There is definitely no loving God. Fact.

annie, the Catholic spouse will do whatever is required by the Catholicism, and the Protestants here do not have a specific form of service as for the CofE or W- which are both born directly from Catholicism without the total separation of Continental Reformed Churches. It works- with a lot of goodwill.

My parents btw could not in 1946 marry in either the Catholic or the Protestant Church- so they married in the Christian Catholic Church- which is the closest in Switzerland to the CofE/W.

Couldn't agree more Luckygirl. When you think of all the good people and the great minds who have spent many hours of their lives over the centuries in worship, prayer, preaching, theorising, discussion and writing, you have to wonder what great progress could have been made if all this time and goodwill had been devoted to practical humanitarian projects. As a teenager, I was told by the new evangelistic Minister that I should not be helping to run a Youth Club but rather attending his evening bible class and that everything I did to help others was of no value until I had 'got myself right with God'. I never did see eye to eye with the BIG GUY but we did run a very successful Youth Club which helped many youngsters to blossom and carried on with the skills learned to set up and run Mother & Toddler, Playgroup and numerous other useful community/charitable groups.

I know all the arguments that many good things have come from people with religious conviction, I just feel that that they could have done so much more if they had devoted all their time, resources, energy, spirituality to the benefit of humankind.

Yes, wonderful isn't it

No joint baptism or weddings, how can there be ? completely different services, a child is either baptised into the Anglican or RC church, impossible to have a Protestant Roman Catholic I was bridesmaid at a mixed marriage in the sixties but it was a full RC service

How do they agree on 'The Host' , confession etc? Are you claiming Roman Catholics ignore confession before partaking in The Mass? Or Protestants have had the choice to ignore the fact that confession is their decision and so are expected to trot off to confession before every Mass? What about Last Rights?

Great news. Do they however do joint weddings, baptisms and funerals, with both Priest and Vicar taking part, for mixed families? Here it would have been unheard of until the few Catholics were joined by large immigration groups, like Italians in the 50s and 60s, the Spaniards and Portuguese in 70s and 80s. Catholics (like my dad) were a tiny minority until then, about 5%- they are now about 50/50 and most couples are 'mixed' - the Churches had little choice but to align to the new realities- and also many refused the divisions of the past. When my parents married in 1946, my dad one of the small minority of Catholic 'immigrants' from a different part of Switzerland, and mum a Protestand divorcee with a child- it was all hell let loose!

Granjura, Protestants and Roman Catholics have held joint prayer groups here for years,

Just depends whose God it is- if it's Annie's you will be fine ;)

If God reads this thread title, I'm done for.

teach lessons to 3 year olds- really?

I have read many books on dying and after life because I couldn't see the point in the young suffering and dying
some were very deep and were about before we are reincarnated we choose the life we have and some choose to come back for a short time to teach lessons or help others. I can't say I go along with this but still search for the answers.

Totally agree- but it cannot be avoided that different religious groups, including Christian ones- believe in being good to their own- and dreadful to others. Thank goodness Catholics and Protestants here now cooperate and join together in prayers, and even for mixed baptisms and marriages (but still, for many, joined in dislike and often hatred of other religious groups- and currently Muslims).

I just think you can spend an entire life trying to find an answer to this unanswerable question when you could have been getting on with spreading a bit of happiness and being kind to everyone.

Is is such a hard issue for anybody. Believer or not.

Thank you- wonderful, I agree x

granjura, I was brought up in a baptist manse, a family friend was the rabbi from a local tabernacle , I have always remembered his lovely story which was his belief in a God of love

When the Red Sea covered the Egyptians the Angels cheered but God cried, when asked why cry your children have been saved , God replied - and my children have drown

Post crossed Annie- what is rubbish? What the Vicar told me at the time and what is told by some Indian religions re Karma?

Thank you Annie- I agree. I know that many Christians believe otherwise, that prayer can save (but only some ... which I find abhorrent).

I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your little brother.

Just read your second post granjura , what a load of rubbish in my opinion

I do not believe God chooses one child to live but chooses to allow another to die just depending on his mood.

We were distraught when my brother died three days old, the PM revealed he had brain damage , he was saved from much suffering

The little boy who drowned and his body washed up on the beach could have been prevented by man , we allowed him to drown, not saying God chose for him to die, we did

The question goes to practical as well- anyone indeed. It is not an easy one to answer, I know- but I truly would like to hear your views. I was quite young when a friend died after being very ill, and the Vicar told us it was to test the faith of her parents and all of us. It made me so sad, and angry at the time- and I think it is possibly at that young age that I realised I could not believe. DH had many Asian patients who believed that their childrens' illnesses or birth defects were to punish them for past deeds, or those of parents in the past too.

Many children have no-one to pray for them- many of them who are prayed for never survive and suffer terribly.

I understand Annie. What do you think about prayer saving some, and not others though? Especially little children?
Genuine question, thanks.

f77, I believe in God but can understand why some do not.

f77ms- that was a really interesting programme on Sunday. I love the Big Question.

Yes Luckygirl - it was tough shit for that little boy- and for millions more.

Lord above practical - and all those he does not hear!!?? - just tough shit for them I guess!

Very interesting `The Big Questions` last Sunday asking this question. The problem for me is that if you are a believer or a non believer then that seems to be fixed and not open to being persuaded otherwise . A bit like political persuasion ! I am an Atheist but can fully understand the draw of religion . Why would you not want to die and go to `paradise ` or have an omnipotent being that you could talk to . I have really tried in the distant past to believe, especially when things were going wrong in my life , but it is just not an option for me . I believe that Men created God.