What a load of nonsence, as the same can be said of Aussie Rules or cricket. High culture what poppy-cock, more like fairy tales for adults, I regret wasting my time reading this drivel.

The trouble is is that "relgion" that Sells would promote was produced in the childhood of man when it was presumed that "gods" children were surrounded and protected by the mommy-daddy parental deity, and also punished if they were naughty.

An integral part of that childhood package were the other good-luck- god cartoon characters like santa claus, the tooth fairy, and the easter rabbit. Most people very early on quite rightly dont subscribe to these three cartoon characters, and yet "jesus" is part and parcel of this infantile, and infantilsing, package.

Inevitably, and quite rightly, many half-intelligent adults dont sub-scribe to this nonsense any more.
And those that do become increasingly dim-witted and irrational in their justifications for/of this childish nonsense.

I am all for high culture, and the more the better. But in this day and age you cant produce high culture based on such thread-bare thin foundations.
You can of course attempt to and at the same time lament the collapse and disappearance of former expressions of high culture.

An integral part of a high culture would necessarily be a high philosophy. A philosophy produced by and as an expression of that high culture. There is no evidence of high philosophy in any of Sells writings.

Plus a high culture would also feature a celebration of Beauty and The Beautiful. None of that to be found via Sells either, or in your usual Protestant church, many modern ones being as sacred and beautiful as a sports stadium---the big "revivalist" show-biz Barnum & Bailley barns in the outer suburbs---Hillsong for instance.

If a tree is healthy it will grow. If a church is healthy it will also grow. This does not necessarily mean growing numerically but definitely spiritually. The demise of the orthodox church has everything to do with the infiltration of liberal teachers who twist and deny the plain teachings about and of Christ.

Peter would do well to allow the Lord Himself to sort the wheat from the weeds. The style of music whether it be old hymns or modern day choruses are a very small part of worship. It is what is taken place the other 6.75 days of the week that counts for worship.

It seems Peter is sour because many have chosen the modern day worship over the hymns that Wesley wrote to pub music many years ago. The style of singing songs is just that ( a style). BY the way Peter the Scriptures no where indicate that having a little water thrown on you as a child makes you a Christian. May be a few people are leaving the traditional churches when they read of this among many other unscriptural practices.

I have enough faith in Jesus words to Peter that He would build His church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

Sells said:

"It soon became popular knowledge that the Christian religion was entirely subjective and was only adhered to by those poor souls who could not face the realities of life but needed a sky father to comfort them in the face of tragedy and death."

Wow! That is the smartest thing I have ever seen you write!! ;)

Seriously though Sells, you raise the issue of baptism. I was baptised as an infant into the Catholic church. Can you justify the indoctrination from day one, of children, into a faith? Why was I never given the choice of what my religion was? The answer is self-evident, as a marketing plan, it is peerless. Recruit people before they have any choice and you will maintain more numbers that way. Same goes for all belief systems of course.

I read the comments first, then maybe the posting. :), After reading the Courier Mail on Benny Hinn's visit, and they did not publish my comment as I shoot straight with these con men. He left the country it is said with $800,000.00 neat, and still we have the poor homeless in Brisbane, where he fleeced the flock.

Peter
I`M just wondering as your in WA what you have done towards stopping the babaric cruelty of the live animal trade.

Through no less than six seperate docs on 60 Minutes and other media outlets thye chuch leaders hide on their higher moral ground-or is it lower.

The only ones that were not heard were the Church.

Gods creatures and you lot sit with silent shut mouths and open paws waiting for hand outs from the Government

Even Muslim leaders spoke out.