Alpha wrote:10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.
That's because their gods are false and ours is the one true God.
Other than from the writings of man, where did you get this information? I'm not rying to be disrespectful... I think that you'd agree that the Bible has been translated incompletely and badly (verbatim) by many people, many times over...
Alpha wrote:9 - You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.
Evidence exists for human beings dying and turning into dirt. I don't see this for us evolving from monkeys.
Scientific evidence shows that we are closely related to primates. Other data exists linking lions to house cats... Do you deny that also? I've seen footage of gorrillas crying over the loss of their offspring and mate. I've seen footage of them comforting one another in VERY human ways. their bone structure, nervous systems, musculature and even their facial expressions and mannerisms are so close to ours as to make it impossible for me to disbelieve. Even their DNA is similar. I understand that this goes against your personal interpretation of the Bible. I also think that it's a bit closed minded... Creationism and Evolution aren't the only theories in existance, they can be blended very well with The God starting the process and giving all living things the ability to change to suit their environment. How else are humans so diverse? According to the current interpretation of the Bible we're all born of 2 people and yet we've got different skin colors depending on where we live... That's a form of evolution.
Alpha wrote:8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.
That's because the Triune God is one God manifesting Himself in three distinct persons, not three different gods. Also, this Triune God warns people of polytheism, but the gods of polytheistic religions do not warn of this Triune God. On no, the hindu gods will punish me!!!!!!!!! Look out, it's the elephant god and the god made out of clay!!!!!!!!!!!
That was rather disrespectful...
I follow a polytheistic path. I believe that The Other (God) is the fount of all Deities and that they are all aspects of the Other... Not 100s of different Gods. My beliefs don't warn of your God because there's no need... My teachings say that we're all correct
Alpha wrote:7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" including women, children, and trees!
Aineo already covered this.
Okay. However, there have been disasters of Biblical proportion since the times of the OT. All natural disaster in the OT was attributed to your God. Since the coming and death of Jesus, there have been the same disasters. What makes you sure that your God had no hand in those?
Alpha wrote:6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.
The Holy Spirit did not have sex with Mary. Note: sex is a physical thing.
He just "came to her" right? A book that doesn't go into any details about sex anywhere else except that this one begot that one... Hmmm, it's implied that others had sex elsewhere, may it not also be an implication here? We were made in His image... that means that He has desires of the flesh also. If He didn't, he'd have not known to make them.
Alpha wrote:5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.
I don't have to deal with Bronze Age tribesmen everyday.
But you do... that's who wrote the Bible, the law you follow.
Alpha wrote:4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs -- though excluding those in all rival sects - will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."
If a heathen can support the death penalty as justice (and it can be) and does not believe that person will never exist again, why is it unjust for God (who's judgment is perfect) to punish those eternally who reject His just laws? I think it's unfair for a person if they spent their whole lives seperating themselves from God only to be forced into heaven against their will.
Your God gave us the ability to think for ourselves, also in His image. Who are you to say that all who don't think as you do are seperating themselves from God? Do you presume to know the mind of God?
Alpha wrote:3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.
Actually, it is quite the opposite. Seeing that God created science, those things convince me of Him more and many who speak "tongues" today convince me less.
God created science... but science is wrong? I don't see where you can stand that contradiction....
Alpha wrote:2 - You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.
It's definately more than 0.01%. Also, when Christians pray "thy will be done" and their prayer is not answered, then we don't think--we know that it was not God's will.
"An you will it, so mote it be" I will agree that prayer (and casting, which is closely akin to it just to different aspects of The Other in my system) are successful much more than .01% of the time.
Alpha wrote:1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.
You must be referring to "wolves in sheep's clothing."
I find it strange that there are so many convenient ways for you to disregard valid points that people put up. I also think that it's a very closed minded person who doesn't consider the possibility that someone else may also be correct.
There were some points in here that I agreed with, but still more that I found to be very closed minded... I understand that your beliefs say that that is the Way and I'm sorry.