Can Anything Good come out of America? ( Religious Wise )

by smiddy3 7 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • smiddy3
    smiddy3

    John 1:46 But Nathanael said to him :Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"

    I ask the same thing about religion and America the birth place of not a few "Christian faiths" ?

  • truth_b_known
    truth_b_known

    I think it is a great question to ask. The short answer is - yes. However putting that question and answer together doesn't help much.

    How about this question - What would it take for a "good religion" to come out from America and what would it look like?

    Paul Smith, author of Integral Christianity: The Spirit’s Call to Evolve, wrote, "Christianity began in Palestine as an experience, it moved to Greece and became a philosophy, it moved to Italy and became an institution, it moved to Europe and became a culture, and it moved to America and became a business! We’ve left the experience long behind."

    You can read more about it here https://integrallife.com/integral-christianity-answering-call-evolve/

  • pistolpete
    pistolpete

    Religion is not necessary for there to be good.

    Without religion and the belief of a second chance, humans would be more incline to treasure and respect life.

  • truth_b_known
    truth_b_known
    Religion is not necessary for there to be good.

    True. There must be evil for there to be good. It is the only non-good element required for good to manifest.

    Without religion and the belief of a second chance, humans would be more incline to treasure and respect life.

    I disagree. Without evangelical/protestant reformation sects of Christianity humans would be more inclined to treasure and respect life. Those religions that are tools to experience the truth of the beauty of Now do just that.

  • wozza
    wozza

    America was a country ripe for religion to take root and I think the world understands that Americans are very good at money and salesmanship. Well what a great place for religion to grow and fester in relative freedom unlike Europe and Britain where the Protestants and Catholics held power in government ,and hence over the people.

    The new world of America promised breathing space to create ones own flavor.

    And they did and realised there was money to be made and even as an export product ,and as a lot of people know like me they can SELL ,with the gift of the gab.

    I was raised a Mormon and our house was frequented by missionary boys and they would drive me crazy with their never ending stories and brags. Over the years they would write to my mother about their lives after their 2 year mission and how they were helped thru the church into careers and how well off they were, still bragging.

    By the time my mother was thrown out when I was 12, I told myself to ask how they are going over the years ,only one claimed to be straight and faithfully married, the rest were gay or bi living a lie with their wives. This made me question christian religion a bit and especially as they at the time ,saw African Americans as inferior and could not hold the priesthood etc !

    And yet when I was older I married a woman with links to the JW's and eventually succumbed myself ,so I have had enough of American religion,

    But to judge a nation of people on that basis would be wrong ,for they did give us the internet and that is what gave me the tools to get the hell out of the JW's that I joined unable to find info that refuted them due to it being years before the internet. It was me after all that made the decision to join.

  • Anony Mous
    Anony Mous
    The only reason that the US created many religions is because enshrined freedoms.
    Until the 1950s and in some places even 70s and 80s the Reformed, Anglican and Catholic Church (depending on geography) had immense political power in Europe. You couldn’t just start or join a new church without losing your job and getting harassed if not physically abused by the clergy, parishioners and police. Moreover these churches were (and technically still are) state religions.
    In the US you had government enshrine religious freedoms since its inception and state sponsored protection was well enforced in the mid-late 19th century.
    Sure you get cooky cults but with the export of movies and culture after WW2, you also got your religious freedom and separation of church and state, although still not de jure in most places, you got a de facto freedom of religion.
  • GrreatTeacher
    GrreatTeacher

    C'mon, who doesn't appreciate a good American snake-handling religion?

    Real people, real snakes, what could go wrong?

  • joey jojo
    joey jojo

    Pennsylvania has an interesting history. I started looking into it because I came to realise so many religions seemed to be based in that state. Anabaptists, mennonites, amish, quakers, jews, methodists, etc all lived together because William Penn envisaged a state where people could worship freely.

    Eventually even the good old JW's made their start there.

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