S
stradial
Guest
First, let me say that my mother is a wonderful lady.
Very smart in the common sense way, not so much in the book learning, but she sure ain't dumb in that area either.
Basically just a good Christian woman that walks the walk more than she talks the talk.
GD made the comment that some things are a "sore" subject with me.
He is correct, but maybe not for the reason that he might think.
It is no secret that I was kicked (voted) out of my church when I was around 21 yrs old.
But that is not the thing that causes me to get fired up when people say "God says this" or "God says that", rather than "I believe God says this" or "I believe God says that".
My issues with these statements go back to when I was young and my dealings with my mother and other religious people I was around at that time.
As a big reader and as someone who naturally questions things that don't make logical sense, I asked a lot of questions back in the day about what I was told "God said".
Whenever I got into a discussion on these type of topics, the answer I was given most was, "that's what God said".
My question then was, how do you know that's what God said?
The answers were usually one of two answers, God said it in the bible or the more rare, God told/showed me.
If I pressed the question, with something like, well this other preacher believes the bible means that differently, then I was told, that preacher is wrong.
How do you know that?
No matter what, the bottom line was that instead of my having a discussion with another person about spiritual things, I was basically being told, you have to take that up with God.
There was no discussion of this is my beliefs about what God says and wants, it was this is what God says and wants.
Over the years, I don't know if it was from dealing with me or just her becoming more wiser, my mother, at least 99% of the time, will know say, this is what i believe based on my study and understanding that God says or wants.
So now my mother and I can have a discussion about her spiritual beliefs, which have helped me a lot.
The key is that my mother and I are discussing her and my spiritual beliefs, it's not a dead end, which it was when it was "God says".
I gave my analogy of my beliefs about Obama not being an American and how that no matter what, I will always believe that.
It kinda shuts down any meaningful discussion with me on that topic, doesn't it.
Another analogy is concerning movies.
I believe that actors and movies from 1913 thru 1980 were much much better than most actors and movies from 1980 till now.
That belief is a very very strong one, yet I am willing to listen, discuss and am open to an argument from the opposing side.
So there is room for a meaningful discussion on that topic.
One in which I may find something new to think about or even learn something new, as well as the other side.
I hope this makes sense.
Very smart in the common sense way, not so much in the book learning, but she sure ain't dumb in that area either.
Basically just a good Christian woman that walks the walk more than she talks the talk.
GD made the comment that some things are a "sore" subject with me.
He is correct, but maybe not for the reason that he might think.
It is no secret that I was kicked (voted) out of my church when I was around 21 yrs old.
But that is not the thing that causes me to get fired up when people say "God says this" or "God says that", rather than "I believe God says this" or "I believe God says that".
My issues with these statements go back to when I was young and my dealings with my mother and other religious people I was around at that time.
As a big reader and as someone who naturally questions things that don't make logical sense, I asked a lot of questions back in the day about what I was told "God said".
Whenever I got into a discussion on these type of topics, the answer I was given most was, "that's what God said".
My question then was, how do you know that's what God said?
The answers were usually one of two answers, God said it in the bible or the more rare, God told/showed me.
If I pressed the question, with something like, well this other preacher believes the bible means that differently, then I was told, that preacher is wrong.
How do you know that?
No matter what, the bottom line was that instead of my having a discussion with another person about spiritual things, I was basically being told, you have to take that up with God.
There was no discussion of this is my beliefs about what God says and wants, it was this is what God says and wants.
Over the years, I don't know if it was from dealing with me or just her becoming more wiser, my mother, at least 99% of the time, will know say, this is what i believe based on my study and understanding that God says or wants.
So now my mother and I can have a discussion about her spiritual beliefs, which have helped me a lot.
The key is that my mother and I are discussing her and my spiritual beliefs, it's not a dead end, which it was when it was "God says".
I gave my analogy of my beliefs about Obama not being an American and how that no matter what, I will always believe that.
It kinda shuts down any meaningful discussion with me on that topic, doesn't it.
Another analogy is concerning movies.
I believe that actors and movies from 1913 thru 1980 were much much better than most actors and movies from 1980 till now.
That belief is a very very strong one, yet I am willing to listen, discuss and am open to an argument from the opposing side.
So there is room for a meaningful discussion on that topic.
One in which I may find something new to think about or even learn something new, as well as the other side.
I hope this makes sense.
