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Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 5:53 am
(This post was last modified: January 27, 2017 at 5:59 am by Rispri.)
I actually considered Catholicism for awhile. But the reason i just chose not to was mostly due to verses as
Psalm 2:6-12 and Luke 19:27 in context this would mean to set up a kingdom of God's people which could justify murder, the problem is traditionally catholicism and the same would be with orthodox christianity is that church tradition are just as important as the bible. So looking at the history Christianity would not encourage violence but they could use it to get the dominant cultural status. Which it is known for in middle ages.
I was actually just considering to just not believe it at all because i had moral problems with it that even if i lived in those times i could just not bring myself to such a thing. I am more of a discussing type of person.
In either case protestantism which is not that old is more on reformation of Christianity, so its easy to just reinterpret the meanings because it doesnt believe in the historical value of Christianity as the traditional ones do, so i could just say it means "Its what happens when all will be put before judgement after death" or "it means Christianity as in god's words will be what triumps over the pagan views of truth"
In either case the reason i must believe is because 1: I have fear of death. 2: Its comforting to think of an idea to see the loved ones after i i die.
In either case my goal is to try to be good and just do my best in general since i feel life has a purpose that way.
But let me know what you think?
Btw i dont hate catholics or orthodox christians or anything. It just wasn't for me.
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 6:42 am
(January 27, 2017 at 5:53 am)Rispri Wrote: In either case the reason i must believe is because 1: I have fear of death. 2: Its comforting to think of an idea to see the loved ones after i i die.
...
So... you understand that you believing a thing is not actually going to prevent you from dying, nor enable you to see your loved ones again, right? I mean, I get that those things might be comforting, but they're not reasons you "must" believe, or even should believe; they ain't gonna do anything for you unless they also happen to be true, something that doesn't seem to factor in at all in why you believe.
"YOU take the hard look in the mirror. You are everything that is wrong with this world. The only thing important to you, is you." - ronedee
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 7:12 am
It's refreshing to see a theist cut straight to the point and describe what religion means to them. I'm happy to see that you consider being a good person as more important than following dogma. We find purpose in very similar ways! I think the main difference between you and me is our need for comfort; it diminishes me but fear drives me, I need life to be scary.
So you chose protestantism because you feel that you 'must' believe in a god so you sought out the one you're most comfortable with, yes? You must pick some religion, in your world view, irrespective of the truth of its claims because you need comfort. So why did you stay within Christianity? There are non-Christian religions that can provide you with what you're looking for without any of the baggage of violence and immorality that's inherent within Abrahamic beliefs.
Also, I'll warn you now, you'll pick up some heat for caring more about comfort than truth. Many of us on this board consider the identification of truth to be as close to sacrosanct as any non-theistic value can be. But many of those people are humanists, too so they'll probably tell you off in a caring way 
Sum ergo sum
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 7:46 am
(January 27, 2017 at 6:42 am)Esquilax Wrote: (January 27, 2017 at 5:53 am)Rispri Wrote: In either case the reason i must believe is because 1: I have fear of death. 2: Its comforting to think of an idea to see the loved ones after i i die.
...
So... you understand that you believing a thing is not actually going to prevent you from dying, nor enable you to see your loved ones again, right? I mean, I get that those things might be comforting, but they're not reasons you "must" believe, or even should believe; they ain't gonna do anything for you unless they also happen to be true, something that doesn't seem to factor in at all in why you believe.
Yeah, indeed, maybe we have some kind of Pascal's wager situation here...
The fool hath said in his heart, There is a God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
Psalm 14, KJV revised edition
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 8:11 am
RIspri : Welcome! I find your Christian testimony boring and without meaning.
God thinks it's fun to confuse primates. Larsen's God!
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 8:26 am
(January 27, 2017 at 5:53 am)Rispri Wrote: In either case the reason i must believe is because 1: I have fear of death. 2: Its comforting to think of an idea to see the loved ones after i i die.
 new guy.
This is the trait that I do not have. I don't want to die soon, it is inevitable. But I don't fear it because every second of my life is savoured, even the most hard times. Someday, I will be gone and forgotten. Being dead I will give absolutely 0 fucks about it.
There is no evidence that our consciousness goes beyond the end of brain activity. I will enjoy my brain activity while I have one.
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 10:37 am
Rispri, if you're going to be a Protestant, can I interest you in the Quakers?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers
I'm not anti-Christian. I'm anti-stupid.
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 10:42 am
Yeah, Quakers don't get nearly enough love and respect in the Christian world.
I suspect too many believers like to keep their options open on that non-violence thing.
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 10:45 am
(This post was last modified: January 27, 2017 at 11:10 am by Neo-Scholastic.)
Personally, I think church tradition is extremely important and should not be discarded on the basis of a couple of proof texts. You will find that even Protestant theologians rely on the doctrines developed by the Schoolmen during the period of the "Church Universal." Sola Scriptura is a circular doctrine. It claims the the bible interprets itself. People have to be very naive to believe that. It's not an easy read. The 66 books are rich, complex and challenging.
(January 27, 2017 at 5:53 am)Rispri Wrote: In either case the reason i must believe is because 1: I have fear of death. 2: Its comforting to think of an idea to see the loved ones after i i die.
Those do not seem like particularly positive motivations for faith in Jesus Christ. Christianity can be a highly rewarding approach to life, filled with a unique kind of joy based on a personal experience with the source of love-itself. Atheists will say that you can get that without god. Perhaps. You'll have to decide that for yourself. You might want to check out David Bentley Hart's book on bliss ( https://www.amazon.com/Experience-God-Be...nce+of+god)
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RE: Why i became a protestant Christian
January 27, 2017 at 10:50 am
As others have pointed out your criteria for choosing what to believe strikes me as odd. I've never considered belief to be something that is up to me. There are truths which I wish were otherwise, like the outcome of the last presidential election in the US. But wishes aren't facts about the world, just about my preferences. Even if I wanted to believe Trump was not the president, I have no idea how I'd set about believing that was true. What I believe to be true is something that rightly intrudes on my beliefs. The same goes for gods. I could imagine a world in which there was a hierarchy of gods and what that life would be like but I couldn't bring myself to believe it was true. Try as might I have no idea how anyone decides to turn a wish into a belief. I really don't.
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