Christian "purpose" and "meaning" in life.

[Ryantology]

Been through this a million times. I say "unless he a pussy cat and doesn't hold us accountable for anything, then he doesn't love us"?

Holding people accountable for sins they had nothing to do with is the behavior of an abusive, rather than a loving, individual.

Then you say "how can he hold babies accountable"? Then I say "they're in heaven and are much happier".

Lek believes it is okay to murder a baby because they are in heaven. But you better keep your hands off that zygote.

Then you say "what about all those people he killed who had never heard of him"? And I say "read chapter 1 of the book of Romans where he says he reveals himself to everyone through creation and no one is without excuse".

Because creation displays absolutely zero evidence of being created by anything, much less your specific god's trademark on nature, and it obviously doesn't work that way, because otherwise, Yahweh would have been worshiped all over the world right from the start of it. Or even in any of it beyond a tiny spot of land in the middle of nowhere hundreds of thousands of years after humans started walking on two legs. This is just a way to pretend that Yahweh's random maliciousness is justifiable.

Then you say "if that's what you call a loving God, the he can go *!#*! himself".

Precisely.

[Brakeman]

Well I was just wondering how you justified the actions of the god of the Bible with being a loving being whatsoever?

.. I say "unless he a pussy cat and doesn't hold us accountable for anything, then he doesn't love us"? Then you say "how can he hold babies accountable"? Then I say "they're in heaven and are much happier". Then you say "what about all those people he killed who had never heard of him"? And I say "read chapter 1 of the book of Romans where he says he reveals himself to everyone through creation and no one is without excuse". ..

First off, god couldn't be bothered to contact us directly, he supposedly uses other lying sinful humans to tell us how to not sin. His message ONLY comes through other people, not from god. Other humans have thousands of competing stories about what some magical god wants us to do. So confusion is rife. To put this problem in perspective, imagine a father taking his child down into his basement and torturing the child for 40 years because the child didn't follow the instructions that the father gave an unrelated kid in another country, in another language, 20 years before the child was born. That father definitely "LOVES" his child!

That's like your god! Only your god is much much worse!

[Cyberman]

The mouthpieces who claim to speak for their god don't actually pass on the message of how not to sin; they just tell us not to. These are not representative of any kind of moral framework, they're just pronouncements about certain types of behaviour. It's telling Dorothy not to look behind the curtain, rather than why she shouldn't or how she can avoid it.

[Lek]

The mouthpieces who claim to speak for their god don't actually pass on the message of how not to sin; they just tell us not to. These are not representative of any kind of moral framework, they're just pronouncements about certain types of behaviour. It's telling Dorothy not to look behind the curtain, rather than why she shouldn't or how she can avoid it.

Galatians 5:16-26
New International Version (NIV)
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[a] you want.

[Cyberman]

Yeah. Thanks for confirming what I said. Clearly we're on the same page.

[Mystical]

Seems lazy to me to just post a quote as a reply. People do it, sure. But aren't you here with an agenda? Can't you please make an effort to verbalize yourself regarding the rebuttal you are trying to make? If you're going to quote the Bible for your rebuttal I would get that-- but you didn't even explain your point at all.

I'd really like to talk to you, Lek. Not the Bible armor you've built around you. Sad a tad isn't it? The very things you've been taught, keep us from having a rational discussion about reality.

[Cyberman]

On that very point you mention, regarding posting bible verses:

This is a discussion forum.
This means that members should interact with each other in a proper discussion, and not purposely / repeatedly evade rebuttals made to them. Whilst members are not forced or required to answer every post addressed to them, ignoring them all and continuing to post similar content will fall in line with our "No Spam" rule. This includes posting links / copy-pasted content / scripture verses repeatedly, without adding your own comments or being relevant to the thread.

This is our primary rule and all other rules fall in line with this concept. The staff reserves the right to analyze each case in the spirit of this rule if said case doesn't violate the exact wording of other rules.

[Esquilax]

The mouthpieces who claim to speak for their god don't actually pass on the message of how not to sin; they just tell us not to. These are not representative of any kind of moral framework, they're just pronouncements about certain types of behaviour. It's telling Dorothy not to look behind the curtain, rather than why she shouldn't or how she can avoid it.

Galatians 5:16-26
New International Version (NIV)
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[a] you want.

So... your response is just "you just do it!" And you can't see why this is a problem?

This is the problem with your religion: it makes you okay with answering "why?" questions with "what?" answers. It makes you alright with anything, so long as the correct space wizard commands it.

[Tonus]

Galatians 5:16-26
New International Version (NIV)
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[a] you want.

That verse seems to be saying "walk by the spirit, even though you can't because you weren't designed that way."

[Confused Ape]

Galatians 5:16-26
New International Version (NIV)
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[a] you want.

So how do people walk by the Spirit? What are the instructions for achieving this?

If I wanted to contact my Higher Self, New Age style I can find the instructions on the internet. I often use Eckhart Tolle's method of being in the present because I find this exercise is useful for clearing my mind. I only had to read his book 'The Power Of Now' once to know what the technique is supposed to do and how to go about using this technique.

How far are we supposed to go in not gratifying the desires of the flesh?

Mortification In Roman Catholic History

The Roman Catholic Church has often held mortification of the flesh (literally, "putting the flesh to death"), as a worthy spiritual discipline.

While doing a bit of research for this I found something very interesting.

Excerpts from The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

"A hermit said, 'Take care to be silent. Empty your mind. Attend to your meditation in the fear of God, whether you are resting or at work. If you do this, you will not fear the attacks of the demons."

Here, again, we're told what to do but it's not very helpful when it comes to instructions for emptying the mind. If Christians want to do it they'll find some useful tips in Eckhart Tolle's book.