I wish that I had a Faith

Wyllow3

I have great concerns in being able to be absolved of sins by another human being in the name of god. In fact I feel it's a very dangerous thing.

I don't think a priest has any special right to make that judgement. but them, I don't believe in original sin, and is the confessional not based on that concept? (I could be wrong).

However pastoral care and helping people to feel remorse and support them to make good the consequences of their acts is a good thing to do.

But it doesn't have to be a priest.

No, the confessional is not based on original sin. My Priest listens. He doesn't forgive my sins, God forgives.

Perhaps you are thinking of Apostolic succession and infallibility, which my Church does believe in? As do I.

That all sounds very complicated Norah.
The confessional is based on original sin. What is Original Sin?
My priest listens, God forgives. How do you know that god has forgiven.?
You believe in Apostolitic Succession and Infallibility. What does that mean?
Sorry for showing my ignorance.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostolic_succession

I have never felt judged or been judged in confession,

VioletSky

I don't know that I would be comfortable with my "sins" being forgiven by a divinity if that came instead of being accountable and making up my for my mistakes with others

Repentance includes making up for mistakes, saying sorry, etc. Of course we should try not to sin, but we are human.
It doesn't mean you can do what you like and just confess and be forgiven.
And we can go straight to God for forgiveness.
Christianity doesn't have to be complicated.

Agree nadateturbe , I have never found being a Christian complicated.

Hi Annie, I hope things are well with you.
I have never found it complicated either. Little differences between church doctrines aren't important. We all worship the same God.

I have always felt that in terms of faith all over the world people who are spiritually inclined to seek compassion, forgiveness, goodness, are standing round a high mountain.

There are many paths and faiths trailing up the mountain because of the different cultures round the world. I cannot value mine or think it is any better or "the right one, the one truth and way" than anyone else round that mountain.

Silvergirl

That all sounds very complicated Norah.
The confessional is based on original sin. What is Original Sin?
My priest listens, God forgives. How do you know that god has forgiven.?
You believe in Apostolitic Succession and Infallibility. What does that mean?
Sorry for showing my ignorance.

The Church may well be complicated the first time you learn of it, but IMO the complication will fade away quickly.

The confessional is not based on original sin. "Original sin is the absence of original holiness and justice into which humans are born, distinct from the actual sins."

My Bible tells me God forgives: "Mark 11:25. “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

Apostolic Succession and Papal Infallibility: "Jesus pronounced a blessing upon Peter and proclaimed Peter's answer as having been derived by divine inspiration. He then stated, “And I say also unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matt. 16:18).

Lovely post Wyllow.

Whitewavemark2 Yes! I totally share your philosophy.

Caleo

NanaDana, unquestioning obedience to, and trust in, the authority of priests or holy books is immature.

The great strength of Xianity compared with other sects and religions is Xianity is founded on a man's life , not a holy book or a cabal or priests and kings.

Without the book we would know much less about the life, and the context of the life (e g that a great leader from the tribe of Judah, descended from King David, born in Bethlehem, had been prophesied for hundreds of years).

There are some good reasons to believe the Bible (e g fulfilled prophecy, archeological confirmation, changed lives of people who have accepted its message). Trust in the Bible does not have to be unquestioning.

Absolutely Skye. I think some who don’t have a faith think those who do follow through blind, unquestioning obedience. Some may, and I expect it was the case centuries ago, but we have very clever people with enquiring minds who are devout.

Wyllow3

I have always felt that in terms of faith all over the world people who are spiritually inclined to seek compassion, forgiveness, goodness, are standing round a high mountain.

There are many paths and faiths trailing up the mountain because of the different cultures round the world. I cannot value mine or think it is any better or "the right one, the one truth and way" than anyone else round that mountain.

The point of Christianity isn’t to live a good life. People can do that without religion. The point of Christianity is to get right with God and to be saved from eternal separation from him. (If God is the source of all that is good, eternal separation from him is not good news.)

Everyone has broken the laws of God. It’s a rare person who hasn’t broken any of even the Ten Commandments. God is perfectly just as well as perfectly loving. He wouldn’t be loving if he didn’t hate sin, which hurts people. Because he is just he has to judge us, but because he is loving he wants to be in a loving relationship with each of us. So he has provided a way, for everyone who chooses, to be forgiven and adopted into his family. That is the point of Christianity.

Other religions also teach about how to be right with God. Their teachings are about what humans can do to achieve that, not about what God has done to enable it.

The great religions contradict each other. Judaism, Christianity and Islam say there is one God. Hinduism says there are many gods, and Buddhism does not seem to teach the existence of a personal God. Christianity says that Jesus is God and the one who came to save the world. Islam says he is not. Judaism says the Messiah has not yet come, Christianity says he has. They cannot all be right. Either they are all wrong, or one is right and the others are wrong.

Agree GSM and yes Wyllow nice post.

Actually, I guess in the case of Buddhism it would be teaching how to achieve nirvana, and in the case of Hinduism how to achieve moksha, rather than how to become right with God.

Just one point wyllow, Jesus isn’t God in Christianity but the son God. The same God worshipped by Jews.

Germanshepherdsmum

Absolutely Skye. I think some who don’t have a faith think those who do follow through blind, unquestioning obedience. Some may, and I expect it was the case centuries ago, but we have very clever people with enquiring minds who are devout.

Yes – John Polkinghorne, Francis Collins, John Lennox, Lee Strobel, J Warner Wallace, Holly Ordway, David Wood, and many others.

I think there have also always been some in the past, like Thomas Aquinas, Rene Descartes, Isaac Newton, William Kelvin, Michael Faraday, and James Clark Maxwell.

Isaac Newton also thought you could turn base metal into gold. Just because he was right about most things, that doesn't mean he's right about everything.

nadateturbe

Hi Annie, I hope things are well with you.
I have never found it complicated either. Little differences between church doctrines aren't important. We all worship the same God.

They might not matter to you- but they certainly matter to a very many, from many very different Christian denominations!

As for being 'not complicated' - perhaps it is not so complicated if you grew up in one religion, in one community, and are surrounded by family and friends from same.

Some of us, for al sorts of reasons, have very mixed and varied families and friends, with many very different faiths- some with the 'same' God, and some not. The God of Islam is the same God as the one for Christians, and Jews, and most of them would disagree with the 'litte differences in doctrines'!

Great post Skye17

'They cannot all be right. Either they are all wrong, or one is right and the others are wrong.'

exactly. If you truly believe that your doctrine, your interpretation of God and scriptures, IS THE SALVATION - then you can tolerate, but not on the same level at all.

I can respect them all, as I am not religious.

Germanshepherdsmum

Absolutely Skye. I think some who don’t have a faith think those who do follow through blind, unquestioning obedience. Some may, and I expect it was the case centuries ago, but we have very clever people with enquiring minds who are devout.

My absolute hero is Jocelyn Bell Burnell. She's a Quaker. I agree with her about pulsars, less so about the light of God.

volver3

Isaac Newton also thought you could turn base metal into gold. Just because he was right about most things, that doesn't mean he's right about everything.

That was his opinion. Some people hold the opinion that the moon is made of cheese. Doesn’t mean they’re right about everything.

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Opinion

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One thing he probably did have an "opinion" on. No appeal to authority.

Germanshepherdsmum I think some who don’t have a faith think those who do follow through blind, unquestioning obedience. Some may, and I expect it was the case centuries ago.

I believe we all learned, in school, the symbolism, counting, and logic to stations of the cross, responses, prayer beads. When Church was formed most people were uneducated, a picture (mental, physical, numerical) was the teaching.

All makes sense to me, but as was pointed out, I was raised in Church.

volver3

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Opinion

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One thing he probably did have an "opinion" on. No appeal to authority.

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