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Originally Posted by Rockchick26  The only logical answers to these questions are either 1) God isn't what you think he/she/it is, or, 2) God doesn't exist at all. Or I suppose you could also say that God is testing us, but, it doesn't feel right to me that God would like to play games and mess with our heads like that. |
Indeed. I figured it was #1 a while back. Christians, to me, have tended to treat God as if he were Santa Claus and after a while, I couldn't stand that anymore, so I stopped telling people I was a Christian. I still am one in the ways I care about, but I'd be pretty hard-pressed to convince a churchgoer of that.
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Originally Posted by Rockchick26 See! Another rule! Telling us something else we can't do! How can it feel good (or make sense) to live by so many petty rules?! |
You'd be surprised. Well, actually, you obviously are surprised.
Meaning comes from shape, and shape comes from boundaries. Everything is governed by rules; that's what science is: figuring out what the rules are. When rules are imposed externally, when they're expressed oppressively, they destroy shape, and thus, destroy meaning: it's like a sculpture made of sand: when crushed, it is gone.
But when rules come from yourself, when you decide where they lie and how they work in concert, then it enhances the richness of your life. You might go for a walk every day, not because the doctor says you have to do that in order to stay healthy so you live a long life, but because you like moving your muscles and seeing the city and waving hello to the passerby.
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Originally Posted by Rockchick26 I know there's that 'cloven hoof' rule but if killling is wrong then why would killing a different type of animal be ok? |
An acquaintance of mine once convinced me that homosexuality wasn't actually a violation of God's mandate (he was a dedicated Christian himself), because the rules instated by God were put down to keep people alive. In the case of homosexuality, it was a corollary to "be fruitful and multiply", and it no longer applies today (according to him) because we're overpopulated now, not under-. In the case of specific animals, it's because (or so it has been argued) those foods were more difficult to sanitize.
If 90% of people who ate shrimp seem to get cramps that make them wail in pain, I'd start avoiding shrimp, too.
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Originally Posted by Rockchick26 Why isn't that reason enough? I like to talk about this kinda stuff, it helps me see others' points of view and it sure beats talking about the latest celebrity scandal!  Why are YOU joining this debate? |
I'm not. I haven't responded to the creationism / evolution debate in this thread at all; I've been very picky about exactly what I respond to and talk about.
There is plenty more in life to talk about than where we came from and celebrity scandals. I can go for years without bothering with either subject.