Raised Christian, converted by internet

[Minimalist]

What's a Swedenborgian?

http://www.swedenborg.org/Beliefs.aspx?p...Accordion1

Standard drivel.

[Yahweh]

Thanks. I hope I don't disappoint either. I actually believed in evolution while i was a christian. I just didn't think it disproved any deities. My grandmother doesn't believe it, but I think it's obvious that it does happen.

I'm also not homophobic anymore. That's one thing many christians are. They love to ignore so much of the old testament, but being against gays, and abiding the ten commandments are definite keepers. I think that no one should have an abortion unless the mother is dying, though I agree that the child doesn't have conscious thoughts until the neo cortex is functional. I've been told early term abortions make up the vast number of them anyway, but I don't really want to say I'm for abortions and leave it at that.

People have to remember that there isn't really a need to mate anymore. We're over-populated.

[Chad32]

There isn't a need to be xenophobic anymore either, yet it happens. You could probably make a good list of things that were crucial to survival in the past that are outdated or detrimental to us now.

[Interviewer]

Chad32, can I ask what specific parts/stories of the Bible repelled you? I'm not claiming to be able to come up with some sort of explanation to them, I'm just curious.

[Chad32]

I guess I could start with Genesis, with the Tower of Babel and the flood stories. First you have people wanting to build a tower to the heavens for the stated reason of building a great kingdom, and keeping people from getting scattered across the globe. Yahweh doesn't like it, saying if they do it they will be like "them", so he tears it down and scatters them to keep people dependent on him.

Then you have a global flood story, where the waters rise high enough that there really shouldn't be enough air to breath, provided they generate enough body heat so they don't freeze to death. Then down on earth, everything should be dead. What grasses would the herbivores eat? What animals do the carnivores eat, besides the pairs of other animals that just left the ark?

Actually I think the flood came before the tower story.

There's how they treat women. To get a wife, you have the options of either raping someone and paying her father some money, or going to a town with your friends, killing everyone but the virgins, then dragging your new bride off to rape her after she's given a month to mourn. Or kick her out on the street after shaving her head if she doesn't please you enough.

There's the whole slavery thing, where you can buy and sell people from other tribes. Plus killing people just for having different beliefs, or disobeying most laws set by the bible. Including being killed by bears because you called a prophet bald.

Later Jesus tells people that if they come to him, and don't hate their family, they're not worthy of him, because he has come to set families apart. He tells you to give away all of your possessions, including anything someone else asks for, so christians are supposed to be homeless wanderers.

[Tripwire]

I was also "raised" Christian, and was internet converted.

[Chad32]

Yay! People like me!

[Tripwire]

...

[KichigaiNeko]

"The Internet...where religion comes to die"

One of Zen's favourite sayings.