Why pick one religion over another?

[Lethe]

It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

 

[Roblox84]

I don’t think most people will know they picked the wrong religion until they start questioning what their religion teaches or question how incomplete it may be. They will then study on their beliefs and maybe in the process of that, find the truth to the right religion.

 

[PJM]

=Lethe;6385520]It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

Jesus Christ provides the answer If you beleive the Bible?

**Luke 10:16 **“He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

**Luke.22 Verses 29 to 30: 29 **and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, 30 that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Mt. 16: RE: PETER “15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock [ROCK = Foundation of you Peter] I will build my [SINGULAR] church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. **19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” **

Eph. 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [singular] built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; **[singular] **in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

The NT has over THIRTY REFERENCES TO ONE CHURCH. When the Bible was both written and the Canon of the Bible was set; THERE WAS ONLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN EXISTENCE. THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.

There ya go. God answered your question

 

[Lethe]

Jesus Christ provides the answer If you beleive the Bible?

**Luke 10:16 **“He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

**Luke.22 Verses 29 to 30: 29 **and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, 30 that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Mt. 16: RE: PETER “15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock [ROCK = Foundation of you Peter] I will build my [SINGULAR] church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. **19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” **

Eph. 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [singular] built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; **[singular] **in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

The NT has over THIRTY REFERENCES TO ONE CHURCH. When the Bible was both written and the Canon of the Bible was set; THERE WAS ONLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN EXISTENCE. THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.

There ya go. God answered your question

That’s a bit circular, though… I’m sure the Koran says within its own pages that it is the right and only religion…

That remind me of this:

How do you know God exists?
The Bible says He does.
How do you know the Bible is true?
It’s the word of God.

 

[T_More]

That’s a bit circular, though… I’m sure the Koran says within its own pages that it is the right and only religion…

That remind me of this:

How do you know God exists?
The Bible says He does.
How do you know the Bible is true?
It’s the word of God.

How do we know who built the Pyramids?

How do we know about Alexander the Great?

How do we know about any kind of historical event from many, many years ago?

 

[Eris_Discordia]

Well, my religion is different in that it holds Chaos to be just as important as Order. We also worship Eris, Goddess of Chaos, and she is our patron deity. It also has no hierarchy, and it doesn’t have a solid set of morals. It makes you think out of the box. That’s why I like it. I’m a former Catholic, and that’s how I was raised, but I chose to leave.

 

[Teneas]

It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

The one that you have researched, that you feel called toward, and that you feel that God has lead you into is the religion you pick. The one you think is most correct. God will reveal himself to all that look. Sometimes that can mean different denominations, in my opinion, sometimes I will go as far to say it can be different religion entirely. I have no doubt that God works through Jimmy Bobo, the God of tissue, of the African tribe way out in the middle of nowhere that anyone knows about or goes. no that is not a real God that I know of, simply saying some far off God that is worshiped and teaches good

 

[AJTheMan]

It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

In terms of religion preference, what you miss is that ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ are also relative. You seem to think that there is a fixed ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ religion.

The practice of the dhamma is right for me but it is wrong for others. This does not bother me. It helps me deal with suffering in my life. Other people’s religions help them deal with suffering in their life.

I’ve read somewhat about most of the religions. Dhamma practice just made the most sense to me and helps me more than other religions. To others, though, dhamma practice may not satisfy what they are looking for. In terms of religion, one religion may be right for one person and wrong for another. You may have people exclaim “What AJTheMan says is untrue, because my holy book clearly shows that my religion is right for everyone, it is a fact!” Disregard this. They think that their religion is the universal truth. Their religion is the universal truth to them but not to others who disbelieve.

 

[mark_a]

It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

Got kids?

 

[Inego_de_Loyola]

It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

I was drafting my response when a Google search lead me to this slide show. That should help clear things up.

 

[Eris_Discordia]

In terms of religion preference, what you miss is that ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ are also relative. You seem to think that there is a fixed ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ religion.

The practice of the dhamma is right for me but it is wrong for others. This does not bother me. It helps me deal with suffering in my life. Other people’s religions help them deal with suffering in their life.

I’ve read somewhat about most of the religions. Dhamma practice just made the most sense to me and helps me more than other religions. To others, though, dhamma practice may not satisfy what they are looking for. In terms of religion, one religion may be right for one person and wrong for another. You may have people exclaim “What AJTheMan says is untrue, because my holy book clearly shows that my religion is right for everyone, it is a fact!” Disregard this. They think that their religion is the universal truth. Their religion is the universal truth to them but not to others who disbelieve.

:clapping: Thank you! You kind of just made my day!

 

[Inego_de_Loyola]

In terms of religion preference, what you miss is that ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ are also relative. You seem to think that there is a fixed ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ religion.

The practice of the dhamma is right for me but it is wrong for others. This does not bother me. It helps me deal with suffering in my life. Other people’s religions help them deal with suffering in their life.

I’ve read somewhat about most of the religions. Dhamma practice just made the most sense to me and helps me more than other religions. To others, though, dhamma practice may not satisfy what they are looking for. In terms of religion, one religion may be right for one person and wrong for another. You may have people exclaim “What AJTheMan says is untrue, because my holy book clearly shows that my religion is right for everyone, it is a fact!” Disregard this. They think that their religion is the universal truth. Their religion is the universal truth to them but not to others who disbelieve.

:clapping: Thank you! You kind of just made my day!

There is no such thing as a relative universal, therefore something cannot be “universal truth to them but not to others”. again i recommend this slide show.

 

[Eris_Discordia]

There is no such thing as a relative universal, therefore something cannot be “universal truth to them but not to others”. again i recommend this slide show.

And, I saw it. And it still doesn’t change my mind. There is no such thing as an absolute truth when it comes to beliefs and some areas of morality. When it said faith is trust, well, everyone has trust and faith in their belief system. Doesn’t make it the Absolute Truth. So belief and faith are absolutely relative. You trust in your beliefs, and I trust in mine. Neither of us know whether we are right or wrong. You choose your beliefs, and I choose mine.

 

[zz912]

It’s really a process of building on one foundation after another.

1. Is there a God? - This is tough for some, easier for others. But simply put, the faith you must have to believe we are just a massive, 1-in-a-quintitrillion accident in the universe is MUCH greater faith than believing in God. (And don’t get me started on the whole “ignoring most of the laws of physics thing” that atheists must do.)
2. Has He contacted us? Do you believe in the demented clock-maker who creates a whole world just to let it spin in the universe with no guidance?
3. Who has He contacted? This one is pretty easy, since Christians, Jews, and Muslims all agree that God contacted the Jews first. So your choice is this, or the major Indian religions (which suffer greatly from any argument in favor of them, b/c they can’t seem to agree on any similar system of theological thought), some of the tribal religions, or some of the minor religions? One other option could be some of the newer religions, but they have the trouble of question #2, in that for thousands of years God left us wandering and alone until the newer religions FINALLY figured it all out. Or you could believe in one of the non-religions like Taoism or Confucianism, but they fail in question #1.
4. Once we have accepted that God contacted the Jews first, which of the Abrahamic religions is correct? Are the Jews right in that the Messiah has not come yet? Well Jesus fulfilled every single prophecy that concerned the Messiah, and completed them within the time frame that they must be completed. Judaism suffers greatly from the problem of the Messiah not returning within the time frame that He was prophesied to come. And Islam has serious and fatal flaws that simply cannot be overlooked. First in that Jesus is regarded as a prophet in Islam, but if He was merely a prophet, then He was guilty of blasphemy. Islam cannot answer this. Secondly, Muhammad was the ONLY prophet of God who performed NO signs, wonders, miracles, or powers. Another is that Muhammad had many errors and mistakes with regards to the Torah and other OT prophets and books. Again, Islam cannot answer this.
5. So now that we have accepted that there is a God, He did let humans know about Him, that He first contacted the Jews, and that Jesus was the fulfilled Messiah, which Church or denomination of Christianity is the one instituted by Christ? Simply put, that is the the Catholic Church.

 

[AJTheMan]

And, I saw it. And it still doesn’t change my mind. There is no such thing as an absolute truth when it comes to beliefs and some areas of morality. When it said faith is trust, well, everyone has trust and faith in their belief system. Doesn’t make it the Absolute Truth. So belief and faith are absolutely relative. You trust in your beliefs, and I trust in mine. Neither of us know whether we are right or wrong. You choose your beliefs, and I choose mine.

Religion is a preference. Like one’s preference for soft-drink or cigarette brand, the belief is absolute only to the believer it’s self.

In a relative world, one says “Dr.Pepper is the right drink for me. However, others have different preferences.”
In an absolute world, one says “Dr.Pepper is the right drink for me. Because it is the right drink for me, it is fact for everybody to live by.”

I agree that there are some absolutes. “The sky is blue.” “There are fish in the ocean.”

In matters of preference and opinion, however, it is relative to the believer.

 

[zz912]

There is no such thing as an absolute truth when it comes to beliefs and some areas of morality. /QUOTE]

Your statement is an absolute truth, and negates itself.

I hate to be unkind, but you have just looked around until you found a “religion” that was cool enough for you. You are simply placing yourself in the position of God and shopping around until you find exactly the “church” that tells you what you want to hear. I hope you will wake up from this silliness someday.

 

[Inego_de_Loyola]

And, I saw it. And it still doesn’t change my mind. There is no such thing as an absolute truth when it comes to beliefs and some areas of morality. When it said faith is trust, well, everyone has trust and faith in their belief system. Doesn’t make it the Absolute Truth. So belief and faith are absolutely relative. You trust in your beliefs, and I trust in mine. Neither of us know whether we are right or wrong. You choose your beliefs, and I choose mine.

This site Seems to be capable of bringing you a little further towards Truth.

 

[MrZetterlund]

Well if you really want to know, then just don’t look at it like a religion. Look at what each one talks about. For exmple, Judaism teaches that death comes by man’s sin, and that sin separates us from God. Christians believe the penalty of sin is payed for by Jesus Christ. That’s why we don’t sacrafice lambs on altars. Islam teaches that Jesus is no Son of God, bt He IS the Messiah, but only a prophet. (Big waiste of time with fulfilling 300 prophecies I suppose.) I’m obviously being bias here, but this is my opinion. I think both these religions are wrong just by sheer concept. I’m sure the other two feel the same about mine. But I think Islam is WAY out there, Judaism and Christianity, you’ve got a fight there, buddy.

But looking at other world religions: Buddhism it’s more of a philosophy than a religion. And people can actually varriate from being Buddhist anything. You can be a Buddhist Jew, a Buddhist Christian, ect. Buddhists believe in karma (similar to the Judaistic-Christian doctrine of reeping what you sow,) Hindus believe in multiple gods. I actually believe alot of what they believe to be true because I believe in UFOs and the Bible does meantion other deities. Having more than one deity out there doesn’t mean our God isn’t the most high God. The purpose of Gensis was to show the polytheistic early Jews that the creation of the moon wasn’t because Isis was born, or that the oceans blow because poseiden is it’s ruler, but rather because God created it to do that. Bet you didn’t know that, did ya? I actually beleve in some elements of many religions. I believe the ancient Sumarians’ gods really did walk with them. Reading the book of Enoch makes all these beliefs really catagorized. The Sumarians were taught advanced astrotomy and science by the annunaki. (those who’m from heaven to earth came.) The book of Enoch said these were the return of the sons of God who taught the humans what God had hid from them.

Religion is interesting when you really start examining it.

 

[MrZetterlund]

It seems so relative… all the major religions have their holy books, their morals, their assertions that they are right… How can you then pick one and stick to it so closely, when you could have picked the wrong religion anyway?

Oops, I didn’t even answer the question.

You just investigate. Usually people who gain interest in religion end up converting to something else or just moving to a different set of doctrinial beliefs. I’m a Baptist, but because I research religion 24-7 I’m converting to Catholosism some day.

 

[zz912]

Buddhism it’s more of a philosophy than a religion. And people can actually varriate from being Buddhist anything. You can be a Buddhist Jew, a Buddhist Christian, ect.

Ummmm, no, you can’t be a buddhist and a Christian, or a buddhist and a Jew. Buddhism rejects the concept of an eternal soul, and Christianity and Judaism reject the notion of kharma, or the concept of enlightenment coming from within, instead of from God. Christianity also rejects the buddhist tenet of the individual attaining heaven or nirvana by themselves.