For Christians out there: what exactly does god fearing mean in your faith?

[Anonymous]

I read and see the phrase "god fearing" a lot. What exactly does this mean?

[Anonymous]

It is supposed to mean that you fear God's punishment for your sins and are hopeful for mercy. In practice, it means nothing more than "I am an old fashioned Christian like my grandparents".

[Anonymous]

It means that, while you know and fear that God will hold you accountable for your actions, you also love God and are in complete awe of his power and his creation, and so completely appreciative that God's instructions on how to live are true and righteous that you are glad to obey God.

And PP, since when has being an honest, moral, pure, and forthright individual become old fashioned?

Such things, such as honoring your parents, abstaining from immorality, do not ever become old fashioned, out-of-date, or irrelevant.

Such truth, that is good for a human not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to envy what others have, is just as true today as it was 2,000 years ago.

What changes is people think they know more about humans than the God who made them, and such people declare ancient truth to be a fad or fashion in order to justify sin.

By the way, PP, I am not in any way saying you are immoral. All I am saying is that being a good Christian is never old fashioned.

Imagine if people obeyed God such as what has been said in the bible concerning sexual intercourse being reserved for marriage, and that such intercourse be between male humans and female humans only.

I tell you, there would be far fewer incidences than we have today of AIDS, venereal disease, abortion, and broken homes due to adultery and drunkenness.

[Anonymous]

Is it time to break out the popcorn?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it time to break out the popcorn?

don't know about the popcorn but it is definitely time to get a new phrase-really stale.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is it time to break out the popcorn?

don't know about the popcorn but it is definitely time to get a new phrase-really stale.

How about, is it time to break out the organic produce snacks?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It means that, while you know and fear that God will hold you accountable for your actions, you also love God and are in complete awe of his power and his creation, and so completely appreciative that God's instructions on how to live are true and righteous that you are glad to obey God.

And PP, since when has being an honest, moral, pure, and forthright individual become old fashioned?

Such things, such as honoring your parents, abstaining from immorality, do not ever become old fashioned, out-of-date, or irrelevant.

Such truth, that is good for a human not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to envy what others have, is just as true today as it was 2,000 years ago.

What changes is people think they know more about humans than the God who made them, and such people declare ancient truth to be a fad or fashion in order to justify sin.

By the way, PP, I am not in any way saying you are immoral. All I am saying is that being a good Christian is never old fashioned.

Imagine if people obeyed God such as what has been said in the bible concerning sexual intercourse being reserved for marriage, and that such intercourse be between male humans and female humans only.

I tell you, there would be far fewer incidences than we have today of AIDS, venereal disease, abortion, and broken homes due to adultery and drunkenness.

Not the pp - but being moral exists outside of Christianity. And the Bible says a lot of things - not all of them I would consider to be moral. And don't forget that there have been decades of those who follow or even claim to speak for god and claim to have truth who have done horrible (or at the very least, stupid) things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it time to break out the popcorn?

OP is obviously insincere and trying to stir things up, and the PP is up on the soapbox. I'd say we have all the ingredients necessary for a snack fest (make mine chips). But the best course of action is not to engage either of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It means that, while you know and fear that God will hold you accountable for your actions, you also love God and are in complete awe of his power and his creation, and so completely appreciative that God's instructions on how to live are true and righteous that you are glad to obey God.

And PP, since when has being an honest, moral, pure, and forthright individual become old fashioned?

Such things, such as honoring your parents, abstaining from immorality, do not ever become old fashioned, out-of-date, or irrelevant.

Such truth, that is good for a human not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to envy what others have, is just as true today as it was 2,000 years ago.

What changes is people think they know more about humans than the God who made them, and such people declare ancient truth to be a fad or fashion in order to justify sin.

By the way, PP, I am not in any way saying you are immoral. All I am saying is that being a good Christian is never old fashioned.

Imagine if people obeyed God such as what has been said in the bible concerning sexual intercourse being reserved for marriage, and that such intercourse be between male humans and female humans only.

I tell you, there would be far fewer incidences than we have today of AIDS, venereal disease, abortion, and broken homes due to adultery and drunkenness.

Excuse me.

First of all: fear, obedience and love are three separate qualities. You would never suggest that a child who fears you loves you. Conflating these three separate states is dubious.

Second: I never said that being honest, moral, pure, and forthright was old fashioned. I am making an observation that those who say the phrase are referring to a style of christianity as prior generations practiced it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is it time to break out the popcorn?

don't know about the popcorn but it is definitely time to get a new phrase-really stale.

How about, is it time to break out the organic produce snacks?

I vote for chips too, ever had The Works chips by Food Should Taste Good company? Those would work

[Anonymous]

My parents taught me that "fear of God" should mean that whenever I think of doing something I should remember He's watching me and he'll hold me accountable for everything I think and do.

It's not really fear but a step forward in developing respect for his authority and awe for his power.

I must say that thinking like this during my "wild years" helped me to stay out of a lot of trouble. And I had a lot of fun anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is it time to break out the popcorn?

don't know about the popcorn but it is definitely time to get a new phrase-really stale.

How about, is it time to break out the organic produce snacks?

I vote for chips too, ever had The Works chips by Food Should Taste Good company? Those would work

This sounds familiar. Do they sell it at Costco?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It means that, while you know and fear that God will hold you accountable for your actions, you also love God and are in complete awe of his power and his creation, and so completely appreciative that God's instructions on how to live are true and righteous that you are glad to obey God.

And PP, since when has being an honest, moral, pure, and forthright individual become old fashioned?

Such things, such as honoring your parents, abstaining from immorality, do not ever become old fashioned, out-of-date, or irrelevant.

Such truth, that is good for a human not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to envy what others have, is just as true today as it was 2,000 years ago.

What changes is people think they know more about humans than the God who made them, and such people declare ancient truth to be a fad or fashion in order to justify sin.

By the way, PP, I am not in any way saying you are immoral. All I am saying is that being a good Christian is never old fashioned.

Imagine if people obeyed God such as what has been said in the bible concerning sexual intercourse being reserved for marriage, and that such intercourse be between male humans and female humans only.

I tell you, there would be far fewer incidences than we have today of AIDS, venereal disease, abortion, and broken homes due to adultery and drunkenness.

Excuse me.

First of all: fear, obedience and love are three separate qualities. You would never suggest that a child who fears you loves you. Conflating these three separate states is dubious.

Second: I never said that being honest, moral, pure, and forthright was old fashioned. I am making an observation that those who say the phrase are referring to a style of christianity as prior generations practiced it.

To you...I both feared and loved my parents growing up. Not fear as in they might beat me but feared as in respected them and feared losing their respect or disappointing them. they were strict but loving.

[Anonymous]

Is google broken?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_God_%28religion%29

[Anonymous]

The fear of the Lord is the seventh gift of the Holy Spirit.

Catechism 1831: "The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord."

Here is a layman's explanation of this gift:

"One of the most poignant misunderstandings about the Catholic Church in our time is the perception that it is primarily a moral system—a bunch of rules. The expression “Catholic guilt” is a commonplace cliché among many Catholics. Rules make little sense without some kind of understanding which provides a motivation to live within those rules.

Far from being a mere moral system or philosophy by a teacher from the past, Catholicism is a relationship with a person—a love affair, a romance, a marriage, a friendship, with the Man, Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. Some may say this downplays Christ’s role as Lord, but I disagree—it enhances it. True reverence flows from intimacy. The better we truly know and love someone the more we will reverence them.

Anyone truly in love speaks of their beloved with reverence. Love is a mode of knowing and this knowledge attained through love creates admiration, affection, respect, wonder, and yes, reverence. Christ is the Bridegroom who said, “I do not speak to you as slaves, I call you my friends.”

On the day before he was elected to the Chair of Peter, then-Cardinal Ratzinger in his April 18 homily at the conclave’s opening Mass said these words: “Let us now look at the Gospel, from whose riches I would like to draw only two small observations. The Lord addresses these wonderful words to us: ‘I no longer speak of you as slaves... Instead, I call you friends’ (Jn 15:15).”

He also said, “To our weak minds, to our weak hands, he entrusts his truth—the mystery of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit; the mystery of God who ‘so loved the world that he gave his only Son’ (Jn 3:16). He made us his friends—and how do we respond?”

And then: “The second element Jesus uses to define friendship is the communion of wills. For the Romans ‘idem velle — idem nolle’ [same desires, same dislikes] was also the definition of friendship. “You are my friends if you do what I command you” (Jn 15:14).

And, “a mature adult faith is deeply rooted in friendship with Christ. It is this friendship that opens us up to all that is good and gives us a criterion by which to distinguish the true from the false, and deceit from truth.”

Suddenly, in the midst of this sublime homily, the future Pope exclaimed, in a manner reminiscent of the sudden exclamations in the Epistles of St. Paul, “Thank you, Jesus, for your friendship!”

Another translation of the quote from John 15:14 cited above is commonly, “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” We can conclude that keeping the Commandments issues naturally from our love of Jesus. Indeed, what else? A person truly in love actually fears doing something that would hurt the beloved or create distance in the relationship.

To a husband truly in love infidelity is horrific and unthinkable, not because it will get him “in trouble” but because of his love for his wife. This motivation of genuine fear of harming this precious love is referred to as filial fear, whereas the fear of simply “getting in trouble” is called servile fear. In his homily the Holy Father called this filial fear “a mature adult faith.”

The virtue of “fear of the Lord” has been reduced in modern times to mere awe due to the apparent “negative” connotations of the word “fear” in English. But its meaning is much larger and more beautiful.

Who would say a natural healthy dread of hurting someone we love is “negative”? Nevertheless, the late Thomist philosopher Josef Pieper says that servile fear of the Lord is better than no fear of the Lord at all, but filial fear is superior, more mature (see Pieper’s book, On Hope). Children fear running afoul of their parents until they grow up and learn the wisdom of their parents’ discipline of them. Again, a mature adult faith is what we seek."


And here is a brief homily by Pope Benedict on this gift:

http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=6457


Finally, the traditional "act of contrition," said during the sacrament of reconciliation, shows both the base and the elevated versions of "fear of the Lord:"

O my God,
I am heartily sorry for
having offended Thee,
and I detest all my sins,
because I dread the loss of heaven,
and the pains of hell;
but most of all because
they offend Thee, my God,
Who are all good and
deserving of all my love.
I firmly resolve,
with the help of Thy grace,
to confess my sins,
to do penance,
and to amend my life.
Amen.