What did God do to the fallen ones?

[Ted]

Themis

Part of the issue here is what one thinks about the Bible as a book and what the Divine is like.

The Bible was never meant to be taken literally. Such a view leads one into all kinds of absurdities.

Down through the millenia man has been searching for God. Brain research has shown that there is a part of the brain dealing with that search and it has been there since man began. So down through the years humans have had experiences of the Divine and here I am not speaking of the God of the gaps. If one studies the basis of all of the world's great faiths it becomes clear that there were two; justice and compassion. Personally I think there can be nothing more important. Thus there were many different experiences and interpretations of those experiences.

The reality of the Divine is not provable in scientific terms. Science is far too limited.

There have been sever very spiritual people down through the centuries all pointing to the Divine. Oh, they gave the Divine many names: the Great Spirit, Allah, YHWH , Elohim etc. When it comes down to it, if one accepts the reality of God there is only one ultimate source and some of us have chosen the name "God"

However, we face a very difficult task in trying to decide what God is like and what he looks like etc. The Divine is simply beyond human language and comprehension abilities. The moment we try to define or describe this reality we are attempting to box the Divine in and this is impossible.

Some read "Revelation" as a predictor of the end times. That is not what it was written about. At best the Bible consists of interpretations of events of the various writers.. We have no idea what the future holds. We believe that at sometime there will be some great consummation but ????? There will be no great Divine cleanup as some think.

The whole point is to go back to those bases. Look at what not only Jesus taught, but the prophets and the other great spiritual leaders of the past.

The messaage is very short and clear both in the OT in Micah 6:8 and Matt 22.
We are to do justice, be compassionate and walk humbly with God. Part of the problem is the use of the term believe. The Greek word translated as believe is more correctly translated as trust. It is not about right belief but about living in a loving, transforming relationship with God. We can find this in all of the great faiths around the world. We just have to get past the fundamentalist approach which is inappropriate.

It is up to us to help bring about God's kingdom here on earth and trust God for the future.

I do hope this helps.

Shalom
Ted

Originally Posted by Ted

Themis

Part of the issue here is what one thinks about the Bible as a book and what the Divine is like.

The Bible was never meant to be taken literally. Such a view leads one into all kinds of absurdities.

Down through the millenia man has been searching for God. Brain research has shown that there is a part of the brain dealing with that search and it has been there since man began. So down through the years humans have had experiences of the Divine and here I am not speaking of the God of the gaps. If one studies the basis of all of the world's great faiths it becomes clear that there were two; justice and compassion. Personally I think there can be nothing more important. Thus there were many different experiences and interpretations of those experiences.

The reality of the Divine is not probable in scientific terms. Science is far too limited.

There have been sever very spiritual people down through the centuries all pointing to the Divine. Oh, they gave the Divine many names: the Great Spirit, Allah, YHWH , Elohim etc. When it comes down to it, if one accepts the reality of God there is only one ultimate source and some of us have chosen the name "God"

However, we face a very difficult task in trying to decide what God is like and what he looks like etc. The Divine is simply beyond human language and comprehension abilities. The moment we try to define or describe this reality we are attempting to box the Divine in and this is impossible.

Some read "Revelation" as a predictor of the end times. That is not what it was written about. At best the Bible consists of interpretations of events of the various writers.. We have no idea what the future holds. We believe that at sometime there will be some great consummation but ????? There will be no great Divine cleanup as some think.

The whole point is to go back to those bases. Look at what not only Jesus taught, but the prophets and the other great spiritual leaders of the past.

The messaage is very short and clear both in the OT in Micah 6:8 and Matt 22.
We are to do justice, be compassionate and walk humbly with God. Part of the problem is the use of the term believe. The Greek word translated as believe is more correctly translated as trust. It is not about right belief but about living in a loving, transforming relationship with God. We can find this in all of the great faiths around the world. We just have to get past the fundamentalist approach which is inappropriate.

It is up to us to help bring about God's kingdom here on earth and trust God for the future.

I do hope this helps.

Shalom
Ted

I understand your point of view and I respect it but while you're giving justice, being compassionate and walking humbly with God those with power do not...

In those we trust... I trust not.

[Ted]

Themis

I understand your position as well.

I too faced that but then decided to do something about it. It really is up to us to change what we do not like in our society. It is true that one person cannot do a great deal but at least it is a start. The more folks who get on board the better chance we have of making changes.

Might I suggest you read Matthew 25:31ff.

There are pockets of people around the world and they are making a defference in their own societies.

Shalom
Ted