| Subject: It's Now Clear That Everything I Believed Was Wrong |
Author:
Biff
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Date Posted: 08/19/03 10:29pm
In reply to:
Arthur
's message, "How to speak fundamentalist" on 07/23/03 7:19pm
Oh that I had read this before I wasted so much of my life on these fundamentalist lies!
What, me? Sarcastic? Never!
Every fibre of my being is telling me that this is not worth responding to, but having been a so-called "fundamentalist" for much of my life, I feel compelled to point out that there is enough straw in this list to make a target range for the big bad wolf.
>-------------------------
>How to Speak Fundamentalist
>
>1. "THE WISDOM OF THE WORLD"
>
>Ideas contrary to God's revealed truth, conceived by
>Satan the Great Deceiver,
>and only accepted by those who reject God.
>TRANSLATION: Any idea that is contrary to the
>teachings of one's own
>church. (n.b.: Especially suspect if arrived at
>through solely rational means.)
Never met a Christian who would assert that wisdom exists only within Christian belief.
>2. "YOU WERE NEVER REALLY SAVED IN THE FIRST PLACE."
>(responding to ex-Christians)
>
>TRANSLATION: I can't allow myself to believe that you
>were ever a born
>again Christian. If you left Christianity, it follows
>logically that I am capable of
>leaving, too. To accept this fact would destroy the
>very foundation of my
>beliefs, so I must be derisive of you.
This idea does exist within "fundamentalism," however I believe it's held by a small minority. It simply doesn't hold water.
>3. "SATAN HAS DECEIVED YOU."
>
>TRANSLATION(S):
>A. If you still don't believe after my crystal clear
>explanation of salvation, then
>I'll be forced to blame an invisible third party for
>your obvious lack of
>perception.
If someone doesn't believe after my explanation, I'm more likely to blame my own inadequate arguments than Satan. Also, the fact is that it does take a leap of faith to begin to believe in Christ, and I understand that it is a leap that many people are simply not willing to take.
>4. "SALVATION IS OBVIOUSLY A VERY SORE SUBJECT FOR YOU.
>YOU ARE SO FULL OF HATRED AND CONTEMPT."
>
>TRANSLATION: Your arguments against fundamentalism
>make a heckuva lot
>of sense. I'll have to act quickly and change the
>focus of our discussion by
>making this all about you.
If a Christian says this to you, they are less likely to be avoiding your arguments than they are simply trying to understand where you're coming from.
>5. "SOMEONE IN THE CHURCH MUST HAVE CAUSED YOU A GREAT
>DEAL OF HURT FOR YOU TO FEEL THIS WAY."
>
>TRANSLATION: Gee, you couldn't possibly have left
>Christianity just
>because you studied the Bible and found egregious
>inconsistencies and
>whopping errors in it! Again, let me reach for the
>lowest possible common
>denominator and make this all as juvenile and ad
>hominem as possible.
Again, they're trying to understand where you're coming from. Yes, we do see that someone could read the Bible and find errors and inconsistencies. But objectively speaking, for a text written over the span of two thousand years by forty different authors, it is remarkably consistent--consistent enough to make me believe there must have been a unifying force behind it.
>6. "I KNOW THE BIBLE SAYS GOD KILLED MEN, WOMEN,
>CHILDREN AND UNBORN FETUSES. HE IS THE CREATOR OF ALL.
>HE CAN DO ANYTHING HE WANTS."
>
>TRANSLATION:
>(a) I really get stuck when ex-fundies tell me about
>Biblegod's atrocities. I'll
>just give Him complete, unlimited power to do anything
>He wants to do. (It's
>sort of like building sand castles on the beach. You
>get to destroy them
>because you created them.)
>
>(b) How else can I possibly justify blood-soaked tales
>of Mister Yahweh
>decimating entire cultures and killing women,
>children,babies, and even animals
>along with the adult men?
I would never presume to even think about trying to justify God's behaviour. That would be like asking my dog to justify mine. From his perspective, it must seem ridiculous, even atrocious to defecate in the big porcelain water dish!
>7. "GOD GAVE ME A SPECIAL BURDEN FOR [insert inferior
>group/non-
>Christian person or group here]."
>
>TRANSLATION: If these poor, stupid, uninspired,
>ungodly, bible rejecting,
>misled idiots could only discover the real truth as I
>have!
This phrase I do hear quite a lot in Christendom. I'm not fond of it and I can see how it would sound rather condescending. The best I can do is try to assure you that it's not intended that way.
I can continue with the rest of the list, but I'm pressed for time right now. I'll return when the spirit brings me greater understanding and a burden for the ignorant atheist.
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