Well, Catholicism teaches sin sends you to hell. Protestantism teaches not being a Christian sends you to hell. The problem is, I disagree with both of these notions. I disagree with the Catholics because people naturally sin and it is hard for us not to sin. I disagree with the protestants because of all the very loving, good atheists/agnostics I know. Why would God send people who are for the most part good and loving (besides the fact that they may fornicate, have sex with the same sex, not believe in God etc.) to hell? Sure, sex is sacred, but is it really capable of sending an otherwise good person to hell? It just seems that Christianity focuses on "believe this or you'll go to hell" or "don't have sex or you'll go to hell" instead of making people focus on loving one another.
I know the OP is being serious - but it's hard to be serious about this. Only God know the answer to that - and he ain't talking. Personally, I think there is a point where your treatment of others is so cruel and so obnoxious that it is intolerable to God. Beyond that I don't know. Taking eternity into account - our pitiful lives are less than a blink of the eye - far less!! And to be condemned to eternal damnation for a life that is a speck, on a larger speck of forever - hardly qualifies for hell.
ALL Of My Friends ARE, Or WILL Be In Hell............Should Be A Great Party When I Finally Get My Ass There...:rockon:....:drummer:....arty: Cheers Glen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vjoWW_zR8Q&feature=autoplay&list=PLF86FAD51B752B057&lf=bf_prev&playnext=8"]Grateful Dead - Hell in a Bucket @ Las Vegas, NV 6-26-94 - YouTube me.. see you all there..
I'll bring the marshmallows. If a god made us in his/her/its image ,then I suppose he/she/it will understand why we're so fouled up and forgive us our sins or"sins". We're just like him/her/it.
I'm not a Christian but I think I would be a Christian, or at least respect the religion more, if Christianity was based on the simplicity of Christ's teachings. I don't really like how man perverts things. But here ya go, here's what Christ had to say about the subject. "And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus said "What is written in the law? How do you read?" And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have answered right; do this, and you will live." Luke 10:25-28 And in order to love God, we must remember how the Bible actually defines God: "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." John 4:16 Therefore, all you need is love. Its a pretty basic concept. God = Love...now there is a religion I can get behind.
But is God meant to mean only an emotion, or does it classify love as more than an emotion? To me it seems to be saying that God although he's a being, he is also love itself. Being love doesn't mean he isn't a person. He can be both. Also, so many have so many different ideas of what love is. What love is to one isn't to another. For example, some believe sex is love while other's don't think so. I believe that when it says to love with all our heart it would use the Bible's definition of love and not a definition outside of it.
I think in this sense love is not defined as the emotion you feel for people close to you, but an overall love and respect for all things alive and a desire to make things easier for all that share this earth. Love as a verb, not a noun.
I agree Just saying that there seems to be an implication in this thread that God is 'only' a respect for all things instead of a respect for all things and sentience. I don't think the verse means to say God isn't a person as well
ah, gotcha. I think of God more as love itself and not as a sentient being, but agree to disagree? edit: I think of God more as the love and spirit that flows through every living thing, so in that sense God is sentient. But that isn't really a Christian belief so I'm probably saying that in the wrong forum..