Back, after a long, LONG break.

[Wurlitzer Oz]

Welcome! I enjoy the reference of your current user name! Very fond memories.

 

[Deeje]

Re-greetings!
Join us for the daily free RF breakfast....

Oh please!....these might be acceptable in Revoltistan, but what on earth is in them ?

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Welcome back from a long-timer. Now get off my lawn!

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Oh please!....these might be acceptable in Revoltistan, but what on earth is in them ?

Haggis. Lamb belly with a bunch of ground up stuff like onions, grains, ad meats. Edible only in Revoltistan and Scotland (at least they sent pancakes to make up for it).

 

[Deeje]

I wholeheartedly agree with everything said here. I agree that not all mental illness stems from chemical imbalances in the brain, or is cured by medications. Sure, western medicine has plenty of practical uses, but it does not do a good job of healing the human soul.

Not to mention the underutilisation of music...the most potent drug in existence for what ails the brain. It’s ability to add or to subtract healing of the human psyche is underestimated IMO. You only have to watch what happens to dementia patients when music taps into their long term memory and they come back to life. Conversely, music can incite a person to violence and hatred.
What we feed, grows.

Thank you for sharing your beliefs with me. They certainly do fall in line with traditional Christian thinking. I think in many ways we are on the same page, the only real difference is a disagreement on whether or not "god" truly communicates with us.

Discovering the ways in which Jehovah communicates with his people has been a real revelation to me over many years. Finding myself in places or situations that made no sense to me at the time, but later realising why I was ‘pushed’ to go there....is very humbling.

If you know anything about JW’s (from first hand experience, not from hearsay) you will know that we are not “traditional” in any way. Like the Jews of the first century, Christendom bases its beliefs, not on scripture, but on many man-made ‘traditions’. This made the Jewish religion unacceptable to Jesus who was sent to rescue “the lost sheep” out of that corrupted system, and shepherd them into a new ‘pen’. I believe that God is separating people out again by having his gospel preached in all the world. (Matthew 24:14)

I believe that we are deep into “the time of the end” foretold by the prophet Daniel, and that drastic change is about to be introduced into a very troubled and divided world.....but it will not be what most people are expecting. The Bible tells us how it will all play out.

I've found plenty of wisdom in the Good Book, both OT and NT, but in my years studying it, I've always found the whole "man was created in God's image" concept to be very paradoxical.

What to you think it means for man to be “made in God’s image”? Perhaps your concept is provided by Christendom’s teachings. I was raised with them too, so I have studied all these things quite thoroughly. I have answered all those questions for myself. Feel free to PM me if you would like to discuss any of them in depth....

That being said, I am interested in learning more about Christianity while I am here. Despite being born and raised in a Catholic family, and reading the Bible quite a few times, there is undoubtedly much more that I can learn from folks that are more knowledgeable in it.

The great thing about RF is the diversity of beliefs and the ability to evaluate all those beliefs in searching for answers to our own important questions.

All the best....

 

[Revoltingest]

Oh please!....these might be acceptable in Revoltistan, but what on earth is in them ?

Chopped up hearts & lungs.
And some unsavory stuff too.

 

[Deeje]

Chopped up hearts & lungs.
And some unsavory stuff too.

How offal.....

 

[UsiresAedon]

Welcome! I enjoy the reference of your current user name! Very fond memories.

Ah, yes. I thoroughly enjoy Tad Williams' work. I debated for a moment to (sarcastically) select "The Aedonite Religion" as my displayed religion, but then I concluded that the reference would be lost upon the masses. Your post has proven me wrong.

Christendom bases its beliefs, not on scripture, but on many man-made ‘traditions’.

I will be the first to admit that my days as a Catholic involved a lot of weird "rituals." But utilizing scripture as a basis for Catholic beliefs was done quite frequently, at least at the church I attended in my youth. My years in Catholicism are in the single digits, though, so I have not seen a large variety of congregations to know if this is really a common theme.

Also, I recall my days in preschool. Born in the late 1980's, This was during a time when the concept of preschool was still very much in its infancy. In my community, there were no Catholic preschools in operation yet, so my parents had to choose between either sending me to a (gasp!) Presbyterian preschool, or to attend no preschool at all. Much to the admonition of my grandmother, my parents ultimately chose my academic advantage over personal views of church affiliation. The memories are fuzzy, but I remember a heavy, HEAVY emphasis on literacy. I recall asking the teacher why it was so important to read so much. Her response? "So you can read the Bible, of course." So I know scripture plays an important role in Presbyterianism as well.

I can not speak for other Christian denominations, as I don't have personal experience with them. For what it's worth, though, I once invited a Jehovah's Witness into my home, and we had a brief discussion and prayed together. I do recall him to be very devoted to his holy texts. Every JW I have had the pleasure of speaking with has followed this pattern as well, so it must be a common theme in that belief system.

Feel free to PM me if you would like to discuss any of them in depth....

I will do exactly that.

 

[Revoltingest]

How offal.....

Well, ya know....there's so much stuff that industry is prohibited
from using in dog food...& even in hot dogs or Scrapple. So
using it in haggis is very environmentally responsible (no waste).

 

[Marcion]

Welcome back!

 

[Thief]

However, I find myself not debating my point as much anymore. I used to believe, in a very black and white style of thinking, that for a person to be right, the other person must also be wrong.

I shall repeat a topic ...just for you

right and wrong

 

[Thief]

Well, ya know....there's so much stuff that industry is prohibited
from using in dog food...& even in hot dogs or Scrapple. So
using it in haggis is very environmentally responsible (no waste).

and in this country (US)….
the laws are MORE strict for the pets...!!!!

but of course ….haggis should be illegal everywhere

 

[Revoltingest]

and in this country (US)….
the laws are MORE strict for the pets...!!!!

but of course ….haggis should be illegal everywhere

That would only make it more desirable.
And driving it underground would create
an illegal industry to satisfy demand.
Gangas of haggis runners would proliferate.

 

[Thief]

and are you still hanging around school yards?.....with free samples