Rizzen

1) Yup. Though you all may not think so... 2) Near State College, Pa, USA. 3) Well, as soon as I get out of high school, and into college, I work at McDonald's for $6.15 an hour. Cheers! 4) How did I find out about these boards? Googling! (yes, that's a real word) 5) Just hoping to 6) What on Earth do I think this icon means? PH34R!!! I'm also a songwriter (techno, no bashing please and I love being a Christian. It's changed my whole life. Of course, if it hasn't changed my whole life, then would I truly be a Christian? You decide. Peace, Rizzen <{{{><

I'm confused. I know issues like homosexuality (look elsewhere in this forum) seperate liberals and conservatives. But about what BrotherRog said, I find no difference between the two. What's the big deal? I think we find more of a seperation between between (and forgive me my crude analogy and mentality) "old folk's church" and real Christianity. I think that Christianity keeps progressing towards the "real" Christianity that God intended for us all along. We have our trials and tribulations (the Crusades, "holy" wars, and homosexuality ) but I think the real deal is living out our faith. I'll talk more on this later. i'm goin to bed. Peace, Rizzen <{{{><

I'd like to first discuss Lou's reply: >>Your post is thoughtful. Gee, thanx! >>I don't think this is the place to debate and work to change each other's minds, but I want to address one comment you made: I'm not sure I understand this. Why isn't this the place to debate? Jesus commands us to go and share our faith. This is what I believe, and you think differently. I'm not going to sit around telling other Christians why I'm a Christian; that would be wasting my time. I'm not saying that you aren't Christian by any means, but I do believe you are wrong, and I'm only trying to help set things right. TCPC has provided for us a place where we can discuss progressive Christianity. So why am I wrong by discussing it? >>All I want to say is that I hope you will test your thoughts against the experiences of others who are gay. I am a 55 year old heterosexual. I did not choose my orientation, it happened to me. I know that my sexual orientation is deep rooted and constitutive of who I am. So it seems I could say that "God made me this way." If I believe this about my own life experience, how do I apply it to the experience of others who are oriented toward their same sex? Can I share something with you all? I used to be gay. And when I became straight, I felt the exact same way I felt when I became Christian. I felt totally cleansed. This isn't just my experience, but the same experience two of my (formally) gay friends felt when I told them how much more "whole" I felt. I felt then that Jesus could fully enter my life, a way I've never felt before. This is my experience! >>I have to say also that "God made them that way." At least for some gays they could no more "return to a heterosexual lifestyle" than I could turn to a gay lifestyle. It's not in them. I was not made gay. I know that for a fact. Halfway through my adolescence I found myself more attracted to men than I was to women. I would even go so far as to say I enjoyed it. (Like any average man enjoys sin. One who does not know Christ has little problem doing things that he finds pleasurable.) >>I think there is a big theological issue here. One approach is to say "the Bible says..." and deny any reality that doesn't fit. Another approach is to ask "What is real?" and search for how the Bible shed light on that reality. I don't think that denial of the real is, in the end, a good thing. I would agree on that. Denial of the real is hardly a good thing. But what you perceive as "real" and what I perceive as "real" are two totally different things. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- As for the the other two letters, I never once mentioned the story of Sodom. So why is it being brought up? "BrotherRog" never brought up the passage I talked about. Why is it being ignored? I just want people to reply to what I've posted, because explaining one thing to me when I said another doesn't help anyone. But, enough of that. Now, for the sake of this article, I'll grant that people may be born gay. You said that I was not born that way, so I can't say that it doesn't happen. So be it. However, I did not condemn being gay, which is what the author of the articles above assumed. I DO condemn acts of homosexuality, which is exactly what the Bible talks about. Let me give you an analogy. (please don't shun me for giving the following example, this is just an analogy). There's an average man whose name is Joe; he has an average life, and average wife, average kids, etc. Say someone (named John) at his workplace is really making him mad. He dreams about shooting John in the head. We know, from the Bible, that murder is wrong. However, he never actually does it. It's just a thought. Has Joe done anything wrong? Let us apply this to Mike, the Gay Person. He fanticizes sleeping with his workmate (and close friend), Tom. But, he never actually does it. Has Mike done anything wrong? What if he constantly had thoughts about getting in bed with him? What if Joe constantly thought about killing John? Are these wrong? Does the Bible condemn thinking about same-sex relationships? The articles above says it doesn't. However, the Bible DOES condemn same-sex activities (I explained this in my first passage). I'm still really confused by your line of thinking. Do you believe in naturally-born serial killers? Why not? In fact, the Bible never addresses them, so it must be okay for someone to be a serial killer, because they were naturally born that way. Am I right? Peace, Rizzen <{{{><

Post moved here.