Christianity and other denominations

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UOducksTK1
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Christianity and other denominations

Post by UOducksTK1 »

UofDuck wrote:
Phalanx wrote:
GoDucksTroll wrote:100% this is USC related. I can speculate on why Funa chose to announce this now...

Also, I know we try to be civil on here, and I'm not a Catholic, but to say Catholic's aren't Christian when they were 99% of Christianity until the schism between Rome and Constantinople is just patently incorrect. Catholics outnumber Orthodox and Protestants, and both are offshoots of Catholicism. I hate to get sidetracked on this, but I've never heard anyone have that opinion.
It's just a difference in the way the term 'Christian' is defined. For many, it means any philosophy/religion having to do with Geez Christ, as opposed to Krishna, Allah, Buddha, Woden, Stephen Hawking, etc. For others, it means those who hold to a core of orthodoxy as defined in the Bible or church fathers (like the creeds), or those who 'follow Christ' according to that orthodoxy. I agree, when I saw someone saying Catholics aren't Christians, I did a double-take. I think he meant that according to his view, Catholics who believe in the Pope, Mary, praying to Saints, the Eucharist, etc. are not in line with the true faith. Obviously, this has been an argument for centuries, so not going to be settled on a message board. I would add though that neither Catholics nor Protestants view Mormons as Christians. They are on their own program that only tangentially intersects with traditional Christianity.
So let me get this right, If Catholics, or Mormons, or Protestants, or.... have different opinions of what the Bible says, then nobody can really be call Christian because the other sects say they are wrong in their approach? Do all three believe Geez is the Messiah/Savior etc, Yes. Do all three believe in the Ten Commandments? Yes. Do all three think Christ was resurrected after being crucified? Yes. Do all three believe in the possibility of a better life after death because of Christ? Yes. Do all three teach to follow what Geez taught; to be kind to your neighbors, turn the other cheek, to love one another,... etc, etc, etc. Yes.

Its fine to believe and follow your own faith, but how arrogant and hypocritical that any group can claim they alone hold the high-ground to be able to define what being a Christian is, and what it is not.

This is where the convo ended.

And UofDuck, the only thing I'd add to that, is Mormons and Catholics believe that the good works, penance, or regular tithing is a requirement for salvation. And I believe Christians view that by grace through faith in Christ it what saves you, and good works are a result of work of Geez. FYI. So I could see why one side would think the other side is not the same. That's a pretty significant distinction regardless of what side of the coin you're on, or even if you are not religious.

My 2 cents. But good questions and discussion...

Do Not Fear. Isaiah 41:13
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

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Alan
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

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I will say I was very surprised about how many different views we have on what is being a Christian is. Not saying anyone is right or wrong, I even search "definition of Christian", I could not find a clear answer or definitive answer.
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

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Well I was the one who inadvertently started the discussion.

Here’s my abbreviated take on what I meant. I would compare to calling someone say Hispanic or latino. From a wide view that does accurately describe a large swath of races and cultures. You could be :Spanish, Mexican, Dominican, Guatemalan etc and be Hispanic/Latino. Each of those countries cultures and races has their own identity inside of that umbrella. Yes, someone from Guatemala would be considered Hispanic but their culture and history is unique.
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

Post by Phalanx »

UofDuck wrote:
So let me get this right, If Catholics, or Mormons, or Protestants, or.... have different opinions of what the Bible says, then nobody can really be call Christian because the other sects say they are wrong in their approach? Do all three believe Geez is the Messiah/Savior etc, Yes. Do all three believe in the Ten Commandments? Yes. Do all three think Christ was resurrected after being crucified? Yes. Do all three believe in the possibility of a better life after death because of Christ? Yes. Do all three teach to follow what Geez taught; to be kind to your neighbors, turn the other cheek, to love one another,... etc, etc, etc. Yes.

Its fine to believe and follow your own faith, but how arrogant and hypocritical that any group can claim they alone hold the high-ground to be able to define what being a Christian is, and what it is not.
Almost as old as the name 'Christian' are councils of followers of Geez Christ getting together to determine what is orthodox and what is heresy. Many of Paul's epistles were written specifically to combat error that had entered the church. I'm not sure how anyone can read the Bible and not see the recurring theme of purging heretical teaching and its adherents from their midst. So I guess you can call it 'arrogant and hypocritical', but actually, it is completely in keeping with the foundational teachings of Christianity.

Lots of people believe things about Geez who are not Christians. Percy Shelley was an atheist, but he wrote long essays about Geez. Simply agreeing on a few historical points does not mean that everyone is in the same camp. One fairly obvious problem between reconciling Mormon thought with Christian thought is the Mormon idea that one can become God. This is complete heresy to Jews and Christians. It's actually the oldest heresy recorded in the Bible - what the serpent told to the woman to convince her to eat the fruit, and what the King of Babylon (a symbol for Satan) says in Isaiah 14: "I will make myself like the Most High". Brigham Young went so far as to say that the God he worshipped was once the very Adam in the garden of Eden who sinned. Young also said in the same speech that this same 'God' was Michael the Archangel. This is not Christianity, it is someone riffing off of something he read in the Bible, like reading a William Blake poem.

There are lots of other examples, if one wants to get into a big debate. The bottom line is that if you have a group of people who adhere to certain beliefs, even if there is some variance among them, and then someone comes in and starts saying things that are wildly contradictory to those beliefs, it's pretty predictable that he would not be numbered among that group. It would be like someone going to a Democrat convention loudly proclaiming that abortion is murder, climate change is a hoax, and Donald Trump is the new Democrat Prophet in these latter days because he believes in Democracy and favors a few things like infrastructure and tariffs that have been traditional Democrat planks. I would not call the Democrats hypocritical and arrogant if they politely showed that person the door. Some things just can't be reconciled.

Anyway, I think I read somewhere that Joseph Smith preached that the Christian church of his day was in error, so I think the rejection has historically gone both ways. Probably not something to get upset about.
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

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As a child I was raised in the Assembly of God church, Christian they worship God, Geez and the Holy Ghost through the King James Bible. When my children were young my my wife who is Mormon introduced us to the Mormon church. I am not active any longer but spent years in the Mormon church. I have been to several temples, you don't get to walk in because you were baptized Mormon. A correction to Phalanx statement above, Mormons do not believe they become Gods. Mormons have a book of worship called a quad, four books, the two main ones the follow are the King James Version and the Book of Mormon. In the Book of Mormon it says there are seven levels of heaven but only the most righteous may ascend to the level to be with god...... some morons some are Mormon, think and preach this means "God like" which then gets interpreted as being a God, wrong! That is not what is said. Just like the Bible never said Jonah was swallowed by a Whale it says he was swallowed by a great fish....... things get twisted. When my kids were grown and gone I left the church for multiple reasons, the Mormon church has the same problems all other churches have, unethical, dishonest members who call themselves Christians. They say they follow God through Geez Christ but their actions prove different on many occasions. Another personal note, another reason I left the church is I could not "buy in" 100%, I don't believe one man went into the woods by himself in the 1800's and came face to face with God. I don't believe only the righteous get to be with God, if we live our life right we all do. But I feel the same way about not buying in 100% with most religions, Assembly of God, Catholic beliefs (sin all week and a few hail Mary's and all is good for another week). As a Mormon I can tell you 100% we consider and call ourselves Christians, we follow Geez and speak to God through Geez (prayers end with in Geez name) we are Christians. Finally to squash this bug before it comes up, the extreme so called religious sectors who practice polygamy are not affiliated with the Mormon church and the church denounces them. If I started a new college and named it "The other Oregon Duck school". It doesn't make them Ducks.
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

Post by lukeyrid13 »

^ Good point about polygamy and the Mormon church. It's the same thing as Westboro Baptist church being affiliated with Christianity or the Baptist church specifically, they're just a hate group that has church in their name. As is the case with a lot of things nowadays though, on the whole we just see 'headlines' or equivalent and just follow along with what is said. Not a lot of depth of research is put in by: media, general populace etc.

Also, thanks for sharing about the Mormon church Alan. Unfortunately the modern church tends to be different from the original church that Paul was building in the book of Acts. The church largely started with in-home groups, or small groups that were very tight communities. The necessity for large buildings that required lots of tithing and hierarchies was not the original construct. In my opinion, that model lends itself better and is less corruptible.
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Re: Christianity and other denominations

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The New Testment is filled with teachings about “false teachers” and “false religions”. Geez showed no tolerance of either and God uses His Holy Word to clearly instruct us as to His opinions. Humankind, because of our propensity to be disobedient to God and His Word, has found the “need” to twist God’s Absolute Truth so that they make God into a god that is more acceptable to them. So, instead of being sanctified into what God desires, people change God and His Word into a god that they find acceptable.

Geez was so critical of “religion” because of the distortion and perversion that plays such a major role in them. Humans discuss and argue their own religions. Christ set the foundations for His true church and made it very clear the parameters for those desiring to be in it. Arguing against others about their religious opinions is futile. To argue against God and His Holy Word will be addressed at judgment time.
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