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Thrill, I feel for you, but you never did believe in God, IMO. You believed in "a fearful Genie in a Church" who grants wishes if you believe him OR ELSE!!! That Genie never did exist, Thrill! He is the composite of all the wishful thinking and imagination of our primitive ancestors.
But Jesus DOES exist because I encountered Him in my consciousness, NOT the Bible. I just found His description in the Bible. I had no expectations just a knowledge that He is pure unconditional love and acceptance and He experiences everything with us, good or bad. That is not enough for you apparently without Him "kissing every BooBoo and making it better." Well, I do care that #1 seems to be the dominant mode of Christian belief. It is a shame that there has been no intelligent revision of the ancient primitive and barbaric beliefs about God for over two millennia!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by thrillobyte
Well, you know, Mystic, God can step in anytime he wants and fix things. He can plant a manuscript from the 1st century in the Nag Hammadi site that shows exactly what Jesus wanted us to believe and put it exactly where archeologists would stumble across it. Why doesn't he?
Thril, you are stuck with the image and version of God from your indoctrination so I do understand your reaction to that primitive and basically childish version. But the truth of the matter is we have no clue what God can or cannot do. Most believers have just arbitrarily decided that God must be all the Omnis. There is no way to know that so it is just demanded as a definition of God. That is the part that is childish. Only children demand such things, IMO.
Quote:
Originally Posted by thrillobyte
Still waiting, Mystic. (sigh)
You must have missed my answer above!!! What makes you think God is "Omni-anything" and should intervene at your request???
You must have missed my answer above!!! What makes you think God is "Omni-anything" and should intervene at your request???
Yes, I missed your response. Which number was it? Apologies.
Yes, I feel that if God gave you the benefit of a personal experience with Jesus that convinced you he was real, God owes the rest of us skeptics at least the same benefit. Otherwise it is a legitimate grip that God is playing favorites, which it appears he is if Jesus appeared to you but not to me or phet.
You've never heard a christian or christian leader say that god is "all powerful and all loving"? That somehow escaped you?
Of course, I have. But they have no reason to think so other than human vanity and hubris! The same is also true of all the wishful thinking about interventions, etc. Our primitive ancestors can be forgiven for thinking that way, but we have no excuse, IMO.
Whatever gave you the impression I'm bothered by the ramblings of some militant internet atheist?
Your own posts gave me that impression as does your passive-aggressive post that I'm responding to.
I also don't see thrillobyte's posts as rambling. Most of them make perfect sense and it's clear he's just trying to create open dialogue. Your responses only validate why so many ex-Christians feel that they never got answers to their most important questions regarding their entire belief system and the all important question of where they'd spend eternity.
Yes, I feel that if God gave you the benefit of a personal experience with Jesus that convinced you he was real, God owes the rest of us skeptics at least the same benefit. Otherwise it is a legitimate grip that God is playing favorites, which it appears he is if Jesus appeared to you but not to me or phet.
Not Mystic here, but I felt compelled to respond to this.
There are other ways to experience God than through Jesus. I believe we ALL are given that gift and possibility everyday. I grew up with atheists and never had an inkling toward anything spiritual until in college I experienced a miracle with Jesus. I never got involved with organized religion but this “relationship “ phenomenon with Jesus opened the door for me to experience GOD.
I many times wrestled during contemplative prayer, often in ANGER, as to the very question you asked above—why me, and not my husband or others?
My husband grew up steeped with Catholics and catholic schooling. He was an angry devoted atheist when I met him and for good reasons when I hear his horror stories of his Catholic experience and their teachings.
He could not separate his hate for Catholicism with hate for “God.” As he was taught god was a vengeful jealous “father” image pouring out constant guilt and fear of hell. The priests and nuns were mean and unloving.
Then in his late 50s he became obsessed with quantum physics . My husband is an Emmy winning documentary journalist (PBS, Frontline, etc). For years He fervently read, studied, watched TED talks on everything he could find. At the same time he started meditating and experiencing a sacred STILLNESS. And the verse or perennial spiritual truth “Be still and know that I am God.” Happened for him - but not through a relationship with Jesus.
. To make a long story short — Jesus was my portal to God, and quantum physics was my husband’s although the word “God” still carries too much religious bagage for him, but we can use the word “THAT” and it works perfect in our conversations.
And my point is — your sense of betrayal in not personally experiencing Jesus may instead be your gift, your door — the fact you are so obsessed with an impulse to stir the pot and ask these hard questions and force deep inquiry where so many others avoid or are fearful of — “perhaps” that obsessive impulse will be your opening, your door —instead of through Jesus—to eventually know/experience God. ❤️
Last edited by mountainrose; 12-20-2022 at 07:24 AM..
Hmmm. I've been vocal about this pretend Pope being the anti Pope or the black Pope or whatever they call it. He's about as legit and sin free as Insurrection Joe and serves the same puppet masters. But I've seen the symbolism and the catholic church seems to be slipping into the abyss. I'm not anti catholic but the catholics need to WTFU and look at whats happening to their church. I'm talking about the blue hear shaped symbol and the cross. Its been compared to a serpent attacking the cross. Then there's that evil looking throne the Pope sits on. And the serpent shaped building in the vatican. And then there's the triangle pedo symbol on the bishops vestments.
I know many good catholics and I can't offend them with these observations. Pedo satanism is everywhere, it rules DC, Hollywood, business.
But have faith. Have heart. They will be exposed and they will lose and God is readying his forces to smite them and cast them down again.
Hmmm. I've been vocal about this pretend Pope being the anti Pope or the black Pope or whatever they call it. He's about as legit and sin free as Insurrection Joe and serves the same puppet masters. But I've seen the symbolism and the catholic church seems to be slipping into the abyss. I'm not anti catholic but the catholics need to WTFU and look at whats happening to their church. I'm talking about the blue hear shaped symbol and the cross. Its been compared to a serpent attacking the cross. Then there's that evil looking throne the Pope sits on. And the serpent shaped building in the vatican. And then there's the triangle pedo symbol on the bishops vestments.
I know many good catholics and I can't offend them with these observations. Pedo satanism is everywhere, it rules DC, Hollywood, business.
But have faith. Have heart. They will be exposed and they will lose and God is readying his forces to smite them and cast them down again.
To be honest with you, your whole post sounds like the perfect example of conspiracy thinking.
Hmmm. I've been vocal about this pretend Pope being the anti Pope or the black Pope or whatever they call it. He's about as legit and sin free as Insurrection Joe and serves the same puppet masters. But I've seen the symbolism and the catholic church seems to be slipping into the abyss. I'm not anti catholic but the catholics need to WTFU and look at whats happening to their church. I'm talking about the blue hear shaped symbol and the cross. Its been compared to a serpent attacking the cross. Then there's that evil looking throne the Pope sits on. And the serpent shaped building in the vatican. And then there's the triangle pedo symbol on the bishops vestments.
I know many good catholics and I can't offend them with these observations. Pedo satanism is everywhere, it rules DC, Hollywood, business. But have faith. Have heart. They will be exposed and they will lose and God is readying his forces to smite them and cast them down again.
Ohhh pleeze!
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Well, I do care that #1 seems to be the dominant mode of Christian belief. It is a shame that there has been no intelligent revision of the ancient primitive and barbaric beliefs about God for over two millennia!!!
