(Respectful) question for Christians about God

[mummysmellsofsick]

I am half way through a cofe confirmation course and I am interested to know what the general consensus is amongst Christians. I believe God is One, ie everything, good and bad, high and low. Does this make me not a Christian? My vicar believes God is good. I can't understand there being anything other than God, it makes no sense to me. I don't believe He is a person/ being with a plan for everyone who sits in the sky and makes things happen to people, but I have seen that something I would call the light of God is in everything, and especially in the places we don't expect... Could any committed Christians share their views on this and if possible give me chapter & verse on this subject? John talks a lot about God being Love but not about God being good. Do Christians believe that God is good? Is Christianity fundamentally a dualistic religion?

Valium the confirmation course is all adults actually. It makes much more sense to do it as an adult. I don't know if most ten year olds can or should make a commitment to a religion.

RedMolly I'd love to be a Quaker! All that silence But I wanted to reconnect with the CofE because it is what I'm familiar with, and I feel it's free enough to allow me to interpret some things in the way I understand them. I can do silence by myself anyway. And ought to more often rather than spending my evenings browsing style and beauty on here

Valium I agree about faith being tested. Up until that point it's only an idea, like believing in Father Christmas. After some experiences one moves from believing to knowing. And that comes from inside not from outside which is why I don't really feel a need to find anything in the church or to change to another church. I just think it's good to be part of collective worship, and it reminds me to live a better life, challenges me. Even when I don't think much of the sermon at least it shows me I need more humility

Tuo That makes a lot of sense to me, all of it. We crossed posts I think... will think about what you said...

Yay! I'm glad it made sense, mummysmells...

I quite fancy the lovely silence of Quaker meetings too, but I'd worry that I'd just fall asleep, which would be most embarrassing.

I especially like what you said about eternity Tuo. It's hard to understand the infinite with a finite mind. I also love what you said about generosity and about God's goodness being at a deeper level than we tend to understand. Thank you for posting, it makes me more comfortable going back to the course.

Do you mind me asking, do you (or anyone else) know of any good books on Christian theology? I only seem to find books that want to simplify and sanitise. I've been looking for something that acknowledges that some questions are unanswerable, that symbolism in the bible can be interpreted in different ways, also points of view on atonement, which is another big subject for me. I don't want 'correct' answers necessarily, nor anything too much at odds with generally accepted tenets of the religion.

Crossed posts again! I was thinking just the other day that all the getting up to sing and sitting down again was mostly to make sure the congregation doesn't fall asleep! Very wise... I'm sure collective snoring wouldn't be very meaningful.

at 'collective snoring'. My dd2 (age 10) is a server, and, although she has never fallen asleep, she does do a good line in very visible yawning (facing the congregation, but behind the preacher) during sermons!

I'm so glad that what I was able to write was helpful. I don't really know about books. I was just saying on another thread that I need to bring my own reading up to date a bit. I'll let you know if I get any recommendations.

I started going to church again a couple of years ago after a long break (when I always felt that I believed something but wasn't sure what, or how much) and it has brought me great happiness.

Your beliefs, described in your OP, are rather new agey. They are not from orthodox Christian doctrine.

That is also helpful Claire because if I am a bit unorthodox I'd rather know where I am in relation to the institution and as a couple of things I said seemed to surprise my vicar I began to realise the way I look at Christianity might be a bit unusual.

Tuo I used to be a server at your dd's age I remember being very keen, I kept a diary of all my prayers and I used to ask the vicar endless questions about the meanings of the parables

Great post Tuo :)

If anyone's still watching this thread/ still interested I was discussing this subject today and my friend suggested the quote below. It does accord very much with my understanding of the matter:

Isaiah 45:7 (KJV)

I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create calamity: I the LORD do all these things.