Alternative or misinterpretation of religion?

Glad you had a happy ending too, Doodle

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AnnieBach
I wasn't talking about Christianity or any mainstream faith.
Cults like the one holed up in Waco and Scientology to name another.
I know that there are many, many more which flirt around the edges of mainstream.
I knew a very nice family, mother, father (married) son.
They were Witnesses.
Father was a baker/pastry chef but would not cater for or make celebration cakes under any circumstances.
He was eventually sacked by the hotel who employed him.
His wife, who was not a Witness when they married, bore his rages.
Their son, a quiet lad with no friends, started to wet the bed after a beating frim his father because, during bible study, he used the name God instead of Jehova.
Thus was only disclosed to me when I visited at the mother's request and there was an odd unpleasant smell in the house.
She took me into the kitchen where she was trying to dry hers son's bedclothes by the fire before her husband came back.
He'd been made to sleep in the same wet bed and pjs for a week and her husband wouldn't let her wash them.
She wanted help to leave with her son who was about 11 yrs old.
He killed himself aged 14.
I have no truck with any religion or spirituality nor wars or arguments.
I can easily smile and walk away no matter the provocation.
Just watching the trial of Radich Mlovich confirmsvmy belief thst there will always be divisions in society, between race, religion, rich and poor and a host of other divisive influences.
Me? I can make friends out of people who initially want to lock horns.
It's just how I am. Kind of vanilla, I guess.

I know many J W’s, not one is cruel to their children , the father was brutal not because he was a J W, he just was .

I am not comfortable with their teachings, when my brother married ,his wife’s father wouldn’t attend the wedding , but he loves his children and they love him, not one has joined his Church

Corrections: Ratko Mladic former General of Srpska Army.
from/This/hers
from/This/her

Doodle
It was and is never my intention to offend.
When you write a comment or start a thread, there is always the strong possibility that a good portion of readers won't agree with whatever you've written.
You can't second guess what others are feeling at tbat moment in time nor can you know everyone's views on religion or any other topic.
If you write about spending money there will always be someone who has little, to bash you for being 'smug' but would I bash them for not having any? Absolutely not.
In the OP I was only talking about cults after watching a programme on Waco, not mainstream religion.
There is no need to denigrate people who believe in everything and nothing but equally, there is nothing shameful about declaring your views on the subject.
Why anyone would be offended at a different view...I have no idea.
I'm not offended when comments have said they're sorry I have no religious faith.
Are we to go down the route of Labour voters being offended at anyone who votes Conservative or Green etc or vice versa?
Should I be offended at people who deride the fact that I don't eat meat and tell me that humans are naturally carnivores?
Everyone has their views and I'm never offended if people don't share mine...that would be utterly ridiculous.
Likewise, I would wish others to stop getting 'upset' or offended at differing views. That is equally ridiculous if the comment is not directed at the person but the subject matter only.
These, for the avoidance of doubt, are my personal views.

I grew up in a mixed marriage ,Dad was raised in the orange order,mum's family were devout catholics.We were raised catholic .My dad converted and was a practising catholic for around 15 years ,until mum had a bad late miscarriage ,She was in danger of losing her life but the priest insisted the baby must be saved over her.She already had 4 wee girls .
My father pleaded with him that mum should be saved for the sake of the family she had...he wouldn't budge so dad asked him to leave.He didn't go back because mum was put on the pill to avoid any more miscarriages and it was against church teachings.
.They still sent us to church and when I met my OH his dad was a bigot who insisted if I took his sons name I must take his religion.We decided to marry in church to appease him and we raised our kids in the CH of Scotland.Religion causes so many problems for people that I dont understand why they stick with it.I've probably been in more churches than anyone I know but I dont believe in any of them.
Thankfully the religious divide in Scotland isn't as bad as it was ,but its still there and still causing trouble .If I had my way I'd ban them all ,its just a crutch for folk who need support and its often the wrong kind of support they get they dont call it the opiate for the masses for no reason!.It might be better if councellors could be made available to help through crisis ,it would without doubt be more effective and less divisive

I think everyone succumbs to drinking the kool-aid or taking the bait upon occasion, especially when complete crap is presented as fact very cleverly -

If humanity as a whole quit experiencing its deep-seated need to believe, what would happen? It would be a much kinder world if people's daily practice were to see anything and everything as it actually is this minute even if fleeting instead of staring down that narrow tunnel wishing it were different! But that's a pipedream -- although within reach-

Can you imagine if people didn't feel an inner deficit? Or if people were inherently sane (enough), from birth, to understand that they are a badass without having to buy a book to discover that they always have been?

So many possibilities! But we believe, and with such deep conviction that it inevitably causes conflict and polarity instead of pluralism -

Bummer!

Perhaps the key to cults is that they offer absolute certainty. Mainstream religions are, in general, given to saying that there are some things that we simply cannot explain or understand as whichever god's will is beyond human comprehension – the reason for terrible natural disasters that kill thousands of innocent adults and children, for example. The leaders of cults are usually – sometimes surprisingly – charismatic figures and are always cleverly manipulative, appealing directly to the lonely, the vulnerable, the insecure and the dispossessed.

I've always wondered why, if God created humans and made millions of them (Neanderthal, Cro Magnon etc) since the world began, he only decided, about 2,000 years ago, to let a handful of Christians into Heaven.

It's only one of the things I struggled with when I was a Christian.

You are mistaken Bradfordlass , the thief on the Cross wasn’t a Christian

Shortly before the end of her final summer term at school - they were nearly all off to uni soon - dd's school arranged a talk on the dangers of cults, religious or otherwise.

It was extremely hard hitting, explaining how they frequently target people (e.g. students away from home for the first time, who might be lonely or otherwise struggling) - and how even if they're neither of these, the psychological techniques they use can be so powerful that even people who simply went along to a session 'for a laugh', with no intention of joining, can easily be sucked in.

Must say I was very grateful to the school for this - it certainly made dd very well aware.

I heard some rather alarming news last week.
There's a huge empty listed building down the road from us which used to be a care home. I found out it had been bought by the "church" of Scientology as their NE headquarters. They bought it 10 years ago and are just starting to refurbish it.
This will cost a fortune, hopefully they'll run out of money.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-46034983

They might get Tom to open it Fennel if so, please take photos and post on here.

BradfordLass72 we can't understand what "heaven" really is. I know Jesus said "In my Father's house are many mansions" but I think he would have been speaking rhetorically so that the masses could understand him. We don't know what part of us goes to Heaven. I think neanderthals would have had souls.

Gabriella - I would prefer John Travolta, especially if he can still dance!

I really dislike the "heaven and Hell" thing ,its literally frightening people who have problems into doing what their church wants them to do. If your god is so caring why would he threaten folk who stray from HIS rules ..doesn't make sense to me .As a parent I wouldn't ever threaten my children with cutting them off ,regardless of what they did ...what does that say about your "god" !1

If people who attend a church have problems they would turn to their Church .

Get yersel oop there lass, tha never knows...camera ready, dancing shoes on...

Does GN have a hellish counterpart?
I can't, for the life of me, imagine all those who have died since the dawn of time and all those to come from the 4 corners of the globe, getting along together in a blissful, peaceful co-existence with nowt to do but wander amongst the clouds and stroke the angels wings, smiling benignly at murderers, abusers and the rich mix of other criminality who, past and present, have trodden our planet.
What a scene it must be.
Out of all the zillions of souls, how would one find relations?
Questions which will forever remain unanswered.

Gabriella you're too far south!
You should say "haad away hinney, ye canna even coop yer kreels "
I wish I could .

ie turn somersaults.

Gabriella do you really still think of heaven in that way? Have you not come any further than Sunday School thinking?

Whether you believe or not, you must have a thought or two a bit deeper than that.

This thread has started up again from so long ago that I has to backtrack and find out what it was that I had said which prompted Gabriella to tell me it wasn’t her intention to offend.
I think gabriella if you posted telling me you had no faith or didn’t believe in the things I believe in I would have no problem with that. Your opinion fine. But how can you say that it is not your intention to offend when you must be aware there are Christian believers on this thread and you refer to Jesus as a “crackpot announcing he is the Lamb of God”. Surely you must see that this is offensive to those who believe. I am sure if the circumstances were different and it was me making some derogatory remark about your family or something dear to your heart then you would feel offended too.