Is the main reason most Christians follow their faith fear?

Question

This is not a question of believing or not believing, but of the Christian religion. Many Christians I know will openly admit that the Bible does not portray God as just and loving, and that even the religion is built upon horrible foundations. Is following a religion out of fear fulfilling to anyone? Would you follow Hitler if he was God because it's not your place to judge?

Answer 1

Yep.

Answer 2

YOU SAID:
>This is not a question of believing or not believing,
>but of the Christian religion.

You should have stopped with "This is not a question." My, my, my... Isn't it interesting how often religious fanatics and anti-religion fanatics sound the same. You're not interested in learning, just in preaching. Get a blog space, Cookie.

YOU SAID:
>Many Christians I know will openly admit
>that the Bible does not portray God as
>just and loving, and that even the religion
>is built upon horrible foundations.

"Many Christians"??? Got your statistical sources handy or are you speaking of the many, many Christians you've interviewed to come up with this statement? Hundreds? Thousands? How many Christians have made this statement to you. I've worked in a government research library for 22 years. You don't pull statements like this out of thin air or with expressions like "Many Christians I know..." Give me proof. Find a survey and toss it on the table.

>Is following a religion out of fear fulfilling to anyone?

Nope. But I guess it must be to the people who were part of your research.... two? three people?

>Would you follow Hitler if he was God because
>it's not your place to judge?

Is this a question or an accusation? You're mixing two different ideas here.... and it's "were God," not "was God" because you're making a suppositional statement. Are you presenting God as Hitler and then saying that I can't judge what a Hitler God would do because I'm not allowed to judge anybody? Unclear presentation here. I'd suggest rewriting this question.

But, OK... God as Hitler. Now there's a happy thought.

Funny thing is that I've been attending church all my life and never heard of God willing the deaths of millions of people just because they weren't like me or worshipped in a different manner.

Religion evolves. How we see/relate to God has changed dramatically for most Christians (and other religious folk) from the times when God was seen primarily as an avenging punisher. Yes, there are still some believers who live religious lives of quiet desperation or use their religion to judge, entrap and hurt others. Alas, some people in power use religion just a cruelly as some use government, education, child care, etc. with horrible consequences for their innocent victims. Is this God's fault or the warped minds of these people who claim to speak for him/her?

Funny thing is that this forgiving, loving God... the one I mentioned above who I've heard of all my life.... was always there in those same Scriptures.... we just needed to open our eyes and minds and hearts and look.

I'm sorry you see the Christian God in such a negative light. Some of us Christians do a darn good job of painting an ugly picture of him. But many others understand and see him as Love, his other name.

My best to you.

Bill

Answer 3

If what you say is correct than the Christians you know follow, whatever it is they believe, out of ignorance. If I felt that what I believed had a horrible foundation, lead by hatred and injustice I would be out of here tomorrow. The people you know are not consistent within themselves.

Shotgun questions like yours leave no room for anything but shotgun answers. Go read Robert Ingersoll's lectures. They were published in American newspaper around1876 on.

You will find all the answers to your questions there. I will bet money these are just the kind of answers you are looking for. Just remember that he was as much in the dark as the many Christians you know and most of the clergy of his day.

You might want to give copies of the lectures to the many confused Christians that you speak with.

To answer your question in brief: They are following out of there own ignorance and the ignorance their leaders. In Scripture it is called the blind leading the blind.

Answer 4

If hitler was god sure i would follow him because he would be god but hes not. And the bible does portray god as loving... if it didnt why did god die for us on the cross for something he didnt do. Besides i dont fear god its more of wonder and awe (though having fear for a being who could disolve the atoms in your body away in a whim is probebly a good idea). Like looking at the universe in its entirety. I dont know of any place where god is not Just or loving (not nessicarilly together).

Answer 5

The Top Four Reasons for the Persistence of Religion:

1) Fear of death
2) Fear of the unknown (also see 1 above)
3) Fear of social isolation (nobody wants to stand out from the crowd, doncha know)

And last but never least:
4) Greed (anything that makes so many people so emotional is certain to be profitable for somebody somewhere)

Answer 6

Unfortunately, no. If that were the case, then, at least they'd be in a rational disposition.

No, most christians follow their faith because they actually, trully, honestly believe it.
It's much like the same reason that atheists are *not* afraid: why be afraid of something you don't believe in? No, the christians actually do believe.

Despite the fact that the god of the bible is not a loving god, that doesn't stop christians from believing in a loving god. Much like their belief in the bible itself, it is not dependent upon evidence, reason, or rationality. They believe it because they believe it - in their mind, it makes perfect sense.

Answer 7

Dear God I am sorry for having offended you because I fear the loss of heaven and the pains of hell. Also, consider that they have an ulterior motive in the form of personal salvation for everything they do. If someone told you that you would get a million dollars if you were nice but be hung from the gallows if you weren't...

Christians are as selfish as anyone - they are never good for goodness sake, or for the betterment of mankind. Its just so they can get their reward and avoid punishment. Sounds a lot like the potty training session for my 2 year old...

Answer 8

Stupid question. God is not Hitler, neither could He be. Yes, Christians fear that God will do what He says. The Bible says that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. Its all good to me.

Answer 9

No. The Bible says God is love. He is just and loving, but you can't walk all over Him, either. Christians follow Him because He is the best friend we could ever have, He cares about all aspects of our lives and the things and people that are important to us. We follow Him out of love and appreciation for the sacrafice made for us by His Son, Jesus Christ.

Answer 10

I don't think so. I mean fear of eternal damnation is a part of it; although I'm no theological scholar, every religion seems to have its own set of rewards and punishments.
You're question is like asking if most people don't commit crimes because they're afraid of jail. Some people are just good, and don't do wrong not because of some ethereal fire, but because it helps maintain a peaceful society.

Answer 11

I'm a Christian and I am not afraid of God. I have no reason to be. God is a God of love. People will use the stories in the old testament and try to say it's to make us afraid of God. You only need to be afraid if you don't believe in him and die because that's when your real problems will begin.