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theCardinalbird
Guest
How powerful is Repentance?
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
This story comes to mind.
Long story of which I’m paraphrasing, so bear with me.
In Daniel Defoe’s book, Robinson Crusoe, there is a part in the book which showed how powerful repentance and forgiveness is.
Robinson Crusoe was a staunch atheist, so much so, he and his father fought over it until he finally left. In his quest to seek religion free adventure, he set out to the Middle East to trade. Eventually, he was taken prisoner and made a slave in Algeria.
He finally was able to escape, but not without nearly starving to death and being killed in the process.
Anyway, he became a successful slave trader himself, when the slave ship he was on wrecked in a storm and washed against some rocks off the island he’d be stranded on for two decades.
Anyway, after scouting the island, he made it out to the shipwreck to see what he could salvage. He got some things and hoped to at least find some books to read. However, all were destroyed except the Holy Bible, which angered him. Of all the books to read, this is what he was left with.
Anyway, he took it ashore along with other things he might be able to use, but chose not to read the Bible. The problem was, in time he kept being drawn to read it and eventually to he did,
He began to see how wise and full of insight the Scriptures were. He then began to question his own atheistic beliefs and soon started to believe that God may truly exist. So he started to pray in his own way to God for help. However, as he received the gift of faith, he also saw his own true self and the state his soul was in the eyes of God. How could he such a wretched man turn to God, who is all holy and good ? He was struck with anguish over the realization of the sins he had and the inner torment caused him great grief. Throughout the night he tossed and turned until finally, he begged God to save him. Suddenly, his soul was filled with the Holy Spirit. Jesus came to him as his savior and gave him the intense feeling of love, compassion and most of all, forgiveness for all of his sins. Jesus became his Lord and Savior.
As he contemplated on what took place, he wrote in his journal that of all the suffering he had gone through in life, no relief compared to the forgiveness of his sins.
Again, I’m paraphrasing here, but Daniel Defoe was actually sharing his own religious experience in his book.
Repentance brings forgiveness, which is the most powerful thing we can experience from God.
Jim
Long story of which I’m paraphrasing, so bear with me.
In Daniel Defoe’s book, Robinson Crusoe, there is a part in the book which showed how powerful repentance and forgiveness is.
Robinson Crusoe was a staunch atheist, so much so, he and his father fought over it until he finally left. In his quest to seek religion free adventure, he set out to the Middle East to trade. Eventually, he was taken prisoner and made a slave in Algeria.
He finally was able to escape, but not without nearly starving to death and being killed in the process.
Anyway, he became a successful slave trader himself, when the slave ship he was on wrecked in a storm and washed against some rocks off the island he’d be stranded on for two decades.
Anyway, after scouting the island, he made it out to the shipwreck to see what he could salvage. He got some things and hoped to at least find some books to read. However, all were destroyed except the Holy Bible, which angered him. Of all the books to read, this is what he was left with.
Anyway, he took it ashore along with other things he might be able to use, but chose not to read the Bible. The problem was, in time he kept being drawn to read it and eventually to he did,
He began to see how wise and full of insight the Scriptures were. He then began to question his own atheistic beliefs and soon started to believe that God may truly exist. So he started to pray in his own way to God for help. However, as he received the gift of faith, he also saw his own true self and the state his soul was in the eyes of God. How could he such a wretched man turn to God, who is all holy and good ? He was struck with anguish over the realization of the sins he had and the inner torment caused him great grief. Throughout the night he tossed and turned until finally, he begged God to save him. Suddenly, his soul was filled with the Holy Spirit. Jesus came to him as his savior and gave him the intense feeling of love, compassion and most of all, forgiveness for all of his sins. Jesus became his Lord and Savior.
As he contemplated on what took place, he wrote in his journal that of all the suffering he had gone through in life, no relief compared to the forgiveness of his sins.
Again, I’m paraphrasing here, but Daniel Defoe was actually sharing his own religious experience in his book.
Repentance brings forgiveness, which is the most powerful thing we can experience from God.
Jim
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theCardinalbird
Guest
That is a beautiful story 
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Maximilian75
Guest
@JimR-OCDS
We may not agree on some things, but on this, we can.
That was beautiful. Thank you.
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dochawk
Guest
Crusoe’s religious behavior, though, is quite transactional.
He was “willing to live as a papist”, which he believed wrong, for commercial advantage . . .
hawk
He was “willing to live as a papist”, which he believed wrong, for commercial advantage . . .
hawk
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
Crusoe was fictional character.
Don’t turn this into an anti-Catholic thread.
Jim
Don’t turn this into an anti-Catholic thread.
Jim
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dochawk
Guest
Huh?
Defoe (the author) was the anti-Catholic. His character, Crusoe, thought “papism” was wrong and could cost him his soul, but fro commercial reasons, risked it anyway.
That was what turned me off to the book as a whole when I studied it in a course (class size: 1) on the evolution of the novel, a senior major or honors only course with a priest whose specialty it was . . .
Sol, no, Robinson Crusoe is not an appropriate example of spirituality or repentance.
hawk
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Reuben_J
Guest
Everything.
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Seagull
Guest
If it’s powerful enough…
Personal repentance - is life changing -
It’s like seeing through a brand new set of eyes -
Your heart is softened -
Your compassion is in full bloom.
I could go on and on…
I think those are the first words of Jesus - in one of the gospels.
“ Repent “
Personal repentance - is life changing -
It’s like seeing through a brand new set of eyes -
Your heart is softened -
Your compassion is in full bloom.
I could go on and on…
I think those are the first words of Jesus - in one of the gospels.
“ Repent “
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
And Catholics were anti-protestants during Defoe’s time, but this piece of history has nothing to do with the thread, nor what I shared from Robinson Crusoe.
You’re turning this into a thread about who’s religion is better than the other’s.
You missed some important lessons by refusing the read Robinson Crusoe, because of your mindset. It doesn’t matter what his attitude was toward the Church at that time.
Either what he wrote was true, or it was not.
We don’t reject the words of the Declaration of Independence because the author owned slaves at the time.
Jim
You’re turning this into a thread about who’s religion is better than the other’s.
You missed some important lessons by refusing the read Robinson Crusoe, because of your mindset. It doesn’t matter what his attitude was toward the Church at that time.
Either what he wrote was true, or it was not.
We don’t reject the words of the Declaration of Independence because the author owned slaves at the time.
Jim
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dochawk
Guest
No, I’m not. (nor did I refuse to read it [not that I’d consider reading it again])
I can’t be much more clear than that what offended me was putting aside what he believed, at the the knowing (to him) risk of his soul, for commercial advantage.
Any more that you see is yours, not mine.
I’d be offended int he same way by a Catholic falsely professing protestantism to sell his goods.
hawk
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
So you want to shoot the messenger, rather than address the message.
Is the story I posted from the book, true or false ?
Forget who wrote it.
JIm
Is the story I posted from the book, true or false ?
Forget who wrote it.
JIm
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dochawk
Guest
No, I want you to stop misrepresenting what I wrote.
That said, looking for spiritual content from one story of a character who takes religions as a transactional matter is not fruitful.
hawk
That said, looking for spiritual content from one story of a character who takes religions as a transactional matter is not fruitful.
hawk
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
You’ve been attacking Defoe since my post about the gift of repentance and forgiveness, and haven’t posted anything other than your dislike of Defoe.
Jim
Jim
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dochawk
Guest
No, I have not attacked Defoe.
I am saying that anything drawn from the Crusoe character isn’t going to be fruitful for spiritual discussion, whether the “lesson to be learned” is correct or not.
Drawing spiritual notions from Crusoe is like getting vitamin advice from a pusher; it’s just not a reasonable source.
hawk
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JimR-OCDS
Guest
I need to get off CAF, the post as above bring unchristian thoughts to my mind,
Bye all !
Jim
Bye all !
Jim
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theCardinalbird
Guest
what just happened on my thread? I just asked a question on repentance 
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Reuben_J
Guest
This is one feature of CAF. Some people love to argue and some of the good replies that you really want would be buried somewhere in the posts as the thread get derailed.
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