You’re right, I have no education, never finished elementary school. I in fact left on day 1 of 1st grade and never went back.
So, let me ask you…even if all that was true and I never went to 1 day or school and instead devoted a life to studying topics myself, read all the books, learned to read in different languages so I could translate texts myself because I wanted to see how accurate translations were…would you still consider me stupid or dumb? I don’t put much stock in formal education but I do put stock in hearing what people have to say and what their arguments are so that I can determine if they have something that might make me rethink my position. One of the last guys that really did that was Michael Sheltenberger who is as opposite on politics as you can get to me and yet I listened to his information and research and he changed my mind. If you want to dismiss for the sake of dismissing because you refuse to listen then you do you bud and have a nice day.
As a side note, if you read the Bible in its entirety, you’d have already done something that 70% of Christian’s haven’t done. Add to that the notion that you took the time to read a book on something other than your religion…I’m sure that number will drop even more.
70% of Christian’s don’t even read their own religious text so by just reading it from cover to cover I’m more knowledgeable than 70% of Christian’s. It’s not hard to be smarter than most, you just have to read book.
I love to read and learn. I guess I prefer more knowledge to less. Would you want a doctor who only studied 1 medical book or all medical books? So why do you only trust one book over all of them?
Come and see for yourself. Like I said, I don’t exclude anyone including people who I disagree with. I like engaging in friendly discourse and conversation.
Atheism is one of the most militant religions. Just look at the atheists and how they speak to people they dont even know.
Atheism is also very intellectually dishonest doctrine, because it focuses on “exposing” Christianity/Islam/Judaism while not mentioning modern idiotic cults, such as Climate Warmism, Vicca, and of course Satanism.
Back to original subject. Without exception, means you love yourself, as a child of God, and you wont permit any harm to come onto you by the hand of the wicked. There is no blanket prohibition of weapons, owning them, or bearing them, anywhere in the Old or the New Testament.
Turning the other cheek means willingness to forgive a minor offence, not resorting to force if there is no deadly threat.
I simply don’t understand people making this same silly statement. I’d equate it to certain politicians stating that an AR can fire 1000 rounds a second and is a fully semi-auto assault rifle. This is how silly it sounds.
I’d be happy to speak to any of the groups you refer to as “idiotic cults” including satanism. That’s partially my point though…while I don’t agree with any of them and think they’re all basing their beliefs on very weak premises and bad religious texts…Like christianity/islam/judaism…everyone is entitled to their belief. You don’t believe in 99.9% of other religions…I don’t believe in 100%. That’s not a religion in itself, that’s the absence of belief. A doctrine is defined as a belief or set of beliefs held and taught by a Church, political party, or other group. Atheism is not a belief, it’s the lack of belief.
Not my religion, nope! Unscrupulous people hijacking the message of Jesus to accomplish violent, political agendas? Those might be the people you are thinking of. But that’s not my religion.
Oh yes, we can tell. The OP already gave up on the whole thread. You hijacked the conversation and all you did was insult the Christians here. But that was your intent and you clearly got into it.
But it’s all good, because you are so fricken smart. Thanks for dropping in and telling us all how stupid we are, based on your towering intellect.
You might just find out one day that you are not nearly as clever as you think you are. Meanwhile, why don’t you let the other people talk and be kind to each other.
I disagree, it is belief in the lack of divine power.
I am sorry you are tormented by something that compels you to seek out and engage people of faith. I want to be in peace, dont need to hear insults or spend time on debates that have no value for me. Can you blame me?
You can disagree all you want, but it still doesn’t make it a belief. My not believing in fairies, the easter bunny, santa claus or any number of things aren’t beliefs either. I realize they are all made up stories and at some point I just stopped believing they were real. With religion, nothing stated in any religious text has suggested I should actually believe a god or higher being exists. belief is defined as:
be·lief
/bəˈlēf/
noun
an acceptance that a statement is true or that something exists.
trust, faith, or confidence in someone or something.
I neither accept that god is real based on many factors nor do I have trust, faith, or confidence god exists. Therefore, not a belief by definition.
As for engaging, you are correct. I do enjoy returning the favor when someone decides to push their religion on me. I come on this forum to answer gun related questions that i might have an answer for and share any helpful information I can. To me, religious questions are better served in church where someone can ask the supposed religious leader for guidance seeing it is their area of “expertise”. Instead, like some street preacher with a mega horn screaming sermons while I sit down outside for a meal with the family…I’m bombarded with questions about religion. So fine, ask a religious question on a general forum and I’ll be happy to share my feelings about the matter just as you all share your feelings about my responses. Don’t pass it off like religious people don’t spew their religion in places they shouldn’t because I pass by at least 2 street preachers every couple of days in various areas I visit and I see countless people standing on street corners with religious signs suggesting I’ll burn in some make believe place if I don’t accept their belief. Honestly, I’m tired of it. You all get very frustrated by my responses…and that’s how many of us feel about the random religious nonsense we see everyday. If I didn’t regularly have people coming to my door to talk to me about their religious beliefs or have street preachers spewing their rhetoric on a quiet saturday morning at the beach, or some lunatic yelling sermons as people walk down the street on their way to enjoy the evening, I’d likely not feel the need to return the favor myself. Maybe keep the religious rhetoric to church or your own home and I’ll do the same with my feelings about all the religious texts. Then we can keep to answering questions new shooters have about printing, holsters, ammo, and any other topic they might have questions we can assist with. Have a marvelous evening!
I was a minor seminarian at Holy Ghost Prep near Philly. When we were released for holidays, the fellows lined up outside the bursar’s office to draw monies to get home and back. The venerable priest whose duties included this job had a loaded .38 revolver on his desk as he dispensed the cash. When in Rome…I didn’t particularly experience any theological conflict at this practical precaution. And so it goes…
Before this thread gets locked, I’ll suggest that the OP does whatever God calls him to do, be that to actively defend life, or something else.
Pray on it.
Allow God to lead you.
Sometimes it’s very hard to hear what God is saying because of all the distractions.
I doubt that. Religious leaders have had to study and learn their respective religious texts in order to become a religious leader. I doubt it could ever be 100% as a result.
Though I did come across this amusing article:
The actual article from the LA Times is pretty amusing:
