11-03-2013, 04:02 PM
Warning! This post may be viewed as trying to debate religion. It is not and I am not interested in any such debate. It does however give my own personal views of how religion can be a problem for people doing what we are doing and it is a plea to not let any religion tell you how to live your life or to hate anything about yourself. And I cannot say this strongly enough, I do not want to discourage discussion or suppress anyone's ideas. On the contrary, I firmly believe ideas should be expressed and discussed to fairly examine and determine their value to any reader. Ok, here goes.
Yes you're correct, religious inconsistencies are a real problem when trying to find ways to evaluate their messages. I think most people have a lot of trouble figuring out what to take from religions and what to reject. I do hope you are able to apply that to your own quandary and realize that it is a source of internal conflict you cannot fix. It can only be learned from and moved past. The self-loathing you describe is at least partially a product of that which you say is a reason to educate and chide church members for. Live, learn, love and grow. Don't try to tie a modern life to a social perspective that is from another time, another place, a different set of constraints on maintaining life and most of all, created for purposes you do not know by persons you do not know and never can. We have enough inner turmoil without allowing others to teach us more for their own purposes.
(11-03-2013, 04:18 AM)moniker Wrote: Church is a social institution whose purported purpose is the promotion of ...
In regards to christian philosophy- your relationship with God is, first and foremost, a private affair.
Yes you're correct, religious inconsistencies are a real problem when trying to find ways to evaluate their messages. I think most people have a lot of trouble figuring out what to take from religions and what to reject. I do hope you are able to apply that to your own quandary and realize that it is a source of internal conflict you cannot fix. It can only be learned from and moved past. The self-loathing you describe is at least partially a product of that which you say is a reason to educate and chide church members for. Live, learn, love and grow. Don't try to tie a modern life to a social perspective that is from another time, another place, a different set of constraints on maintaining life and most of all, created for purposes you do not know by persons you do not know and never can. We have enough inner turmoil without allowing others to teach us more for their own purposes.