Perhaps I should try harder to understand God. (page 2)

LittleToe

Would trying harder to understand your wife enable you to love her more?

My wife doesn't make it so difficult to love her. She doesn't hurt people. When our children were naughty she would discipline them in love. She never threatened physical violence or death however disobedient and rebellious they got.

I know you didn't intend it that way Ross but frankly I find the comparison ridiculous and offensive.

parakeet

***Just try and help me to understand His behaviour?***
There is no way to make rational sense of the biblical God; you'll drive yourself nuts trying. You might want to explore other ways of understanding divinity (Buddhism, Taoism, Native American). If nothing else, study of different religious perspectives will give you new insight into your own beliefs.

JamesThomas

In my view the Bible-god is a creation of men's minds; a conceptual whip and chain of enslaved thinking. The sooner one purges it from thought and memory, the better.

Leaving the tomb of rotting religious beliefs and deities can allow us to meet more openly with the present freshness and reality of life. Can it be that at the center of our own existence and being, is found the living-truth, the divinity, we seek?

j

anewme

The Bible's god is a "Put up or shut up!" god
A "My way or the highway" god.

LittleToe

Avoiding the question? If you want to take offense feel free - no-one peed in your chips! The way you framed the question was intentionally antagonistic. If you're spoiling for a fight bring it on...

nicolaou

Oh c'mon! You and I both know better than this - no one wants a fight. Yes my question was antagonistic - you of all people Ross know how I feel about the so called 'Almighty' which is why you surprised me so by drawing a comparison with my wife.

Let's draw a line under this one right here and now. No apology is asked for or expected, I still think of you as a friend.

Nic'

LittleToe

S'ok, I never took offense in the first place. I'm a little surprised you did. Meanwhile I'm happy to apologise for any offense caused, as none was intended. Simultaneously I'll happily fight to the death, because I'm just that kind of guy

Try to look at my question objectively instead of personalising it as an affront to your marital relationship. It was meant as a genuine mind-opener, rather than a conversation stopper. As you've probably come to realise, I'm not big on uni-directional thinking. I'd rather take a lateral approach than tread down time-worn weary paths.

Alternatively if all you want is platitudes about how right you are that the OT God was a monster, well frankly it would bore me and I'll happily sit this one out...

Double Edge

If we believe that he created the unquestioned beauty that exists, that he chose to give life to species great and small and to crown it all with his 'masterpiece', intelligent and creative humanity made in

For me, that sentence is the starting point in begining to understand God.

His image how do we explain his descent into the homicidal, butcher we are now confronted by?

Since God doesn't change..... who descended? The parts of the bible that 'explain' away God as other than the loving Creator that you mentioned are very suspect for me..... some of the writers of the bible were men with their own jaded, pompous opinions on what God did or didn't do.... does that make it a true picture of the Creator>

If nothing else, study of different religious perspectives will give you new insight into your own beliefs.

Well said. Since the Creator is involved with all mankind, makes sense to me that one should be concentrating on the good and positive aspects of all religions - that would give a clearer picture of God than dwelling on some man-made, negative concept of the Almighty which contridicts itself.

LittleToe

Nic:

On another note, I'm pleased I surprised you - it's genuinely made my night

James:

In my view the Bible-god is a creation of men's minds; a conceptual whip and chain of enslaved thinking. The sooner one purges it from thought and memory, the better.

What a strange thing to say. Pigs might sooner fly. You can't "forget" the concept of Bible-god any more than the rest of us, even if you have examined it and found it too miniscule to bear relevance.

Perhaps I should try harder to understand God.

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