Christians Endorse God's Hatred

[freedomfromforum]

See, that's the thing: you christians are all too willing to disagree with any interpretation that paints god in a less than stellar light, but you're never willing to back up your own interpretation in the process.

[Jacob(smooth)]

Add in a random, staid insult to the intelligence of the person you're replying to,

Yeah, Who does that

[Zen Badger]

I was just enjoying the way god splashes his love around like eviserated intestines, that's all.

And why do I have to explain Deuteronomy?

It's your fucked up fairytale, not mine.

You want to throw those verses up in our faces, yes you need to explain why, by giving the explanation of the verses you use.

GC

Because I think they're such a lovely heartwarming expression of gods love and mercy.

What else could they be?

[Godscreated]

You want to throw those verses up in our faces, yes you need to explain why, by giving the explanation of the verses you use.

GC

Because I think they're such a lovely heartwarming expression of gods love and mercy.

What else could they be?

Your afraid to, because you know you'll look foolish.

GC

[Zen Badger]

Because I think they're such a lovely heartwarming expression of gods love and mercy.

What else could they be?

Your afraid to, because you know you'll look foolish.

GC

I'm afraid to what?

You mean they're NOT expressions of gods love and mercy?

I am agog.

[Brakeman]

Hey, I've found some more heartwarming tales of gods love from the bible. Isiah 13...

15 Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is joined unto them shall fall by the sword.

16 Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished.

17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

18 Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eyes shall not spare children.

19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

20 It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.

21 But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there.

22 And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.

Christian rationalisations in 3,2,1........

I bet you were good at dodgeball in school, still see no explanation for Deut. 21:18-21. Bet you've never heard of prophecy either.

GC

I haven't seen any good apologetics explanation as to why Deut. 21:18-21 shouldn't be taken literally as the common man would read it. What does your super duper magic decoder ring say it really means GC?

[Neo-Scholastic]

You ask why I suppose the verse I choose to look at more deeply were MEANT to be interpreted more deeply. I do not consider selected inconvenient or problem texts for special consideration. All of the Holy Scriptures have inner spiritual meaning.

Next question: How do I know that the texts actually have an inner meaning? For precisely the reason you reject them: many parts are blatantly contradictory, technically inaccurate, redundant, silly and/or otherwise unintelligible. That is what happens when Divine Truth is adapted to accommodate Man’s limited ability to receive something so perfect. Anyone can see that God did not really talk to a snake. The ratio between the diameter and the circumference of Molten Sea could not be 1 to 3. This prompts me to wonder what the snake represents and for what the numbers, like 1 and 3, stand.

Fine you say, but how do you know that you are not tailoring your symbols and allegories to fit the text? That’s possible. But suppose I did actually have a super doper decoder that could be used consistently across the entire canon and support a single doctrine. The reliability of the decoder would justify both its validity and the validity of the code on which it worked. As a matter of fact, I do have a super doper decoder, starting with the 22 volumes of Swedenborg’s “Arcana Coelestia”. These texts present an internally consistent interpretive framework for understanding the inner meaning of the Holy Scriptures.

Admittedly, my New Church theology puts me at odds with the other Christians here, who are not Swedenborgians. We agree on the essentials, so I still consider them believers as per C. S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity”.

[Jacob(smooth)]

Why would God do that?

If the scripture is written for our direction, why write it in code. Especially when the prize for figuring it out would be eternal life.

Why not just say what he wanted to plainly. Or better yet just appear to everyone. That would actually enhance the free will element as people would be making their decisions based on food information rather than on the strength of their code breaking skillz.

That explanation makes little sense to me.

[Neo-Scholastic]

You are not held accountable for how much light you receive, but rather for what you do with whatever amount of light you have. The Holy Scriptures have something for everyone at every level of understanding. It is that ability of multiple levels that allows it to work in the lives of both common and educated people alike.

[Bad Writer]

True. They help us understand the mindsets of the crazy and delusional from over 2000 years ago.