tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post8548170763879375884..comments2023-12-27T19:24:48.254-05:00Comments on Tell me why the world is weird: Stop saying "It's not a religion."perfectnumber628http://www.blogger.com/profile/10303683510076315803noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post-91909508096521006532015-07-14T22:28:25.195-04:002015-07-14T22:28:25.195-04:00这篇文章真的很有意思。我是穆斯林,我也学了中文,也去了中国。你的这个经验是跟我的经验完全一样。我完全...这篇文章真的很有意思。我是穆斯林,我也学了中文,也去了中国。你的这个经验是跟我的经验完全一样。我完全同意你的看法:我觉得宗教就会unite不同国家的人。Ibbynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post-63088419855742078112015-06-04T01:02:43.784-04:002015-06-04T01:02:43.784-04:00Beautiful article. I surely hope people come to th...Beautiful article. I surely hope people come to the understanding that Christianity is BOTH a relationship and a religion. The definition of religion follows: "the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God/gods. A particular system of faith and a pursuit/interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance." That is a key component of Christianity and without comprehending the very basis of the structure of our faith, how then are we to fully know and utilize our relationship to the "supreme pursuit" of our lives? Religion is not bad and it is necessary to comprehend the cherished relationship you share with God. A religion contains creeds, instruction, doctrine, church history, theology, philosophy, historical documents/architecture/scripture - these are not things to be treated lightly or with disdain! In my opinion, it weakens the individual and the Church as a whole when we cast off centuries of wisdom and direction in order to simplistically bask in the glow of a "relationship" without pressing further into the heart, soul and intelligence surrounding that bondashleyjordannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post-51113989186721772172013-04-13T20:33:07.462-04:002013-04-13T20:33:07.462-04:00You can say "it's not a religion" if...You can say "it's not a religion" if you want, but I don't believe that any more. You can say "it's a relationship" if you want, but it's not just a "personal relationship with God"- it's a relationship with every human being on the planet who calls on the name of Jesus.<br /><br />I love this and I think it also makes sense like this - "it's a relationship with every human being on the planet."<br /><br />:)<br /><br />LOVE RYANRyan Brightside Kuramitsuhttp://www.facebook.com/afreshmindnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post-14554407658666472212013-03-20T23:02:36.574-04:002013-03-20T23:02:36.574-04:00I stumbled upon your blog today via Dianna Anderso...I stumbled upon your blog today via Dianna Anderson's blog, which I found via Rachel Held Evan's blog. I've read several of your posts, and have to say--what a gem!<br /><br />I've been struggling with how to respond to "Are you religious?" for several years, after growing up as an Evangelical Christian, graduating from a Christian university, and then exiting the Christian bubble and becoming immersed in the secular (and highly enlightening) world. Someone asked me this a couple years ago, and I am haunted by my lame inability to think on my feet and unpreparedness to answer thoughtfully (my answer was something like, "Errmmm.........I go to church"). How do I respond, so as to not be associated with people like Mark Driscoll, the Westboro Baptist congregation, and Pat Robertson? There's a lot of negativity and confusion surrounding the label "Christian" in the U.S. these days. <br /><br /><br />Last week, I went to a seminary lecture called "The Future of Evangelicalism," and took several things away from that, including: (1) Christians historically have divided themselves into groups and further into subgroups, to set themselves apart from other Christians who don't believe exactly as they do, (2) in the U.S., Evangelicalism has become associated with American culture wars, Republican politicking, and white, male, westerners, and (3) Christianity in the U.S. has become entrenched in individualism and consumerism. These things have contributed to the tarnishing of the labels of "Evangelical" and "Christian" in the U.S. One of the speakers said that if someone asked him what kind of Christian he is, he would respond, "Evangelical--wait--let me explain!" As for me, I'm still struggling, not only with how to respond to "Are you religious?" but also "What kind of Christian are you?" because of how labels can stir up preconceived notions in people's minds, and I hate being misunderstood and having certain ideas assumed about me. But I really like what you had to say here, and it has helped me to reevaluate my approach to working out an answer to these questions, because that connection to others who call on the name of Jesus is something to be cherished. The body of Christ is pretty much a big, messy, and at times dysfunctional family, but that shouldn't preclude me from claiming my place in it in words. I'm trying to restructure my faith to understand myself in the context of community, rather than the tunnel-visioned individualism of American culture!Ashley K.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post-12692912971404598522012-11-03T23:06:05.533-04:002012-11-03T23:06:05.533-04:00Indeed. Thanks for sharing the link. :)Indeed. Thanks for sharing the link. :)perfectnumber628http://tellmewhytheworldisweird.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8626292304461574111.post-29946175752582287622012-11-03T19:21:00.287-04:002012-11-03T19:21:00.287-04:00I think you'd like this recent John Shore post...I think you'd like this recent John Shore post: http://johnshore.com/2012/10/30/a-progressive-christian-asks-how-do-i-not-hate-christians/Jessica @ FaithPermeatingLifehttp://www.faithpermeatinglife.comnoreply@blogger.com