Thoughts on faith

Here are some links to my reports from school:

Presenting the Gospel in the Internet Culture -- We can look to the Internet culture - a society unbound by time and geography - where silos of mini communities are springing up to form worlds that serve to cultivate and encourage independent thought, and tolerance of those views. This is not necessarily a bad thing. The Internet has encouraged democracy whereby ideas, causes, and people can easily have an impact by gaining high ranks through a collective showing of virtual hands.

Consumers are savvier bargain shoppers as value becomes easily discernable with the myriad of products and services available for sale on the Web. Yet there is a dark underside to such a trend where people are empowered to create better economics for themselves, take control of their world and become populists for sundry causes. We are further along the continuum of a pluralistic and postmodern society. On this journey, absolute truth or an independent body of thought beyond what we say to be true becomes harder to identify. 

The Ethical Wall -- Inherent in any ethical wall are the underlying conflicts that exist between two parties that can, when brought together, nullify the objectivity and integrity both parties must ophold. There is temptation towards aligning one's duty and moral obligation against what is more beneficial to his client and more enriching to himself.

Calvin's Doctrine of Knowledge -- Knowledge or wisdom for Calvin was based on knowledge of self, and knowledge of God. “Without knowledge of self, there is no knowledge of God,” says Calvin. Because Calvin chose the word knowledge in his title, “The Knowledge of God the Creator,” rather than “belief” or “existence” of God, underscores the centrality of God’s revelatory wisdom and man’s awareness of self in both the structure and content of Calvin’s theology. [Pg. 35 Calvin Institutes Vol. XX Book I.i. to III.XIX]

The Ten Commandments -- If anyone is to have a thorough understanding of the 10 commandments, it is instructive to note that there is a prologue – “I Yahweh your God, who has freed you from Egypt, the house of slavery” – to the commandments. In other words, it is only after the liberation from Egypt, or the gospel for Christians, that believers receive the law. These rules of life are for a liberated people. The following report is based on Professor Dr. J. Douma’s book, "The Ten Commandments."

Comments

[Joe Liu]

Faith is based on a person's beliefs and feelings. So it is sometimes hard to scientifically prove your faith to another. However, what is a person worth if he or she doesn't have beliefs or feelings? It would be kind of like salt without it's saltiness. Like the saying in the bible:

Mark 9:50 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

[Carter]

Don't presume that a person without 'faith' in the religious sense has no beliefs or feelings. Those beliefs and feelings may not be of a religious nature but they're real none the less. There are more spices in life than just salt.

[Joe Liu]

Carter: I totally agree with you and it's a good point.

[Joe Liu]

Sometimes I wonder why there are so many religious faiths in the world and they all disagree with each other. It reminds me of a story I heard a long time ago about a king who brought an elephant from a far off land to his court. He got 10 blind men to feel the elephant and told them to describe what they found to him. One felt the trunk, one felt the ear, one felt the tail, etc.. and they started arguing with each other. Aren't they all describing the same thing but they just didn't know it.

[carter]

I was raised in a very religious household. The rest of my family is very devout. Somewhere along the way, though, I started to question how we could be so sure only we could see the light. It's precisely what you described... So many different religions. Each the center of their own universes...

It's almost a mirror of what transpired in the world of astronomy over the ages... Earth the center of the universe. The sun the center of the universe. Our Earth just one of many planets in our solar system. Galaxies and Worlds without end for true. Now, on Earth, each individual is the center of their own universe. No disprespect intended but I feel that 'life after death' is just a manifestation of our desire to have everything focus on us. The eternal ego that can't bear the thought of dying.

[Joe Liu]

I do believe that the spirit goes on in one form or another when one dies. However, I'm not sure if I agree with Christianity's version of heaven and hell. In the end, I think one creates one's own heaven and hell either on earth or the afterlife.

[James Galvin]

I want to say I always like it when a secular journalist shows some interest in spirituality (Huffington) it always adds a bit of spice to any discussion.
As a former Christian "fundmentalist", turned zen buddhist, I would like to think I have tried to have manage a tempered and open view toward faith and those with faith. Even still, I have a great deal of respect for those who try to thoroughly attempt to live in accordance with what they feel is right, and what society considers strange. To me, people who are living primarily and in accordance with their faith seem less strange to me than people who are living for much less permanent goals ($200 dollar jeans)

I dont know if that is what you are all looking for but I thought i would throw it out there. However, I have a lack of faith in offline media (newspapers,radio, broadcast TV) to hold off the growth in Online Advertising.

Long: Faith

Short: Old Media

[mc]

I think that belief and faith are very important but people should not put either in any organized religion. As organized religion just serves to exploit faith & beliefs in order to control people. What good is giving yourself to Jesus or Muhammad if their supposed representative here on earth (i.e. a priest or a imam) is convinced of the belief that their god wants their people to hurt others. Use bible, koran, tora, whatever as a guideline but there is only one belief that is important for everyone to hold dear, regardless of which faith or religion they may subscribe to, and that is to love thy neighbor, as you love your self. The Golden Rule - when this rule is respected and kept by everyone, we will truly know godliness and peace on earth.

[D]

Faith is based on axioms, which cannot and need not be proven to the believer.
If you don't accept the axioms, then there is nothing that can be proven.
The very principle of faith is acceptance of the axioms without evidence of proof.
These axioms are the core. A belief system is based on the core, and one can believe the core and be critical or comment on the system, but the axioms are never subject to negotiation.
Science provides no way to prove the axioms, and probably never will.

[Joe Liu]

Do you know the swastika is a symbol of the Celtic cross? Both Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan are great believers in the Bible. However, so are the Reverend Matin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, and the Pope (God bless his soul) who just died. I'm not trying to promote orthodox religion, but we should distinguish between the teachings of orthodox religion and the fallacy of people whom some follow them. People in general tend to find evidence to support their own beliefs. How else can Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan somehow find evidence in the Bible to support their beliefs that every other race is inferior except theirs? That goes with any extremist group from the so called Christians who are killing doctors who perform abortions to the terrorists who destroyed the World Trade Center. So how can anyone blame the Bible or the Koran for that?

[T. Dean]

Faith is believing in the seen & unseen, in the known and the unknown...

[bors]

advances in spirual growth
may be achieved with the right
books that lead to correct realization.
ive got good results from these books

(I Ching)
(Tao Te Ching)
(God Makes Rives Flow)
(Vedandic Meditation)
(Prayer-Gandhi)
(Art of Living- Epictetus)

sometimes we try to worship a higher power
in human form, yet if this higher power
isnt in human form, we may trying to connect
with incorrect methods get no response
and become fustrated. Dont give up!

[Joe Liu]

Bors:

The books you've listed are great recommendations!

I've read "I Ching" and "Tao Te Ching". I've never heard of "Art of Living" by Epictetus so I searched on the internet and read it. I found it really good!

I also like to add to the list:
Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda

[bors]

Joe, your posts on this string are very good.
they inspired me to initially respond.
iam glad you did good with Art of Living.
see how the book was short and sweet? yes!
it seems that A of L borrows eastern philos
like I Ching/Tao Ching and puts
those type concepts into western reality models
and operational models. so comprehension
of those might get magnified western style.
chew on the others,
they are comprised mostly of short 1 page concepts,
much like Art of Living. I will definately
investigate your 2 suggestions. This faith path,
reading these down to earth layman term spiritual
books is accomplishing more connectivity
then my previous religous efforts.

[dave]

Carter, I think you have yourself at the center of the universe, and that is where your astronomical analogy fails. Try putting the Son at the center of the universe and your own conflict will resolve itself.

[Joe Liu]

Bors, thanks. Frankly, I’m surprised myself by the content of the postings on this string. I can only conclude that there are a lot of deeply spiritual people out there who don’t necessarily adhere to a religion or who merely do not want to be defined by a specific religion.

God doesn’t belong to a religion and no religion can claim God. Religion can only help find what is already there since God is in the heart and soul of every person.

[Bors]

"God doesn’t belong to a religion
and no religion can claim God.
Religion can only help find
what is already there since
God is in the heart and soul of every person."

"heart and soul" is accurate.
thats what many need to realize.
the sad thing is that ones in dire straits
are looking for external signs. internally,
they must be termoil that causing their soul
radio to "tune out".

people are tired of
practicing "spiritual lite"
but at the same time are
lacking useful tools.
Siddhartha & other books are accesable to
everyone if they have not burned out
and given up.

[carter baltimore]

I wasn't desribing my own beliefs, Dave. I was describing the tendency 'Man' has to insist that everything in his universe revolve around him. Again, no disrespect is intended here but I don't believe in souls or in heaven or hell or life after death. What I was trying to say above is that we've taken our ego's desire to have everything revolve around it to the extreme of creating religions that claim it (ego) doesn't even have to die.

Some of the consequences of this can be seen in the Middle East where men and women of faith willing give their lives in the believe that certain acts guarantee martyrdom (eternal ego).

[Joe Liu]

Carter, I believe Dave thinks you’ve "lost" your way and he’s trying to help you "find" your way back again since you stated that you were raised in a very religious household and somehow you started questioning things. Noticed he used the word "Son" instead of "Sun". My interpretation is he is trying to re-convert you back to Christianity. Basically, he’s not buying our arguments.

[NoneYa]

There is no god. Sorry.

But the Good News is, there's no devil either!

That means there's no excuse for the way you treat other people. If the world despises you, it's your own fault. Fix YOU first, then you can talk to the rest of us.

[Professor John]

Truly the last response (NoneYa) has validated the Bible and verified him, as he truly is -- A Fool (and therefore corrupt and evil [not good].)

As it is written,
"The fool has said in his heart, 'There is NO God.' They are corrupt, They have done abominable works, There is none who does good."

The Word also notes it is "folly" to answer a fool (Prov. 26:4), as it is unless.

And to all others in this blog/post, the word is 100% clear that no one really knows the mind of God (1Cor 2:16/Isa 40:13), except the Spirit of God (1Cor. 2:11), and His ways are ultimately above our own minds, concepts and thoughts (Isa 55:8-9/Psa. 97:9).

So many of the comments are moot considering that spiritual things CANNOT be clearly understood in any true way or form unless the Spirit of God reveals them (1Cor 2:8-16) to man (as is seen and demonstrated in the Word [Bible]). So the Bible is the key to even grasp any semblance of Gods mind.

But even then, His wisdom and mind is so VAST that it is inconceivable that we limited humans can or could truly grasp His infinite and unlimited ways (otherwise He wouldn't be GOD.)

This can be clearly seen where it is said:
Deut. 29:29 - “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law."

Is there anyone in this world so arrogant [or crazy] that they believe God has revealed all His "secret things?"

With that in mind, no one can truly understand the concepts of faith, grace, mercy, etc., unless they are "born again." (of the Holy Spirit, and on the spirtual "level"). In fact, Jesus said this was MANDATORY (John 3:3-7) in order to even see the Kingdom of God (and other spiritual things/issues).

God has NOT called man to "religion" (mans works and efforts), but to a relationship with Him (Rom. 5:11/2Cor. 5:18), as we are reconciled (Rom. 5:10) to God by Jesus redemption on the cross (i.e. - The whole PURPOSE of the "Passion" of the Christ--Jesus "taking" what WE deserve--Death! [Rom. 6:23], as symbolically observed in the Old Testament sacrificial system [Heb. 9:12, 13:11-15].)

Christianity is the ONLY “religion” (said loosely) on the planet where the God INVITES his creatures (Isa 1:18) to commune with Him!

Jesus HATED religion as his testament to his response to the religious establishment of that day--The Pharisees (Matt. 23:13-29). And why He gave the response that He did to Nicodemus in John 3.

So regardless of everyone’s desire of aloofness, semantic arguments and baseless/illogical excuses, God will still be God, and none will have any excuse (Rom 1:20) before the great white seat on judgment day (Rev. 20:10-15)--[and YES, there IS a HELL (and/or Lake of Fire), unless your stupid enough to blindly ignore vs. 15 here, and more than 40 other references throughout scriptures].

Either you accept and submit your will and life to His Son (Jesus) today [2Cor 6:2], or you WILL be judged, and be sent to eternal punishment--The choice is clear and yours!

Spiritualize, intellectualize and ignore this to your own peril and folly—It won’t be God’s fault of your end—But entirely YOURS!

The end and motto of all this—simple & clearcut—Repent or Burn (Grace [now]..or..Punishment [later]--Period!)

(BTW/PS - Please look up ALL the scripture references, as the Bible is the ultimate truth and confirmation, not what I say [1John 4:1/1Th 5:21/2Tim 4:2] -- BE a Berean [Acts 17:10-11], not an IDIOT!!)

[John C. Randolph]

"Professor",

It seems to me from reading your comments on this and a few of the other articles on this weblog, that you are an adherent of the "Ha, Ha! God's going to kick your ass!" school of theology.

Aren't you concerned that your smugness might prevent the salvation of one who reads your words, and decides that if you're a Christian, he wants nothing to do with Christianity?

What does the Bible tell you about the sin of pride?

-jcr

[James Hamiter]

Bambi,
I agree with your theology and admire your guts to put it out there! Keep on keeping on.
I'll even get my Great Commission Prayer group to pray for you.

James

[Savvy]

This Calvin of yours sounds dumber than the Calving from Calvin and Hobbes, although the other Calvin is anything but boring.

[Neal]

Hi Bambi,

I enjoy your reports on technology and stocks on MarketWatch. But more importantly, I am impressed with your depth of knowledge in Faith (not discounting your knowledge of technology trends). Being a Christian myself, I had not heard of Calvinistic theology. It does not seems to diverge a lot from the plain born-again evengelical christianity. Can you highlight some key differences?

Also, I was wonering if you ever had a chance to read Matthew Henry's commentary on bible? If you have, what do you think about it?

Regards,
Neal