Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire The " I Believe " Forum

Hmmm....I wonder where this thread will go.

They did a good job on the carving though.

Explaining the nuances of language gets tiring as well as pointing out where someone tries to twist their own words.

You said mention religion and watch the lunatics flock to the thread. That�s quite a bit different than what you wrote above. It�s denigrating because you infer only the campfire lunatics would be attracted to a religious thread (E.g., lunatics = religion).

I�m addressing my posts only to you, because you are the only one left arguing for a religious forum. There need not be a religious forum. Religion isn�t mentioned often enough to warrant its own forum. Period.

I think your statement illustrates the divide that seperates many. Some think a "religion" is just some philosophical postion that guides your life and/or behavior and you can turn it on or off at will.

Evangelical Christians despise "religion," considering it nothing more than a human effort full of ritual and fluff that means little. Evangelical Christians consider their personal relationship with Jesus to be the signficant issue and they emphasize that it is a relationship having little to do with any ritual or formality.

However, most outside observers cannot really understand that concept and consider Evangelicals as "religious" people. So when an unbeliever suggests they go find a place to talk about God it is an anathema to an Evangelical. The Evangelical points out he is in a relationship with God and it is THE defining relationship of his life. As such, he finds it unreasonable that he should be censored form talking about the most defining part of his/her life whenever and wherever it comes up.

Of course, it is also an anathema to an unbeliever to even hear someone talk about God because for many unbelievers, rejecting God is the defining event of their lives. Many unbelievers would think it unreasonable for them to be censored from talking about why they think the way they do, so the conflict never ends.

The only answer is what Ken Howell (ThD, BTW) has said in this thread. We ALL should be willing to gently share our beleifs, but there is no requirement for us to convert everyone we see to our exact way of thinking.

Would that make Rick Bin our new spirtual leader?

What's the difference between a Christian and a Messianic Jew?

I'm not religious (maybe some day ) but I do find a lot of truth in many of the concepts/teachings I read about in the bible. I can also sit and listen to Joel Osteen (christian guy on TV) for the same reason but I just can't bring myself to go to church....

My father was a Methodist circuit-rider, one grandfather was Southern Baptist, and I married a Swedish Lutheran. I was at one time a Methodist pastor, preached and taught in a wide variety of denominations, once had in some of my Bible courses a prominent Catholic author (a Monsignor, no less, who often punctuated my lessons with "Amen!" and "That's right, Brother" like a good Pentecostal). I was one of the few whites getting a degree when I worked for my ThD and PhD in Biblical interpretation from a nondenominational seminary. For years, I was fully ordained by a nondenominational fellowship of independent churches.

Some of my writings have been used, internationally, by a number of other ministries. I smuggled Bibles into Saudi Arabia and taught there (not under any denominational sponsorship) an underground group of new Christians that at one count represented more than fifty countries of origin.

So when people ask me what flavor of Christian I am, I tell 'em that I'm an uncompromising scripturalist � can't think of any other label that fits and hasn't been coopted by some differently focused group or other.

That is interesting, not only are you a lunatic...you are also able to read minds from across the waters and teach English, do me a favour, how about you test your faith by going to the very largest body of water that you have handy and try walking on the surface, preferably over the very deepest part.


OH, if that is not precise enough for you, it means...go jump in the lake.

Well it would certainly be better than having Tom Cruise as a fellow parishioner.

A few thousand years.

Sorry........I'm weak and couldn't resist.

Actually the Messianic Jew is more of a multi-tasker than the garden variety Christian.

Might be hard to stop......think I'll just go to bed now. Night.

I am on a slow dial up connection and have neither time nor patience to open long threads on a hunting/shooting forum dealing with religion. Due to those who feel they know how everyone else should live their lives it looks like my online time will be best spent elsewhere.

Whom resist stedfast in the faith!

Based on the strange variety of posts on this thread alone, I can just imagine what the Christian forum must have been like and can see why Rick washed his hand of the deal. This is a little tiring already and it's only page 3!! I'll check back for Penny's reply (or somebody in the know) and then I'll probably mosey on outta here while the gettin's good....

Such wit.

I see you are still alone in your one-man crusade to establish a religous forum.

Too bad.

Nebraska, this thread is done.

Maybe we can just get JSTUART and Magnumdood a room....

I didn't know there wasn't an a in sted instead of stead. I'm not that fast!

That is a shame, I was thoroughly enjoying myself.....that is Okay my girls are home now and they have a bucket of shopping....Oh well, it is of to work I go.

You only send a bucket with them shopping. Smart!

No wonder I'm broke. Mine take a truck with a topper.