Happy Easter

Happy Easter, all!

Whether it's a time of serious spiritual contemplation for you, or merely a chance to relax and drink for three (instead of two) nights in a row, I hope you have a good one -- stay well!

JrKASperov wrote: By alinea: -Yeshua never says we will reincarnate. Yeshua says we will be reborn just by believing in Him as the Son. That we are forgiven as soon as we ask Him to. But believing in Him as the Son is is just an tiny bit of the story, for He had an message -Here you talk again about Buddha, him being an idol, diametrically opposed to Christianity. Maria is someone who has been lifted up from the Bible while the Scripture hardly says ANYTHING about her. And saying the world will not end in an Apocalyptic way is completely ignoring Revelations, making you pagan indeed. Not by my judgement, but by comparison with Scripture. There accually was an Maria evangelium, for she was also, an student of Jezus. But hers, same as many other evangeliums were destroyed by the church! (I really can't say anything about that, because I've forgotten many little facts. If you're interested to read those, get "Maria Magdalena, of het lot van de vrouw" also from Hans Stolp. You're missing a great point here about Buddha. Just not only the Christians can be spiritual in the way that Jezus is. Jezus himself had some great teaching about spiritism, before he teached.. Even in lifes before! There are proofs, that he was among others, where he teached. I can't really say the name of them right now.. But in those times, WOMEN carried water. You know the scene were one of Jezus's apostles had to follow an MAN who was carrying water. Just one of many clues.. "Yeshua says we will be reborn just by believing in Him as the Son" To get back on this one again... - I know some of this sounds rediculous.. but really I'm not making things up.. - Why did he said this.. when he knew there were more ways for spirituality in this way? With the bible, he broke an rule in spirituality. B.C. there were men who were highly dedicated (toegewijden) in spirituality. But this was only an high culture secret.. Myths.. Jezus broke the rule indeed.. He even said that in the bible! wich scene? The one in witch he were mad.. Saying when a tree don't grow any fruits.. Chop him down! Why would the bible put in some words in wich Jezus was set as an angry man? Well it wasnt just an tree, It was an Vijgenboom (sorry.. just know the dutch word of it!). What's wrong with an Vijgenboom? An vijgenboom was an symbol of family, and spiritual knowledge.. passed on by family. Buddha (YES BUDDHA) himself was always meditating under such a tree. Well fill in the rest for yourself! The tree didn't grow any fruits no more.. Spiritualism was weakening.. Jezus gave with the bible the knowledge.. for everyone! And maybe there was an speaking of an personal apocalypse! -Only my 'vision' is careful argumentation using the Bible as basis, the basis of Christianity. The bible is indeed the basis, but there's more then just an bible! -Yeshua teaches us to ask for forgiveness, but warns us that if we do certain things, we will not be forgiven. It's not about understanding Him, which is futile, as we will never have the intellect of wisdom of God. We can instead, for our imperfection, ask forgiveness and be absolved, if we do not commit sins which are unforgivable such as blashpemy of the Holy Spirit and such. you are mistaken in saying that asking for forgiveness is just saying sorry. It's living our sins before The Son, acknowledging that we were wrong and our thus 'unclean' and need to be cleansed in order to do our Lord's bidding. The Holy Spirit will change you if you believe Yeshua to be the Son in that you will do that. That is what Yeshua taught. ITS ALL ABOUT UNDERSTANDING HIM!!!! His coming is all about getting the intellect of wisdom of God. We have to live by the resamblance of jezus.. Not trying our best and God has to deal with that! We have the devil and the Enlightment inside of us.. It takes almost forever to live just by the way of enlightment.. and we have to deal with the devil in the first place. It takes So long.. we can't make something of ourselves in only 70 years! -Your talk about walking to the other world borders on occultism and spiritism, something which is naturally opposed to Christianity. Yeshua Himself calls things as such evil. I bid you to watch your step, as we are taught by Paul to always test everything by the Holy Spirit. I watch my steps very carefully, but I've got to say that there's no line between spiritism and Christianity! I was saying this all the time, just read some stuff of that book. It isn't heathen, satanic or anything near that!.. It just contains an different view.. one wich includes spiritism! -Your words are in disagreement with the Bible. Your saying that we can't find the moral of the story is in disagreement. We are taught to use the Holy Spirit to understand the meaning. If you do not grasp that, that by all means, you are not truely a Christian by defenition. It is not I who am calling you pagan, it is the Bible which describes the words from your site as false teachings. I've read the bible really good.. I've never seen anything like that.. Nor have read some Mel Gibsonesque stuff about buddhism is wrong.. Read the bible word by word, just read do not obtain an message! Finally, I would like to add something, I have deliberately not spoken about karma, because in a sense, according to the defenition of karma, Christianity has something similar. Certain sins will not be forgotten, and if you have not asked for forgiveness than you are by no means free of your sins. This is a form of karma by the definition. Though karma in itself is a Buddhistic word I believe, which is a false teaching according to Christianity. You've judged.. oh no.. the bible has judged so much people already! Where can I read that Buddhism is WRONG in the bible?

Sorry I've written some stuff very quick.. had to go.. excuse me for anything wrong..

Peter wrote: Reed Lover wrote: Same to you Peter.  I've managed to get a few days off and I'm hitting the old cab sauv with a vengeance!!! Luvvly  Tanksalot, Reedy! A "whine" man, eh? CLASSY! Don't know that I'd admit that foo-foo, clog-wearing, manpurse-sporting, lisping girly-man trait  in such macho, prong-mental company.... I suggest you drink it out of a chipped mug, or straight from the (screwcap) bottle (or better yet, the box -- MMMM.... last week -- a fine vintage!) for extra manly cred.   Arrrrgh -- a goodly gargle!     Wine is fine, and liquor is quicker But I find they just make me sicker. Beer is best -- you can keep the rest! Peter the Poemer Red's not too bad, I suppose, but I'd rather sniff airplane glue, or Danbo's old gym socks,  than drink dry white wine -- yeee-uck!

Wine for the home drinking,but beer and only beer at the pub.In my local you might as well sip banana daquiries as drink lager! Bitter,lovely bitter or Guinness for the more exotic types.

If i go on a bender with the lads I wimp out and drink bottles of Stella Artois. (nancy boy!)

To be honest,if I was more thick-skinned I would drink Red Wine wherever I was!

 

utah_man wrote: PROGMAN wrote: Happy Easter to Everyone and Soon my Birthday is Coming Up Soon, I Won't Say My Age, and has Anyone Else Got a Birthday Coming Up?? Happy Easter to you too, Progman  My birthday (the physical one anyway) - is coming up (4/4)... I stopped celebrating my birthday years ago (gettin' too old), but in my heart I'm somewhere between 28 and 32

My mom died on the 4th of April. My b-day is coming up 4/11...hence the Gdub411...I'll by 39.

Cygnus X-2 wrote: gdub411 wrote: utah_man wrote: PROGMAN wrote: Happy Easter to Everyone and Soon my Birthday is Coming Up Soon, I Won't Say My Age, and has Anyone Else Got a Birthday Coming Up?? Happy Easter to you too, Progman  My birthday (the physical one anyway) - is coming up (4/4)... I stopped celebrating my birthday years ago (gettin' too old), but in my heart I'm somewhere between 28 and 32  My mom died on the 4th of April. My b-day is coming up 4/11...hence the Gdub411...I'll by 39. Your mom died on my birthday... which happens to be 4/4

I won't hold it against you.

JrKASperov wrote: dude wrote: I TO WOULD LIKE TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TOP WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY EASTER AND TO ALL CHRISTIAN FORUM MEMBERS(AND THERE ARE MORE THAN YOU THINK) I WOULD LIKE TO WISH YOU A HOLY EASTER AND REMEMBER.. EASTER IS NOT ABOUT BUNNIES AND EGGS ITS ABOUT THE DEATH AND RESSURECTION OF OUR LORD, WHICH IS FAR MORE IMPORTANT.   HAVE A GOOD ONE PEOPLE!!! Actually at first it was a Jewish celebration, the Pascha, I think it was about the release of the Jews from Egypt, so they were ordered by God to celebrate that. Maani probably knows the relation between Pascha in the Yeshua-sense and Pascha in the Jewish sense, maybe it has to do with same dates or so. Maani?

Actually Easter has a pagan origin. It was originally a holiday worshipping the goddess Eostre, or Ostara (that's much closer to "Easter" than "Pascha" is). Read this article on the Almighty Wikipedia for more information. The eggs and the Easter bunny are all a part of the festival.

Without adding to the clamor of the religious debate, someone specifically asked me to address the connection, if any, between the Judaic Pesach ("Passover") and "Easter," which claims to be about Jesus' death and resurrection.

I'm sure most of you have seen the film "The Ten Commandments," so you know at least a little about how Pesach began.  When Pharoah called down the last of the ten plagues - the killing of the firstborn - on the Jews, he did not realize he was also calling it upon his own people.  But the Jewish High Priest received "divine" instructions (I'm simply stating the story) that, in order to save their own firstborn, the Jews had to spread lamb's blood on the doorpost and lintel of the door, so that the angel of God (who would come to kill the firstborn) would "pass over" their houses.  Because of the extraordinary deliverance in this event, the Jews were told to celebrate this event each year.  And it has been kept by the Jewish people for well over 4,000 years.

"Easter," on the other hand, like Christmas, is rooted in a pagan holiday (as someone else has noted).  However, there are two important connections between Pesach and Jesus' death and resurrection.

First, Pesach was the meal that Jesus and the apostles had (the "Last Supper") just prior to His trip to Gethsemane, where He was arrested (after which followed His trial, the beatings and scourgings, His crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection).  It should not be forgotten that Jesus' "playbook" was the Old Testament; i.e., He was a devout Jew, and followed the historical practices of the Jews.  And Pesach was among the most important of those practices.

Second - and this is a bit more esoteric - go back to the spreading of the lamb's blood on the doorpost and lintel for Pesach.  Imagine yourself doing this.  You will find that the motion of your arm will, of necessity, create a cross.  Many Judeo-Christian theologians believe that this was a sign of the future coming of the Messiah.

One other comment on Jesus and the Old Testament.  Jesus would certainly have known the OT better than most, if not everyone.  It is likely that He could quote chapter and verse in any given situation.  In that regard, he would certainly have been familiar with - and believed in - the admonitions against "spiritism."  The strongest of these can be found at Deuteronomy 18:10-12 (bracketed text is simply explanatory):

"There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination [i.e., tarot cards, numerology, etc.], or an observer of times [i.e., astrology], or an enchanter [i.e., using spells], or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits [i.e., a medium or psychic], or a necromancer.  For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord.."

Note that an "abomination" is even worse than a "sin."  Thus, all manners of "spiritism" are clearly forbidden not only in Judaism, but also in Christianity, since Jesus Himself would have considered them "abominations."

As for "unforgivable" sins, according to Jesus, there is only one:

"Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven unto men.  And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him.  But whosoever speaketh against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in the world to come."  Matthew 12:31-32.

Finally, Radioactive Toy notes that Jesus did not come to establish a "church."  If by "church" we mean a building, rituals, etc., then RT is correct.  Jesus was a Jew who came to teach the Jews how to be "better" Jews - how to practice their faith correctly: to realize that the proper practice of that faith was not in "the letter of the law" (though there was a place for that), but rather in the "spirit of the law."  (This was why Jesus had such righteous indignation against the priests, scribes and pharisees: because they were misguiding the populace.)  It was only when the vast majority of the Jews rejected Him and His teachings that He brought those teachings to the Gentiles.

However, as JrKASperov correctly points out, the "church" that Jesus did come to establish was the "body" of believers in His teachings.  Indeed, many people fail to realize that when Paul wrote to the "church in Corinth," or the "church in Ephesus," or the "church in Phillipi," he was writing to a group of people who met in someone's home - what we would now call a "home church" or "alternative church"; i.e., one that does not meet in, or even necessarily have any connection with, a building owned or maintained by mainstream, heirarchical, "organized" religion.  It was only after Paul brought "Christianity" to Rome and converted the leaders -and then Constantine "legalized" Christianity in the third century A.D. - that it became what we know as "organized Christianity," complete with its rituals, etc.

As a final note, if this discussion is to continue, let's all try to remember that there are people of disparate beliefs on the site: Jews, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, agnostics, atheists, maybe even a Zoroastrian or two.   No one is trying to "convert" anyone else.  From what I have seen so far, the Christians among us are simply stating facts and beliefs about Christianity as we understand them from our faith.  And like all faiths, we believe ours to be "the" faith.  However, in stating those things we understand about our faith, we are not attempting to denigrate or insult any other faith, much less the individuals who practice them.

So let's try to keep the discussion as civil as possible, given the "emotional" nature of faith.  And if someone "says" something that sounds arrogant, callous, denigrating or otherwise negative, give them the benefit of the doubt that they are simply stating what they believe to be true about their own faith, and do not mean to come across as arrogant, callous, etc.

Peace to all.

Please everyone, stop the theological debating, good grief, this is supposed to be a 'good-wish' thread, not a battleground for everyone's beliefs and Buddha vs Jesus contests...

A warm, peaceful Holidays spent in the best of company to everyone here from me.

Reed Lover wrote: Manunkind wrote: Please everyone, stop the theological debating, good grief, this is supposed to be a 'good-wish' thread, not a battleground for everyone's beliefs and Buddha vs Jesus contests... A warm, peaceful Holidays spent in the best of company to everyone here from me. Let them debate waht they want! it is the only way to learn

Well, I don't know, I'm religious myself and my religion forbids me to discuss religion since such discussion almost always has some very unreligious consequences...