Most Christians Did Not Read The Bible Completely,,is This Sane ? Before telling that you are a christian you should read the bible comp

[Rid 0]

There is a difference between Atheism and prejudice. Atheism, as you pointed out, "is commonly defined as the positive belief that deities do not exist, or as the deliberate rejection of theism." That has nothing to do with religion being wrong. Saying religion is "wrong" is prejudice. Not believing that God exists is Atheism. You pointed that one out yourself.So, by your own admission of the definition of Atheism, I'm not lacking any tolerance at all, except towards prejudice.Sorry for my vagueness with the definition of racism.

[Grafitti 0]

I think the original topic posted was way too vague and open-ended.That said, I disagree that nearly every war has been started by religion. It is simply the most convenient excuse to cover human greed. It's not like the crusaders were all that interested in converting the Muslims. It was an excuse for the Pope to increase his prestige and power, and an excuse for the knights to plunder the spoils. And every other war has had greed or a megalomaniac at its helm, not least of which is Bush and his current mess in Iraq. At least he didn't use religion as his main cover this time, he used his WMD scare and "liberation of the oppressed people" tactic, and nobody today doesn't know that the main reason for going to war was the expansion of American military bases, and attempting to secure a cheap flow of oil. Is that greed or not, and what war at heart has been different? So i don't think it's fair to generalize religion as the cause of wars. It does get dragged in, however, by extremists, who use it to justify their means as well. Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, what have you, there will be those who are racist in their religion, and can't tolerate diversity, and those will fight in the name of their religion. But that's only those on the fringe, and isn't representative of the religion as a whole. Plus Darwinism, Atheism, and what have you aren't any better, because they reset the concept of right and wrong to be whatever the individual feels it is, and remove personal accountability from the equation. And that isn't any better than the wrong side of religion.

[Chesso 0]

Hence why I don't even have a label, I'm just me.But some religions at there core dictate to slay ones that don't believe it, would that not conflict with tolerance of other beliefs quite seriously...... That's assuming I haven't been mis-informed that is.

[Grafitti 0]

I suppose there must be some like that. But I can say with certainty that the Christian, Muslim, and Buddhist religions, at their core, do not condone attacking other people on the basis of religion, but instead promote tolerance of non like-minded people.

[mitchellmckain 0]

Is Christianiy true or just another pagan religion,,like some would say..Have you read the bible completely, if yes share with us what did you learn
If you did not read it completely,,could you explain the reasons??

In the light of my main objection the answer to this questions should be obvious. It requires certain abilities to do the reading which you are suggesting. Some people are more suited to study than others. Some people cannot concentrate on the content found in many books of the Bible for more than a few minutes without falling a sleep. Some people might even come to the conclusion that reading the Bible is something only extremely idle people are even capable of doing. Many people have to work so hard they are always exhausted. For others their limited mastery of language renders much of the Bible meaningless. Should they their time spend much of their limited time reading Leviticus, Ezekiel and Revelations when they would require someone to tell them what it means anyway and even the explanations would be barely comprehensible. Let the fanatics like me and thee revel in the word to our hearts delight but make no judgements of others who have better uses for their time.

people learn their mother language not by memorizing the words of a diccionary..You have your point....but, people learn that language by living in a family. Well in chrisianity I believe (is an apinion, not a truth) that you are called a chrisitian because you follow the way of life that Jesuschrist lived,,,So people see that way of life and they called you a christian..(again that is just a point of view)..Well, that way of life, is very difficult to learn by following any living human being you can see because we all are sinners...So, what is left is to learn about the way of life of Jesuschrist, and for that you have to study and read the bible. Why? Because there you will find all about Jesuschrist..Everything about Him is in there..I can hardly imagine a Christian not having a bible...is like trying to imagine a marine soldier withotu his rifle or like trying to imagine a carpenter without his hammer...What difindes a christian is the life of Jesuschrist, and you learn about Jesuschrist in the bible..There is no other place to learn about Jesuschrist..If you are serious about your faith...soon or late,,you will grab the bible and you will learn..you will obey..then you will know the truth..and then you will be free...is somewhere in the new testament..Cheerrss

That is only one aspect of Christianity for Christianity embraces a great variety of people and a great variety of experiences. I really get tired of people who try to squash it flat into a linear measure so they can compare themselves with other people favorably. Edited March 19, 2007 by mitchellmckain (see edit history)

[yuhuu 0]

Just for the record, I want to say that my intensions were in no way other than explain my point of view. I never tried to put a level in wich, I am in advantage against others. But, yes I want to put a level..not mine, not anyones...And that level is the bible...Everybody wont forget what happened in middle age, when people was not allowed to read the bible....In that age, Clerics would give the same reasons Mitchell gave to put the reading of the bible as a relative level..." Just some people can understand the bible, and therefore it is not an important thing to do..." Well,,what happened is that the clerics became corrupted. They would sell the entrance to heaven, They would sell angels feathers, They would sell splinters of the holy cross, they would accept payments for forgiveness of sins you were going to comit..etc,,etc.,,To put the reading of the bible as a relative level, is to risk History to repeat...All those abusive manipulations of the middle age are gone in part, thanks to the mass printing of the bible, and the mass reading of it..."And the truth will set you free" If you remember the middle age,,well it is true,,Reading the bible,,has set us free from the middle age and all of its abusive manipulations....And in regards with the relativism I noticed in some posts...I know everything depends on the point of view...That is something Einstein taught us...But, even for Einstein there was a constant, a fixed level,,and that constant was "the light"....

[mtnbluet 0]

Is Christianiy true or just another pagan religion,,like some would say..Have you read the bible completely, if yes share with us what did you learn
If you did not read it completely,,could you explain the reasons??

Yes, and a thousand times yes. What I mean is that I read the Bible through no matter if it takes me 6 months, 1 year, 2 years or more. The Bible is a Living word in that the Holy Spirit quickens the word that is read and spoken. It becomes alive in the sense that certain verses seem to pop out of the page as you read the Word.

In that way you are being instructed and taught and you are gaining wisdom and understanding. The pieces of the Bilble that is the historical figures in the Bible seem to fit together better, the more that you read the Word. It ceases to amaze me that each time I read the Bible through I get new insight, and new understanding and hopefully more wisdom.

You see, wisdom is the acting out naturally of the knowledge and understanding that one has gained. Wisdom is the result of all ones time spent learning. And the saying actions speak louder than words is true here more than ever. Why? Because if one is quick to judge, if one is quick to be impatient and if one is quick to hate or just not to love others, than all the knowledge and understanding that one has been learning is null and void. Wisdom has not been gained in that case.

[Orca239 0]

(Sorry, I haven't read the entire conversation, but most of it. Therefore I will go on my point from what I read.)

 

A Christian does not have to read the entire Bible (like in an earlier example, there's a difference in knowing God with your mind, and with your heart. Many atheists know who God is, have read the Bible, etc, but still don't know God) A Christian doesn't even actually have to have a Bible, they can learn from other Christians, but I'd say if you can get one, it would be a very good idea. You can learn alot more by reading it first hand and getting out of it what God wants you to get out of it.

 

I've read a verse before and not found anything at all in it (at the time I wasn't very open to God, aka I was in a bad mood and didn't feel like listening... shame on me >_<; But when I read it again later, what God wanted me to see and get from it popped out at me as if it were highlighted.

 

Oh, by the way, if you don't fully believe that God will do or tell you something, then don't expect him to do it.

Just a little FYI for someone out there that might need to see it... dunno but I just felt for some reason I needed to put it.

[Punkcat 0]

Many of the saints or Holy men in history didn't read the Bible, and they are still considered great examples to follow. Many of the Apostles weren't versed people in the Bible, and still were able to live a Christian life.
On the other hand, many philosophers and intellectuals have read the Bible completely, and still don't consider themselves Christians or lead christian lives.
Mainly to be considered a Christian is a question of FAITH, something that was never mentioned in this post. Even if you read only some parts of the Bible, if you read it under the eyes of faith, it will be more fruitful than reading it just to say you've read it all.
Also, many simple people lead simple lives, and only need a simple christian concept. Love God, be kind with everybody. You can't say that a person that does that is not Christian. At the same time, there are people that need more understanding, a deeper knowledge of the word of God, of the sense of life. They can read and study the bible in depth, and that helps them be a better chistian. None of these two types is better than the other.

My own personal viewpoint is that ALL organised religion is wrong and used as control tool on the "worshippers" some religions leavering this tool more heavy than others.

Now people that think and fell the same get together and organize themselves. Now, to consider ALL organised religion as wrong for me would mean that any type of organization, religious or not, is wrong, because it's only dealing with leaders controling the masses, and that would apply to any organized group, present, past or future, of any kind. The same would be for political groups too for example. And it's also reflecting that man can only be inherently bad :"there can't be good leaders".

[Orca239 0]

...Also, many simple people lead simple lives, and only need a simple christian concept. Love God, be kind with everybody. You can't say that a person that does that is not Christian.

I'm pretty sure we know what you meant, but I'd just like to point out that being a Christian isn't just being kind to everyone, doing good deeds, etc, but they have to accept Christ (Jesus / God) as their savior and be saved.

Now people that think and feel the same get together and organize themselves. Now, to consider ALL organised religion as wrong for me would mean that any type of organization, religious or not, is wrong, because it's only dealing with leaders controling the masses, and that would apply to any organized group, present, past or future, of any kind. The same would be for political groups too for example. And it's also reflecting that man can only be inherently bad :"there can't be good leaders".

Also something to say around that subject is that people need to know how to think for themselves and to not begin to 'worship' their church leader (or other leader like that). If they don't fall into a routine of just listening and hanging onto every word that they say, they will more likely realize when / if the leader begins to 'lead them astray'.

[yuhuu 0]

What is does the word Christian mean???For me, it is about Jesuschrist. After Jesuschrist´s resurrection, there were a lot of people that began to live as Jesuschrist lived. After a while, these "followers of Jesuschrist´s way of live" were so many,,that people began to call them "Christians"..That is why we keep using the word Christian today..We use it everytime we see a man or a woman,,trying to live the way Jesuschrist lived. And, in my point of view, the only way to learn about Jesuschrist´s way of life is by reading the bible..There is no other way..Soon or late,,if you are serious about your faith, you will end up reading the whole bible, at least once..It is like 2+2 equals 4..Perhaps, I am wrong, but personaly, I am reading it,,I dont know what it takes,,but there is one thing I want to do before dying, I want to read it completely at least once. For me, it would be a waste of time, being 80 years in this world, and not reading the most talk about book of all times...The Bible...

[Chesso 0]

Well fact is man made bible, so the bible cannot be trusted anymore than your average science fiction novel, it has also been revised many times by man (does no one remember what happens when the same piece of information goes through several ears, it CHANGES).So at the end of the day, you can't even rely on the book, but yourself *shrugs*.

[Orca239 0]

I'm sure that some things have probably been changed, and some versions more than others. But I believe that God protected his word so that it did not become corrupted, at least somewhat I'm sure. Of course there isn't much proof that none of the Bible has been changed, but there are many theories by scientists that have no way of being proven, and yet they're accepted by alot of people... anyway.Although it isn't necessary to read the entire Bible to be a Christian, it is definately good to read it through. But if you do so, you need to be open to what God wants you to get from it so that it isn't a waste of time. You have to be willing to hear what's said, you know?

[beatgammit 0]

I DO believe that this is a problem. I am Christian (Mormon actually) and I have read the Bible completely (Old Testament and New Testament) plus our Book of Mormon and many other religious texts.

 

Old Testament:

I did not find the Old Testament to be all that valuable in everyday life. Most of the important stuff comes from Deuteronomy, Ecclesiastes, Isaiah, Daniel, and Malachi. Deuteronomy has most of the principles of the early Jewish faith (it also contains a copy of the 10 commandments) and also has a similar warning as Revelation has (Revelation 22:19). Ecclesiastes contains many important teachings. I think Solomon wrote this book, but I am not sure. Isaiah contains many revelations that pertain to the second coming. While it is often confusing, once understood, this book is very important. Daniel also has some important revelations. Malachi has one very important revelation found in Mal. 4:5-6 ("turn the hearts of the children to the fathers, and the hearts of the fathers to their children" or something like that).

 

New Testament:

The Four Standard works are great, I love the Acts, Hebrews is one of my favorites, and Revelation is VERY important. James 1:5 (if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God) is very important to my religion. Revelation talks about the second coming in great detail. Hebrews is a good account of Paul? unto the Hebrews and gives a great argument for the Christ.

Edited April 10, 2007 by beatgammit (see edit history)