tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17540148.post114564085158259929..comments2023-08-23T08:45:53.071-06:00Comments on Paradoxy: ShallowEugenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05431724892247691165noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17540148.post-1163698526175866122006-11-16T10:35:00.000-07:002006-11-16T10:35:00.000-07:00Thanks for your thoughtful post. "When God require...Thanks for your thoughtful post. <BR/><BR/>"When God requires a sacrifice from a person, the end result of submitting to God's command is greater joy and peace. When the church, claiming to speak on God's behalf, demands identical sacrifices from everyone in apparently similar circumstances, the result for many is a loss of joy and peace, and even the destruction of their faith."<BR/><BR/>This is the fundamental issue, isn't it? Does the church have the authority to speak on God's behalf, to be the arbiter of his will? It seems to me that a moment's reflection on the contradictory, discordant nature of the church's voice today and on its terrible and often shameful history makes the answer quite clear.<BR/><BR/>I wish I had Madpriest's conviction -- that I found Jesus' teachings simple and unambiguous. But as I try to deal with the fall-out of having tried unsuccessfully to submit to the edicts of the church, I find the application of those teachings anything but simple and unambiguous. I see no black or white but a bewildering array of shades of grey.Aaronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09596443839645394859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17540148.post-1163490323950178002006-11-14T00:45:00.000-07:002006-11-14T00:45:00.000-07:00very well said, as always. I particularly apprecia...very well said, as always. I particularly appreciate the scripture you chose and you closing sentence. such clarity. why can't others see it???Peterson Toscanohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18189029949905668568noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17540148.post-1163347265756454452006-11-12T09:01:00.000-07:002006-11-12T09:01:00.000-07:00Amen, yet again, Eugene,I was in leadership at an ...Amen, yet again, Eugene,<BR/><BR/>I was in leadership at an evangelical church when I came out after a rather intense emotional struggle to reamin closeted. When I attempted to explain the peace that came with the decision, I was told that this was "relief".<BR/><BR/>I realized then that someone who does not know the difference between relief and peace, does not know peace.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17540148.post-1163287670587588442006-11-11T16:27:00.000-07:002006-11-11T16:27:00.000-07:00The Bible doesn't say anything - it's a load of bi...The Bible doesn't say anything - it's a load of bits of paper. It is a record of what people thought and said. One of the people whose words are recorded in the Bible is Jesus who is God. The only words in the Bible that are of God are the words of Jesus that Jesus actually said. To say that any of the other words in the Bible are from God or to say that the Bible (a book) has divine authority in its own right is to be guilty of the worst idolatry. <BR/><BR/>When you free yourself from the false worship of a mere book and start trying to live the way of Jesus then life becomes a lot less complicated as you only have to justify your actions in relation to the very simple, unambiguous commandments of Jesus.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17540148.post-1163276763522833012006-11-11T13:26:00.000-07:002006-11-11T13:26:00.000-07:00I would like to say to that... AMEN.Also, that I'v...I would like to say to that... AMEN.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Also, that I've linked here from my blog :) <BR/><BR/>I agree, that the total religious experience of a gay Christian can be completely shut down from people who act in this way. How many suicides have occured because alot of gay people just can't 'get straight.'? <BR/><BR/>There's the real evil. Not the homosexuality, but the way people react to it. <BR/><BR/>God save us!<BR/><BR/>ColleenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com