Ξ July 27th, 2007 | → 6 Comments | ∇ Life |
We tend to speak as if we really knew what God is and really understood how God works. In fact, to speak of “God” is just to express a basic, optimistic belief, namely, that there is a good and loving power behind the universe and in one way or another this power is working through everything.
This belief is certainly correct, but we imagine that power as if we were still five years old. When we speak of God, we tend to imagine some mighty miracle worker in the sky who steps in every so often and makes things turn out okay, just as Mommy or Daddy used to “miraculously” appear to catch us when we were about to fall. But, that image is just infantile, magical thinking. It is not an authenic belief in God. Someone told me one time that there are only three things you need to know about God: 1) God exists; 2) you are not God; and 3) God is not Santa Claus.
God set up the laws of the universe on the basis of probabilities. These probabilities are built into the ordinary functioning of the universe. The laws of physics, chemistry, biology, and psychology, as far as we know them or can know them, formulate the probabilistic regularities that we have so far discovered. But God is the author of these laws. God set up the universe as it is. God is the one who decided that things should unfold in this probabilistic way. This point is important, so it should be stated more accurately: Whatever it is that set up the universe, this we call GOD.
I say that this is a more accurate way of stating the matter because we really do not know what “God” is. “God” is only the name we give to whatever (or whoever) it is that explains the universe. We really do not understand the ultimate explanation of the universe. We imagine GOD to be a person- a HE or SHE- somebody to whom we can relate, but what could it actually mean to say that God is a person? If God is the Force behind all things, then it certainly does not seem very personal. Nonetheless, if this Force is behind all things, It must be intelligent and freely acting, and, if so, It must be a person, someone who set the whole thing in motion and keeps it in existence.
The best we can do is say that “God” is a word we use to name the ultimate explanation of all things. We know that “God” exists, but we really cannot comprehend Him/Her/It. Putting the name “God” on Him/Her/It should not delude us into thinking that we know what we are talking about. To believe in God is to believe in something that surely must be there- all reason points that way- but believing in God is to believe in something that we really do not understand.
“God is a mystery”. Ever heard that before? I suspect that few religious leaders really understand the mysteriousness of God. So, they turn it into a club and beat people over the head with it. God’s mysteriousness becomes an excuse for whatever they want to proclaim. In the name of God they preach things that are unreasonable, unrealistic, and even silly. They buffalo people by appealing to a God who is beyond understanding. In the face of the unknown, they scare people into obedience by threatening them with the fires of Hell. In this way they maintain control over the masses.
Nonetheless, to affirm a God who challenges our understanding is a reasonable thing to do. There certainly must be some power behind the universe that we know, and we certainly do not understand what that power is.*
*Information derived from, “The Transcended Christian“, by Daniel Helminiak
Ξ July 19th, 2007 | → 1 Comments | ∇ Life |
Kevin Beck has hit another “home run”. He continues on the subject of Hell. Read his July 18th post here.
Ξ July 17th, 2007 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Life |
Kevin, at Transmillenial, has written a great, insightful post on the issue of the reality of hell as conservative Christianity perceives it. Pastor of 1st Baptist Church, Wichita Falls, Tx, Robert Jeffress, is the one who argues for the reality of a God who sends good people to hell. I still have a hard time understanding why people want to believe God would do that…..until I remember that I blindly accepted that view for most of my adult life………
Ξ July 16th, 2007 | → 4 Comments | ∇ Life |
I was reading a post on Nic Paton’s blog, Sound and Silence, about Carlton Pearson’s "fall". One of the comments came from a person who called him/herself "Evangelist". After a few lines of commentary, "Evangelist" began the ole hardsell, ole line evangelism, get yourself saved now, plan of action to save the world. His/her comments were extremely lengthy and oh so familar. They came one after another monopolizing the commentary. It reminded me of a passage from a book I am reading at the present . The book is, "The Transcended Christian", which I picked up on the recommendation of Brian, at "The Beautiful Heresy". The following describes "Evangelist" quite well. Do you agree?
………people take the mere words about life that they have heard and condense them into pat, doctrinal formulas. They tie up all the loose ends and produce a consistant package of beliefs and morals. Then, what is worse, filled with the new enthusiasm of their religious find or concoction, they develop a need to "share" their new hope, to "witness" to their faith, and hard proselytizing begins. From a psychological point of view, I suspect that this compulsion to "witness" comes from a hidden inner sense that there is still something missing in such prepackaged faith. To keep the lack from showing, the true believers fill their worlds with words. They keep themselves preoccupied with set formulas, with many and long religious services, with the task of making converts, and with crusades against the "godless". Thus, they never really have to dwell in the silence of their hearts, and they really don’t have time to mull over their beliefs. After all, supposedly, "An idle mind is the devil’s workshop."
I know, of course, that the comtemporary "Christians"-the Bible fundamentalists-insist they are preaching out of concern to share their "saving"beliefs with others. Supposedly, their motives are purely altruistic. But anyone who has been subjected to the onslaught of their preaching senses the intensity, harshness, and desperation of their cause, and anyone with a sense of spirituality has a hard time believing that this preaching comes from peace-filled souls.
How sad! How sad that that’s where I was for most of my adult life………..
Ξ July 12th, 2007 | → 2 Comments | ∇ Life |
Movies sometime surprised us. The following is taken from Pastor Doug Hoag’s blog. Thanks for giving us the opportunity to read this Doug. Here’s a link to Pastor Doug’s blog
There was a quote from the movie Bridge to Terebithia that was so moving for me that I haven’t forgotten it. I don’t remember the names of the characters, but 3 kids were riding in the back of a pickup truck, and they were talking about the Bible on their way home from church. One of the girls said that she doesn’t believe in hell because she couldn’t fathom that God had the time to worry about that when he had to take care of the rest of creation. The other girl, a churchgoing Christian, was quite aghast and said she believes in hell because it’s in the Bible, but she’s scared of the possibility of going to such a place. The first girl then said something I will never forget:
You believe the Bible because you have to, and you hate it. I don’t have to believe in the Bible, and I think it (the Bible) is wonderful!
What a great line!! And no wonder there are so many lapsed or completely delinquent Christians, while the rest of humanity avoids Christianity like the Black Plague. The Bible has been presented as something that is to be believed unconditionally under penalty of eternal, everlasting torment. Suffer now, or suffer later. Other times, the Bible is seen as a book of rules for good behavior. These are the impressions we Christians give.
Nuff said!!
Ξ July 11th, 2007 | → 4 Comments | ∇ Life |
Last night, Chaplain Roy and I had a great dinner/chat with Geo, the Monongahela Flash. It was the usual discussion; no planned program, just good conversation, with a lot of heretical ideas tossed around. I do so enjoy chatting with like-spirits. God has brought me together with so many interesting people in the last two years. I can’t wait to see what’s just around the bend. The year 2012 came up for discussion. I think two of us, don’t want to speak for Geo, feel something big’s coming up in 2012. However, unlike many of the prophetic ilk, who feel it’s armageddon a comin’, I am thinking that we are on the verge of a new age (not to be confused with “new age”). Chaplain Roy and I have discussed how this new thinking and grace gospel just seems to be taking off like a snowball downhill. I am waiting with great anticipation for that time. Hurry back Geo, and bring some more with you!!
Hell will be discussed on National TV this Friday, the 13th (Hmmmm?), on ABC’s 20/20. I hope everyone will watch. It should be interesting. Carlton Pearson plays a significant role in the program. Here is ABC’s lead story on the program.
Recent years have provided plenty of church scandals, but an unlikely one has occurred in the Bible belt. A prominent Tulsa, Okla., minister was scandalized not by sex or embezzlement, but by his belief in hell.When Carlton Pearson began wondering if modern believers still need a medieval pit of fire, it cost him his congregation. He shared pulpits with Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. He counseled presidents at the White House. And after the Oklahoma City bombing, he was called to lead the grieving in prayer.
Throughout his rise, Pearson preached the fundamentals: Everyone is born a sinner. Everyone is going to hell, unless they accept Jesus Christ as Lord.
“Thank God I don’t have to go to hell even though I deserve hell,” Pearson preached. “But Jesus vicariously substituted for me — took on death, hell and the grave — and I have victory today.”
But through the years, as he as he studied the ancient Greek and Hebrew scriptures, Pearson developed a crisis of faith.
“I couldn’t reconcile a God whose mercy endures forever and this torture chamber that’s customized for unbelievers,” he said. “You can’t be happy. And how can you really love a god who’s torturing your grandmother?”
The more he studied, the more he saw the Bible not as the literal word of God, but a book by men about God, with primitive men prone to mistranslations, political agendas and human emotions.
And one night, as he watched ABC News’ Peter Jennings report on the parade of suffering in Rwanda, he had a revelation. He questioned how a God who calls himself loving could let people suffer so badly and then suck them into Hell.
“That’s when I thought I heard an inner voice say, ‘Is that what you think we’re doing?’” he said.
Pearson believed God was telling him there was Hell on earth.
“The bitter torment of the idea of an angry, visceral, distant, stoic, harsh, unrelenting, unforgiving, intolerant God is Hell,” he said. “It’s pagan. It’s superstitious. And if you trace its history, it goes way back to where men feared the gods because something happened in life that caused frustration.”
Pearson said people who believe in Hell create it for themselves and others.
“People who believe in devils and demons become that in consciousness and they act it out,” he added.
Watch “Hell, fear and fascination”, Friday the 13th, at 9:00CDT, 10:00 EDT on ABC.
Here’s what melts a grandparent’s heart. Left to right: Jackson 5, Caleb 7, Chloe 5 weeks, Harrison 8, Griffin 4. Just keep on scrolling to the bottom of the page on the following link. Link to grandkids
Chaplain Roy and I had Saturday “church” at Mickey D’s for a couple of hours today with Karen (The Sword’s Still Out) and her hubby Glen. We had a great inspirational time getting to know a wonderful couple. Sharing with like spirits is sure a lot of fun. Thanks Karen and Glen!
That’s right. My new (one month old on the 3rd of July), and ONLY granddaughter is coming to see Pops for a visit. Oh yeh, my son Jeff, his wife Kelly, and my two grandsons, Caleb, and Jackson will probably be coming too! *
*Just kidding guys. You know I love you too!
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