Zone1 Serious question. Idols. Worship. Etc.

[Grumblenuts]

While knowledge of science can indeed explain nature and the world around us, I have yet to find a chapter in a science book about the physical science of how words and language came into being. Words come from within, instead of from without.

Time you woke up!

Evolution of Language

Language allows us to share our thoughts, ideas, emotions, and intention with others. Over thousands of years, humans have developed a wide variety of systems to assign specific meaning to sounds, forming words and systems of grammar to create languages. Many languages developed written forms...

education.nationalgeographic.org

Not to mention, science never actually being limited to "the physical"..

Science - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Dwell]

Wasn't the 'Holy Bible" of Christianity assembled by order of a Roman Emperor for political purposes? Weren't a number of Christian writings available at that time excluded from the final project? Could the emperor have been inspired by the "one true God" despite the fact that he never converted to Christianity himself but maintained his own, Roman gods right up to his death? It seems that many people put great faith in this book. Wouldn't that make the Bible a graven image? This is what I've been inclined to believe about the Bible. But, I do find some of the words attributed to Jesus quite fascinating and mysterious.

 

[BreezeWood]

The not so haha funny fact is....there IS only ONE God. But like pets, we all choose to name that God to OUR own ear tickles. Islam. Buddha. Christian. Great Spirit. etc etc etc. He is all of them but humans need to claim Him as this or that, belongs to those and them. He has many names, but it's ONE spiritual being. Cuz thats how our imperfect minds roll.

Hmmm....more and more evidence is appearing that we here on earth are not alone. There are other worlds. Other beings. I wonder if they are so advanced (obviously they are), they have the same deity? If you were God, would you create just ONE world? Or would you keep creating until one of those worlds finally finds enlightenment? Me? I would have more than one and see which ones outwit, outlast, outplay (Survivor motto there, lol).

there are as many god's as there are slots to fill - hopefully a single heavenly source. from whence life on earth evolved.

 

[BreezeWood]

Wasn't the 'Holy Bible" of Christianity assembled by order of a Roman Emperor for political purposes? Weren't a number of Christian writings available at that time excluded from the final project? Could the emperor have been inspired by the "one true God" despite the fact that he never converted to Christianity himself but maintained his own, Roman gods right up to his death? It seems that many people put great faith in this book. Wouldn't that make the Bible a graven image? This is what I've been inclined to believe about the Bible. But, I do find some of the words attributed to Jesus quite fascinating and mysterious.

Wouldn't that make the Bible a graven image?

- more so when forgeries and fallacies abound on nearly every page, the c-bible ... and including the other desert religions 10,000 page documents as well.

 

[Carl in Michigan]

Love ya Buttercup. No need to apologize. Threads go hither and yon and that's the whole point. Differing opinions. Except when one tries to ....cough...."teach" others how wrong (or ignorant" they are when they do not agree with her.

You're a gem Gracie

 

[Carl in Michigan]

there are as many god's as there are slots to fill - hopefully a single heavenly source. from whence life on earth evolved.

There are many gods in the mind of Man. But the reality is, there's only one

 

[BreezeWood]

There are many gods in the mind of Man. But the reality is, there's only one

no, in yours there are three - made up nursery rhymes ... the c-bible uses to tie up the untidy ends their book of forgeries and fallacies fails to take account for to make it look like one.

no matter the heavens persist regardless what book the deceiver decides is their true religion.

 

[Gracie]

Wasn't the 'Holy Bible" of Christianity assembled by order of a Roman Emperor for political purposes? Weren't a number of Christian writings available at that time excluded from the final project? Could the emperor have been inspired by the "one true God" despite the fact that he never converted to Christianity himself but maintained his own, Roman gods right up to his death? It seems that many people put great faith in this book. Wouldn't that make the Bible a graven image? This is what I've been inclined to believe about the Bible. But, I do find some of the words attributed to Jesus quite fascinating and mysterious.

The bible is made up of experiences by men told to them father to son, etc Problem is...someone CHOSE which of those repeated stories handed down or heard with their own ears, would make into one big book. The bible. And those who transcribed those words were probably edited by higher ups. A lot of it is fake news. A lot of it is legit. But which gospels? And why did some gospels make in past the editors...and others didn't. Mary had a gospel. Its not in the book. Agendas. They have been around since the day this world was created.

How did the Bible come into existence?


Scholars now believe that the stories that would become the Bible were disseminated by word of mouth across the centuries, in the form of oral tales and poetry – perhaps as a means of forging a collective identity among the tribes of Israel. Eventually, these stories were collated and written down.Apr 7, 2020
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Who brought the Bible into existence?


It was during the reign of Hezekiah of Judah in the 8th century B.C. that historians believe what would become the Old Testament began to take form, the result of royal scribes recording royal history and heroic legends.Jan 19, 2018
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What gospels were removed from the Bible?


They are: the Didache (or Teaching of the Twelve Apostles), the Shepherd of Hermas, the Apocalypse of Peter, the Epistle of Barnabas and the Epistle of Clement.

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What are the 7 books left out of the Bible?


Did you know that the Catholic Bible contains seven books that are not included in the Protestant Bible? These special books of the Bible—Sirach, Wisdom, Tobit, 1 Maccabees, Judith, additions to Daniel, and Esther—contain harrowing stories of family, resurrection, and prayer.
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What are the banned gospels?

Thomas's Gospel Of The Infancy Of Jesus Christ; The Gospel Of Nicodemus, Formerly Called The Acts Of Pontius Pilate; The Epistles Of Jesus Christ & Abgarus King Of Edessa; The Epistle Of St. Paul The Apostle To The Laodiceans; The Epistles Of St. Paul The Apostle To Seneca, With Seneca's To Paul; The Acts Of St.

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Need I go on? WHO decided what would be included in the Bible, and which ones would NOT?

Which is why I take it all with a grain of salt. I don't need that book to instruct me by the lame stream media of those times. I feel Him in my heart.

 

[Votto]

Maybe someone can answer? Bowing/praying/groveling to a golden calf was wrong. So what is the difference in doing the same to a man (pope), wearing a cross pendant, worshipping a piece of wood supposedly from the crusification, etc?

The first of the biblical Ten Commandments prohibits idolatry: “You shall have no other gods before me.” Several forms of idolatry have been distinguished. Gross, or overt, idolatry consists of explicit acts of reverence addressed to a person or an object—the sun, the king, an animal, a statue.

What I found in Google about idoltry. ^


People bow, kneel, worship statues. Mary, Jesus on the Cross, etc. They also "grovel to some guy that claims he speaks for God. For example, look at what happens when a pope dies..or is admitted as a new pope. The idoltry in churches of Mary, of Jesus himself. The scraping and bowing and showing love and admiration to an inanimate subject. Even wearing a cross pendant around your neck. Is this not idoltry?

It's not just the Catholic church, Jim Jones comes to mind.

Anything that replaces God, whether it be a leader or organization like the JW's, is idolatry.

 

[Meriweather]

It's not just the Catholic church

People have an odd definition of 'worship', 'God', and 'replace' if they believe Catholics worship anyone/anything other than God or if they believe God can be replaced.

Consider this: Someone who is frightened that if they step into a Catholic Church, they will begin to worship a crucifix, statue, or any member of the clergy, does not have a strong enough relationship with God to enter any building that contains inanimate objects or someone in charge, let alone a Catholic Church, These people should develop, increase, and improve their own idea of devotion and worship so that worship of God transcends any object, person, or creed.

It is legitimate to ask why a Catholic Church may be more decorative than a non-Catholic Christian church. Here is an analogy, but do remember, analogies always fail at some point. Two couples are planning dinner for a loved one. The two choices selected: One plans a comfortable meal together, cuddled in front of the TV. The other gets out the good dishes, flowers, and candles and have a candlelit dinner for two with music playing softly in the background. Two different settings, two different moods, yet neither couple should sneer at the other or boast one loves better than the other. Worse, swear that one loves candles and flowers more than the person with whom they are having dinner.

Many Catholic churches--especially Cathedrals--set a mood. It was asked why Catholic Churches are often locked. It appears an open Church is seen as an invitation to vandalize and destroy. Many of these churches do have an open chapel closer to administrative offices where they can be better observed throughout the day, and while obvious to those who stop by for worship and prayer, not so obvious to vandals. These chapels are also a smaller, more intimate setting.

 

[Gracie]

It's not just the Catholic church, Jim Jones comes to mind.

Anything that replaces God, whether it be a leader or organization like the JW's, is idolatry.

Jehovah Witnesses? How do they replace God?

 

[Dwell]

WHO decided what would be included in the Bible, and which ones would NOT?

And it's not just that. The books that are included in the bible have been translated and interpreted, and retranslated and reinterpreted over the centuries. To me, it doesn't seem likely that much, if any, of the original meaning survived to the present day.

 

[Gracie]

Remember the grammar school game where we all stood in a line.....teacher whispered a simple sentence into the ear of first student, CLEARLY. That student then passed the sentence to the next in line, so on and so forth. By the time the last student was whispered the sentence, it was totally different than the original whispered sentence.

Teacher to first student: The grass is green and sky is blue.
Last student:: We all get some money for burgers when school is out tomorrow but ya gotta wear blue.

 

[Gracie]

What MY personal gripe is, is worshipping a flawed man in a fancy bejeweled robe sitting in a cubby and telling him your sins and that man tells you to pray to beads and say Hail Mary (why MARY?), and claims your sins are forgiven cuz you told him instead of praying to the one that CAN forgive. That just gripes my ass big time.

Which is only ONE of the reasons why i never returned to a catholic church. And if you spoke up about the confusion or denying the legitimacy of the concept, you got ridiculed. Kinda like here where catholics all get their panties in a wad and will soon come in to call me ignorant or stupid or a bitch or whatever.

I'd rather confess to a tree stump. At least I know who created it to begin with and not the lumberjack that whacked it down.

 

[BreezeWood]

And it's not just that. The books that are included in the bible have been translated and interpreted, and retranslated and reinterpreted over the centuries. To me, it doesn't seem likely that much, if any, of the original meaning survived to the present day.

there are inclusions that have never existed, etched tablets from the heavens w/ 10 commandments nor mention of the liberation theology, self determination those people in the 1st century gave their lives for.

 

[Meriweather]

Remember the grammar school game where we all stood in a line.....teacher whispered a simple sentence into the ear of first student, CLEARLY. That student then passed the sentence to the next in line, so on and so forth. By the time the last student was whispered the sentence, it was totally different than the original whispered sentence.

I've played this game with several classes. The last sentence was exactly the same as the original. Some of the students told me that the only reason it would turn out otherwise is that if students deliberately changed it for fun.

 

[Meriweather]

What MY personal gripe is, is worshipping a flawed man in a fancy bejeweled robe sitting in a cubby and telling him your sins and that man tells you to pray to beads and say Hail Mary (why MARY?), and claims your sins are forgiven cuz you told him instead of praying to the one that CAN forgive. That just gripes my ass big time.

Talk about a grammar school game of 'Telephone' going deliberately wrong...

1. No fancy robe, bejeweled or otherwise.
2. No cubby.
3. No praying to beads
4. Hearing out loud, "Your sins are forgiven" just as Jesus spoke them.
5. Sins are not forgiven because the are recited to someone. Sins are forgiven because one repents of the sin.

 

[Meriweather]

Which is only ONE of the reasons why i never returned to a catholic church. And if you spoke up about the confusion or denying the legitimacy of the concept, you got ridiculed. Kinda like here where catholics all get their panties in a wad and will soon come in to call me ignorant or stupid or a bitch or whatever.

The reason you are not Catholic is because you see no reason to any longer practice/follow the initial steps Jesus commonly used among his followers. Some feel that they no longer need to audibly hear, "Your sins are forgiven." It's not legitimate to hear "Your sins are forgiven" when those are the very words that took Jesus to the cross?

While I can see people thinking since they heard of the words once, no need to ever hear them again, but I can't fathom whey they think audibly pronouncing/hearing the words isn't legitimate. Shrug. Catholics are strong in actively practicing remembrances of the life of Jesus.

 

[Meriweather]

I'd rather confess to a tree stump. At least I know who created it to begin with and not the lumberjack that whacked it down.

I suppose. Personally, I would rather confess to a live tree, where I might be able to imagine the breeze whispering through the branches and leaves, "Your sins are forgiven." The words mean that much.

 

[Grumblenuts]