What would you do if....?

Question

Ok, here's a serious question for everyone. What would you do if your religion changed some of it's rules? Hypothetically, the new "rules" are based solely on the Bible, but they seriously conflict with your current lifstyle. Would you find another religion that would let you keep doing what you've always done? Or, would you see the changes as beneficial and be willing to accept them? For example, no more sex before marriage, smoking, pagan holidays...etc. What would you do? Again, this question is for everyone. I'm not out to pick any fights...I just want clear, reasonable answers. Thanks for your comments.

Yes, they would be "radical changes" based on how the majority of religions act.


And who said anything about Catholic churches??
I'm definitely not Catholic.
Just curious. :)

Answer 1

Good question.

If the rules are based solely on the bible then I'd know that they are from God. There's actually a scripture that shows that there are people who aren't interested what God says but rather would want to follow what man says:

2 TIMOTHY 4:3 & 4

I remember hearing about a congregation where the vicar admited to them that he didn't believe in God. Guess what the congregation decided to do when they found out. Well, half of them had the good sense to leave that congregation but the half decided to stay with him. They reasoned that he was a "nice man"! I mean, he may well have been "nice" but he obviously wasn't following the bible if he refused to believe in God was he?

On the other hand - if a religion decided to follow the scriptures then that's good. Anything that is based on the scriptures is beneficial
2 TIMOTHY 3:16, 17

Unfortunately, many religions today "water down" God's word and don't represent Him properly. They say sex before marriage/smoking/pagan holidays etc are okay, thus representing God improperly.

He will judge them for it

1 CORINTHIANS 10:21
ACTS 17:31

Answer 2

if the rules of my religion were changed through "official" channels, it would cease to be my religion as i know it. unless these changes were accompanied by some serious, unbiased evidence, i would be loathe to acknowlege it. this is where "fundamentalist" originates. it wasn't always a bad word - it was indicative of someone who adheres to a traditional interpretation of their philosophy, rather than the blind, dogmatic ignoramuses it represents now. i am a fundamentalist in the old sense...i believe my holy writings are true, but that they can be understood only by examining the historical and cultural context in which they were written.
i.e.
my grandfather was a greek and hebrew scholar, and could read the bible in both languages. he believed the account of jonah was allegory - not meant to be taken literally. i on the other hand believe it is quite possible, while holding the opposite stance on the book of job. does this mean that either of us thought the bible was untrue? no. we both believe it is exactly what it is intended to be. the significance of either story, and the lessons they teach are in no way compromised regardless of our stance as to origin or style of writing. however, if someone comes along and asserts something that compromises the traditional interpretation of those books - especially in a way that alters the basic character and nature of god, they would have to present some really compelling evidence. in my case, the highest authority in my religion is my holy book. anyone who challenges its authority eliminates themselves from influencing me. (of course i have a big responsibility to understand that book as thouroughly as possible - lest i make the same mistake). for some people, the highest authority is a person. they would take a different view. their religion might be more flexible on changes in fundamental doctrine that that of christians or muslims.

an interesting avenue to take (regarding your question) would be to study rabbinic traditions in the hebrew faith. rabbis could sometimes advance a new interpretation of a passage of the torah, but not in such a way that it altered the nature of yahweh. this was considered a departure from the fundamental nature of the torah itself, and strayed from the realm of interpretation into heresy. naturally, such a person would no longer be considered a jew, since ancient jews considered their religion and their identity synonymous.

www.followtherabbi.com

this isn't a complete answer by any means...just a thought or two

good post!

Answer 3

Question your religion and follow your mind, exercise freewill and continue doing what you can justify to yourself, no need to suffer at the expense of another human being. New things are discovered all the time so the only form of "following" that has a solid base is the belief in spirituality since religion is heavily dependent on archaeology and there are many things that allow you to do things to have sex before marriage, but for all you know, the Catholic church is hiding them (as they do with many things).

Answer 4

It depends upon the "rules." If the rule changes directly conflicted with the way I view my life and my freedoms, then I would leave. I would have to question the reason for the change.

Answer 5

It's actually based on someone's interpretation of the Bible, not the Bible itself.

I would leave. Then again, I did leave when there was a conflict between my sexuality and my faith. Sometimes you have to listen to the voice around you, and not God's little helpers.

Answer 6

I would have to say--I would leave my denomination.

But that's a lot different than changing religions. My faith would stay the same, even if 'someone' decided to change the 'rules'.

Kas

Answer 7

I would do what you felt in your heart was right. If you agreed with your religion before it changed and now you dont, then I would find a different one that I believed in.

Answer 8

If my Divine Mother changed Her rules and continued to love, care for, teach and look out for me, I would continue to follow Her. If my Divine Partner changed His rules and continued to love, care for, teach and look out for me, I would continute to follow Him.

If they started make me feel creepy or asked me to harm others or did things that tipped the scale on the cultmeter, I would look somewhere else.

Cultmeter-> http://www.paganlibrary.com/introductory/cult_danger.php

And they did tell me to quit smoking, by the way. I'm working on it.

Answer 9

my religion does not change rules. the rules ahve been the same for 15 thousand years and they will not change any time soon.

if a man tells me that the rules are changing, then the man is wrong. when a god tells me that the rules are changing then i will re-evaluate my desire to worship that god.

Answer 10

What religion is this? That is a really radical change.