Official Bible Interpretation Thread

Your seeming is your seeming. I tell the truth.

I don't believe anything of the sort. I had faith, a little willingness to try the practice without judgment, to open myself up to it. It was the practice that demonstrated that the words are true. The meaning of scripture is brought forth in life, it is a living word.

Faith without works is dead.

 

The bolded sections are where I think you run into problems.

Although we are created by God, it does not necessarily follow that God therefore is in us. I agree that God is everywhere and therefore God can be found everywhere (I can have a divine experience in Church or in nature) but it does not mean that God is in Creation, or God is Creation.

I also agree that God did not create imperfect things, but through sin and free will we choose to reject perfection for our own pleasures. Look at the comments that usually get posted about condom use, teenagers, and the Catholic Church. Those who slag the Church for its stance always try to argue that this rule "literally kills teenagers" who are at risk of AIDS and other STIs because of unprotected sex. What they fail to even recognize is how silly it is for them to worry about this while they completely ignore other values, like the no sex before marriage one. These people want to put their own pleasure without any consequences. What I see this as (and I am not that old remember) is a bunch of kids who want to do adult things without adult responsibilities which makes it seem even more childish! Personal pleasure in our society trumps any thing else it seems.

That tangent basically shows that given free choice, humans (myself included) usually pick the easy thing to do that is for our pleasure only and tries to live without consequences. I find Catholics and Orthodox Christians to be unique in this regard (amongst other Christians) because they do face constant consequences of sin in terms of penance and reparation.

 

exodus 21:20-21

and if a man beats his male or female servant with a rod, so that he dies under his hand, he shall surely be punished. Notwisthstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his property.

 

I repeat: You did.

 

I have read the gospels.

What about having to eat his flesh? Do you do that? cf. John 6
[51]I am the living bread which came down from heaven. [52] If any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever; and the bread that I will give, is my flesh, for the life of the world. [53] The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying: How can this man give us his flesh to eat? [54] Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you. [55] He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath everlasting life: and I will raise him up in the last day.


[56] For my flesh is meat indeed: and my blood is drink indeed. [57] He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, abideth in me, and I in him. [58] As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father; so he that eateth me, the same also shall live by me.

What about do good works? cf. Matthew 5
[15]Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the house.

[16] So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.





So if you do not complete these things, the mysteries do not get revealed (as you said that the mysteries get revealed in the simplicity of Gospels only reading)? What about the fact that we sin and fall short? Did Jesus command us to do anything then? Do you do all of these things?

 

What about it?

No, I no longer partake of communion host.

 

Good works are automatic when following His instructions.

 

Whoever the Father receives will know all things.

 

No.

 

"No child of an incestuous union may be admitted into the community of the Lord, nor any descendant of his even to the tenth generation." (Deuteronomy 23:3 NAB)

"No one whose testicles have been crushed or whose penis has been cut off may be admitted into the community of the Lord." (Deuteronomy 23:2 NAB)

"Suppose a man has a stubborn, rebellious son who will not obey his father or mother, even though they discipline him. Then all the men of the town must stone him to death. In this way, you will cleanse this evil from among you, and all Israel will hear about it and be afraid." (Deuteronomy 21:18-21 NLT)

"If a man lies with a male as with a women, both of them shall be put to death for their abominable deed; they have forfeited their lives." (Leviticus 20:13 NAB)


"Slaves, obey your earthly masters with deep respect and fear. Serve them sincerely as you would serve Christ." (Ephesians 6:5 NLT)

"Now kill all the men, boys and all the women who have slept with a man. Only the young girls who are virgins may live; you may keep them for yourselves." (Numbers 31:7-18 NLT)

 

So then you'd not be received by the Father?

Isn't that something Jesus commanded us to do?

 

Communion was not meant to be a ritual but a way of life.

With every act you do for the body, remember me

With every passion that wells up in you remember me

 

machinist, old testament law was no picnic, ay.

 

Not likely. Like the wealthy, it'd be easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. But apparently possible.

 

Share bread in memory of Him.

But that's not what you mean, is it. I cannot partake of holy communion in the Roman Catholic Church. It would be sacrilege.

Like the milk bottle illustrations in catechism, this soul is blackened by sin.

 

Yes, definitely possible...

and worlds, I must say I am somewhat surprised you'd have any doubt of
"being received". You have shown much insight (imo).
But then I have already been chastized (?) about my confidence, should I say, that I know where my soul is going.
(it's this living that's hard.)

At one time in my life I regularly participated in the Lord's Supper, which I guess is the protestant (baptist) equivlant of what you and ukr were referring to. I haven't gone to church and had the Lord's Supper in a long time now...but should the rubber meet the road, so to say, I still have no doubt(s) of where the soul of me shall go.

 

"Blackened by sin." ?

and yet you show much interest in Christ; so surely you do not truly feel you are beyond redemption.?

 

This doesn't even make sense. Saying that a person doesn't feel judged because they are being judged is like saying that when you hit someone with a hammer they don't feel it.

 

Why would it be sacrilege? Is it something about the Church or you?

 

Luke 17:21
Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.


The kingdom of god is within. Does god lie outside his own kingdom?

However many people who do this aren't religious. Therefore the same morality doesn't apply to them. They don't need to be as cautious of their own actions and morals as someone like you does because they don't feel that they need to worry about those things. Therefore they say what they like about such issues because they aren't as bogged down by their own morality as many religious people are. It isn't hypocrisy if you have no moral code to "break" in the first place. You can't be guilty of not practicing a morality that isn't yours.

I don't worry about being judged about sex before marriage. However I have concern for my niece and all children in general. For example; two years ago a catholic high school in the city in which I live worked a woman who was poking pinholes in condoms the school gives out free in the sex ed. department.

Many girls (17 and under) got pregnant that year and most if not all were expelled from the school for being pregnant. When the woman was later exposed she said, "I just believe that the sperm deserves a fighting chance." Many young girls lives were potentially ruined (what do you think catholic parents would do if this were their daughter) and if not ruined many were interrupted. I'm sure you can logically see how people, even those of us who aren't catholic or who have less strict morals could be upset by this. One doesn't need religious morals in order to justify anger towards such situations and feel compassion for the victims.

I don't think that's a fair statement. I'm probably one of "those people". That is, I criticize the catholic school board for such events and yet I believe in the rights of abortion and sex before marriage. However to say people like that "put (I'm assuming you mean gain) their own pleasure without consequence" is absurd. Murderers do that, rapists, do that, etc. Not people who have sex before marriage. The potential consequences of this are only those peoples personally.

Also, is the church/school boards not putting their own beliefs and morals first, pushing them on youth without taking any heed of the consequence?

I actually see it the opposite. I see it as people who care enough to speak up against something they feel is wrong. That takes courage and is very mature of them to do. Especially considering they have absolutely nothing to gain from the situation.

I can't say the same. I find many christians to be extremely judgmental, even though it is said it is not up to them to judge, and given the numbers of catholic priests committing acts of pedophilia over the past few thousand years, I'd say there are a lot of high up catholics that aren't being an example of that which they preach. They don't seem to abstain for the sake of their religious plight a whole lot. Now, given everyone is human that's all fine, but keeping in mind everyone is human, let's not split hairs.