Is Religion and Spirituality a good place to start for someone who is new or weak in their faith?

Question

Someone on my last question said that R&S is not the best place for someone with a weak relationship with Christ, or someone that is new to the faith.

Why or why not?

Yes, R&S on Yahoo Answers.

Matt and Socrates: Thank you for the compliments. I think the old avatar is better for my goal of becoming a Vile Temptress, but for some reason my 360 picture won't transfer to YA. Its either the cartoon, or a big red X.

Answer 1

You mean on Yahoo Answers?

I don't think it would be a place they would go to strengthen their faith, so I guess I would agree with them.

But for that reason, it might be a good place to go generally.

Answer 2

I think R&S is not a great place for someone who is tentative in their faith for the same reason I wouldn't accept Wikipedia as a resource for a thesis. There is no way anyone can have any confidence in the authority of the source of information.

It's a great place to do a little sparring, and occasionally there are some people that are really seeking God. You can get some interesting ideas that you might want to research later, but I would no more take anything from this place as part of my belief system without serious prayer than I would take a diagnosis to heart from the medical area of YA without talking with my doctor.

Answer 3

The reason that it is not a good place for someone new is because there are so many variations as to what one sees as their interpretation (or there churches) of God's word. That is from fellow professing Christians. Then there is the complex questions that are brought about by non-believers that may intimidate you and make you second guess your own relationship with Christ. Then there is the shear hateful questions and remarks by both believer and non-believers that can cause you to stumble. Something that appalls me when it is coming from a believer.

The thing that may be good from this experience is that when you get a question from a non-believer that you do not know the answer to right away, it causes you to search out the answer for YOURSELF. You can also gain insight from responses that you may have not known to be biblical fact as well. Having said that, I must say, research and pray for God to show you truth especially when it comes to responses from professing believers. Some are speaking truth, some are speaking false doctrine, you need to ask God to show you what is truth and what is not.

Your focus should go directly to the Bible and what GOD says, not what any man says. False doctrines are more damaging than the one who doesn't even believe, as at least with them, you can take lightly what they claim, as if they do not believe, they are not guided by the Holy Spirit anyway and are blind to truth.

Study your bible and pray to God to give you knowledge and true interpretation of his Word! If you hear something you have never heard regarding God and the Bible, go to the Bible and search for your answers! Question all that are mans words, believe God! There will be instances when something is not directly a word, for example the Trinity, however there is much scripture that points it out not using this word, as this is a word man made for it, the descriptor for this word is found in scripture. Research it! God Bless you with knowledge and love!

Answer 4

I personally believe this isn't the best place for someone who is weak in their faith becasue there is people on here constantly attacking people of the faith.

However, if you pay attention to the Christians who are engaging these attackers and tough questions I think that the weak Christian can grow and their faith be strong even in the most difficult of attacks.

So it really depends on case to case. The important thing is don't believe everything you see on R&S.

Feel free to EMAIL me if you ever have any quetions/comments on something you see on R&S.

God Bless!

Answer 5

I'll answer using the parable of the Sower; with the new believer they can fall into the categories Jesus spoke of who:

"When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in the heart. This is he which received seed by the way side."

"He that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and with joy receiveth it; yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended."

The new believer can fall into these two categories because 1) if they dont really understand what they are reading, someone can confuse them about it and turn them from God's Word or 2) they receive it with Joy..as new believers are really on fire when they first get saved, but then, if they are ostricized, belittled or mocked because of the Word and have no defense (because they are not versed in what the Bible says) their 'excitement' can be choked off,discouraged or killed.

So I would encourage new believers to study, watch the responses and learn rather than trying to argue 'new faith' with seasoned 'nonbelievers' who will try to kill the seed planted in a new Christian's heart.

Answer 6

It might be, it might not be. It depends on who you listen to. If you are trusting God, then I think that you have you basis for faith established. You might find your faith challenged, but that can happen anywhere.

I would encourage those who are weak in faith the look for people who are not. There are some of us here. In the long run, it can improve your knowledge and strengthen your faith. One reason why is because you get to find out what the issues are, and in another case you can see be example how to go about defending the faith.

So I do not think that R&S is for every Christian, but I do think it helps those who are determined to find out more about what they believe, and more about the Bible, and more about how to trust God: which is the basis for being a Christian.

Answer 7

I could see why someone weak in their faith might not want to come here. But for those who are unsure, I think it's a great place to learn. I have learned a lot from everyone here...even christians (don't tell anyone I said that).

Answer 8

That depends entirely on your objective. If you're looking for nothing but warm and fuzzy confirmation or validation of your belief system, then this certainly isn't the place to be. But if you want to test the strength your position by subjecting it to critical feedback from a wide variety of different viewpoints, R&S is an excellent venue.

Answer 9

I don't know about new christians being on here just because that, they're NEW they need to get into the Word and grow, people here are usually just trying to bash christianity. But I've found all of it to make me grow stronger in the faith and I've learned a lot on here.

Answer 10

The best place for a person who is new to faith is to read the Bible. Go directly to the source to find out for yourself. People's opinions are varied but God does not change.