Where we stand on the issues

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by timmgirvan

It was ambigous(sp). Christians believe in a Triune God. Father,Son, and Holy Spirit. I could have checked both boxes, but wanted to delineate from a faceless god and a Saviour.

From Wikipedia:
"In the Authorized King James Version of the Bible, as well as several other versions, in Revelation 19:6 it is stated "...the Lord God omnipotent reigneth" (the original Greek word is παντοκράτωρ, "all-mighty" [6]). Although much of the narrative of the Old Testament describes the Judeo-Christian God as interacting with creation primarily through persuasion, and only occasionally through force. However, it could further be argued that the ability to conflict with truth is not an appropriate representation of accepted definitions of power, which negates the assertion that a deity does not have infinite powers.

Many other verses in the Christian Bible do assert omnipotence of its deity without actually using the word itself. There are several mentions of the Christian deity being referred to as simply "Almighty", showing that the Christian Bible supports the belief of an omnipotent deity. Some such verses are listed below:

Psalms 33:8-9: Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spoke, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.

Genesis 17:1: And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. (The Hebrew word used here is "shadday" [7])

Jeremiah 32:27: Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?

At his command a storm arose and covered the sea. (Psalm 107:25)

Several parts of the New Testament claim Jesus to be one with the Father, who is omnipotent, and others show Jesus to have some separation from the Father and even self-imposed limitations on his power. (Gospel of John)"

It has always been my understanding that the basis for Christianity (among other religions) is the existence of an omnipotent god, biblical scholars may debate whether Jesus is one with or separate from god but that doesn't effect the basic concept of one omnipotent god.

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by hi_im_god

drugs was clearly joking but he's now been joined by two others who aren't.

i'm confued by jesus outpolling omnipotent deity 2:1 at this point. how do you believe in the former but not the latter?

the former was a prophet who existed, the latter...well...

at any rate, i believe that jesus was here. it's the whole divinity thing i have an issue with-especially when one considers that he was only 'made' divine when it was voted on in nicea, thanks to constantine.

[Mike]

Originally Posted by timmgirvan

you're supposed to know the difference

Actually, that is another poll question I'd like to do over, as people could/should vote for omnipotent deity if they voted for belief in Jesus. In fact, belief in Jesus is an unclear question, as one could believe he existed as a human, but was not divine

[Mike]

I think you're not seeing a ton of dissent on the poll, Mike, because you cite cultural issues, not foreign policy or economic issues, and I think a lot of the DTers are probably on the same page, or close to it, where cultural issues are concerned

I'll be much better practiced at polls next time, and try to put up poll questions that are more clear.

As I said early on, I accidentally posted the poll(?) before I even had the questions down, and hurried because I feared the wrath of the angry DT politics and society forum crowd from asking WTF?, at the seedling of a poll that was online for the first five minutes

[hi_im_god]

Originally Posted by Danzig

the former was a prophet who existed, the latter...well...

at any rate, i believe that jesus was here. it's the whole divinity thing i have an issue with-especially when one considers that he was only 'made' divine when it was voted on in nicea, thanks to constantine.

i'm both stunned and impressed to find someone bringing the first council of nicea into the usual monkey's throwing dung level debate about religion here.

you stunpressed me.

[Dahoss]

I'm just glad you made it a public poll.

[GBBob]

Since Princess Doreen and Pedigree Ann are the same person, does that vote auto count twice?

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by hi_im_god

i'm both stunned and impressed to find someone bringing the first council of nicea into the usual monkey's throwing dung level debate about religion here.

you stunpressed me.

i love that tidbit of info, it generally throws people into a tizzy. i recommend the book 'constantine's sword', a good read about christianity. susan wise bauer's history of ancient and early medieval also are good, with sections on the growth of christianity and rulers attempts at controlling the religion-constantine's attempts at stopping aryanism for instance.

[Antitrust32]

Originally Posted by Danzig

the former was a prophet who existed, the latter...well...

at any rate, i believe that jesus was here. it's the whole divinity thing i have an issue with-especially when one considers that he was only 'made' divine when it was voted on in nicea, thanks to constantine.

I also believe Jesus of Nazerath walked this planet at one point a couple thousand years ago. Whether he was the son of God or not... who the heck knows but I doubt it.

[SOREHOOF]

For the record, I thought I checked Gay Rights but I'm not on the list. That % should go up a couple ticks. I'm seriously rethinking my Prayer in School vote. Definitely not forced, or organized. Learning about religions place in history is important, but the story can change depending on who is telling it. Maybe some things are better left to parents.

[joeydb]

Originally Posted by SOREHOOF

For the record, I thought I checked Gay Rights but I'm not on the list. That % should go up a couple ticks. I'm seriously rethinking my Prayer in School vote. Definitely not forced, or organized. Learning about religions place in history is important, but the story can change depending on who is telling it. Maybe some things are better left to parents.

The gay rights category as listed in this poll is a little ambiguous. There are many people who have no issue with homosexuals, don't want them to be persecuted, obviously they should have full protection on constitutional matters, insurance benefits, civil union agreements, etc. If this intended as a "gay marriage" category, it should be listed that way. It's possible to be undecided on that issue because it is so new to the public square and still reaffirm that gay Americans, being Americans, have the rights all Americans have under the Constitution. The Constitution does not spell out marriage -- that is defined under state laws (age of consent, all of that).

Similarly, if the abortion category was written as "reproductive rights", one could be undecided if one is for proactive birth control measures and not for abortion.