A
arthra
Guest
Unas,
Thanks for sharing your search and I think you’ve posed some good questions!.. I’ll attempt to respond to each of them from a Baha’i perspective…
1 - (sexuality)So my first question is this. I understand that in the bible it states that no man shall lay with another man, and that (without any care to whether someone is or isn’t gay) why this is such an important passage.
In your study of religion most traditional religions have guidance for us about how to direct our sexual energies… hence marriage as an institution is usually stressed with the goal of producing offspring…From a psycho-sexual standpoint a person to find fulfillment in life relates to the other gender…failure to do so simply indicates that there is a delay in development.
2 - (Continuing from question 1) Its pretty much written in many books of the old & new testaments that only god has the right to condemn or judge any sinners. So the question i have is why do Religions condemn and judge when its is very plain that god only has this right
*The social laws are revealed for the guidance of men…along with the social laws or ordinances there is also guidance provided as to what kind of punishment is involved for teh infraction. Deuteronomy provides some pretty heavy penalties which would be considered harsh perhaps by today’s standards… but recall that there were no institutions such as prisons or rehab facilities in those days…so it was rather harsh when tribal laws were most relevant.
*
3 - (Idols and saints)Its is my understanding, and well the very first commandment that you should have no graven image (crucifix) or worship god through false idols (saints and relics) Worshiping God directly means you have no chance of accidentally worshiping some evil. If im wrong i would love an explanation
Images it’s true have been traditionally frowned on. Unfortunately humanity has focused on man made articles rather than worshiping God … we tend to focus on the mirror rather than than the Light reflected in the mirror.
4 - Finally and this one may be hard - why do so many religions (“Hate”) each other.
In my Faith it’s even stated that no religion at all is better than engaging in hatred and strife…
“Doctors of religion were instituted to bring spiritual healing to the peoples and to be the cause of unity among the nations. If they become the cause of division they had better not exist! A remedy is given to cure a disease, but if it only succeeds in aggravating the complaint, it is better to leave it alone. If religion is only to be a cause of disunion it had better not exist”
~ Abdu’l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 121
5- an extra one which is more personal than the others.
Why do you need Faith and or Belief (an not matter of fact certainty) of God.
*We should when it is in our capacity strive for certainty of our relationship with God.
As a FaceBook friend of mine Robert Stockman observed:
*`Abdu’l-Bahá combined both knowledge and action into a definition of faith, but emphasized the priority of conscious knowledge.
Thanks for sharing your search and I think you’ve posed some good questions!.. I’ll attempt to respond to each of them from a Baha’i perspective…
1 - (sexuality)So my first question is this. I understand that in the bible it states that no man shall lay with another man, and that (without any care to whether someone is or isn’t gay) why this is such an important passage.
In your study of religion most traditional religions have guidance for us about how to direct our sexual energies… hence marriage as an institution is usually stressed with the goal of producing offspring…From a psycho-sexual standpoint a person to find fulfillment in life relates to the other gender…failure to do so simply indicates that there is a delay in development.
2 - (Continuing from question 1) Its pretty much written in many books of the old & new testaments that only god has the right to condemn or judge any sinners. So the question i have is why do Religions condemn and judge when its is very plain that god only has this right
*The social laws are revealed for the guidance of men…along with the social laws or ordinances there is also guidance provided as to what kind of punishment is involved for teh infraction. Deuteronomy provides some pretty heavy penalties which would be considered harsh perhaps by today’s standards… but recall that there were no institutions such as prisons or rehab facilities in those days…so it was rather harsh when tribal laws were most relevant.
*
3 - (Idols and saints)Its is my understanding, and well the very first commandment that you should have no graven image (crucifix) or worship god through false idols (saints and relics) Worshiping God directly means you have no chance of accidentally worshiping some evil. If im wrong i would love an explanation
Images it’s true have been traditionally frowned on. Unfortunately humanity has focused on man made articles rather than worshiping God … we tend to focus on the mirror rather than than the Light reflected in the mirror.
4 - Finally and this one may be hard - why do so many religions (“Hate”) each other.
In my Faith it’s even stated that no religion at all is better than engaging in hatred and strife…
“Doctors of religion were instituted to bring spiritual healing to the peoples and to be the cause of unity among the nations. If they become the cause of division they had better not exist! A remedy is given to cure a disease, but if it only succeeds in aggravating the complaint, it is better to leave it alone. If religion is only to be a cause of disunion it had better not exist”
~ Abdu’l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 121
5- an extra one which is more personal than the others.
Why do you need Faith and or Belief (an not matter of fact certainty) of God.
*We should when it is in our capacity strive for certainty of our relationship with God.
As a FaceBook friend of mine Robert Stockman observed:
*`Abdu’l-Bahá combined both knowledge and action into a definition of faith, but emphasized the priority of conscious knowledge.