Is belief in ghosts compatible with the Christian faith, or other religions?

[logician]

The fact that Christians can and do believe in ghosts shows that very clearly.

Here's a bunch that don't:

What is Christianity's view on ghosts? - Yahoo! Answers:no:

 

[logician]

Are you kidding me?
You are basing your 99% statistic on THAT?!?




I stand by the statement:

You are trying to tell Christians what they are and are not supposed to believe.
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Sure, like i would believe any of them would listen.

What a preposterous statement.:sad:

 

[logician]

Did you miss my first example the one talking about Catholics? So that "right field" belief is quite small because this have 1 billion+ members? Try again.

And what does the apostles creed have to do with anything? Reading it, it would not be a stretch to assume that hell is here on Earth as Jesus had to descend into hell. So I think that argument on your part fails as well.

Where do you get this stuff? LOL

 

[logician]

Doesn't matter if they never really happened. That is a moot point in this case, as Christian believe they happened.

You can continue dismissing all of the evidence against your position, but it really means nothing.

AS this post means nothing, because you have squat supporting your position.

Most Christians DON'T believe haunting of houses happened in the bible period.

 

[logician]

So how does the belief in ghosts harm Christianity? Oh yeah, it doesn't. That's because the belief in ghosts and Christianity are not incompatible.

Do you know how to read? I didn't say it harmed Christianity, I said it harmed the person.:sleep:

 

[logician]

Thank you Captain Obvious.

I mean if you really gave even one rats fart about your own credibility, you would not have ignored every post that flat out shows that you are wrong.

However, seeing as you are well versed in the ancient art of selective hearing AND you are most gifted in the area of stubborn denial, I suspect that you are not going to stop trying to tell Christians what they are and are not to believe.

Hey, all Christians out there, you must believe what I say!

Uh, see how absurd your post it?

I don't care what anyone believes, your attack on me is a red herring, I'm not telling anyone what to believe.:sleep:

 

[logician]

Well, the people of the OT believed that the shades of the dead went to Sheol, so you're not going to find examples of human spirits appearing on Earth other than cases, like we've mentioned, where they are specifically summoned.

1.By the NT time people believed in spirits walking the land, 2.the writers mention Jesus appearing as a ghost to two men after his resurrection, 3.they also mention people being possessed by spirits, such as Legion and of those spirits ability to move from host to host.
So the idea of spirits per se is not alien to Christian belief.

4.If you're talking haunted houses, the belief in spirits loitering in places is found in all cultures. It's why in pretty much every ancient culture graveyards and ruins were shunned.

1. But these weren't Christians, also, you mention no evidence.

2. Actually, he said he wasn't a "spirit", not in reference to a ghost haunting a house on earth, but a spirit having gone to heaven after death.

3. These are demons, not human spirits, a totally different category.

4. It may be, but that says nothing about its compatibility with Xianity.

 

[logician]

Wow, I come from a huge Catholic family and you obviously never met any of them I can gaurantee. Not only was there acceptance of the belief in ghosts...but many family members who claimed to see and talk with them. These were Catholic and other Christian people.

As for the "vast majority" of Christians reciting the apostles creed every week...the vast majority of Christians don't even go to church. I highly doubt that vast majority is reciting any creed weekly. In fact, I've never met one Christian that did. I guess I've only met the minority throughout my entire life huh?

Logician you claim to know an awful lot about Christians and Christianity, but whenever you post you seem to show how little you actually know and more what you simply assume.

This post is comical because you're doing exactly what you accuse me of doing.

 

[McBell]

I get it, when you have nothing else, make personal attacks.

That is not a personal attack.
It is a statement of fact.

 

[logician]

Oh, and just so you can never say that stupid nonsense again:

I'm a theist. I believe it is quite possible for me to remain here or return here in ghost form. It all depends on how my spirit transitions at death.

You are simply the exception that proves the rule. You are defending your beliefs, which are NOT mainstream by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[logician]

That is not a personal attack.
It is a statement of fact.

I don't believe that post was directed at you.

 

[McBell]

I don't believe that post was directed at you.

And?

.

 

[logician]

Don't be sorry. Just reread some of the bible. Jesus was tempted in the desert, he drove out demons, and his mother was visited by an angel. All of these encounters or so called encounters happened here on earth. If spirits like these exist, why not human spirits. I think it is a legitimate question. Can you answer it?

Again, there is a distinction between belief in demons and angels on earth, and human spirits on earth. I don't believe any of this of course, but I think the official church position is that demons can mimic "people" who have lived on earth, thus accounting for any supposed hauntings.

 

[fallingblood]

You are quite comical. Evidence is shown and then you just dismiss it without reason. Saying that an event as portrayed in the Bible didn't really happen isn't evidence that Christianity is at odds with the belief in Ghosts.

But lets look at this. Nearly half of the population in the United states believe in Ghosts. Over 70% in the United States are Christians. There is going to be a considerable overlap there.

And if you quickly check into Christian beliefs, many of them will tell you that they do in fact believe in ghosts. Others will say that when people see ghosts, they are truly seeing evil spirits or demons. Now you may claim this has nothing to do with the subject, but it does.

Now, please, provide evidence where Christianity states that one cannot believe in ghosts. Show in the Bible where this is claimed. If you can't, you're wrong.

 

[logician]

I can easily show a concrete example which shows me to be correct.
Most Baptists, and some fundamentalist denominations, believe that you must be totally immersed in water when baptized to be saved. This belief is INCOMPATIBLE with MAINSTREAM Christianity, which does not believe you have to be totally immersed to be saved. Both sides defend their beliefs strongly.
Am I telling people what to believe when I bring this up?
NO.
Do I care what they believe?
NO.
Are the beliefs incompatible?.
YES.
Exactly the same is true with belief in ghosts. There is a MINORITY of Christians that believe in ghosts of some sort. This belief is INCOMPATIBLE with MAINSTREAM Christianity, which does believe in angels and demons, but does NOT believe in ghosts that walk on the earth. Both sides defend their beliefs strongly.
Am I telling people what to believe when I bring this up?
NO.
Do I care what they believe?
NO.
Are the beliefs incompatible?.
Yes.
One other thing, I know a lot about polling people. The Harris poll says 70 percent of people or soin the U.S. are Christian. How do they get this number? Simply by having people check off a list.

When most people in the U.S. see a list on a survery that says religion: Christian, a few other religions, and none, they are going to check Christian whether they've ever seen the inside of a church, or opened a bible.

It's kind of like the default or generic religion of the U.S., so these numbers are suspect at best. Plus, you have to include the nearly billion other Christians on the planet of which I've seen no polls at all, so saying "most Christians" believe in ghosts really has no basis of support at all.

 

[fallingblood]

Do you understand what incompatible means? Your last post really makes it seem as if you don't.

 

[Draka]

I'm starting to think maybe logician is just pulling legs with this thread. His arguments are too ridiculous to be serious. This could be just one big "put-on". An elaborate joke. Maybe? Possibly? Hopefully.

 

[McBell]

If you can't do better than this, go elsewhere.

 

[logician]

I see everyone is ignoring post 196, too much over your head it seems.

 

[Erebus]

I believe in ghosts myself. I'm not entirely sure what they are though.

From a Christian point of view, I know that some Catholics believe ghosts are images of people in purgatory, some Christians believe that ghosts are in fact demons and others believe that Hell is in fact Earth and that Ghosts are the spirits of people in Hell.