My hypothesis about God/gods

[alang1216]

Is it "good" they got rooted out or is it "good" because they got rooted out? If the Gnostics had prevailed would you be calling the Roman church an "alien sect"?

If God were a woman would it rain fire from heaven every month?

The only answer to an absurd question is another absurd question.

The question is valid. The answer is an evasion. Why is it good and not bad they got rooted out?

 

[JimBowie1958]

Where did they get their authority (or yours) to determine what is orthodoxy and what scriptures are not Christian?

They got it the same way that Aaron got his, via Moses whose miracles performed showed the seal of God's Herald. In the case of Christianity it was Jesus who was the Herald, and His authority was passed down through a new priesthood of people circumcised in their hearts instead of their dicks.

Gnostics are probably as hold as every other Christian sect (or do you know otherwise?). How do you know Jesus' "new priesthood" weren't the Gnostic priests?

Because there is an unbroken chain of bishops that have passed down authority going back to the Apostles, and that chain is orthodox, not Gnostic.

Or is this a case of might makes right?

Might does not make right, but it often indicates who was right.

God would never have let them lose if they were his people.

Religions that have a large element of Truth to their tenets do well and grow, those that do not pass away.

The Gnostics problem is that they have enthusiasm only while in the minority so they can whine about the majority. When they become the majority they implode in every evil ever known to mankind.

 

[JimBowie1958]

Is it "good" they got rooted out or is it "good" because they got rooted out? If the Gnostics had prevailed would you be calling the Roman church an "alien sect"?

If God were a woman would it rain fire from heaven every month?

The only answer to an absurd question is another absurd question.

The question is valid. The answer is an evasion. Why is it good and not bad they got rooted out?

Because God's appointed Bishops did it, that is why.

 

[alang1216]

They got it the same way that Aaron got his, via Moses whose miracles performed showed the seal of God's Herald. In the case of Christianity it was Jesus who was the Herald, and His authority was passed down through a new priesthood of people circumcised in their hearts instead of their dicks.

Gnostics are probably as old as every other Christian sect (or do you know otherwise?). How do you know Jesus' "new priesthood" weren't the Gnostic priests?

Because there is an unbroken chain of bishops that have passed down authority going back to the Apostles, and that chain is orthodox, not Gnostic.

I can guarentee the Gnostics didn't consider themselves anything BUT orthodox. I suspect the origins of the gnostics will never be known but it may be that one or more of the Jesus' followers (Apostles?) were among their founders.

 

[alang1216]

Or is this a case of might makes right?

Might does not make right, but it often indicates who was right.

Interesting... I think it is likely that many more Christians became Muslim when the Arabs conquered N Africa than the other way around. What does that mean?

 

[alang1216]

God would never have let them lose if they were his people.

Religions that have a large element of Truth to their tenets do well and grow, those that do not pass away.

Another interesting idea. Ignoring the tremendous growth of Islam, I'm told that the current rate of growth of the Mormon Church is about the same as that of early Christianity.

 

[alang1216]

Because God's appointed Bishops did it, that is why.

You know they were appointed by God because you heard from God, because they won, or because they told you they were? Nevermind, retorical question.

Who are God's currently appointed Bishops?

 

[The Irish Ram]

God would never have let them lose if they were his people.

Religions that have a large element of Truth to their tenets do well and grow, those that do not pass away.

Another interesting idea. Ignoring the tremendous growth of Islam, I'm told that the current rate of growth of the Mormon Church is about the same as that of early Christianity.

You'd do well to read the Bible before posting. The Jews have indeed lost battles when the have disobeyed God. And the rise of Islam is well documented in Bible prophesy. Your hypothesis about religion growing because of truth is incorrect. Islam grows by numbers. Truth has nothing to do with it. Hatred fuels it.

 

[alang1216]

Your hypothesis about religion growing because of truth is incorrect.

Thank you, my point exactly. Certainly Judiasm, the religion of Jesus, was never big or important. Christianity didn't experience its tremendous growth until it became the religion of the Roman empire.

 

[The Irish Ram]

Your point was Islam is growing because of the truth behind it. It is not. It is growing in number. Truth has nothing to do with it.
They intend to grow by killing everyone that refuses to convert. There is your truth.

 

[alang1216]

Your point was Islam is growing because of the truth behind it. It is not. It is growing in number. Truth has nothing to do with it.
They intend to grow by killing everyone that refuses to convert. There is your truth.

If you read carefully you'll see that was not a my point and I believe no such thing. While we're bashing Islam let's remember that Christianity grew by the sword too.

 

[JimBowie1958]

Because God's appointed Bishops did it, that is why.

You know they were appointed by God because you heard from God, because they won, or because they told you they were? Nevermind, retorical question.

Because they inherit their titles in unbroken succession from the original apostles.

Who are God's currently appointed Bishops?

The bishops of the Roman Catholic church, various Eastern catholic churches and the Coptic churches.

 

[JimBowie1958]

Your point was Islam is growing because of the truth behind it. It is not. It is growing in number. Truth has nothing to do with it.
They intend to grow by killing everyone that refuses to convert. There is your truth.

If you read carefully you'll see that was not a my point and I believe no such thing. While we're bashing Islam let's remember that Christianity grew by the sword too.

There is a great deal of Truth to Islam. Not everything is true, but most of it is.

I do not believe that it has an accurate concept of what Christians believe is God, but then neither do most Christians. The Trinity is a difficult thing to grasp.

But its moral code is true, mostly and Mohamed may have been some kind of prophet, but I don't know. I have read the Quran and I found nothing to dispute. It says that God does not beget Gods and I agree, though it does not apply to the Trinity as most think it does.

 

[JimBowie1958]

Religions that have a large element of Truth to their tenets do well and grow, those that do not pass away.

Another interesting idea. Ignoring the tremendous growth of Islam, I'm told that the current rate of growth of the Mormon Church is about the same as that of early Christianity.

You'd do well to read the Bible before posting. The Jews have indeed lost battles when the have disobeyed God. And the rise of Islam is well documented in Bible prophesy. Your hypothesis about religion growing because of truth is incorrect. Islam grows by numbers. Truth has nothing to do with it. Hatred fuels it.

I don't think you mean what you say here if you would give it more careful thought.

Is Islam promoting untruth when it says that murder, adultery, lying, cheating, blasphemy are sins? When it says that Jesus was born of a virgin?

Most things taught in Islam are true as is the case with Mormonism, Baptists and even Anglicans, but the things not true ... there is the rub.

 

[alang1216]

Who are God's currently appointed Bishops?

The bishops of the Roman Catholic church, various Eastern catholic churches and the Coptic churches.

You're a man of surprises, not the answer I expected.

What does it mean to be appointed by God? Are they just men that are especially good and pious? Are they given any divine guidance? There were plenty of questionable Papal appointments in the history of the Church were they all eventually resolved by God?

 

[alang1216]

You'd do well to read the Bible before posting. The Jews have indeed lost battles when the have disobeyed God. And the rise of Islam is well documented in Bible prophesy. Your hypothesis about religion growing because of truth is incorrect. Islam grows by numbers. Truth has nothing to do with it. Hatred fuels it.

I don't think you mean what you say here if you would give it more careful thought.

Is Islam promoting untruth when it says that murder, adultery, lying, cheating, blasphemy are sins? When it says that Jesus was born of a virgin?

Most things taught in Islam are true as is the case with Mormonism, Baptists and even Anglicans, but the things not true ... there is the rub.

Well said. I think may people today confuse Islam with Arab culture today. I don't believe cultural practices like female circumcision are in the Koran.

We tend to judge our enemies by their worst actions and judge our friends and ourselves by our best actions.

 

[JimBowie1958]

Who are God's currently appointed Bishops?

The bishops of the Roman Catholic church, various Eastern catholic churches and the Coptic churches.

You're a man of surprises, not the answer I expected.

What does it mean to be appointed by God? Are they just men that are especially good and pious? Are they given any divine guidance? There were plenty of questionable Papal appointments in the history of the Church were they all eventually resolved by God?

It means that when they speak with deliberate authority on RELIGIOUS topics, they speak with the authority of God.

There are a few apparent contradictions in their statements with one regarding the theology of the other in many particulars, but I think that this is more a matter of Truth being too complicated in many cases for language to accurately convey meaning from a person with one set of experiences, culture and language to a person with completely different sets.

On 99% of theological issues they are all in agreement.