13 · 19 answers · asked by Anonymous

2007-05-25 14:34:17 · 20 answers · asked by ? 4

2007-05-25 14:33:33 · 20 answers · asked by Josh C 1

If your brother, the son of your father or of your mother, or your son or daughter, or the spouse whom you embrace, or your most intimate friend, tries to secretly seduce you, saying, “Let us go and serve other gods,” unknown to you or your ancestors before you, gods of the peoples surrounding you, whether near you or far away, anywhere throughout the world, you must not consent, you must not listen to him; you must show him no pity, you must not spare him or conceal his guilt. No, you must kill him, your hand must strike the first blow in putting him to death and the hands of the rest of the people following. You must stone him to death, since he has tried to divert you from Yahweh your God. . . .(Deuteronomy 13:7–11)

2007-05-25 14:32:50 · 10 answers · asked by darqcrimson 1

If god were bothered by your 'sins' one way or another that would give you a form of power over him.
That doesn't make sense from the stand point of a deity. You're telling me the creature that created black holes and galaxies and planets is going to torment you forever because you looked at another human naked? What kind of sense does that make?
That's like an Ant calling me a four letter word. First off I wouldn't even know, second - I wouldn't care, third - I wouldn't torture it forever out of vengence. Who has that kind of time?

2007-05-25 14:31:36 · 20 answers · asked by Biggest Douche in the Universe 3

2007-05-25 14:28:42 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous

2007-05-25 14:25:56 · 21 answers · asked by carrillo7lucky 1

We were in my physics class the other day, and one of my friends asked a question about the behaivor of light. He knew what it did, he just wanted to know why the light reacted in a certain way. Before our teacher could answer, another guy in our class, who is really religious, said "Because God made it that way." Everyone kind of ignored him a little bit, and our teacher went on to explain that we still didn't really understand what things like that really were. But the guy said that several more times when we asked a "why" question; "Because God made it that way."
So my question is, isn't this just an excuse to not look deeper into something? Whenever a "why" question is asked, the answer from religious people seems to be"Because God made it that way", and that is as far as they will go. Has anyone else seen this? Or if you are one of those people, do you use that when you don't know the answer?

2007-05-25 14:22:59 · 7 answers · asked by runner08 3

2007-05-25 14:22:31 · 9 answers · asked by Sapere Aude 5

can you tell me if i should change anything or if you have any ideas?????
I believe Speech
I believe Speech
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” 1st Corinthians 13:13
I believe in loving God unconditionally and I will try my hardest to be like him. I don’t just want to say I am a Christian and not live it out. To me in order for me to be a Christian, I need to work hard and follow what Jesus did or at least try too. I will share my faith and will never turn against him. I believe in God and to love him unconditionally, I will strive to want to know more about him. Ron Luce once said we have a choice on being a “seeker” someone who goes to church but doesn’t try hard to make their faith stronger. A “student” someone who reads the bible and wants to learn about God or we can be a “stalker” someone who just wants to know everything about God. I believe I am a stalker; I would like to know all I can about God.

2007-05-25 14:22:31 · 3 answers · asked by godschild 5

The Question is ……… What MOTIVE did Jewish Scholars have to change the story of Ishmael ?

The Romans and Greeks could never conquer or Hellenize the children of Ishmael. That is why the Arabs knew the name of Allah generations after Abraham taught Ishmael and then Ishmael taught his descendants.

Gods plan was to save the lineage of Ishmael from all the disasters that were to befall Jerusalem and then the Final Prophet from the rod of Jesse (Ishmael) would come from the land of Ke’dar (Arabia).

God commanded Abraham to leave his family in the desert of Paran (Arabia) and we know from history that the miraculous well given to Hagar and Ishmael is beside the Black stone building built by Abraham in the Holy city of Mecca.

God sent Hagar and the first born of Abraham into the wilderness when Ishmael was a baby….. and not when he was a 17 year old like what the scholars wrote in the bible.

A mother does not carry a 17 year old on her shoulder and then place the crying child of 17 yrs. under a bush and walk away while he dies of thirst.

It is abundantly clear from the story in Gen. 21:14-19 that Ishmael was a little baby at that time. Following is the documentation of this statement:

According to Gen. 16:16 Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born. And according to Gen.21:5 Abraham was one hundred years old when Isaac was born. It follows that Ishmael was already fourteen years old when his younger brother Isaac was born.

According to Gen. 21:14-19, the jealousy incident took place after Issac was weaned. Biblical scholars tell us that “the child was weaned about the age of three”.

It follows that when Hagar and Ishmael were taken away Ishmael was a full grown teenager seventeen year old.

The profile of Ishmael in Gen. 21:14-19, however , is that of a small baby and not of a teenager.
Why ?

First : According to the Interpreters Bible , the original Hebrew for Gen.21:14 was “…and put the child upon her shoulder”. The same reading is rendered in the Revised Standard Edition of the Bible.

How would a mother carry a Seventeen year old teenager “upon her shoulder? Certainly he was strong enough to carry his mother !
Ishmael must have been a baby .

Second : In Gen. 21:15 we are told that Hagar “cast” the child under one of the shrubs. Again, according to this Biblical text Ishmael must have been a baby and not a seventeen year old man.

Third: In Gen. 21:16 we are told that Hagar sat away so that she may not see the death of the child before her eyes. Is that a profile of a husky seventeen year old teenager who was probably capable of being worried about his mother dying before his eyes? Or is it obviously a profile of a small helpless baby or at most a small child?

Fourth : According to Gen. 21:17, the angels told Hagar “arise, lift up the lad”. Is a seventeen year old young man a proper object to be “lifted up” by a woman? Or is that a reference to a small child or baby?

Fifth: In Gen. 21:19, we are told that Hagar went to fill the bottle with water “and give the lad a drink”. One would expect a strong young man of seventeen to go and bring water to his mother instead.

The non Jewish version of the story is fully consistent and coherent from A to Z; Ishmael was a baby and Isaac was not born yet when this incident took place. This coherence and consistency are confirmed by centuries-old traditions and even actual locations in Mecca where Hagar and Ishmael settled. This clearly implies that the real reason behind their settlement in Arabia (Paran) was not the dictation, jealousy, ego or sense of racial superiority on the part of Sarah. It was rather God’s plan; pure and simple. The lineage of Ishmael was to be protected from the disasters that were to befall Jerusalem and the surrounding area.

It may be relevant to indicate that this issue is not the only instance of inconsistency in respect to Ishmael’s story. The Interpreters Bible compares the story of Hagar and Ishmael in Gen. 21:14-19 with that in an earlier chapter (Gen. 16:1-16) and concludes “the inclusion in Genesis of both stories so nearly alike and yet sufficiently different to be inconsistent, is one of many instances of the reluctance of the compilers to sacrifice any of the traditions which has become established in Israel.” (Interpreters Bible, ibid, p. 604)


Obviously early scholars fabricated the story of a spat between Isaac and Ishmael so they could disown the first born and have a God only for themselves to the exclusion of all others.


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2007-05-25 14:21:42 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous

see the following: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18,Ecclesiastes 9:5, Mark 5:39, John 11:11, 14, and John 20:17... Revelation 21:8, Revelation 20:6 for starters.

2007-05-25 14:20:15 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous

It strikes me as hysterical that the humanist/skeptic group that calls themselves "FREE INQUIRY" are actually against "FREE INQUIRY".

The Creation Museum actually presents both views and and lets the visitors judge and weigh the evidence themselves. The Creation Museum should be supported by the "FREE INQUIRY" groups. I don't expect it anytime soon, because their bias and assumptions will not allow that to happen because they are against questioning Evolution. Why,
Because if people are given the evidence that puts evolution in a bad light, they may not believe it... and that is against their religion. Why do they even care if people believe in God or not? What does it matter to them. They reject the idea that there could even be a Creator God. What do they fear? Perhaps they fear, being exposed as fools?

2007-05-25 14:17:59 · 18 answers · asked by Kurt 1

2007-05-25 14:15:39 · 18 answers · asked by MrsOcultyThomas 6

“…take not life, which God hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law: thus doth He command you, that ye may learn wisdom.”
[Al-Qur’an 6:151]

“…if any one slew a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people.”
[Al-Qur’an 5:32]


Even in a state of war, Islam enjoins that one deals with the enemy nobly on the battlefield. Islam has drawn a clear line of distinction between the combatants and the non-combatants of the enemy country. As far as the non-combatant population is concerned such as women, children, the old and the infirm, etc., the instructions of the Prophet are as follows: "Do not kill any old person, any child or any woman"[1]. "Do not kill the monks in monasteries" or "Do not kill the people who are sitting in places of worship.

2007-05-25 14:15:03 · 6 answers · asked by Love Exists? 6

Christians: do you admit being an advocate for a person who willfully and knowingly sends people to be tortured for all of eternity?

do you find that act to be justifiable for the nonreciprocation of belief?

do you think this act would be done by an all loving being?

do you beleive your actions here on this planet warrants eternal pain and torture?

how do you justify your continuing belief and professed love towards a diety that would do such horrible things?

how do you justify saying that he is worthy of love, faith, and worship?

do you find these acts to be horrible? if so then why would you side with such a horrible diety?

2007-05-25 14:13:38 · 12 answers · asked by johnny.zondo 6

When the original text said, "Man should not be "warmed" by bread alone.

2007-05-25 14:11:25 · 14 answers · asked by MrsOcultyThomas 6

Deut. 21:15 If a man have two wives, one beloved, and another hated, and they have born him children, both the beloved and the hated; and if the firstborn son be hers that was hated:

Deut. 21:16 Then it shall be, when he maketh his sons to inherit that which he hath, that he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the son of the hated, which is indeed the firstborn:

Deut. 21:17 But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a DOUBLE portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.

.

2007-05-25 14:09:11 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous

2007-05-25 14:07:46 · 28 answers · asked by S 1

2007-05-25 14:05:47 · 21 answers · asked by Anonymous

Let me explain

In Canada, we have publicly funded Catholic Schools (which have to accept all denominations, but the students have to accept that Religion is taught).

And

We also have publicly funded Public Schools (which also accepts all denominations, but the students have to accept and realize that Religious concepts are not taught)

Does the United States follow a similar model with Public and may Christian schools?

2007-05-25 14:05:10 · 14 answers · asked by Sapere Aude 5

ok for example you do something terrible to someone and then you are sorry, according to Christian analogy your sin is forgiven... But what about that person? What if that person did not forgive you? how could Jesus (pbuh) override that person's hurt to forgive you? logical or illogical? you cheat on some one or rape some one then feel sorry for it, if it is not for consequences people do it over and over then feel sorry they did it...

2007-05-25 14:04:26 · 8 answers · asked by Love Exists? 6

It's seems to be just more athropomorphism or in other words giving God human attributes...a brain and intellect like ours.

2007-05-25 14:01:28 · 11 answers · asked by CHEESUS GROYST 5

It is my view that more than reciting text book prayers at home and places of worship, if we are of help to our brethren in distress, we shall enjoy real satisfaction in life and God's blessings. I write this having suffered starvation in my younger days. Many a time I even cried out of hunger. And in my every day communication - even this day too - with God I remember a person who gave me a Christmas gift about 67 years ago to put me at par with other children. It is my practice to give some relief to some deserving individuals and not organisations of ostentation. Don't you think it is our duty to share God's gifts to us with our not so fortunate brethren? Please excuse me if you find this message a little personal. lileeann33...

2007-05-25 14:01:10 · 21 answers · asked by Nimit 2

This is something that I have always been curious about. Does the bible say anything or make refrence to Masturbation or pornography or anything of that nature?

2007-05-25 13:58:21 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous

This is a mistake. In Mark 2:26 it mentions a story found in 1 Samuel 22, but there it says the priest's name was Ahimelech. So did Jesus make the mistake, or Mark? Notice that Matthew's Gospel, which used Mark as a source, 'fixes' Mark's mistake by leaving out the high priest's name (Matt. 12:4).

2007-05-25 13:54:42 · 5 answers · asked by jamesfrankmcgrath 4

A close friend just sent me an email that her younger brother commited suicide within the last couple days, and the viewing is tomorrow. If one of your close family members commited suicide, apart from the obvious answers like praying for the family, and expressing sympathy,
What did your friends do for you in this situation that comforted you the most?
What did your friends not do for you in this situation, that you wish they had done?
Thank you for your answers in advance.....

2007-05-25 13:53:30 · 18 answers · asked by beatlefan 7

If yes... then what's up with masturbation and sleeping with multiple partners.... your opinion please.

2007-05-25 13:52:40 · 3 answers · asked by alexandredz 3

I mean there are other views besides the Christian one. If we are to allow this view as Intelligent Design, then we should be teaching all others.
Buddhist
Zoroastrian
Native American
Hindu

I mean they have beliefs that are just as valid as Intelligent Design (as proposed by Christians), why not?

Oh, I know .. because that would be taught in a Religious Theory class not Science!
Leave Science where it is, and have students select electives in Highschool that would include other Religious Beliefs ..
This way they are exposed and have the choice to make their own decisions, on which religion they would like to believe or not over science.

2007-05-25 13:52:32 · 18 answers · asked by Sapere Aude 5