Im kind of with the science vs religion incompatible being ridiculous. Though to me one theory has more credibility than the other, I dont see why evolution should not be taught. People say that creationism should be taught in schools or ID, but that makes no sense to me. The answers would always be "God" and the courses would take maybe a day, after all, the only textbook you have is in the bible and there isnt enough material for one semester. Christians also get that ID/Creationism story outside of school through church or home, so it would be unneeded redundancy, not to mention in all fairness it would be excluding other religions creation theory. If evolution is true, I dont see why it has to be incompatible, I dont see why God didnt have a plan for evolution to work and all he did was light the firework to start it all. God can be a chemist, and I could see that he created people out of inorganic materials (which would essentially nullify your argument that something can't be created from nothing).
You may very well live a more virtuous life than many who claim to be followers of God. There is a difference between "talking the talk" versus "walking the walk." Many who claim to be something verbally show the fallacy of their speech through their day to day lives. Like I said before, there are good and bad in all races, nations and religions. You have to choose who to believe.
From the kinds of people ive met, id have to agree that I also live a life better than most Christians. Though it is easier to point out flaws and shortcomings of other people than my own.
This is true, I dont know of any religion that does not penalize for not believing. Using Pascals wager a bit further, would it be better a) to believe in a religion so that you have atleast .001% chance of obtaining their heaven provided your religion is true b) to believe in nothing Is the penalty for most faiths worse for believing in a different religion vs not believing at all?
Exactly... any system that maintains "membership" through penalties is lacking. Strong systems would encourage education, and inquiry into other systems to disprove them and solidify their own... failing to operate in this manner makes me question the validity of ALL religions. T
First, my reference that something cannot be created from nothing was in reference to human beings. The Old Testament teaches that " And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Genesis 2:7 Many religions do not differentiate between non-believers and those who leave the faith. Many east Asian beliefs cannot comprehend not following the religion of the region as they also believe that to deviate from the family traditions and life brings discredit upon the whole family including the ancestors. 무교 teaches that if your descendents do not continue to honor you on designated dates, you have done an disservice to your family and ancestors. Not wanting to disrespect the family name, they continue to pay respects. Even those who have converted to Budhism or Christianity largely continue the practices as not to shame their families.
With that, I have a Corporate Finance test in the morning that I have to review for one more time. Good night, and I hope you all had a wonderful day with your Mothers today; or if your mother is no longer with us, spending time remembering good times with her.
Yes it is a fact. But some one will reply that it is just your opinion. The problem is that evolution is a fact, supported by over 150 years of research, no matter what anyone's opinion of it. It may also be noted that no one is doing research to prove evolution. It has been proven. The research that is being done is based on evolution. We know that humans and apes evolved from a common ancestor. We are just examining the process by studying fossils, etc. In fact, recent research has found DNA from Neanderthals, another species of humans who became extinct about 30,000 years ago, in modern day humans. Yep, the Neanderthals were not only here, but had romantic relationships with other humans before they became extinct. So is a mention of evolution off topic? Well it would be except for the fact that many Christians maintain that you cannot accept evolution and be a Bible believing Christian. So that can raise an impediment to adopting Christianity, so it becomes an item for discussion. Now if you are a Catholic, no problem. "In the 1950 encyclical Humani generis, Pope Pius XII confirmed that there is no intrinsic conflict between Christianity and the theory of evolution, provided that Christians believe that the individual soul is a direct creation by God and not the product of purely material forces." (I've read the entire encyclical, but I copied that little excerpt from Wikipedia.) Now a word on theories. In science, a theory, like the theory of evolution, relativity, etc., is not an hypothesis. It's an explanation for a collection of objective observations or results. Please grab your dictionary and look it up. Some people have been taught, with regard to evolution, to say, "Well, it's just a theory," using the definition that covers an hypothesis or a guess. But that isn't really accurate. So you can be a Bible believing Christian and still accept scientific research results. Although you may have to view some of the parts of the Bible, written long, long ago as, perhaps, not completely accurate. Can you do science and still believe in a Creator? You certainly can. I'm going into my third year as a Ph.D. candidate in biology and I absolutely believe in a Creator. (I'm reluctant to use the term God, because that calls up images in peoples' minds with which I'm not comfortable.) I wasn't raised Christian. I was raised Shinto. It's a religion pretty much confined to Japan and people of Japanese descent. There will never be very many adherents because we don't go around on Saturdays trying to tell people about it, and there are no Shinto priests with TV programs either.) It's kind of a weird religion as religions go. There really is no defined heaven or h***, and there is no punishment if you decide you don't believe. There is a creation myth. I think almost all religions have a creation myth, but you don't have to believe it and I'm pretty sure no one does. What happens to bad people? It's really not clear, but we do have demons, and who knows what happens when bad people die and the demons get hold of their souls. I mentioned that I'm a grad student. My committee chairman, (my boss) is an agnostic. He says he has no idea if there is or is not a God and isn't concerned about it. He's a good guy, so I don't think the demons will have any reason to go after his soul when he dies. I don't think a person who is concerned about being an agnostic really is an agnostic. I think that person deep down believes there is a Supreme Being of some sort and wants to make sure he/she is doing the right thing. So an agnostic might get some real benefit from a thread like this. Anyway, I have to get to campus. It's an interesting thread.
Wow, I'm late to the party as usual I 100% agree that belief in evolution and belief in God are not mutually exclusive. Your professor was right to an extent. By the time Jesus showed up on the scene, the Jews had well over 600 laws. In their sacrificial system if you broke the law, most often there was a price to wipe your slate clean, be it some doves, goats, pigs, etc. The combination of the price of these sacrifices and the exclusivity of being a Jew to begin with made it hard on recruitment. People had taken laws of God that were meant to bring them into relationship with him and bastardized the system to become about the law itself. They even added many of their own laws. Instead of being about God, it became about being in the law, or working around the law, or simply paying big money to "wipe your slate clean" Enter Jesus. He came as he said "not to abolish the law, but fulfill it". He paid the price for everyone, and invited Jew & non-Jew alike into relationship with God. Yes, this "liberation" of access to God allowed the entire world to be welcomed. That's the beauty of Jesus, he challenges the most righteous to be better and accepts the most broken. Too bad man is once again adding laws and focusing on the system and not God. You are trying to have it both ways here. Not liking the over simplification of the simplistic answers, and not liking that entire colleges or courses can be so involved as to not include other religions as well? I actually learned quite a bit about Buddhism and Islam at my old church, yet I'm quite certain that many would question how reliable a source is educating about a competing product. Don't you think? Just as it is not up to our schools to teach our kids everything, it's not up to my church to teach me everythign about all religions. My teens and early 20's were when I was furthest from God. I was lost. A drunk that was deep down in secure in his own skin. I was always a "nice guy" but there was definately something missing in my life, whether I acknowledged it or not. This single thought, as correct as it is, was the leading thing that kept me from God. That's why to this day I can't stand the "pretend everything is alright no matter what" Christians. Again, I agree with evolution and God not being mutually exclusive. I also wouldn't want Creation taught in school either (unless its private, then go nuts). Having public schools teach Creation would be like going to Sears to have your bow tuned and arrows cut. I bowhunt in MN. Is it my job to educate people on shooting hogs with rifles from helicopters in TX? I guess I just don't get this argument? DO you really want Christians teaching the world about all other religions? Plus, the definition of "penalties" can also be redefined as "exclusion from benefits". I would also contend that strong systems would encourage relationship. Again, while not mutually exclusive, I would argue that I've learned a lot more about myself, my brokenness and need for God through relationships than education. Heck, I don't know if any of this make sense. Just the ramblings of a redneck in the recently thawed north woods.
Which do you trust more, something you invest in to find answers or something that is spoon fed to you? Public Education in America teaches the theory of evolution but is forbidden from teaching anything about religions of the world. Who is biased against whom here? The church does not mandate confirmation and baptism at a young age, the parents of the child do. Without the blessing of the parents, the "indoctrination" would not happen. If you consider this questionable, you need to question the parents, not the church. In reference to the last paragraph of your statement, if you go to Doctor A for medical diagnosis, would hey be required to explain to you what other doctors have to offer? If he does not, does that mean he has something to hide? Or is it more likely that since you went to Doctor A and they did not come to you, it is totally feasible to believe you did your homework and made a free will choice based upon your wants/desires? Why would you hold religion to a different standard?
I concur. If the rabble rousers don't interfere, I think a civil constructive conversation can continue.
What constitutes a Christian life? As a Christian, I can't tell you how many times I've sinned in my mind, watching women in the workplace, thinking if ways to cheat the system, etc. For me, it's a repentance thing. I try and ask for forgiveness every night because I'm likely to do it all over again tomorrow. I'm no religious scholar, but it's simple for me. I have my faith in Jesus. I'm strong in it. I know others don't believe and if they ask me I will talk to them. I don't force my beliefs on others. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Really the things stated in the bible is just about being a good human being. It's a book with good intentions that many people misinterpret. Maybe it's just the Christians who outwardly act unchristian that I remember more, but, there sure seems to be a lot of them and I'm pretty sure I act more Christian than them as a non christian.
The Old Testament of the Bible give us the 613 laws of God that condemn us all to death as we are flawed and it is not possible for a human to live without breaking at least one of the laws. Christians, follow the teachings of Jesus, the Christ in the New Testament. It is through his teachings that we are given the everlasting life by accepting Jesus as our savior and allowing him to take on our sins. The word Christ originates from the Greek word "Christos" which means "the anointed one" and is the equivalent of the Hebrew word "mashiach" or messiah. The teachings of Jesus are to show us how to lead a virtuous life and if you live that life to the best of your ability while accepting Jesus as your savior, you are a Christian. Those who tout themselves as Christians but their actions are otherwise, are not Christians. I can claim to be a millionaire all I want, but unless I have the assets to back up my words, I am just trying to fool others, fool myself, or a combination of both. The ones who claim to be Christian but lead a life that is anything but Christian are half of the ones people most commonly remember (i.e. Jim Bakker). The other half that people tend to remember are the one's who walk the walk above and beyond the capability of most (i.e. Mother Teresa). But the vast majority of true Christians you never hear about. Why? Because Matthew 6:1 - 21 tells us that good deeds done in secret will be rewarded by God, and those who tout their deeds on earth have already been rewarded by others. It tells us to do good deeds anonymously, to pray in private and not draw the attention of others to our virtuousness. Of all the aforementioned verses, to me the most important is 6:21 which reads "For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also." I hope this makes sense, my mind is still a little foggy from the meds.
