God's influence

[orangatan]

Have nc for this but only becuase I am busy as it were on other threads.

I am having trouble getting my head around something.

I am a committed christian.

When things go wrong, and I am really just talking about very minor things that other people have done to you, how much of that has been orchestrated by God?
Any of it? None of it? Somewhere in between?

Thanks

Wrong! ^Typo.

I am a spiritual person, but I am an athiest. I see the spiritual aspects of life, growth, our planet, humanity our ancestors, the seasons. I don't need a god to do that though.

Ferrar I find your statements confusing. What do you mean when you say God looks after Christians and Jews but you don't know about other faiths?

Do you know or don't you?

atthe interesting slant. Most atheists I have conversed with do not rate the spiritual. I'm left wondering what spiritual means to you though..all the things you mentioned are physical also. How do you see spirit fitting into this?

So you're of the 'god can't be bad' camp? So he gave us an element that not even he has? Knowing the outcome? Isn't it a bit like selling a product that's faulty and then when millions are maimed and killed blaming the buyers?

Or blaming the product itself? Even though you made it that way?

I am interested in Jungs ideas of the collective unconcious, I have a belief in humanity, the power of the unspoken word, and an interest in witchcraft. The magnificence and glory of the universe and humanity shows itself every time I see a new dawn and at many points during the day.

atthe collective unconscious is interesting, like Zeitgeist. However I think this can be likened to what the Bible refers to the spirit of this world as opposed to the Holy Spirit.

Magnificence and Glory I put down to God, who can also be in us, in Christ.

*head^ when God made us we were good. We were corrupted at the Fall, we are Redeemed through Christ.

So god looks after Jews. what went wrong with his protection re: the holocaust???

capsium, the difference is I don't need all the external stuff like god and jesus, if you like we are immanent.

headinhands I think this is an area that is dangerous for the religious. Not all faiths can be "right" but adherants "know" they are right.

atthe God is immanent too, in the form of the Holy Ghost / Comforter who is in us. However He is also all around us.

I prefer not to have random entities within me- I prefer just me.

I am me. Me includes Him.

Help! I dont know all the answers to the questions put to me.

Don't worry ferrar, you don't have to.

ferrar If I was a christian I would be quite curious to know how my god felt towards people of other religions.

You say "Agree that God for instance looks after christians in say big earth events", implicit in that is the idea that non christians or those of other faiths are not "looked after"

So could god be corrupted? If we were made like him yet got corrupted so could he!

I do have a great book called "The Bumps are what you climb on".

I think I am more and more beginning to realise that the "process" of our faith growing is important.

So that we need the "bad" stuff to help us grow more God like.

Did god have to have bad stuff happen to him to make him good? I thought he was always good? Given that bad things make us more godlike I'm guessing the third world is teeming with super godly people. How is it fair that they are getting more learning opportunities than someone in the UK with access to the NHS, education, police force etc? If bad stuff makes us more godly why did Jesus heal people? He should have gone around afflicting people with diseases, not curing them?!

So on one hand god protects Christians, but on the other they need to deal with crap to become Christlike? How do they work together?

Overcoming evil, by drawing strength through Christ, makes us stronger. However God does not cause suffering. We suffer because evil clashes and comes against good.

Jesus healed because it is God's will for us to be well.

God's Grace helps us overcome evil in this world. It is this I like to focus on, not the suffering.

If it's gods will for us to be well why doesn't he heal people nowadays? It seems you believe in a hands off god. Why is he so hands off? What about people who who have the wrong god because of geography, family up bringing etc? Seems unfair that they are prevented from accessing the only help available when dealing with suffering.

It's maybe just as well that god has a more hands off approach nowadays. Comitting global genocide and infanticide maybe would be a little less tolerated now than in biblical times.