Religious rants

*wholesome lil devil enters the kawaii satanic chat* @nebelstern Turkey? That's an odd chunky bird that's half way around the world for a Brazilian to hate. Good thing you didn't say Turkmenistan. Otherwise I would have been like, who? Lol You disappoint me that you didn't mention Argentina. The greatest country in ALL the Americas *SMH* https://i.ani.me/0287/8357/memecat.png

Argentinians are our rivals. We hate on them because they hate on us. But by far they aren't worse than fr*nce or t*rkey.

@hell_hound7 I thank God for allowing this opportunity to become reinspired in my Christian faith. Though I would never have considered myself agnostic at any point in my life I certainly have been isolated in engagement of the scriptures. It has been a number of years since I actively went to a physical church. I would in my own home read bible verses whenever the mood struck me. My last attempt at joining a Christian church long term was actually at the behest of a longtime friend. We had went to school together and she had taken a liking to me because I wouldn't ignore her when she wanted to talk. This friend of mine has a mental disorder that makes her socially awkward and it can cause her to sporadically cry mid conversation without control. As one can imagine that made my friend a prime target for bullying. So one day while she was chatting she decided to invite me to the church she had been attending for approximately 5 or so years. Her grandparents who were raising her at the time were Baptist. I met them and can say they are righteous folks. Sadly however the Baptist Church they frequented didn't seem to recognize them as when I was in attendance and the ministry attempting to convert me asked what brought me to their door I made a note of their hard time remembering the names of those that invited me. These folks who were longtime worshipers that volunteered at almost every event seemed to not be all to important in the eyes of the leadership which was heartbreaking. What's more my friend who would speak so highly of her church was often overlooked at the dedication of faith she had shown. Her needs as someone with a disability made her equally ostracized there as when we attended school. Even members of the youth group who I recognized as fellow classmates proved cliquish. This bothered me to no end seeing as despite sharing classes they never once stood up for my friend when she had been bullied. Then during sermons the ministry would bang on their usual rhetoric about how other Christians didn't practice the word of God like them. This made it hard for me not to be snarky, but bringing up any concerns of hypocrisy was always met with, "The devil is leading you to spite us. Read your Bible to know what it is we're about before questioning the Lord!" And so my friend sat crying desperately alone both there and in school save for the times we spent together to give her some semblance of normalcy.

Faith is as much a personal thing as a group thing. Finding a niche can be hard. You want to find those who believe as you do, but so many are focused on the man in the pulpit that they forget they to can think for themselves . Churches can be cliquey since people tend to want to be part of a group and that often makes one lose sight of the truth, thus ostracizing many. Now, like I said,I'm heavily agnostic leaning, but I do wonder if things might be different for me if I find others who can be a bit open and understand the human element aside from what a supposedly educated man tells them to do. Who knows? I know and I'll admit I don't know what I may believe in the future, I only know what I do now. I'm open to differing ideas and I know I may seem aggressive, but I have my reasons, if there is a person who is willing to actually converse and not just try to force the same crap I've head a thousand times over. Sorry if that ditracts from your story @gabriel_true , but I also feel it falls a little inline with what your friend went through (obviously I can't truly compare, but the message is understood.).

@yaasshat I can appreciate your point of view. As a reminder I don't advocate for a church agreeing with my point of view or that I need a choir to continue my faith. The point of that story was to say it is unfortunate how Christ based believers forget that one must know their current followers needs before asking for more members. That church my friend still attends to this day. She hasn't wavered in her understanding of God. That Baptist church has grown into a regular Mega Church since I left. I remember when they were just a small town congregation. Yet as their size grows I know so do their weaknesses. What should one do? Is it unreasonable to say they can't expand if they don't have the ability to remember their longtime followers? This is where religious leaders must do well to organize sub leaders who will do right by scriptures and take care of there most vulnerable members. So they don't have to turn to outsiders like myself to get what they should be receiving from their group. A place of fellowship and justice in an otherwise unrighteous world. That's what Christ warned the religious leaders of old. I'm confident he would say the same with the current administrations. And by the way. No, Christianity is not supposed to be a clique. If your church falls on worldly social constructs that is a sign of that organizations first hurdle to overcome.

@gabriel_true yeah thats the thing about some people within the faith. They are cliquey i was watching a youtuber argue with a muslim woman about why jesus is God and they were going head to head about issues in the quran and bible and the dude berate the woman over and over insulting her intelligence and all that calling her a liar. I messaged in the comments how this isnt the way you speak to people. It should come from a place not of anger but of calmness as often God's message doesnt get conveyed through anger. He then responded with, im just one of the traditional Christians or something crazy. Not everyone in the faith is a true Christian, they embody the opposite of the messages they read from sunday to sunday. They are Christian in name only and the spirit of the devil consumes them. Also for your friend even though she worked hard for the faith she doesnt need their recognition, God sees all that she does and he will bless her in due time. God bless your friend. God has dealt her a tough hand and she still loves him despite it. I often wish more people would be like this. But humans are selfish creatures.

@hell_hound7 Of that I do agree. Thank you for blessing my friend. Everyday is a struggle for those with disabilities. It takes a true believer to understand that numbers don't prove one's mastery of Spirit. May God's wisdom never leave any of us, especially for that woman of true faith!

I am happy to see you reconnecting with the faith as well. I remember you saying how you picked up the bible again, a while back in this thread. Thats good, im happy for you. Its honestly a humbling experience, seeing the path i was on and the path I am heading to now. I hope you are experiencing the same. As for the pastor thing, yeah a pastor is just a person. He should be the glue that holds the church community together. But he should not overshadow the scriptures and lessons themselves. I havent gotten around to going to church becauss i havent exactly found my niche yet. Im still exploring sects. But there are some phenomenal preachers on youtube. I wish i could be there in person to hear them speak. I have learned so much and it has opened my eyes to alot i wouldnt have learned on my own. I could only dream of being able to speak of the word of God like that amongst the congregation

A section of Proverbs reflected my comments from yesterday's discussion. "Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds; for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations." (Proverbs 27:23-24)