Convert Me

[YankHibee]

Tell me why your religion or your individual version of your religion is the best in one post. Don't link to external sources, but pictures are allowed. Don't respond to others' proselytizations so that the case has to be made in one post. We'll open it up for conversation later.

[oman]

The chicks in my church are H-O-T.

http://cfyn.ifas.ufl.edu/images/blacknar.jpg

[benztown]

I abandoned any religion to become agnostic. It's not a religion, but I still try to convert you :p

I) The main reason for me is probability. There are lots of different religions out there, many of which mutually exclude themselves. Since they all claim to be inspired by some sort of supreme being, logic dictates, that most of them have to be wrong and are hence only inspired by some human mind. So if we believe in any such religion, we have to trust the preachers, that their story actually is the truth, but given all the different religions, the probability of choosing the right religion is pretty low.

II) The second reason also has to do with probability, but from a different angle. Looking at religions, they really seem to be made up by man (which doesn't make them false, mind you). They were mostly written down in ancient times and try to explain the world we live in. A lot of those explanations have been proven wrong, so that even believers say that they are metaphoric. Now, given this man made impression of all religions and the fact that most religions have to be made up by man by definition (see I), one can safely assume, that they are in fact all made up. So if all religions were just efforts to understand the world we live in, the probability for any one of those to be actually the truth is extremely close to zero, given the endless possibilities.

III) The final reason is modern science. Today we can see if a person is likely to be spiritual by looking at their brain. And many experiences that seem otherworldly to most people can be explained by science as well (like near death experiences, visions,...) without the need for a god. Those experiences probably also played an essential role in the process of developing new religions, which also strengthens the points made in II).

IV) I still wouldn't call myself an atheist however for the simple reason that we are just not able to (and probably never will be) figure out where everything came from. But with points I), II) and III) being facts (at least to me) I also could never join any religion. The universe was possibly spawned by some/several supreme being/s - whose true identity would most probably be completely different from anything we could ever imagine, but the universe could also have an entirely different cause.

V) This means to me, that there's no other way but to become agnostic.

[CL_2004]

Tell me why your religion or your individual version of your religion is the best in one post. Don't link to external sources, but pictures are allowed. Don't respond to others' proselytizations so that the case has to be made in one post. We'll open it up for conversation later.

how old are you?

[Riz]

Because our history of social justice and fighting for equality for all people more than makes up for a corrupt and flawed hierarchy.

As illustrated by -
http://www.mcs.drexel.edu/~gbrandal/Illum_html/Day.jpg
Dorothy Day

http://www.laprensa-sandiego.org/archieve/march29-02/chavez03.jpg
Cesar Chavez and

http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2005/WORLD/europe/02/26/amnesty.founder/vstory.peter.benenson.jpg
Peter Benenson, founder of Amnesty International

To names just a few.

[Dr. Wankler]

I'll resist the urge to neg-rep riz (or worse, delate her to the proper authorities in the Vatican), for leaving out two of my favorites (none of whom are huge among the Vatican authorities, right now, so it's probably just as well).

http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/faithfiredbylit/images/merton-dalailama_large.jpg

Thomas Merton, left, engaging in inter-faith dialogue nearly 40 years ago with some other guy.

Also, another prominent Catholic:

http://static.crooksandliars.com/2007/04/stephen-colbert-cc02.jpg

[Dr. Wankler]

But getting back to the thread title: from the perspective of my practice, I can't convert you: that's up to the Holy Spirit.

[Riz]

But getting back to the thread title: from the perspective of my practice, I can't convert you: that's up to the Holy Spirit.
Dammit Dr. Wankler, I could only include three images in my post! :D

And you forgot another one -

http://www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/romero.jpg
Archbishop Oscar Romero

[Chicago1871]

Tell me why your religion or your individual version of your religion is the best in one post. Don't link to external sources, but pictures are allowed. Don't respond to others' proselytizations so that the case has to be made in one post. We'll open it up for conversation later.
It's not an external source per se. The Church of Foos (http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=135405).

[Dr. Wankler]

Dammit Dr. Wankler, I could only include three images in my post! :D

And you forgot another one -

http://www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/romero.jpg
Archbishop Oscar Romero

Given that I could've made a third link, I really blew it. Oh well. At least now, I'll have one thing to confess this weekend.

[StiltonFC]

Wednesday night I went to a prayer service at our church and I heard the personal testimony of a pastor in India, from Andhra Pradesh province, the city of Nellore.

His name is Ben Hur. He had been a university student and a communist who helped the poor in his district. One day he traveled to visit his sister in Chennai, in the Tamilnadu province. A man came to see his sister, asking questions about the Bible. Ben Hur knew that his sister did not have the requisite educational background to answer questions about the Bible, so he took it upon himself to buy a Bible and to read it. He simply wanted to be useful to his sister's friend and had no other motive.

As he read, he had the profound sense that God was speaking to him, about the sin he had committed. He sat and wept for a very long time and began to confess to God his failures. Ben Hur reported that he began to have a profound feeling of freedom, as if a great burden had been lifted from him. He determined to pursue God and to tell others about Jesus and the love that God felt for us.

Eventually, his family was persuaded to allow him to stop working to attend a theological seminary. Since completing his training, he has been planting small village churches in Andhra Pradesh and training native Indians, who primarily speak Telagu, to be pastors of these small churches. He has been involved in starting 300 such village churches. His vision is to plant 700 more in Andhra Pradesh over the next 10 years.

He has been witness to what we would term "miracles", including healings. He is a local partner in opening an orphanage for the many street children whose parents cannot feed and house them.

To say that a person cannot make such a sweeping change in life focus without the direct action of God is pretty apparent to me. His current life is one of great self-sacrifice and service. It's quite humbling to me, personally, but encouraging as well.

[GringoTex]

Sexually ambiguous priest-of-the-month calendars!

http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x104/GringoTex/priests.jpg

[oman]

Sexually ambiguous priest-of-the-month calendars!

http://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x104/GringoTex/priests.jpg

I'm confused and will get no more work done the rest of the day.

[oman]

Wednesday night I went to a prayer service at our church and I heard the personal testimony of a pastor in India, from Andhra Pradesh province, the city of Nellore.

His name is Ben Hur.

We had a guy in my 6th grade class named Ben Hur and we teased him MERCILESSLY.

[bigredfutbol]

We had a guy in my 6th grade class named Ben Hur and we teased him MERCILESSLY.

I knew a guy in college--short, very slight, balding in his early twenties, weak chin, thick glasses, almost no prowess with the ladies. His name? James Bond.

[FlashMan]

The Christian Bible (including what they call the Jewish Old Testament) is a book of liberation. It is not there to shackle u, spit on u, despise u or ruin your life. It's there to liberate u - from what the Buddhists call "maya", or the Hindus' "samsara"; what a Christian would call "the fallen world".

Most of us need a little liberation. The Bible provides it in spades.

Learn the characters, the stories, the prophecies, the poetry. Put it all in a pot and let it stew. Cook over a low burn.

What comes out? Voi-la - liberation - for the body, the spirit, the soul and your eye-temple. Your heart too - if not most of all - if needed.

For you who need to get your sexual ya-yas out still, no worries. The Bible doesn't want to deny your body, turn everyone into a eunuch, or keep you from the pleasures of the opposite sex. That's a myth. You may choose the gift of celibacy, but that would be a choice made by you & not imposed on you from without. The Bible is a book of liberation -at every level, in every manner, sex included. You can't always believe the common hype.

In the end, let Jesus work under your skin, like a good heroin needle. You may have many friends, and indeed many best friends, but in Jesus you have a best friend one guaranteed for life, and beyond. You don't have to give anyone up to gain his friendship either. He can sort of be the cherry on top, if you know what I mean.

As a bonus you get the Book of Revelations, which for all its wild imagery and crazed content, does indeed help to get at the current condition of the world -politics, economics and everything included. You want the most poetic of descriptions to describe what's going on in "Babylon" right now? Go to Revelations. You want hope there will be peace in the Middle East one day? Go to Revelations. You want to believe in the world to come, as opposed to this fallen world which is passing away? In addition to the Gospels, go to Revelations. The Apocalypse is easy for no one, but if you have Revelations on your side - along with the Gospels - you will have faith...and insight into what is going down. You will be able to sleep at peace, no matter what the storm gathered around you.

If the Bible ain't enough for you, dive into some of the apocrypha they've been discovering lately - the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Mary de Magdala, the Gospel of Judas, the Gospel of Peter (amonst many others). These will substantiate and add to your biblical knowledge, and further round out your "liberation". You will indeed be on the road to glory.

And being on the road to glory ain't bad, as long as you don't mind all the strangers who will be joining you along the path. You get to be a Christian soldier (literally), you become a vehicle for good and better yet, a vehicle for God, and you get to walk with the Lord, which believe me, if you've ever done this, you will be amazed at what kind of shape the Lord is in...and what kind of shape you will get yourself into.

In the end, in your walk with the Lord, you will look back at one point and only see one pair of footprints. If you've heard of this type of story already, you will already know that this is when you could go no further, but the Lord himself carried you, as far as you needed to go. This in itself is no surprise. What is surprising is when he puts you back down and you get to walkin' again, how light you feel, how determined, how passionate you have become, how much love your lungs are filled with unlike ever before. How did this happen you will wonder? Before you can turn and ask the Lord, he will be off, having turned to wave goodbye. "Are you leaving me?" you will ask. The Lord will laugh. "That is impossible," will come the reply. The reply will go on, "You yourself will be carrying others soon. You must walk without me for a bit. No worries, though, my 3rd eye is always on you. I shall never turn away. If you need me, I shall know, and come, and if you call, I shall hear, and respond." You won't quite understand but if nothing else faith shall sustain you, and in your further journey there shall be many footprints, with yours setting some kind of record for purpose and conditioning. In your heart you know this is a miracle, but like so many others, it will be passed off by others as nothing but human will. But it's all good; nothing is out of place when you walk with the Lord.

And when you look back on the journey you have taken you will realize that it is only starting, and to walk with the Lord is to walk towards eternity spreading love and compassion wherever you go. Eternity - or eternal life - is a promise made by the Lord to you as an individual, and a hard one to wrap one's head around. What shall eternal life look like for me? You shall continue walking. Just when you're sure you can go no further and that there is no place left to go, you will find yourself home, and in fact you will wonder if you've ever left. Forever will seem like chump change at this moment. Indeed, it will barely be able to do your laundry.

Don't worry, when the Lord brings out your eternal nature, it will be like meeting your Self for the first time, and you will fall in love with yourself all over again. This love of Self shall become a love of your Lord God, and a love of neighbor, and the perfect holy state you shall live in will be unimaginable, only the reality of it will be all too real.

In the end you shall watch the Lord wrap up this Battle of Armageddon in ways no one could have ever imagined, rooting him on every step of the way. Maybe you will even get to participate in the Battle with him, side by side, brother to brother or sister. It will all have seemed worth it, something you didn't think was possible. As you heal all your relationships with your family and friends and strangers and enemies, you will indeed become holy, a holy apostle of Jesus the Lord himself. There is nothing like this. It doesn't mean you have to give up food, sex, love, work, fun, drinking, cars, bars, sports or anything else in the spirit of the Good...though you may indeed decide to do so on your own free volition. Rape? Sure, that'll be long gone. Murder? Sure, no more of that either. Lies, cheating and manipulation? Out with Old World too, easy as 1, 2, 3. But everything you love and ache for in this life? None of it will be denied; it will be all yours based on your free will and choice. Heaven will indeed have descended to Earth, and Heaven & Earth shall be reunited in a manner unlike ever dreamt of by the minds of men (& women). In the absolute miracle of it all, you will be shocked at how normal it all seems, and you will wonder how it could not have been like this all along. You will want to thank the Lord with all your being, and give to him whatever he wants...including your very own life. All he will want is your love, and your faith. You and your loved ones and descendants will get 1000 years of this and so much more, on and on ad infinitum. If you don't understand any of this, no harm, no foul. It is not necesarily meant to "be understood". It is meant to be experienced, however, and you indeed will do so.

Then one day you'll pick up that Bible again, curious as to what you've forgotten from it or what is left to learn. It will feel like a feather in your hand, and you shall read it with the renewed faith of a little lamb. In the end, the very, very end, after all your reincarnated lives and all your reincarnated loves, you shall return to God - its very bosom - and reside there with all the others, and there is indeed no language to describe how this will feel and be. One day, God will say something, and you will wonder what is up. What? We're going to do it all over again? Good Lord you will think to yourself, but ready, eager to please. Maybe you will be chosen as the New Eve, the New Adam. Whatever you are chosen as, it will your best self, your highest self, your purest self coming to fore, coming to shine.

I mean, how else, indeed, could it be?

I of course, haven't set out to convert anyone. I did set out, however, to tell you how it is...and how it will be.

The best of luck to ya!! & me too!!!

Peace.

[YankHibee]

how old are you?

29.


I'm enjoying the efforts guys, rep will be spread liberally. Keep em up, I still need lots of convincing and I'm a completely blank slate.

[argentine soccer fan]

If Archbishop Romero cannot convert you, you got a really cold heart.

Maybe this guy can do the trick:

http://www.benzilla.com/upload_images/Father_Guido_Sarducci.jpg
Father Guido Sarducci

[benztown]

This almost converted me...

http://blog.crispen.org/images/vision.jpg

full size picture (http://blog.crispen.org/images/vision.jpg)

[FlashMan]

the difference between Father Guido Sarducci and Archbiship Oscar Romero, is that Romero is even more of a Saint than Mother Theresa (I mean, he actually believed the gospel, had a profound sense of spirituality, and actually stood up to dictators in the name of the people [as opposed to coddling them like the dear Mother did], literally losing his life because of it), while Father Guido Sarducci was making everyone laugh with his black smock this and his hip priest jokes that, while the truth of it was pedophile priests were using his cover (and the rest of teh cover of the CAtholic Church) to go full throttle after children. All in the name of Jesus, no less!! Father Guido laughed all the way to the bank. As it turned out, so have the victims of Satan's infiltration into the Catholic Church, though literally none of them are laughing. The ironies don't add up, but then again, they rarely do, as ironies have a way of ironing themselves out, so much so that we're left with only the truth, irony-filled or not.