choice of scriptural material that was was later to become known as the Bible. However suggestive scripture material may be, there is no recorded document or teaching of a specific ‘revelation’ ever being passed on to anyone by Christ or his followers. Most likely because it was always an oral tradition, a moral teaching, to be shared privately between individuals.
In the modern world, religious claims and false prophets are a dime a dozen. And however one may pay a politically correct lip-service respect to them, history continues to slowly pull the rug out from any creditability they might pretend to. Whether pedophile priests, acts of terrorism, false prophecies or dangerous intolerance, the foundations of all religious claims remain questionable. I don’t intend making a case here against the potential for God nor in favor of atheism, but have no hesitation about openly questioning the efficacy of religion as we have understood that term via history. For if there is a God, tradition, instead of bringing us closer, has taken our minds and lost them among the obscurantism of scholastic theology!
The Christian religion as we know it in all of its forms, ancient and modern, is a theological construct. A human intellectual attempt to comprehend the mind of God. Theology therefore only exists because whatever Christ taught in ancient times is unknown, was lost and nothing has been revealed since. The question is this: is theology, upon which all of Christian/Judeo tradition is founded even a valid human intellectual endeavor? Or just the height of human intellectual pretensions, arrogance, spiritual vanity and folly?
For that reason history has chronicled ‘tradition’ breaking, from the inability to agree on the nature of meaning, into thousands of pieces one can observe today. And anyone, priest, scholar or private individual, who opens up a Bible and thinks they have ‘understood’ is playing the theology game, and falls into the same trap. And that game may not be as harmless as it might appear.
Whatever knowledge or insights might be embedded and hidden among the metaphor, allegory and parables of scriptures, Whether that recorded is even complete, it is obvious that natural reason has been unable to penetrate it’s secrets. However, these ancient texts are unambiguous about one thing. With more that two hundred references, both direct an indirect, warnings of false teaching, false witness, lying interpreters, anti-Christ and of course the arch deceiver, unexposed and presumable at large, there must be in the world individuals, organization and institution teaching falsely in the name of Christ.
So any true revelation must provide a path for human reason to follow, leading to understanding and the difference between what is from God and what is not, so a right choice to be made among so many completing claims. That ‘key’ and essential insight is what has been missing from all of religious history. As all tradition is theological, and all is without this key, what can be true if no one is false? But is it possible that everything we have come to understand as theologically based ‘religion’ is simply institutionalized wishful thinking?
Even the name ‘Christ’ is problematic. We are so used to hearing the expression ‘Jesus Christ’ as if this were a first and second name. When in fact, the word ‘Christ’ is a title for the ‘one who reveals’. The bottom line is that if a second coming should take place in any form, what must be among the first priorities for such personage is to expose those whose claims are no better than chasing after wind. And to do so, such a person could very well ‘reveal’ a message at odds with all existing orthodoxy?
Things could get very interesting confronting an entire history of human spiritual self deception. No doubt there will be much gnashing of teeth. Imagining the fall of two thousand years of intellectual and institutional form would be nothing short of revolutionary. But maybe such a revolution is necessary to force a critical self scrutiny of the human condition on a humanity that avoids confronting or considering it’s own limitations, and exposing our ‘system default’ to gullibility and vanity might offer a useful lesson in humility.
So the idea of ‘rapture’ is down the drain and could quickly become an unexpected nightmare for the religious. A second Christ is not going to welcome any form of ‘theological’ based truth or faith, but come to expose it! If that is the case, what might the nature or character of a true revelation be that could distinguish itself so clearly from all human theology, dogma and doctrines? That missing ‘key’ is the answer.
The very thing history has tried for centuries to convince us cannot exist: What science, religion, philosophy, theology, psychology, Hawkins or Dawkins thought impossible, a teaching that was
I guess we’re all waiting now for October 21st, 2011…ugh. Can’t wait to read the posts on Oct. 22nd.
Evolutionman, you are a bigot it seems with your view of religion. Did you conveniently forget about Lenin, Stalin, Mao, the Killing fields of Cambodia, North Korea and on and on? All these purely secular, atheistic and anti religion states caused more millions of deaths and suffering by the millions than all the other wars adn crusades combined up to that point!
Atheist need to finally stand up and be noticed. The world needs to be rid of these wackos.
hahaah 6 and still here funny
Obviously God runs on Manhattan time.
We’re still here.
Religion is a long passed story of good society building blocks. It’s caused nearly every if not every war or attack in history. It got us to where humans are today and now we can put faith and other bedtime stories to bed and put real thought to the real answer to human existence. The bible was extremely altered. Follow an ancient story altered by a greedy ruler who made a devine Jesus? Think not. How can you trust in a story when its the cut version. Religion were man made understandings of life and rules to follow. Don’t think it’ll last as long as man’s last day. Science will prevail.
Religion is a long passed story of good society building blocks. It’s caused nearly every if not every war or attack in history. It got us to where humans are today and now we can put faith and other bedtime stories to bed and put real thought to the real answer to human existence. The bible was extremely altered. Follow an ancient story altered by a greedy ruler who made a devine Jesus? Think not. How can you trust in a story when its the cut version. Religion were man made understandings of life and rules to follow. Don’t think it’ll last as long as man’s last day.
Religion is a long passed story of good society building blocks. It’s caused nearly every if not every war or attack in history. It got us to where humans are today and now we can put faith and other bedtime stories to bed and put real thought to the real answer to human existence. The bible was extremely altered. Follow an ancient story altered by a greedy ruler who made a devine Jesus? Think not. How can you trust in a story when its the cut version. Religion were man made understandings of life and rules to follow. Don’t think it’ll last as long as man’s last day.
It’s been predicted lots of times that the worlds going to end like on new years eve in 1999 it was gOing to end it didn’t and this Harold is old he’s probably had a dream about t and told people it’s going to end , they would know if it was because it wouldn’t end in one go Cus earth is a big place ‘ I’ve seen loads of websites about tomorrow ones saying it’s goin to en at 6am an the others are saying night time it’s blantley not ending it’s sick to make people scare about it.
“The second thing they all have in common, is that in spite of their conviction of having a ‘hotline’ to the almighty, not one has ever been able to offer any demonstrable prediction of that divine will. …And every time it happens, the failure demonstrates just how dead, stone cold that hotline has gone.”
— Your assertion only works if mankind is to be exalted but that is contrary to Christianity where we understand that God “confounds” the wisdom of the (so-called) wise. After all, it is only in humility can we come in repentance for our self-centred selfish ways and recognize that we indeed to need a saviour, just as Christ claimed.
“The anomaly should be obvious to all, but even love is not as deaf, dumb and blind a religious conviction.”
– That’s a pretty arrogant sweeping judgment, don’t you think?
“So any true revelation must provide a path for human reason to follow,”
– Says who? In fact Christianity claims it is a matter of the heart.
“There are few things other than the secular nation state that have been as destructive and divisive among humanity as religion.”
– I always am amused at this assertion, completely ignoring all the far greater good that has been done in Christ’s name than bad. Even the whole concept of adoption, taking care fo the poor and homeless and sick, hospitals, literacy, aid to the poor in other countries all done and initially forged by Christians—far more than any purely secular/atheistic society or group has ever done. Your focus on the negative here shows your bias I’m sorry to say.
“For all our idealism, neither secular nor religious thought have provided the values to reach out and satisfy the greatest longings of the human soul, have failed to deliver an enduring peace, quench our thirst for a higher justice or secure a sustainable materialism.”
— Again, says who? You clearly don’t know the myriad of born again Christians who have been saved from horrific drug abuses, violence, abuse, etc and have truly found peace and lasting joy in Christ, being completely transformed from their old destructive or self centred ways. You again assume with judgment.
“Existing religion is a human fabrication founded upon a vain intellectual imagination,”
– This statement alone is vain intellectual imagination. I suggest you put aside your lofty judgments of others who have been convicted otherwise.
“The second thing they all have in common, is that in spite of their conviction of having a ‘hotline’ to the almighty, not one has ever been able to offer any demonstrable prediction of that divine will. …And every time it happens, the failure demonstrates just how dead, stone cold that hotline has gone.”
— Your assertion only works if mankind is to be exalted but that is contrary to Christianity where we understand that God “confounds” the wisdom of the (so-called) wise. After all, it is only in humility can we come in repentance for our self-centred selfish ways and recognize that we indeed to need a saviour, just as Christ claimed.
“The anomaly should be obvious to all, but even love is not as deaf, dumb and blind a religious conviction.”
— That’s a pretty arrogant sweeping judgment, don’t you think?
“So any true revelation must provide a path for human reason to follow,”
— Says who? In fact Christianity claims it is a matter of the heart.
“There are few things other than the secular nation state that have been as destructive and divisive among humanity as religion.”
— I always am amused at this assertion, completely ignoring all the far greater good that has been done in Christ’s name than bad. Even the whole concept of adoption, taking care fo the poor and homeless and sick, hospitals, literacy, aid to the poor in other countries all done and initially forged by Christians—far more than any purely secular/atheistic society or group has ever done. Your focus on the negative here shows your bias I’m sorry to say.
“For all our idealism, neither secular nor religious thought have provided the values to reach out and satisfy the greatest longings of the human soul, have failed to deliver an enduring peace, quench our thirst for a higher justice or secure a sustainable materialism.”
— Again, says who? You clearly don’t know the myriad of born again Christians who have been saved from horrific drug abuses, violence, abuse, etc and have truly found peace and lasting joy in Christ, being completely transformed from their old destructive or self centred ways. You again assume with judgment.
“Existing religion is a human fabrication founded upon a vain intellectual imagination,”
— This statement alone is vain intellectual imagination. I suggest you put aside your lofty judgments of others who have been convicted otherwise.
The anomaly should be obvious to all, but even love is not as deaf, dumb and blind a religious conviction.
So any true revelation must provide a path for human reason to follow,
There are few things other than the secular nation state that have been as destructive and divisive among humanity as religion.
For all our idealism, neither secular nor religious thought have provided the values to reach out and satisfy the greatest longings of the human soul, have failed to deliver an enduring peace, quench our thirst for a higher justice or secure a sustainable materialism.
Existing religion is a human fabrication founded upon a vain intellectual imagination,
for all you know it could be tomorrow. YOU DON”T KNOW. NEITHER DOES HAROLD CAMPING. NEITHER DO I. It could happen today, stop being so moronic everyone, stating it WILL NOT FOR SURE happen is just as dumb as stating IT WILL FOR SURE. Why can’t all the skeptics see they are the ones that make themselves look like complete idiots, along with the “PROPHETS” Might happen before I finish typing this WE DON’T KNOW