humbled

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Posts by humbled

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  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  humbled

  Confusedandalone,

  Do you think it would help if Jesus wrote an accurate gospel?

  If he did, the churches would burn it up--first thing. Or better yet: have someone anointed explain it to us.
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  Hummingbird,

  "If you have ears to hear" isn't an insult to us, IMO. It is a phrase that shows up in the sayings of Jesus sometimes.

  I used it because I am disagreeing with cofty over a scripture from the gospel of Thomas.

  He maintains that Jesus' saying about women which he supplied in his post shows that Jesus was a misogynist.

  I maintain that the scripture expresses the equal value of women to men--a concept completely foreign in Jewish society at that time.

  Who is right? The one who has ears to hear :)

  Maybe cofty is right. Who will judge?

  Each of us has to decide for ourselves. It is an odd saying.
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  Is Mary the Magdalene the sister of Lazaras? It is thought not

  Yet the Mary of Bethany , Lazaras' sister, didn't cook(like a man) for Jesus' visit, and she is not reprimanded when her sister complains about her.

  Jesus well knew his followers,it seems. Peter complained about Mary magdalene in other writings--writings deemed heretical.

  Yes Pete influenced the early church. And the patriarchal big "C" church persecuted for centuries that unbroken tradition of the women-are equal-to-men branch that HAD understood Jesus' teaching about women. One being the Cathars.

  But to return to the OP. Jesus' teachings have been helpful--if you have ears to hear.
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  that they were lovers.... ?

  There are credible arguments that she was even his spouse. Your point?
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  This saying simply reminds me of the age old problem of discussing any equivalence of men and women in a pervasively misogynistic environment, one that only recognizes invidious comparisons in communicating that women even so DO have the mental power of men....

  This point is made in this story of Teresa o' Avila. She was a 16th century nun whose strong spirituality was matched by a mind also strong. Her confessor in trying to express to a fellow priest that this woman was not a vapourish nun who was subject to fancies of holiness, described her mental integrity by saying "she has a beard".

  I hope you don't cavil at this by forcing me to prove that she didn't in fact HAVE a beard.
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  In the gospel of Mary, Simon Peter is even more derogatory of women than is here indicated-- as he feels slighted that Jesus talked so much to Mary.

  so you truly think that Jesus was a misogynist?
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  Really, cofty?

  The practical reality of following Jesus' teaching still seems best known by the ignorant slave girls tortured by Pliny's orders. Jesus' teaching had them aspire not to lie,steal or commit adultery. Perhaps they felt they had their sins remitted, felt a return to dignity.

  I felt that way. It is not a small thing. If you can give me a way to dignify the poor and the help ones who do wrong to a renewed life, tell me what it is. And how well would it "read" off the page in 2,000 years? Especially if some bumble fingers did the writing instead of you?
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  Very well for you, you are a saint.

  But for the rest of us who needed (and still need) remedial work to function in these areas--who is there to help?

  Jesus.

  The church that grabbed power as time went on condemned (called other writings "heresies" "Gnosticism" et al) stories of Jesus that varied from their very handy religious construction of him. Yet above all the conflicting stories about him, one teaching dominates-Love one another as I have loved you. Throw all else away and this is the best thing of all.

  It straightens out what is crooked. It allows us to separate the dross from the gold even in the undependable propaganda the churches have laid on about him.
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  Cofty,

  Do you realize that by accepting only the canonized, homogenized gospels we can't discuss this topic properly? You concede some value in "sanctified fables", but you don't realize that you only allow for fables/fictions to be discussed. Is it fair to center the discussion of Jesus' teachings on the least reliable stories about him?

  Allow for a Jesus who is NOT a designer diety constructed by bishops.

  Further, if the Jesus' teachings handed down are found elsewhere in the world--I say,"WHAT OF IT?"

  On another of your threads you stated that the core of Jesus' teaching did revolve around the Golden Rule while noting the teaching was not even original with him. WHAT OF IT? Are the value of his teachings generally LESS wonderful if they have been resonating in other cultures, places and times? What could possibly be the problem with that?

  I have to say that it is cruel to use your considerable goodness and wit to do further damage to the reputation of a man who, despite the bizarre constructions laid over his grave by others, still shines as an advocate for the desperate, the ignorant and the poor. Oddly if not miraculously, these same desperate, ignorant and poor have been able to mine the gold in he teachings more often than not.

  Read other sources, Cofty.
• 
  153

  Jesus' Teachings - Helpful or Harmful?

  by jgnat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  spinning off from another thread, have jesus' teachings been less than universally helpful to mankind?

  how do we measure if a particular philosophy is helpful or harmful?.

  i am going to use the "universal morals" listed here.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  humbled

  Cofty, have you ever read any of the gnostic gospels? Why do you prefer to quote only the gospel versions of the women-haters and the power-hungry? the ones that created a powerful institution of control.

  the poor need/needed Jesus to help them escape this kind of misery.

  Pliny the Younger caught a couple of slave women in 112 A.D. had them tortured to get information about the religious meetings they were going to in the mornings. they were Christians. All he could find was that they were encouraging one another not to lie, steal or commit adultery. and they ate a simple meal together(not "holy communion" it is otherwise noted) My guess is that they, like myself listened to the stories which were NOT YET CODIFIED into the troublesome doctines that would later crush women--and other disenfranchized people.