Love That Christian Tolerance

[tenkani]

So what's the difference between a radical Islamic holy man and a guy like Pat Robertson?

  And what does it say about the state of American fundamentalist Christians that his followers haven't left him in droves?

  What does it say about the bible, and their interpretation of it, that despite the compassion and love espoused by Jesus Christ, fundies across the country use the bible to justify war, assassination and declare natural disasters to be the work of their god in retaliation for the sins of mankind?

  If you believed in an old testament god, I would argue, Pat Robertson makes absolute sense! So why, so often, do they (fundies) choose to focus on their wrathful, bloodthirsty god rather than on Jesus Christ?    

[Gopher]

soapbox wrote:
 the bible was not written by god,it was written by the followers of god,inspried by god and some of it recordings of god and gods' relationship with humans.

  well,we certainly were not created in a garden in the likeness of god,we are part of the larger creative process of the cosmos,we are not separate and distinct somehow having a special place in the universe,alone with our creator.what i mean by that is we are bound by the laws of nature and science as we understand them and those laws are a result of living within this universe,the universe i am inclined to think was intiated by the big guy.

  what is important is that there are certain messengers along the way who point to a larger reality we are not always aware of.i say always aware of because i am certain you have experienced epiphanies in your life.syncronicities and situations revealed to you in your life that indicate this.these people don't always have it down right as we are just a species who is learning about ourselves and our universe around us,but the message in essence is the same.

  we exist in that wierd space between emerging from the ocean and understanding our role in the universe(think in terms of a really long time frame which a "wink" in gods time) sound like a cheesy star trek episode? not really.

  we can peer into the universe and reflect on ourselves and creation yet we still "club" each other over the head when we have conflict withinour own species or with our habitat/natural enviroment...i'd say we have a long way to go.

  god and jesus. kitten mentioned it is hard to relate to god.well,think about jesus for a moment and his message.he is a metaphor for us as a species and god. jesus tells us that there is faith and love,there is a father (ie) god, tells us that we can experience this creator or the creators love through him.almost like saying...worship me but worship me for the right reasons because i am god manifest in human form. kinda makes it easier to relate to the big guy(big thing,big it,big girl,big guy). know that god loves you and this is bond that can never be broken. god made it easier to love him or for practicality,know him,by bringing forth jesus. "know me and you know the father".

  okay,you say...god loves us...why do shitty things happen and good people die?  i would say that gods role is not to babysit us as a species but to periodically show up in our lives personally or through history to remind us there is a god.

if god held our hands so to speak through our evolution as a species how could we ever grow without struggle? learn and develop? if we could ask god for food like ordering it through a computer on red dwarf what is the point?(think from the big guys perspective).

  children of creation,children of god,children of the cosmos.

  now remember: APE SHALL NOT KILL APE.

  Soapbox, I'm disappointed to find myself unable to disagree with anything you've said in this message
 

[tenkani]

Yeah, me too, except for the god existing part    

[TehBorken]

  Emo Phillips says:

I was in San Fransisco once, walking along the Golden Gate Bridge, and I saw this guy on the bridge about to jump. So I thought I'd try to stall and detain him, long enough for me to put the film in. I said, "Don't jump!" and he turns...

He said, "Nobody loves me."

  I said, "God loves you, you silly ninny."...

    He said, "I do believe in God."

    I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?"

    He said, "A Christian."

    I said, "Me too. Protestant or Catholic?"

    He said, "Protestant."

    I said, "Me too! What franchise?"

    He says, "Baptist."

    I said, "Me too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?"

    He says, "Northern Baptist."

    I said, "Me too! Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?"  He says, "Northern Conservative Baptist."

    I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist or Northern Conservative Reform Baptist?"

    He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist."

    I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Eastern Region?"

    He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region."

    I say, "Me too! Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1879 or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912?"

    He says, "Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912."

    I said, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.  
 

[tenkani]

*wiping away tear*

*grimacing at pain from cracked rib*

[weird al]

I second that Emo:

  "When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me."