Every generalization about "all religion" is something exclusive to certain strains of Christianity, and every claim about the unique qualities of Christianity is something common to many religious traditions.
It's always either "All religion teaches that people must be redeemed from original sin in order to escape eternity in hell when they die" or "Unlike any other religion, Christianity facilitates an in-group/out-group mentality, justifies authoritarianism, and promotes a prescriptive view of gender and sexuality."
more drabble about my thoughts on michael jackson and his relationship with faith:
“gnosticism is a personal experience of religion. the term gnosis means “an experience of knowledge” and religion means “to bind back to the point of origin” and hence gnosticism is an experience of the real essence of what god is. it does not represent dry dogmatism or a simple recital of facts, but a real and personal experience of god within human experience.” — pg. 5, the gnostic handbook. institute for gnostic studies. 1997-2000
i’ve talked about it before but i find theology incredibly interesting (disclaimer i approach it from an academic standpoint— this is by no means meant to offend anyone who may practice a different religion). but! the more i get deeper into learning about gnostism, the more i believe this is the “practice” michael jackson started after stepping away from being jehovah’s witness.
kindness, healing, love, and compassion were some of the main pillars of michael’s beliefs and gnosticism is heavily focused on finding heaven within oneself instead of trying to behave “accordingly” to reach an end goal of heaven in the afterlife. seeking out true wisdom that modernity has lost to materialism and rationalism
i find stuff like this terribly interesting and could talk about it for hours. mainly abrahamic religions (given its what im mainly familiar with), as well as diving into discussions about religion in the south (the united states) and the history of evangelical christianity. being raised in the bible belt has unfortunately shaped the way i approach many things in my life and immediately gives me an aversion to religious spaces.
Posted in the context of discussing whether rationalism is a religion. That discussion doesn't interest me very much. But I thought this was an excellent point well written, and want to have it available for future reference:
The thing most people today think of as 'religion' is a faint shadow of an ancient, powerful monster. Religion has raised and destroyed entire civilizations; martyrs have chosen to be burned alive than simply say 'nah u got me i don't believe that.' Is there any belief you hold that you would refuse to say the words 'fine i don't believe it' to stop bad guys from literally burning you to death? Can you imagine what that's like?
It has chiseled sacred norms that touch every single part of life, from clothing to marriage to war to death itself. It's a force that has, historically, burrowed deep to the core of human minds and completely transformed them into weapons for its own bidding.
In much of the western world, that beast has died, and cultures walk around wearing gilded remnants of its flesh. "Look, I go to church," they say, but their soul is possessed by nothing, it's filled with osmosis of the secular norms around them. They support gay marriage, or have ever had a divorce, or treat their sacred texts not as sacred but as inspirational poetry or as a self-help alternative.
And like, sure. Get meaning where you can. Traditions are comforting. But the unitarian universalists or the casual catholics or the cultural jews are entirely unpossessed by the beast.
There was this time I was writing a story with a world that was somewhat similar to ours but still blatantly fictional, and I was explaining to one of my friends how I was building the origins of the world with functions partially inspired by the bible (to be honest, mostly just the concept of the afterlife and how it functions) and partially from the Greek myths, mostly the stories of heroes and such (note that I'm Hellenistic, although I didn't know the word for it back then) and this girl who wasn't even part of the conversation just walked up to me and was like "It's really disrespectful that you're combining the real religion of Christianity with something fake. Greek mythology isn't real, and blah blah blah". I was just like, the audacity. (My friend, who is also Christian, was equally as confused) First of all what were you doing in this conversation that nobody invited you to? Second of all it was a fictional story in a world that has flipping vampires and werewolves, it's not that deep. Third of all, fake? I believe in that 'fake' stuff, ma'am. Admittedly, it took me a lot of willpower to not punch her in the face.
This is anti-religion, specifically anti-Hellenism.
As a folk Catholic who, does indeed, worship some Greek deities, this is such bullshit. Both are real or fake depending on your beliefs. Whatever you believe, it's important to be respectful.
Also sorry for not being active guys. I'm going through a divorce and got a little ✨depressed.✨ The reason why I was still posting on @this-is-kinmisia is bc I already had stuff queued. :p
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a Christian church.
I know a lot of people will disagree with me on this, especially here on tumblr. Two of the common reasons I've heard for this accusation are:
our belief in the Godhead rather than the Trinity
our view that the Nicene, Athanasian, and other related Creeds contradict the truths that Christ Himself set forth in the New Testament (often summarized in casual conversation as, "we reject the Creeds")
I'd like to share a conference address with you that clarifies where we stand on these topics—and why we stand there—far better than I could. It's by Jeffery R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and was given during the October 2007 General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It'll take less than fifteen minutes of your time if you want to watch it.
I've also put some quotes from this address (which I've bolded in places for emphasis) below the video so you can get a quick idea of his points. You can also read, watch, and listen to the full address here.
I would appreciate it if you could please share/reblog this post so the information can be seen by more people. Thank you.
↓ Quotes from the address ↓
The Godhead vs. the Trinity:
Our first and foremost article of faith in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is “We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.” We believe these three divine persons constituting a single Godhead are united in purpose, in manner, in testimony, in mission. We believe Them to be filled with the same godly sense of mercy and love, justice and grace, patience, forgiveness, and redemption. I think it is accurate to say we believe They are one in every significant and eternal aspect imaginable except believing Them to be three persons combined in one substance, a Trinitarian notion never set forth in the scriptures because it is not true.
Indeed no less a source than the stalwart Harper’s Bible Dictionary records that “the formal doctrine of the Trinity as it was defined by the great church councils of the fourth and fifth centuries is not to be found in the [New Testament].”
The Nicene and related Creeds:
In the year a.d. 325 the Roman emperor Constantine convened the Council of Nicaea to address—among other things—the growing issue of God’s alleged “trinity in unity.” What emerged from the heated contentions of churchmen, philosophers, and ecclesiastical dignitaries came to be known (after another 125 years and three more major councils) as the Nicene Creed, with later reformulations such as the Athanasian Creed. These various evolutions and iterations of creeds—and others to come over the centuries—declared the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost to be abstract, absolute, transcendent, immanent, consubstantial, coeternal, and unknowable, without body, parts, or passions and dwelling outside space and time. In such creeds all three members are separate persons, but they are a single being, the oft-noted “mystery of the trinity.” They are three distinct persons, yet not three Gods but one. All three persons are incomprehensible, yet it is one God who is incomprehensible.
We agree with our critics on at least that point—that such a formulation for divinity is truly incomprehensible. [...] How are we to trust, love, worship, to say nothing of strive to be like, One who is incomprehensible and unknowable? What of Jesus’s prayer to His Father in Heaven that “this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent”?
Not believing the Trinity doesn't mean we're not Christian:
It is not our purpose to demean any person’s belief nor the doctrine of any religion. We extend to all the same respect for their doctrine that we are asking for ours. (That, too, is an article of our faith.) But if one says we are not Christians because we do not hold a fourth- or fifth-century view of the Godhead, then what of those first Christian Saints, many of whom were eyewitnesses of the living Christ, who did not hold such a view either?
New Testament evidence for our view of the Godhead:
We declare it is self-evident from the scriptures that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate persons, three divine beings, noting such unequivocal illustrations as the Savior’s great Intercessory Prayer just mentioned, His baptism at the hands of John, the experience on the Mount of Transfiguration, and the martyrdom of Stephen—to name just four.
With these New Testament sources and more ringing in our ears, it may be redundant to ask what Jesus meant when He said, “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do.” On another occasion He said, “I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” Of His antagonists He said, “[They have] … seen and hated both me and my Father.” And there is, of course, that always deferential subordination to His Father that had Jesus say, “Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.” “My Father is greater than I.”
To whom was Jesus pleading so fervently all those years, including in such anguished cries as “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me” and “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me”? To acknowledge the scriptural evidence that otherwise perfectly united members of the Godhead are nevertheless separate and distinct beings is not to be guilty of polytheism; it is, rather, part of the great revelation Jesus came to deliver concerning the nature of divine beings. Perhaps the Apostle Paul said it best: “Christ Jesus … being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God.”
Elder Holland also touches on our doctrine of an embodied God, and bears his testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm sure I've quoted over half of this talk here already, so here is another link to the full address if you would like to read those sections.
If you've made it this far, thank you. It means a lot to me that you'd take a little time out of your day to read about the beliefs and doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I hope this was helpful in clarifying what we do and don't believe when it comes to the Trinity and the Creeds.
My ask box is always open to honest questions and discussions about my faith. I'm not here to debate anyone, but I'd be delighted to explain, clarify, and give my view on things. :)
so weird to me that people are mad about the mention of heaven in the fnaf movie. like, guys. the bible is the most referenced thing in western media just ever. and fnaf has always had biblical undertones. william afton is literally trying to play god. also scott cawthon is a christian so of course his art will be influenced by his beliefs. its insane to me that people seem to think any mention of something biblical is automatically christian propaganda or whatever. art is meant to challenge your beliefs and as someone who grew up in a very conversion central church, subtle biblical references are NOT how propaganda works. people who think this way need to engage with more art, im serious. you will find religious undertones in so much stuff.
