Christianity?

Question

I used to be a practicing catholic and believe everything 100% Now as im getting older, not neccesarily old, just not a young child anymore(14) I realized christians on here seem kind of brainwashed. like you never question anything, especially the fact that the bible was written by man, and not in english. I mean the general message of the bible was love others, which is great. But it also seems like much of this whole religion is fear tactic and contradiction. like jesus saying forgive your brother 77 times, but sending people who dont ask for foregiveness until they realize theres a god to hell. I mean, the religion is supposed to teach tolerance and love, but there are some christians who believe inter-racial marriage is wrong, homosexuality is quote "the devil", and only love people with the same political and religious views as them. I mean I love a lot of christians and catholics. My whole family is catholic, 80% of my friends are catholic, but don't any of you ever question it?

gaurav is that the religion of the hard rock cafe by any chance?

Answer 1

of course i question it sometimes. its only normal. as to inter racial marriage, and the rest you said, not all christians believe the same thing or judge so easily. as a matter of fact, NO ONE should judge except for god. so dont listen to them.

love others, love god, love yourself. i dont see the harm in that

Answer 2

The people who believe homosexuals are evil and those who think inter-ratial marriage is wrong are the types of people who aren't really Christian. The cannot claim that Jesus was our savior and was an example of love to all if they break that example and cannot love others for who they are. The fear tactic isn't used in the churches I've been to (I'm a practicing Roman Catholic). It shouldn't be used. We should always recognize where we can end up if we are not kind people, but we should always remember that God is pure love, and will always welcome us back in His arms.
I recognize the fact that the Bible was written by men, and not written in the English language, but I believe that the men who wrote the books of the Bible were divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit.
I question my faith all the time. That's what makes it stronger. I listen to everyone, some of whom say things that contradict my faith, and I try to find a way of debunking that person, but if I find that what they believe is more heart-filled and loving (following the example of Jesus) than what I believe, then I change my beliefs. For example, I used to think that people who didn't believe in God were going to hell (something which is completly against Catholic social thought, and should not be believed by anyone who is Christian). I now believe that no matter who you are, or what religion you are, if you are a good person, you will go to Heaven.

Since you are (or at least, once were) Catholic, I suggest you have a look at this website: http://www.osjspm.org/cst/
You are completely right. Religion IS supposed to teach tolerance and love.

Edit:
Wow, I didn't realize your age. I'm so glad you're asking the right questions at your age (I guess that's not saying much from me, I'm only 18). You'll find the right answers within you, not in what other people think or believe. Don't lose your faith because of them.

Answer 3

My personal opinion, the bible was written by man. Some Christians say that's true, but it was inspired by God. What do they have to go by? The bible. It's circular logic. I don't dispute that there's some great spiritual truths in the bible, but there's also some pretty messed up stuff, check out this: http://www.evilbible.com/ The point is, maybe it was written by a higher power, or maybe it wasn't, but there's really no way to know. I do have faith. Faith in science, faith in logic, faith in reason, faith in myself. But I don't have faith in the Bible. Science, logic, and reason, have shown to give accurate results time after time, while the Bible is sort of hit and miss. When it misses, the Christians will tell you 'it's the will of God' and leave it at that. With science when something goes wrong you can try and figure out what the problem was, and if you can repeat the results, you just may have a new theory on your hands. Science is flexible, the Bible is rigid. I'm not saying that I completely discount the possibility of God, in fact I'm sure there's something. I just don't think the answers are in religion. Especially when you're made to feel like a bad person for trying to figure out the problems that religion doesn't solve.

Answer 4

14...that's about the time I started really questioning it. That's good! You NEED to understand your beliefs and why you believe what you believe.

I went to Catholic School through 8th grade, came out with more questions than answers, basically turned my back on God for a few years and became a Christian as an adult.

There are some people who profess to be Christians who have checked their brains at the door, so to speak, but really you have to think if you claim to be a Christian. It's the only religion where it's allowed, much less encouraged!

If you have any really specific questions, especially about Christianity vs Catholicism, or misunderstood Christianity vs Real Christianity, just ask. You can send messages to me personally here or keep popping in Y!A....somebody will probably give you opinions anyway.

Answer 5

Well, for one, the Bible was written by men who was inspired by God. Not just some random man, they had a calling. The truth is noone knows, but u have to believe that God is who He says He is. Forgiving 77 times is a saying meaning to continue to forgive. Everyone who is not saved is on the road to hell, but confessing your sins and asking for forgiveness is really easy. As far as homosexuals u can love them but not the idea of it. It's a Law if Life. Our two main instincts are to eat and reproduce. the latter can't be done like God created. But who do you say Jesus is? Are you worrying about what God thinks, or what ppl think.? Being a Christian is spiritual so u can dismiss all this earthly stuff.

Answer 6

Maybe Yahoo! Answers is probably not the best place searching for answers to questions as yours... as you can't see or know who you're actually talking to.. why they have their beliefs and more about their background..

hmmm... with that in mind.. allow me to share my thoughts... hehe

Some people say Christians are encouraged to insult others who don't believe.. to only love people with the same views as them, but what you must realize is this wasn't Jesus Christ's message.

Instead, this is (imo) a rather awful mis-interpretation made by people to do their own selfish will, not God's... big difference.

You should also remember that we're all sinners in the eyes of God. ...so to treat someone in a hateful manner, such as because of their views, seems like a sin in itself to me..

I'm going to state reality though, I don't have all the answers, and no one here does... I just wanted to point my above comments out. I think (imo at least) its natural to question things.. you're at an age where the bigger questions are coming into view.

I'm sure you can see it (this thread is a prime example) that there are many viewpoints to every idea or concept.. another example: there are divisions INSIDE of denominations of protestantism (1 branch of Christianity - yet another division) over many concepts.. a big one being free will.

The point being, you may want to examine what you believe, what you dont, and the reasons for this.. then talk to people with these specific viewpoints... but I'd recommend it not on Yahoo! answers (for the reasons I mentioned early in my post)..

many blessings.

:c )

Answer 7

Many dont. I did, I still do sometimes. But for me, faith is what is important, and following the owrd of God, not the word of Man.

Sure, the Bible was written by men, but it was inspired to them by God, and that is what I have faith in. And we all know it was not written in nglish, and had to be translated, but on faith, I believe God had a hand in making sure we got what we were supposed to.

God told us to forgive our brother, but God is not us. He has layed out his forgivness plan, the way to find it, and those that dont find it, go to hell. Very cut and dry.

I dont belive inter-racial marriage is wrong, and I dont belive homosexuality is of the devil, and I believe we should love all religions the same, being tolerant of wach his own beliefs. All of this I believe as I started putting my faith in the bible, and NOT man made religion, as I began questioning what I had been taught, and founf my own path.

Answer 8

I believe that I was a spirit first then human being second. (for example: in the bible it states and I quote: I knew you before you were in your mothers womb and know every speck of hair on your head. So, if this is true then we all were spirits first and human second). Religion is man made to suit the needs of earth, sort of like the rules of the land. Religion is used in my opinion to give guidelines and to connect to your inner self. I believe that God is within each of us and it is uip to us to seek the truth. There is an old saying that goes like this. The truth shall set you free. When we as people begin to put people into categories we hinder our spiritual growth.
Each religion has one common thread and that is they all believe in a power greater than themselves. I've question it all my life and went and seen for myself what they all had to say, I have been to the Mormon Churches, the Torah, The temple, Buddism, Catholic(husband), etc, etc. and have a few friends that don't believe at all. I took a little of each that I liked and that fit inside my spirit. When I found that each religion put the other down, that did not seem right to me and I developed a sense of spirituality that I felt comfortable with. When you live a good spirtiual life you are not subject to the laws of the land, I'm not saying you don't have to follow the laws, what I'm saying is this, when you follow goodness, honesty, love, you will not find yourself having to suffer the consequences, you would reap the rewards, when you practice wrongful choices you have to suffer the consequences of those choices. example: if you practice goodness instead of stealing, you won't go to jail, if you lie, your guilt will lead you to another lie, etc. etc. Just my opinion. thanks and God Bless

Answer 9

Some people pervert the word of God. He's a God of love, don't ever forget that. However, God cannot tolerate sinners. He gives everyone the chance to repent. Btw, I'm Catholic too.

Answer 10

Thats very true. It seems many Christians (and people of many other faiths) have lost the ability to logically think things through. Perhaps they are afraid that if they do they will find truths that they don't want to admit. I commend someone if they can seriously question their own beliefs, find their OWN answers (not those told to them by others) and come out with a stronger faith in their religion than before.

I am not religious myself, but thats because I asked the questions and found the answers to be lacking in my opinion. I choose instead of choose a path of indescision, namely agnosticism. I don't personally believe in god, but I don't deny that its possible and very real to some people.

What one believes should be based on one's own finding, and not those of others around you. Find your own path to take.

Answer 11

Faith is indeed the key factor in the life of a Christian. As with anything though you must study, to find the answers. The Bible is our Guide, and only if you read it, will you come to know that it is..."The Way" . Oh yeah, by the way,Christ does not condemn those who are ignorant to him and his word. It is therefore the task for those of us who do know Him to spread his word-therefore bringing others out of the darkness.