tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post6106639139787084958..comments2024-03-28T20:47:47.445-04:00Comments on Serene Musings: An Argument Against ExclusivityScotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10535260741343975445noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-82352541161545119902008-02-20T16:11:00.000-05:002008-02-20T16:11:00.000-05:00I have no snide comments. Welcome back to blog la...I have no snide comments. Welcome back to blog land, though.Elissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06377709828849342884noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-56739504964546610802008-02-16T23:57:00.000-05:002008-02-16T23:57:00.000-05:00Thanks for the encouragement, LRO, and thanks for ...Thanks for the encouragement, LRO, and thanks for reading my thoughts. I guess my hope with this blog, and anything else I may do in the future in regards to writing about religion, is to reach out to other "Church alumni" and skeptics in an effort to show that the baby doesn't necessarily have to be thrown out with the bathwater. There is another path that can be spiritually and personally rewarding, enriching, and authentic, even within current religious traditions.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10535260741343975445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-5665605466735885542008-02-15T17:16:00.000-05:002008-02-15T17:16:00.000-05:00Ironic, isn't it, that the church needs to be "sav...Ironic, isn't it, that the church needs to be "saved." I'm trying to find Dawkins in my library right now, so I look forward to reading that. I love dry, British humour. You've recommended some good books, and caused me to rethink religion, although I fear Christianity is lost to me, what with all the baggage I can't seem to relinquish.<BR/><BR/>My parting thought is that where there's religion, there are usually divisive teachings and bizarre, or even harmful, rituals to lend it an air of mystique. Without mystique, there's really no religion, is there? There's just a set of moral or ethical rules to enable the smooth operation of society. <BR/><BR/>Is there a soul? What is it? Is it eternal? Is it different from the spirit? No one can answer these questions. Does it matter whether there is or isn't? Will knowing really change the way we live? It seems to me that there are always going to be good people and bad people, with or without religion, so I'm ambivalent about saving the church. This is by no means the final stop on my journey, and I'm fascinated by yours, so I'll continue to follow your posts. Thank you for letting me share my ideas with you, and for sharing your's with me, Scott.Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00992596486347896020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-29762055599849852582008-02-15T00:13:00.000-05:002008-02-15T00:13:00.000-05:00LRO: It sounds like we have a lot in common.I've n...LRO: It sounds like we have a lot in common.<BR/><BR/>I've never heard of Sullivan, but I will check him out. Ehrman is definitely another good one. I'm reading Richard Dawkins "The God Delusion" right now. He is an excellent writer whose prose is easy to follow and read, and he makes well thought out and compelling arguments on many subjects. Surprisingly, the book is also quite funny. He has the classic dry, sarcastic, understated British wit, and he incorporates it well into his writing. Of course, in the end, I disagree with many of his conclusions regarding God and the necessity of destroying all religion, but I still enjoy reading the book and hearing the "rational" side's best argument.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, a book that might appeal to you, if you haven't already seen and/or read it, is Spong's newest effort: Jesus For The Non-Religious. I have the book and was just looking over the preface tonight, but I have not actually read it yet. However, from past experience with Spong, and from reading the basic premise of the book, it promises to be another insightful gem about how to approach Christianity and Jesus in the post-Enlightenment, post-literalist, post-Christian world. It appears to be an effort to show why Jesus is still relevant, even without the literalism that has tainted his story for so many centuries. <BR/><BR/>Institutional religion, as it is generally organized at this point in time, does definitely seem increasingly irrelevant and even increasingly dangerous to human progress. I'm not sure that I am yet to the point, however, of arguing for its total demise. I guess I still stand in line behind the likes of Spong, Borg, and countless other theologians and scholars, hoping that the Church as a whole can be brought out of the pre-Enlightenment, literalist past, and changed in such a way as to become authentic and spiritually relevent in the future. In that sense, I still garner hope that the Church can be "saved." But, like the title of one of Spong's books says, I do believe that Christianity must change, or it will die.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10535260741343975445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-50466119182486378742008-02-14T12:39:00.000-05:002008-02-14T12:39:00.000-05:00Thank you for the suggestions. I've read those, or...Thank you for the suggestions. I've read those, or parts of them, at least. I've also read Clayton Sullivan's "Rescuing Jesus From the Christians," and Bart D. Ehrman's books. My problem, I guess, is that I wonder why we need organized religion at all? Isn't it enough for those who've had direct experiences with God to enjoy their "special relationship" with Him? Must they proselytize? Until one has such an experience, how can one be expected to accept on faith their religious claims? It's like me trying to explain the sky to a blind person, isn't it? Religion creates as many problems as benefits for the human race, and may ultimately lead to its destruction. Why not just say that the world works better when everyone follows a code of morality, without the carrot and stick idea of a supernatural being?Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00992596486347896020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-49020839636283663262008-02-14T11:43:00.000-05:002008-02-14T11:43:00.000-05:00LRO: Thanks for reading and commenting. I just fi...LRO: Thanks for reading and commenting. I just finished reading Karen Armstrong's A History of God a few weeks ago, and it is fantastic. I would recommend it to you. I also would recommend anything by Marcus Borg or John Shelby Spong. They are both wonderful writers, scholars, and theologians with authentic and relevant visions of a Christianity beyond literalism.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10535260741343975445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-51195497685550438222008-02-14T11:12:00.000-05:002008-02-14T11:12:00.000-05:00I'm finding it more and more difficult to believe ...I'm finding it more and more difficult to believe in God-at least the God presented in the scriptures (any scriptures)-and my only comment on the diversity of religious beliefs is that I think religion springs forth from that person's or peoples' experiences and culture. <BR/>After reading Karen Armstrong's "The Spiral Staircase," I had to wonder if many founders of early religions had epileptic visions of the kind she experienced, and this was what explains, in part, the founding of religious beliefs in the first place. I find religions fascinating and was raised in a "hellfire and brimstone" church. I was very motivated to try my best to accept, and then attempt to make sense of, the scriptures. But if there is a God, He is beyond my understanding.Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00992596486347896020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29179803.post-30028024172015938872008-02-10T11:45:00.000-05:002008-02-10T11:45:00.000-05:00I couldn't agree with you more. There is more tha...I couldn't agree with you more. There is more than one way to relate to God--the maker. If God is in your Heart, then why do need to attend church? It doesn't increase nor decrease God's love or hate for his children. <BR/> I also reject the idea of a judgement day in which we are all judged for our sins. If if does come, it is when an individual dies, it is then that persons day to meet the maker. his flesh dies but his spirit lives forever.this is what christians are trying to explain with eternal life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com