by REBORNAGAIN 28 Replies latest jw friends
I haven't given up faith in God at all. I know He's out/up there somewhere doing who know's what. All things came into existance somehow. I just wish He would convey to us somehow what our future holds and why we suffer as we do. This earth is HELL, maybe not so much for me, but for so many others.
LINDA
I'm glad to see I'm not the only one was these doubts. I've been seriously investigating things
Yep...same here.
Each book has the name of it's author-John, Mathew, etc.
From the research I've done, they don't always get those authors correct. The gospels weren't written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
i see no plausible link between god and the bible
To me, the first thing a person must do is determine, in his/her own mind, if there is indeed a Creator. If you don't accept the Creators existance then the question is moot. If you do and also accept that there is some kind of divine plan then how does He/She communicate with us? I personally feel that it's on an individual basis. Is the bible inspired of God and totally without error? Does it mean exactly what it says? It doesn't take a lot of investigation to realize that there are literal and factual errors in the Bible. Many of the errors are errors in interpritation and a lack of understanding of the culture in which it was written. Many misunderstandings are purely semantic. By far, most of the errors are misinterpritations of the real facts. People want to control other people. They want to impose their morality and world view on others - therefore it's their interpritation that's correct. Some of these interpritations make little or no difference in the scheme of things. Remember the story of Shadrach, Meschac and Abednigo and how the king had the furnace heated 7 times hotter than usual before throwing them in? Just a little science totally disproves the 7 times hotter description. Does that really matter in getting the meaning of the story? Of course not; unless there's some religious leader who says God is going to kill you and/or send you to hell for not believing the Bible word for word. I personally can get a lot of inspiration and guidance from the Bible, but it ispersonal. The Bible is the worlds best selling book...and the most misused. Read and understand it for yourself. Apply things to your own personal life. I don't mean that you shouldn't share any inspiration you may gain with others, just don't assume that they get the same inspiration or that it applies to them the same way it does to you.
One other thought. I feel that if a person cannot determine a belief in God without the Bible, or any other holy book for that matterthen they need to re-evaluate their belief. The Bible can indeed be an inspiring book in anyones life, however I certainly don't think anyone is doomed if they don't read and apply it in some way. Anyone who thinks this way is already a victim of the abuse imposed by religion and/or other controlling individuals. To paraphrase a Bible verse (can't remember exactly where) "The law will be written in your heart". Your heart should be the first place you search before trying to make sense of the Bible.
All just MHO.
chappy
I haven't given up faith in God at all.
Nor should you.
Many of us that struggle with faith or simply lost it or maybe never had it to begin with would like to have it.
Hi Linda
I'm not a believer in the Bible as the Word of God but there are a lot of truths contained in it, as there are in many books. One of those truths is:
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." Matt 7:7 Keep seeking. CyrusThePersian |
Keep seeking.
Amen!
I discovered something about the Bible only after I left the Witnesses. As a witness, the Bible was a bit boring. Afterall,
the bOrg told us what it said. We didn't really have to dig for its underlying truths and revelations.
When I finally faded completely away, I didn't pray or read the Bible at all for a long time. Then, when
the time was right for me...after reading, researching, and studying other philosophies and exploring
other spiritual teachings...I picked the Bible up again and began to re-read it with different eyes. It is an amazing
book, imo, and I got much more out of it than before. I think it speaks to the individual individually. It will say
something to you in one way, but to someone else another way. I only discovered THAT after leaving the Witnesses.
I began to feel a more personal connection to God when reading the scriptures, as if there were things in the Bible
He wanted me to know that I hadn't thought about before.
I really don't think DOCTRINE matters much. The Bible is not about doctrine. Religion is about doctrine. The Bible
is a bit more mystical and personal. Religion ruins it!
Sure it is... and JFK is still kept alive by machines in Dallas, Mickey Mouse holds a BBQ at my place every Saturday, and armed pigs standing on two legs with the ability to fly guard my home...
I will say I believe it was written by men inspired, but by WHAT they were inspired about I have no idea, drugs perhaps? Too much wine? Simply a way to control uneducated and undereducated people for thousands of years? Me thinks its the last one personally.
