Why can't Christians say that parts of the Old Testament don't apply??..

[A Theist]

[quote='A Theist' pid='100928' dateline='1287844228']

Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life;

What do you think DP, was Jesus' statement literal or allegorical?

Does it matter? The OT strictly forbids the consumption of sacrificial blood.

Godschild said, Quote:"Jesus never asked anyone to drink real blood or to pretend to either"...

You answered Godschild with this response, using these scriptures...
"Matthew 26:27-28 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

John 6:53-57 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me"...

I was just wondering what your thoughts were. What do you think, was Jesus speaking literally,or allegorically?

You stated in another post that you "instinctively" believe in a god, although you have no proof of "its" existence.. You refered to the god as, "it" and having a mind. I already know that you don't believe in the biblical God. I'm interested in knowing what you think god/"it" is. I get the atheist, but I don't get the agnostic deist.

It's my sense of awe of nature, including its rather spectacular beginning, and the evolution of the human mind that give me my sense of God. I say "mysterious mind behind the natural universe" because we don't know much about the enigmatic First Cause. I use the pronoun "It" because I'm trying to avoid anthropomorphizing. And finally, I use the qualifier "agnostic" because I recognize that I could be wrong. I try to draw a sharp line between what I believe and what I know

... but what do you think god is? What is God, what do you imagine or sense God to be?

If there is no communication between God and humans, and there is no inspired "Word of God" shouldn't you have something more than just instinct to go on? Why don't you just choose to make the leap to one side or the other?

I don't take the label "atheist" out of intellectual honesty. Even though I can't come up with any decisive evidence for a mind at work in the universe (my best and most original was my argument from homosexuality), I still am instinctively convinced. Were I to ever be convinced that this is a delusion, at most I would be a "romantic atheist" (one who wishes God were real)

... do you have that argument available for viewing, I'd like to see it.

Theism, by contrast, involves a much bigger leap. I'd have to resolve the following:

1. I'd have to be convinced that God desires a personal relationship with me, and yet the favorite mode of communication, prayer, is one way.
2. I'd have to be egotistical enough to think that God, who created the universe 13.7 billion years ago in a project that includes hundreds of millions of galaxies, wants a personal relationship with me.
3. I'd have to believe that God is so insecure as to require my adoration and validation. This is a God who's powerful enough to create the universe but is plagued with feelings of inadequacy and needs a hug. Kind of touching but unlikely.
4. I'd need to reconcile why God would even consider answering my prayers to find a better job or hit the lottery or whatever, and yet ignores the pleas from those starving in other nations

...you said, "Were I to ever be convinced that this is a delusion, at most I would be a "romantic atheist" (one who wishes God were real)"...why? If these are issues you don't think would be resolved, then why would you wish there would be a God? If God wants no personal relationship with humans, if he doesn't answer prayers, if he's insecure needing constant reassurance from his creation, ignores the worlds suffering, then what good is a god? Why would you be a "Romantic Atheist", wishing God were real, if "It's" weak, insecure, and limited?