Jane Florence is beginning a study to help us figure out and articulate our beliefs when talking with others, but also just in deciding this for ourselves.
You can read the .pdf of Session One on the fumcomaha website -- www.fumcomaha.org -- and it's on the homepage -- first news item.
Jane will be posting comments and updates here, so keep checking back and post your own ideas and thoughts.
Take care~
Welcome Jane! :-)
ReplyDeleteSession Two is posted on the homepage of our website -- www.fumcomaha.org.
ReplyDeleteI see week 2 there which will be helpful to have read before the next meeting. This is going to be quite challenging for me!
ReplyDeleteGrowing up we went to church (Catholic) every Sunday but we didn't read the bible. I don't think we even had one and as crazy as it seems I still don't have one today. Of course I have heard scripture from the bible all along but it has always been hard for me to believe some of the things in there. It seemed like most everyone I knew took the bible literally, Noah's ark, walking on water etc. and I always had a problem believing these things actually happened exactly that way. It also seemed very far fetched that over all these years there is one book that explains everything exactly as it happened. I know some people today said they wished they knew exactly what things Jesus said but I guess that doesn't really matter to me. I still have a lot to learn but I think I have a sense of the things he was trying to convey. So, for me, whether or not some wording is exactly what he said doesn't really matter. It's the idea or message that matters.
ReplyDeleteI grew up learning that the Bible was God's Word. It was not to be challenged or questioned, and it did not need interpretation. It was life-changing when I learned about how the Bible was put together and its history. Understanding it as historical-metaphor with layers of meaning, makes it MORE valuable, not less for me. so, how do you respond when someone disagrees with ;your theology by saying, " but the Bible says...." ?
ReplyDeleteWell, people who say "But the Bible says..." often don't care about the context, but I do. For instance, when Jesus said divorce was wrong, he was talking to men whose women were their property, to do with whatever they wished with no thought of respect/responsibility for them as human beings. Some men cared more for (male) travelers' safety than their own daughters' safety & offered the daughters to be raped & murdered to protect the men. In that atmosphere, I believe Jesus was saying "treat your wife like a human being", not, in an age of relative equality between men & women, you have to stick with a lousy marriage.
ReplyDeleteYou know that's why I'm interested in learning more about all of this. Up until now I would probably say the standard things about not wearing certain fabric, not eating certain foods and all of the obscure things in there that almost everyone does anyway. Hopefully at some point I'll have a clearer understanding of things and have something a little more concrete to respond with.
ReplyDeleteI finally printed off week 3 and I'm really disappointed I will be gone for this class. I had read the earlier version but I see this one goes into much more detail and is very thought provoking. As far as the question...Is your God? I find I answer mainly no to most of them, not primarily concerned about judgement, punishment, hell. Neither would I say primarily concerned about rewards and heaven or a particular nation. Personal morals and social transformation are little tricky, I think that a little and would be interested to hear other points of view on those. I don't feel God is manipulating the world or necessarily is in control, yet I don't feel God is indifferent either. I also found the competing views of God interesting. At first glance without any other's input or discussion I would say I relate to Panentheism and Deism although I'm not sure I fully understand them. Very interesting...
ReplyDeleteI believe God is the web of energy in which & of which we all consist. As an energy, God has an impersonal aspect. My experience of God, however, has been mostly personal (not in the sense of God having arms & legs & a human identity). When I struggle with the personal/impersonal question, I remember something a friend said once: "love is a real energy". God is love & compassion & justice & humor & joy. To the extent that these qualities are personal - & they seem very personal to me, especially love - I believe God is personal. This seems like the most important question to answer, & the rest follow. For instance, if God is love, etc., God is concerned about people - social transformation and personal morals. Maybe salvation is aligning our actions & energy with God's - resonating with God.
ReplyDeleteWell, after reading through session five I can see a lot of it appears to be over my head. The one part I can comment on is section C - Did Jesus Have To DIe. The last theory, Empire Reaction, seems like the most reasonable theory to me. It was reassuring to hear Borg give this explanation since anything else I have ever hear never made much sense to me. I'll have to read through this a couple more times and see if I can make any more sense out of it... I found it interesting that it was hard for me when we were talking last week about the human condition and original sin - sin etc. It's probably because it's hard for me to see people as flawed or sinners. I really feel everyone is inherently good, it's their situation or maybe mental condition that affects some people. I've been accused of being a "PollyAnna" but I just can't look at things any differently. I feel even more strongly this way since coming to FUMC. So for me, original sin is way out there.
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