I attended an interfaith event last Friday & the evangelical pastor lamented to me,"America's lost her way because we've forgotten Jesus."
I responded, "As a Muslim I love Jesus too—but when exactly would you say America 'followed' Jesus? Was it during Native Genocide? Slavery? Jim Crow? Denying women equal rights? While invading Iraq?”
Deafening silence.
If you want to show me your faith, first show me your service to ALL humanity—regardless of faith or no faith. B/c faith w/o works is dead.
@QasimRashid Offer yourself
Without reserve
To be a vessel of God
The perfect grace of God prepares a perfect soul that becomes a vessel of God. This vessel carries a wonderful treasure through any turbulent time or raging sea to fulfill that that the spirit of God requires.
*Faith comes without judgment and so should our efforts to guide others. There is no stain from your past that determines your future. If you feel your faith is better than another’s, rethink yours. OWOP
The question is not if one faith is better than the other, but if the USA ever acted based on the faith they claim to be part of.
Maybe slavery, military invasions, racial and gender inequalities are what the spirit of god requires?
I wouldn't know, god never spoke to me. And I am wary of any man who claims to speak in god's name.
@axnxcamr @QasimRashid TWW: One World One People
Celebrate with all people the world that is ours, bring into your home, bring into your heart, the many cultures and their multitude societies that have emerged from the love of life that we share. The moment is vast and your place within it is connected with all people from the time you breathe the same air and drink the same water as the very first.
*Hi, good response, thanks. I think remorse may limit our future. OWOP
"And I am wary of any man who claims to speak in god's name."
As a Christian, I agree. I would never claim to know the mind of God, beyond trying my best to accurately interpret what the Bible says and to apply it to every day life.
I hate what is coming out of right wing fundamentalists churches right now. The Bible doesn't condemn homosexuality. There are certain sex acts that were forbidden, but the ancient world had no concept of homosexuality. And those "laws" were in the context of keeping Israel pure and not defiling the land. Defilement is not the same thing as sin.
There is a very good argument that those prescriptions are not relevant today anymore. Because we are no longer under the old covenant.
So I believe that God would not condemn a loving relationship between two individuals, regardless of sex.
But this is my personal belief, I can't claim to have all the answers. But I believe God is love, and real love is of god.
Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime; give a man religion and he will die praying for a fish.
Benjamin Disraeli
I can't tell who you are, in fact, condemning. Maintaining status quo injustice is often served by criticizing truth tellers like @QasimRashid.
@CRSG @QasimRashid TWW: Our Path
In the darkness you can find a path toward the vision of light and hope that draws us forward. A vision of peace, a vision of respect, a vision of acceptance, a vision of support, a vision of joy, a vision of love. This path is rough and long but hand in hand we go forward.
*Hi, thanks for your question. I ask that people look forward without remorse of the past. Learn from history and let those lessons guide your actions. OWOP
Also to hell with religious supremacists
America is a murderous genocidal nation.
@QasimRashid "Faith is the surrender of the mind...."
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/503115-faith-is-the-surrender-of-the-mind-it-s-the-surrender
@QasimRashid Following Jesus (but not Jesus), the worship of Money, the worship of self comfort.
Most Christians have been fed into the grist mill long ago. Christianity is a Puritan long con.
Your points are dead on. I think it would be more accurate to say that America, as a whole, was never listening to Jesus in the first place.
I think there has always been a minority here that did follow Jesus. They were recognizable because they were the ones who actually lived by the Sermon on the Mount: not resisting evil, not clutching at property, giving freely to those in need. But they were indeed a small minority. They never held power.
Within Christianity, one can blame Martin Luther for his 'get out of jail free' card, that faith alone gives the ultimate redemption. That's the curse of the Protestants. Other schismatics within the faith have other albatrosses, as well.
Works alone show one's commitment to humanity.
@QasimRashid NOT a believer!
Indeed, I blogged today an idea for burning churches down: http://brander.ca/stackback#churchburning
...but, damn, even *I* have the standard comeback to that one:
"No society ever measured up to their own religious standards.
But they were following Jesus, who, in their time, lived with Natives, died to free slaves, illegalized Jim Crow, brought universal sufferage. We meet today to consider how to follow Jesus in this time."
Preacher was off his game, being silent.
You are not wrong, of course, but the problem with all these types of arguments is that all sides based on beliefs of supernatural beings can claim superiority because of their belief that their claims are true and superior to other claims - without having to prove them. At worse case that priest could claim that your god has stood around and allowed evil things to happen too, so who are you to judge other gods other than yours?
@wilbr @QasimRashid I will try to shed a little light on the off chance someone is interested.
To them, the evangelism _is_ the works. We are in the end times, and works to heal the world are pointless. Genocides, social injustice, and war are all expected in this evil world and take our attention from God Only spreading the word could possibly matter for the future, as it is the only hope for eternal life. To love is to want this for as many people as possible.
You're just arguing past them.
@QasimRashid
Organised religion is the root of all evil.
Every major (monotheistic) religion is convinced that their almighty old man in the sky (or wherever) is the best one. The main goal of these religions is to push their believe system on everybody on the planet.
Religion is aggressive, arrogant, intolerant and full of hate. Humankind should be past this kind of fairy tale fantasy crap.
#noReligion #atheism #humanism #oldwhitemanrules #bible #fairytales
So you identify with a religion that teaches men's dominance over women, violence and retribution toward non-believers and teaches that basic human rights are less important than forced compliance?
Absolute "brilliance". 🙄
Which regions of the world fosters freedoms to pursue discovery and knowledge...and is not mired in "satanic ritual abuse" of power with its forced compliance approach to governance? It's definitely not the muslim majority regions.
You asked the right question.
While I don't follow any religion, I agree with your point 100%.
Actions > Words
America has certainly followed the Old Testament playbook, with Jesus as the poster boy tacked onto the front, a prime example of false advertising.
I suspect your evangelical pastor may have been a bit miffed that Islam relegates Jesus to second place in the spiritual Top Ten.
Cults suck...
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