Do you believe in God
By raydene
@raydene (9871)
United States
October 8, 2008 9:27am CST
Hello All
Do you believe in God?
Yes I do.
What religion are you?
I'm Bahai for nearly 30 years.
" It's too bad the Americal Civil Liberties Union can't read this or maybe they did and are trying to figure out how to sue Mr Stein for telling the truth because they will claim he violated sombodies rights TOO BAD!! It's time to wake up.
The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning
Commentary.
My confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees.. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees.
It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't t hink they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrati ng this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.
I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.
Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.
In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.
Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Katrina) Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His p rotection if we demand He leave us alone?'
In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they
don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.
Are you laughing yet?
Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on
your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they
will think of you for sending it.
Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.
Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.
My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully, "
13 responses
@Ravenladyj (22902)
• United States
8 Oct 08
I didnt reead the whole thing cause I'm just not with it today not feeling well and I'm very tired...but I wanted to respond to you saying you are Ba'hai...For some reason I though you were Christian..dont ask me why cause I have no clue LOL...so out of major curiousity, what does your religion consist of, what are the beliefs if you dont mind my asking...
1 person likes this
@Myrrdin (3599)
• Canada
8 Oct 08
Sorry for intruding, but I know a bit about the Ba'hai faith. Basically its an almost agnostic religion believing that god is genderless and for the most part unknowable. They believe that certain individuals have been, I want to say incarnations of god but I know the Ba'hai would disagree, I believe they call them Manifestations of God. Jesus was one of these manifestations.
1 person likes this
@noreligion (105)
• United States
8 Oct 08
I am an atheist. I do not believe that the religious are being oppressed by the godless but that it is the other way around. It makes me sad that Billy Graham indirectly blames the godless for Katrina. I personally respect all religions and hope that I am respected for my nonbelief.
1 person likes this
@Ravenladyj (22902)
• United States
8 Oct 08
I'll go one step further and say that is amazing and saddening that we are all from the same race (human) and can't tolerate each other....pitiful really
@amplified27 (492)
• Philippines
9 Oct 08
Yes I do believe in God. More often than not, people get this idea that God doesn't truly exist. We don't have to actually see him in order to believe in Him. Praying to Him and thanking Him everyday with the blessings we receive is already enough to prove our faith. Of course, it would be more appropriate to act what we say, in order to live by God's words. I'm quite skeptical of some of the scriptures in the Bible though because there are statements which are inconsistent. But it doesn't hinder me, still, to believe in God. :)
@Manojknair (603)
• India
9 Oct 08
I am Hindu and i do believe in God. I pray al most all days. Believing in god help you to keep your mind strong and always make yo think that there is a big almighty who can support you in all your bad time. I pray a lot in my bad time and thank him in my good times.
@stephcjh (38473)
• United States
8 Oct 08
I believe in God. I will not discard this thought. I think it holds alot of merit. Thanks alot for sharing it with us.
@craftcatcher (3699)
• United States
8 Oct 08
Hi Raydene! To answer your questions: "Do you believe in God?" Not in any religious context. "What religion are you?" I follow no religion, I live by a Pantheistic philosophy and personal code of ethical conduct, not by a fideistic doctrine.
I will not comment on this article except to say you shouldn't believe everything you read.
@taurus54 (317)
• Philippines
9 Oct 08
I believe in God based on Reason, Experience and Nature (nature of the universe) rather than on the basis of holy texts and divine revelation. Essentially, through the use of Reason, God’s existence is revealed by the observation of the order and complexity found within nature and our personal experiences.
I Believe that the nature of God is generally incomprehensible and is beyond definition for humanity at this time. Furthermore,human language is limited and inadequate to define God; however, man can use Reason to theorize and speculate on what this possible nature is.
I Believe that mans relationship with God is impersonal and abstract. However,this does not create a feeling of a distant and cold deity but of one in which God has a profound and unfathomable relationship with all of creation (nature) rather than just one aspect of it.
I believe that humanity has the ability to use Reason to develop ethical/moral principles and through the application of Reason these principles can be used to implement moral behavior,which in turn creates a Utilitarian-Humanist morality. Essentially, humans can be guided by their conscience in matters of morality.
I believe that humans have the individual capability of experiencing God, which is defined as spirituality. These spiritual experiences are multi-faceted and can include awe, epiphany, communion and even the transcendental. Essentially,each human is capable of having a profound experience of God and nature.
I believe that God should be honored in a way way that the individual believes is best and most appropriate for them. Individuals must determine for themselves how best to honor God and only they can develop how to accomplish this. For many, it is a multi-faceted and an individualized process.
I believe in the principle of Natural Law that states that all men and women are created equal to each other with inherent freedom and liberty so that no human has more worth than another. Essentially, each human is equal in terms of the freedoms that they have and in the eyes of the law.
I believe that mankind’s purpose is to use our God-given reason to understand what it means to be alive in every sense of the word (to live life to the fullest) and to act in such a way as to secure human happiness and contentment for all involved.
I believe that Reason and Respect are God -given traits to mankind and that we are to utilize them in all aspects of our daily lives thus creating a pragmatic approach to life. This includes respecting other alternative views and opinions of God (other religions) as long as they do not produce harm and/or infringe upon others.
That belief is called Deism.
@srikool (936)
• India
8 Oct 08
i bliv in god..without god nothing in this world..all are created by him...nothing in my hand..all are given by him..my life is not in my hand..but i will work hard for my future..the result is given my him..whatever may be the outcome i will love it..because i know god is there ..have a nice time