furches

And a you betcha from the ghetto corner.

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A certain amount of opposition is of great help to a man. Kites rise against, not with the wind. ~ John Neal

Tight-Waist

Whats the "ghetto corner"?

furches

Just someone living in the ghetto agreeing with what you said. (that b me)

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Tight-Waist

Careful, ban or matclone will accuse you of racism.

furches

We normally get along, I like em both a lot, but I think Ban likely knows, I really do and have most of my life lived in the ghetto, while not now, I live in the country, singing Green Acres everyday, not far from The Big Stiffy, I still do a ton of work there, if not most of my work, and with serious ghetto kids.

Speaking of Ban, his avatar is of a great movie, anyone who hasn't seen it needs to check it out.

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A certain amount of opposition is of great help to a man. Kites rise against, not with the wind. ~ John Neal

swiftybird

I disagree, in order for us to understand the context of the story of Adam and Eve we need to think in metaphors in order to digest it at a much more profound level. For example if you compare the story of Adam and Eve with Plato's 'Forms' in the Republic you will understand what I mean. Plato tells us that we all have an innate internal idea of what the true form of good is but are inadequate to describe it to others, the same with paradise, God etc. This is the same for the story of Adam and Eve, they are metaphorically speaking the closest form to the ideal of what human beings are but because we can not imagine this perfection which only exists in God, their imperfections were shown i.e. free will and the choice to make the wrong decision. This is not ripping the Bible apart but enriching my Knowledge, questioning and pushing boundaries, using my brain like it was intended to be used.

ccbig

Yes, many stories within the Bible could be used as way guide someone through decisions that could be good or bad.

The problem comes with interpretations. Everyone seems to interpret the same passage a different way.

My belief is that modern day religions are no different then any other religion man has had over time. Religion is a tool for those who want answers to problems and questions they cannot understand and a guide for a path for a way of living.

I give the same weight as far as any religion being "real" or "correct" as most people give to for example the Greek and Roman gods of historical times. Another words I am not a "believer".

Religion has always been used as a tool to control people, gather wealth and influence politics.

Religion has created as many horrors as it has also created as many honorable and beautiful things.


Some of my favorite quotes about religion:

“Religion is excellent stuff for keeping common people quiet” - Napoleon Bonaparte

“A thorough reading and understanding of the Bible is the surest path to atheism” - Donald Morgan

“Religions are all alike -- founded upon fables and mythologies” - Thomas Jefferson

“All religion, my friend, is simply evolved out of fraud, fear, greed, imagination, and poetry” - Edgar Allan Poe

“Organized religion is a sham and a crutch for weak-minded people who need strength in numbers.” - Jesse Ventura

“When facism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” - Sinclair Lewis

“The tendency to turn human judgments into divine commands makes religion one of the most dangerous forces in the world.” - Georgia Harkness

“I am against religion because it teaches us to be satisfied with not understanding the world.” - Richard Dawkins

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WhippetGrappler

HAHAHA... I like this version the best.

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BRUTUS BUCKEYE WILL TAKE YOU DOWN...

furches

CC I try not to dwell on religious discussion as people do tend to take it wrong. What I will say is this, it is true that there are some parts of the Bible that are hard to understand, but there are other parts that you would have to be a fool to not understand, for example when Jesus says, "What you have done for the least of these it is as if you have done it to me" , or we read things like "Don't lie" those are not hard concepts to grasp. I'll be honest here, people who hate religion will find a way to make excuses to not take certain teachings seriously, I see little value in that other than dishonest discourse. I must also state, many, who I believe to be legitimate in their faith, don't see Christianity so much as a religion as they do a relationship with God or Christ, there is a huge difference there that would cause some to want to argue, but many theologians see a great deal of difference between the inherent teachings of Jesus and most religions. There is also another note here that is that I can also find numerous quotes by people who speak highly of religion or Christianity.

Now briefly on the concept of religion, I have to tell you, truth is, I don't care much for it either. Most likely know that as I get bashed in reality more by religious people than I do from non religious people. If anything, hopefully this shows there is a difference and a support of what I have stated. I don't think Jesus cared much for religion either, it is why he spoke out against the "religious vipers" and had strong disagreements and rebukes of the religious folks of his time. I had a friend who died recently, Larry Norman who had a great line about people that applied to both religious and non religious folks, it stated, "You can't see nothing when you close your eyes." A lot of folks need to open their eyes.

As to the other post regarding understanding of scripture by also looking at metaphor; Understand on this point, some just make the attempt to tear me and others down, they don’t want to understand the point of a post or comment, they simply want to tear down. For simply suggesting that people use their brain, or trying to get others to think of the value of the story of Adam and Eve, or in some situations even taking aspects of scripture literally, like loving and serving the poor, or feeding the hungry and so forth, some will consider me liberal or leaning to the left, therefore, I must be at best mislead and doing irrefutable harm to the cause or Christ, or at worst, a heretic. Go figure; it seems as if the only Bible some seem to know is the part about homosexuals, people going to hell and stuff like that, it is unfortunate that they tend to forget about the aspect of love, forgiveness and service.

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A certain amount of opposition is of great help to a man. Kites rise against, not with the wind. ~ John Neal