lauraclay

Look at the similarities in the creation stories. The basic tenants. The views of the afterlife.

__________________

The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish,
and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten.

The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits.
When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten.

The purpose of words is to convey ideas.
When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten.

Where can I find a man who has forgotten words?
He is the one I would like to talk to.

jaej

And the important breakthroughs?

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lauraclay

A universal truth? A common morality? A deeper understanding of yourself? If there's so many different ways to look at everything, then experiencing one, rejecting it, and then rejecting all is a sincere waste.

__________________

The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish,
and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten.

The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits.
When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten.

The purpose of words is to convey ideas.
When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten.

Where can I find a man who has forgotten words?
He is the one I would like to talk to.

jaej

You just got through saying how they were so similiar. And you're important breakthrough is that not liking one and then rejecting all is a waste?

Even though it was a personal shot at me..and don't waste the pixels by denying it.

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lauraclay

They all have similarities, but obviously the major differences are what make them unique. It's important to study many different religions, and not just immediately reject them all. Similarities are important, but so are differences.

__________________

The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish,
and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten.

The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits.
When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten.

The purpose of words is to convey ideas.
When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten.

Where can I find a man who has forgotten words?
He is the one I would like to talk to.

phidelis07

OG-"Christians are so psychologically contradicted.. It's sad " I look at that statement and agree to an extent. I feel most Christians who believe in ET
( eternal punishment) contradict themselves all the time. But speaking on uniqueness i'm researching a unique branch of christianity known as UR( Universal Reconciliation) this branch tries to reconcile all the differences, at least in terms of ET VS UR. According to the bible it is by grace that people believe meaning that god came to them, it is then thier position to choose christ or not. UT believes in predermination and believes all men will follow christ. Again commenting on uniqueness i find your comparison of parts of christianity to buddism quite compelling. It is almost as if Jesus is this great Yogi, or rabbi. I have no doubt in my mind that eastern teachings influenced that part of the region as they are relatively close

jaej

If I were to follow any sort of christianity, it would be universalism. Wasn't cs lewis a universalist? I know someone famous was...

btw, wouldn't it be EP?

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Jacob

Re: christian universalism

I prefer "freedom of thought" without the interference of religion.

Jacob

phidelis07

Ah yes, it is EP, sorry ET stands for Eternal Torment, same idea though.
Actually C.S as far as i know was not a universalist. Many people have quoted his book "A mere christianity" in saying it is not god that choose hell for us, but rather we choose. A load of crock if you ask me.

Jacob i think its very possible to access god without the interface of religion, but i think religion especially texts will give us insight, that is if god is real and interacts with its creation. Though we then get into the quagmire of what was actually devine revelation and what was humans falsifying text for their own needs

jaej

That is one of the favorite arguements of fundamentalists, when they are confronted with the problem of an omnipotent, all-loving, personal god. They say 'well god doesn't send people to hell, you choose to go there'. I've been told it on this forum before. Like you said, a load of ****.

Well, I know some famous christian was a universalist.

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