"IT'S NOT ABOUT THE CHURCH! IT'S ABOUT CHRIST!"
Lighthouse, for all your hysterics, I think you have an issue with semantics.
When I say "the church" I am referring to "the Christian faith." So, while your bold-face exclamations are a convenient way for you not to address what I posted, you're missing my point. Re-read what I said that made you flip out and hits Cap Lock, then try answer like a grown-up. 'Kay?
If it's not about the church, why have one? If all we have to do is worship Jesus, why do we have the church? I think you're wrong, Lighthouse. It IS about the church. "The church" determined what went into your Bible and what was left out. "The church" decided that God was a tri-une being. "The church" voted on Jesus' deity. The church--by committee and council--hammered out what you believe in a very long time ago. It did so by mixing local legends and mythology with the Jesus cult in Jerusalem, then blended them together and had Constantine rubberstamp the thing. "The church" is very, very much what it's all about.
When you "become a Christian" you are TOLD that all you have to do is "believe in Jesus." Nobody ever hears about the fine print: the trust in translators, bishops, cardinals, church fathers, copyists...there's a lot Christians are asked to buy into after they sign on the dotted line.
If more people knew what the fine print was all about, "just believing in Jesus" would suddenly get a lot more complicated.
"I will never leave my Savior. He is my Father, and my Friend. He loves me, and I love Him. I am His. I have a relationship with Him, so I will never deny His existence. And I know His love, and will never leave Him."
Again: this is exactly what I would have said a year ago. You never know, Lighthouse. That's the point I'm making.
Oh, and as for more wacky weekend...I had two wisdom teeth taken out yesterday, so I was a little loopy on Friday...
Lighthouse, for all your hysterics, I think you have an issue with semantics.
When I say "the church" I am referring to "the Christian faith." So, while your bold-face exclamations are a convenient way for you not to address what I posted, you're missing my point. Re-read what I said that made you flip out and hits Cap Lock, then try answer like a grown-up. 'Kay?
If it's not about the church, why have one? If all we have to do is worship Jesus, why do we have the church? I think you're wrong, Lighthouse. It IS about the church. "The church" determined what went into your Bible and what was left out. "The church" decided that God was a tri-une being. "The church" voted on Jesus' deity. The church--by committee and council--hammered out what you believe in a very long time ago. It did so by mixing local legends and mythology with the Jesus cult in Jerusalem, then blended them together and had Constantine rubberstamp the thing. "The church" is very, very much what it's all about.
When you "become a Christian" you are TOLD that all you have to do is "believe in Jesus." Nobody ever hears about the fine print: the trust in translators, bishops, cardinals, church fathers, copyists...there's a lot Christians are asked to buy into after they sign on the dotted line.
If more people knew what the fine print was all about, "just believing in Jesus" would suddenly get a lot more complicated.
"I will never leave my Savior. He is my Father, and my Friend. He loves me, and I love Him. I am His. I have a relationship with Him, so I will never deny His existence. And I know His love, and will never leave Him."
Again: this is exactly what I would have said a year ago. You never know, Lighthouse. That's the point I'm making.
Oh, and as for more wacky weekend...I had two wisdom teeth taken out yesterday, so I was a little loopy on Friday...