Religion that will help little girl feell good about herself, make peace with existential crisis

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What more is there? The vilest person can truly believe in God and ask for forgiveness of their sins before dying and go to heaven.

But someone who was basically good their whole lives but couldn't believe in an invisible god pulling strings goes to hell.

Saying you believe in God might not be enough to get you in heaven, but if you say it often enough, you might start to believe it, so it ups your chances. Plus God might give you credit for trying to believe, so what's the harm in saying it, even if the whole idea seems far fetched?

Read Romans 10:9, which I paraphrase here

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

So, it is not enough to merely "say." You must believe. Yes, the vilest person on earth can repent from his/ her sins (hello, Dylann Roof) but will still pay a price, I believe, when meeting God.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Meh I'll count on one of the religions that gives me salvation after death There are a few of those right?

Christianity gives you salvation after death, as long as you believed in God and Jesus during your life. Even if you accept Christ at the very last moment before you die, you can still go to heaven, no matter how sinful your life has been. God in his mercy gives all his children this last chance.

However, if you die suddenly, with no warning, and have not yet accepted Christ, then you cannot get into heaven.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What more is there? The vilest person can truly believe in God and ask for forgiveness of their sins before dying and go to heaven.

But someone who was basically good their whole lives but couldn't believe in an invisible god pulling strings goes to hell.

Saying you believe in God might not be enough to get you in heaven, but if you say it often enough, you might start to believe it, so it ups your chances. Plus God might give you credit for trying to believe, so what's the harm in saying it, even if the whole idea seems far fetched?

Read Romans 10:9, which I paraphrase here

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

So, it is not enough to merely "say." You must believe. Yes, the vilest person on earth can repent from his/ her sins (hello, Dylann Roof) but will still pay a price, I believe, when meeting God.

It doesn't matter what YOU believe - it matters what the Christian religion says, which is that whoever believes in the Lord will go to heaven. Nothing about how good or bad you were on earth, though Jesus does stress good behavior in the Bible.

And while just saying you believe may not be enough to get you into heaven. It's a start for people who can't quite bring themselves to believe but are really trying to.

[Anonymous]

Yes, but the Bible also stresses that Faith without Works is dead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but the Bible also stresses that Faith without Works is dead.

There are lots of things in the Bible that are hard to understand. I don't think the above means that if you don't do good works, you won't get into heaven.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but the Bible also stresses that Faith without Works is dead.

There are lots of things in the Bible that are hard to understand. I don't think the above means that if you don't do good works, you won't get into heaven.

I agree. But it is an essential part of following Christ and spreading His message, which believers are commanded to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but the Bible also stresses that Faith without Works is dead.

There are lots of things in the Bible that are hard to understand. I don't think the above means that if you don't do good works, you won't get into heaven.

I agree. But it is an essential part of following Christ and spreading His message, which believers are commanded to do.

So the "Good works" are letting others know about Christianity and their one opportunity to live eternally in heaven instead of rotting in hell.
I thought it was about being good to other people here on earth - all people, not just potential Christians.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but the Bible also stresses that Faith without Works is dead.

There are lots of things in the Bible that are hard to understand. I don't think the above means that if you don't do good works, you won't get into heaven.

I agree. But it is an essential part of following Christ and spreading His message, which believers are commanded to do.

So the "Good works" are letting others know about Christianity and their one opportunity to live eternally in heaven instead of rotting in hell.
I thought it was about being good to other people here on earth - all people, not just potential Christians.

Wow, you just have an answer for everything, don't you? For someone who purports to be so above it all, you are actually quite shallow in your ability to read and understand. Perhaps that is in fact why you are having so much trouble with the Christian faith. It's not black and white, cut and dried, which apparently, you need.

Of course good works is about helping everyone. I never said it was not. We are commanded by Christ to love our neighbor as ourselves. He did not specify which neighbors, as much as I'm sure that disappoints you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but the Bible also stresses that Faith without Works is dead.

There are lots of things in the Bible that are hard to understand. I don't think the above means that if you don't do good works, you won't get into heaven.

I agree. But it is an essential part of following Christ and spreading His message, which believers are commanded to do.

So the "Good works" are letting others know about Christianity and their one opportunity to live eternally in heaven instead of rotting in hell.
I thought it was about being good to other people here on earth - all people, not just potential Christians.

Wow, you just have an answer for everything, don't you? For someone who purports to be so above it all, you are actually quite shallow in your ability to read and understand. Perhaps that is in fact why you are having so much trouble with the Christian faith. It's not black and white, cut and dried, which apparently, you need.

Of course good works is about helping everyone. I never said it was not. We are commanded by Christ to love our neighbor as ourselves. He did not specify which neighbors, as much as I'm sure that disappoints you.

So you didn't mean that spreading his message included believing that he came to be our savior as long as we believed in him and that those who did not receive or accept the message would go to hell? Truly, this is basic Christian teaching as it's been taught for centuries in all the many denominations of Christianity.

It's not at all disappointing that Christ asked us to love all our neighbors. Every Christian knows about that, but the edict about heaven and hell based on belief in Him still stands, whether we love our neighbor or not. It is basic Christian teaching, there's nothing "above it all" about it and it's certainly not an indication of having trouble with the Christian faith. It is the essence of the Christian faith.

[Anonymous]

That is true. Jesus said "I am the way, the truth and the life. No man gets to the father except through me."

So there you have it.

Now I suppose you can debate the alternatives as to what happens if we do not get to the Father. But it seems that this is crystal clear as the one route to Him.

[Anonymous]

It's as crystal as anything a bunch of nutjobs wrote down 1600-1800 years ago. It amazes me that people actually create a logic structure for themselves whereby:

1. It's in a book written by barely literate cult members who believed the earth was flat and the center of universe eons ago and entirely lacking in evidence so, then it all actually happened
2. Since it actually happened Jesus is the the sole owner of the "truth" and anyone that doesn't agree will burn in HELL for eternity -- even if they're completely good people --just because they won't swear allegiance to him.

You're literally insane if you aren't just terribly ignorant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That is true. Jesus said "I am the way, the truth and the life. No man gets to the father except through me."

So there you have it.

Now I suppose you can debate the alternatives as to what happens if we do not get to the Father. But it seems that this is crystal clear as the one route to Him.

There's no debate - the alternate is crystal clear -- Hell. As Christian, you must know that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's as crystal as anything a bunch of nutjobs wrote down 1600-1800 years ago. It amazes me that people actually create a logic structure for themselves whereby:

1. It's in a book written by barely literate cult members who believed the earth was flat and the center of universe eons ago and entirely lacking in evidence so, then it all actually happened
2. Since it actually happened Jesus is the the sole owner of the "truth" and anyone that doesn't agree will burn in HELL for eternity -- even if they're completely good people --just because they won't swear allegiance to him.

You're literally insane if you aren't just terribly ignorant.

There are other alternatives.

1. pp resists logic because it interferes with a story told to her many years ago by trusted adults. To question the story would be to question the intelligence or honesty of those people and that would be too painful.
2. pp finds the idea of everlasting life so appealing that it overcomes the obvious conclusion that humans meet the same fate as all over living things on earth.
3. pp automatically digs in when her faith is questioned, dulling her ability to think logically -- She may have been taught as a child that this is the proper response when faith is questioned.
4. pp is right. Just because a story was written by barely literate, pre-scientific people doesn't mean it can't be true. With faith, anything is possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meh I'll count on one of the religions that gives me salvation after death There are a few of those right?

Christianity gives you salvation after death, as long as you believed in God and Jesus during your life. Even if you accept Christ at the very last moment before you die, you can still go to heaven, no matter how sinful your life has been. God in his mercy gives all his children this last chance.

However, if you die suddenly, with no warning, and have not yet accepted Christ, then you cannot get into heaven.

I love this part.

An atheist who works with Doctors Without Borders who dies of a heart attack won't enter heaven.

b/c your god is a loving god

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meh I'll count on one of the religions that gives me salvation after death There are a few of those right?

Christianity gives you salvation after death, as long as you believed in God and Jesus during your life. Even if you accept Christ at the very last moment before you die, you can still go to heaven, no matter how sinful your life has been. God in his mercy gives all his children this last chance.

However, if you die suddenly, with no warning, and have not yet accepted Christ, then you cannot get into heaven.

I love this part.

An atheist who works with Doctors Without Borders who dies of a heart attack won't enter heaven.

b/c your god is a loving god

A loving god who has very clear rules, like any loving parent. There is a way around the sudden death scenario, at least for Catholics. If a priest is present, he can perform the rite of Extreme Unction which will get the doctor into heaven. Also, if there is no priest nearby, a lay person can address god directly in this emergency and get the doctor into heaven too. Not all lay people know this, however, so some opportunities are likely missed.