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The Forum > Article Comments > Marriage, divorce and the Bible > Comments

Marriage, divorce and the Bible : Comments

By Peter Sellick, published 10/8/2018

I can remember, in my first Parish, standing before the congregation as a divorced man having married a divorced woman to preach.

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(Continued)

I would like to show you that God is real, let you have that reassurement when life gets hard that God is still out there. Even if we never get to the parts of why to trust Christianity to be from God and how to grow in your faith, just knowing He's there is enough to start you on the same journey that I was on when I was a teen. Knowing God was real but not which religion(s) (if any) were from him. Then searching the religions that claim to have God in them. It changes your approach if you recognize that God is there when you set out to see which things are from Him and which aren't. (If you don't think He's there then your looking for Him will be shallow or non existent. Essentially exactly as you've described your journey when I challenged your searching for God).

But all that said. Why would you trust me in this? In our conversations things got ugly, bitter, and angry. Both on your side as well as my own. Though I haven't lied to you, or changed my stance showing an unreliability to it, there has grown some bad blood between us. I can recognize this. And if you were willing I would try to be more patient with you instead of reacting to your different attempts to start a fight. Then I could try to teach you about God from what I know. Several years looking into it. More years after finding my conclusions to test them and seek more insight from God. And just a knowledge from trying to apply what I know and seeing the results happen in life. I could have more to teach you if you would let me. It would show you that they aren't delusions.

(Don't ask for examples of you trying to start a fight, in this conversation alone there are enough examples to make this point and that would turn this conversation to finally a dead conversation. Instead take the criticism, while I try to be more patient).

(Continued)
Posted by Not_Now.Soon, Thursday, 6 September 2018 3:12:49 AM
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(Continued)

By the way, what makes you think that I don't investigate the beliefs of others. There is a lot of good insight out there in the world. Some things you have to look at from a more in depth approach. Kind of like looking at a blue print of a house or a building. Most of the design relates to the other parts in the blueprint, so looking at it as a whole design fills you in on the structure of the house and how it fits together. The same way is true with people and their understanding of the world. Look at the people, and look at what they believe. Then you can better see the structure of their beliefs and the valid aspects of their beliefs, or the deterrents of them based on the whole structure of their life, their character, or their struggles. This goes beyond just religious beliefs. However, when you find out something that is true, you don't just ignore it's true or not when someone else believes differently. When I found out that God is real, that's not some delusion or some philosophy. That was a discovery I had to deal with in relation to everything else. When a person's philosophy about the world or about God leaves that aspect out that He is real, then that philosophy is missing a piece. A very big one. I keep that in mind while looking at their beliefs. Some still have merit, others do not.
Posted by Not_Now.Soon, Thursday, 6 September 2018 3:14:28 AM
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Dear NNS,

I don't think you investigate the beliefs of others because you have admitted your lack of knowledge of other's beliefs. You keep insisting that your God is real. Allah, Krishna, Zeus etc. is real to those that believe in them. You don't believe in the non-Christian gods. Those who believe in other gods see no reason to believe in the Christian god. I see no reason to believe in any of them. We are both non-believers to many gods. I see no reason to believe in your god in preference to any other god. I have read the Bible, and I think the God you believe in is a monster as defined by his acts. I feel it is better to believe that such a monster is merely a creation of the human mind rather than to believe such a monster actually exists.
Posted by david f, Thursday, 6 September 2018 9:23:45 AM
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David F.

I get tired of arguing with you. Over and over again I get dragged away from any position and into personal attacks. I'm not even sure you're aware that you're doing this.

I don't think you've done much investigating of religions either. In order to investigate them you have to be willing to offer at least a little benefit of the doubt to see it from their eyes and see if there is merit in it. "If God exists and their religion is right...." Then you can look at their statements, perspectives and observations and see if they hold any insight. From what you've written, it sounds like you already decided your conclusions about God before any investigation of any religion began. If a detective did this it would harm the investigative process and might let a guilty person go while an innocent person takes the heat. So I've doubt about your investigation too.

Moving on, away from an already established point, that we don't trust each other. I have an idea. You said you want to help me. I know your help isn't really help, but if you really believe I am living in delusion, and do want to help, I say go ahead. I will judge to see if my conclusions on your help are justified or if you are actually sincere. One point of interest though. I know God is real not just by religion, but by experience within my life. On that point, I searched for God a long time after I found enough experiences to bat away any doubts that God doesn't exist. In my opinion the best you can do with that in mind is try to point to how any religion isn't from God.

(Continued)
Posted by Not_Now.Soon, Sunday, 9 September 2018 4:59:20 AM
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(Continued)

Either way, make your best attempt to "help me away from the delusion." Then we can both move on. If I see any merit to what you say I might be able to move on from your contributions in any conversation that that has faith in it's topics. Especially this topic where I thought the topic of divorce was worth while enough to not be derailed by the ongoing conversations of God existing or not existing. If nothing else this is an opportunity to make your case worth while and not be ignored as a troll.

For my part I will try to not reply and let you finish saying what you have to offer. Or if you have a question posed to me, I will try to keep the answer short and only about what you asked.

If you are willing and were sincere, then go ahead and try to "help me."
Posted by Not_Now.Soon, Sunday, 9 September 2018 5:03:43 AM
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//I know God is real not just by religion, but by experience within my life.//

Perhaps, but it seems to me that you're not using the word 'real' in the sense that most people use it, i.e. having an objective, verifiable existence in the same way that, say, cabbages do.
Posted by Toni Lavis, Sunday, 9 September 2018 9:48:12 AM
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