Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Chieficus
Interesting...
The thing is: some people think that Christians should just keep to themselves, sit at home in their favorite chair curled up with their leather bound book, and not bother the world. But... when you live with a worldview where people who do not repent and come to faith in Christ are heading towards an eternal hell, you believe that all humans share an equal and intrinsic worth simply for being human, and God has commanded you to be loving and share the Gospel, then you have a hard time just sitting back and keeping out of other people's lives...
If I come up to you on the street or talk to you on your porch and you tell me, "Go away," that's fine--it's your choice, I'll go... But I'm not going to hang back, never approach you, and be worried about offending you...
|
Well, I'm glad you don't know where my porch is.
I have no problem with religion at a fundamental level - instilling base values and character (if it's used that way, as opposed to, say, teaching children it's okay to strap on a bomb and blow children of the wrong god up). But I thoroughly believe that the more organized religion is, the worse it gets. Good luck naming an organization that has caused more suffering and reeruned the advancement of our species more than the Catholic Church. I'd really like that 1,000 or so years back. Oh well. No star trekking for me, I guess. Darn.
I see religion (ALL OF THEM) for what it is - a tool for good or evil. It can be used to instill sound values or bend gullable fools to the will of the charismatic. Right or wrong, for better or worse, I have my own views on God, Jesus, heaven and hell, and I really don't care to hear anybody else's at this point.
As for the idea of all non-Christians burning in hell because they haven't been saved, well, sorry, I just don't buy into that. What of the untold millions (billions?) of people who have lived and died since Christ's time who were simply never exposed to Christianity? I am supposed to believe that they all now roast in hell because of geography or upbringing, regardless of how they lived their many lives? Think about it - that's simply preposterous. We are what we're programmed to be by our parents and our communities; it's always been that way. And good and evil certainly transend any human notions of religion.