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“The Divinity of Christ”
There is little doubt
that someone named Jesus of Nazareth walked the Earth some 2000 years ago, claimed to be the Son of God and die for our sins. Most of the worlds other religions, at least, think of Him as a prophet. Among them are the Bah’ai Faith, Islam and numerous others. They all agree that He was a real person and a splendid teacher but not, necessarily, that He was who He claimed to be.
A few religions profess their particular prophet to be the last in a long line of prophets. In order for this to be the case, the others would have to be wrong which seems unlikely, if not totally absurd (according to Le-way). It’s far more probable that God has and will continue to send messengers (on His behalf) to share His way of life and unique perspective with those who will listen. I am one such individual.
Christianity teaches us that the divinity of Christ is without restraint. They claim we must either believe Jesus is the Son of God and that He literally died for our sins (so that all who believe in His name shall not die but have eternal life) or lose out on salvation entirely. To believe He was merely a man or a prophet is not good enough. The only way to God is through Christ. People of all other faiths will face the fires of hell for not accepting Christ as their lord and savior.
According to Le-way, the way to go to Heaven is to surrender The Knowledge of Good and Evil which can be accomplished in all sorts of ways, so long as you are sincere. You don’t have to be a Christian, Muslim or a Jew. You merely need to believe that God is perfect and want what He wants. Those who fail to do so will end up in Utopia (also called the Land of Oz) where they will experience Perfect On-going Justice, Actual Free-will and a Permanent 2nd Chance to surrender The Knowledge of Good and Evil and ascend to Heaven (once and for all).
In all reality, there is no way to substantiate any of these claims. No one knows for sure if Jesus truly is the Son of God or that Le-way isn’t just make believe. We must choose to either concede that we are completely blind to the truth (and go on with our lives) or put our faith in what we think it should be. According to Le-way, there will be liberty and justice for all, whether or not anyone actually believes in its legitimacy. As for Christianity, it promises to save a few souls while condemning the rest of humanity to fire and brimstone. So which should we say is better to believe or does it even really matter at all? In either case our beliefs do not determine what is or what isn’t. Most people will die completely clueless to what the truth could possibly be. Death might provide us with the answers but, until then, we should let God worry about such things and focus more on who we need to be in this life to fulfill Gods wishes and maybe even prepare ourselves for the next (assuming there really is one and especially if there's not).
“The Problem of Evil and Le-way”
As an American
I am most familiar with Christianity than any other belief system. At the same time, I was not raised in a Christian household like many of my peers. Instead my parents left it up to my brother and I to determine our own beliefs and encouraged us to think for ourselves. As a result I was given the opportunity to be true to myself by thinking outside the box and considering as many anglesas possible.
One of the concepts I have long accepted but now choose to do away with is the idea that God is omnipotent. It’s not that I doubt that good will ultimately prevail over evil but rather that the reason for this is that there is more good and a greater desire (or need) for good to overcome what isn’t. The nature of evil is to destroy itself while good seeks to further itself.
The hard reality is that there are two forces in the universe, like night and day, male and female, yin and yang, there is good and evil. Understanding this has lead me to solving The Problem of Evil. The Problem of Evil suggests that God can not exist to allow so much pain and suffering in the world.
I have previously proposed that the devil was a great angel given the responsibility of guarding over the knowledge of good and evil who was seduced by what it had to offer. This may very well still be the case and in fact may be the very thing that gave the devil his power.
God allowed Adam and Eve and the angels under His command to decide for themselves if the knowledge of good and evil was something they wanted. He did this because He is fair. The difficulty is that free-will (which comes from the knowledge of good and evil) is incapable of producing results that are just as fair. This brings us to The Problem of Evil which must be discussed if God is worth believing in.
The solution is a war that has lasted for millions of years and may last many more to come. It’s not a question of who will win but only a matter of how long it will take. Good will ultimately prevail over evil for the reasons I spoke of before. It’s not that God did not create the Universe and everything in it. The problem is that God made the mistake of trusting Satan with the knowledge of good and evil which the devil used inappropriately to make war with God and put His kingdom in jeopardy.
Ultimately, there are 2 principles at work here. The first being that God is fair which is why He allowed all this to take place. The other is called dualism but not in the most literal sense. True dualism would not allow for justice to be served in its proper context and would therefore produce undesirable results. It may not be that God is omnipotent in the sense that He can do away with evil as He pleases but, maybe, in the sense that evil will be done away with when all is finished.
The Dutch Cartoonist was arrested!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24665094/
So the Dutch are now bowing to the Muslims and arrested the cartoonist over the Muslim funnies. And if you read more about the cartoonist work, he doesn't just make fun of the Muslim's. Christians and other ppl of strong beliefs are targets for him also.
What is our world coming to that you can't voice an opinion about things that we all know are just wrong and if you don't laugh about them we all would go crazy. Watch pretty soon, other countries will follow in the Netherlands path and start arresting anyone who makes fun of Muslims. Carlos Mencia better watch out because he makes fun of EVERYONE and he will be one of the first to get arrested!
The following excerpt is from the testimony of a former member of the Taliban who had been trained to be a terrorist named “Rafiq.”
“After 9/11, I was working with the Red Cross in Afghanistan. I met some Christian workers and found some literature. I had thought Americans were animals. They are killing people, and they are fighting our country. But when I was caught in Afghanistan, and met the Red Cross people who were foreigners and saved my life, I began thinking, ‘We want to kill them, and they are saving our lives.’ When I came back across to Pakistan, I began looking for some Christian religious leaders.
In 2003, I asked one to provide me with some Christian literature. During this time I accepted Christ. I began to distribute hundreds of Bibles among Muslims in schools, mosques and different villages.
I have received many threatening calls from Taliban and local Muslim leaders. They tell me, ‘Do not distribute the Christian literature. Otherwise, we will kill you.’
I know terrorists have lots of weapons and can kill me, and they can kill anybody. If they kill us the work and the Word will spread. They will kill, and we will work.”
--From Voice of the Martyrs, March 2008
By Sgt. Brandon Little, USA
Special to American Forces Press Service
March 6, 2008 - Deployed American forces go out of their way to interact with local citizens, hoping to gain their confidence by helping them get a better understanding of the U.S. mission and culture. Knowing that cultural understanding has to work both ways, the U.S. military continues to provide its servicemembers with training on Islamic cultures and their way of life. But what happens after all the training and soldiers still have questions?
Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers in Task Force 12 who practice Islam answer questions about their religion and help fellow soldiers put a familiar face with an unfamiliar culture.
"I've known the soldiers I work with for a long time, and they don't treat me any different just because I'm from a different culture," said Army Spc. Emadeldeen Elboctorcy, a UH-60 Black Hawk maintainer in Company D, 3rd Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment. "They're pretty considerate of my religion; for example, when some of the soldiers go to get food for everybody, they always make sure there is a plate without pork."
Elboctorcy, who is now a U.S. citizen, was born and reared as a devout Muslim in Alexandria, Egypt. He moved to the United States in 1995 and has been answering the questions of those curious about his religion ever since.
"When you get cultural awareness training, they only give you so much information, and many of the soldiers, to include myself, still had questions," said Army 1st Sgt. Ronald Pickens, a native of Abilene, Texas, who serves with Company D. "Instead of asking their question in front of everybody, they felt more comfortable asking Elboctorcy, and he would explain his point of view. He's a very tolerant person and willing to answer those questions."
Army Spc. Asad Khan, a New York City resident for nearly 30 years, was born in a small town near Lahore, Pakistan, and often is asked about his religion and his country's culture.
"Some people think that everyone who is a Muslim is a radical, but that's not the case," said Khan, an air traffic control systems maintainer in Company F, 7th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment. "There are a few, just like in every religion, who are extremist, but I was definitely not brought up that way."
The combination of cultural awareness training and having a soldier in the unit who practices Islam has helped the other soldiers understand that different doesn't mean good or bad; it just means different, Pickens said.
"I joined the Army because I wanted to make a difference in the war using my language. But at that time, there was no military occupational specialty for Arabic linguist," said Elboctorcy, a native of Citrus Heights, Calif. "I guess in a sense I am making a difference, because even though I'm not out there talking to Iraqis, I'm still providing information to the soldiers who want to know more about Arabic cultures."
"He doesn't explain how the cultures are different; he explains how the cultures are similar," Pickens noted. Islam, just like most other religions, teaches people they should love and respect one another, Elboctorcy said.
Having been born in the Middle East, Khan and Elboctorcy said, they feel a connection to people who live in this region, but living in the United States for so many years has made them appreciate both cultures.
"I feel a strong connection to Iraqis who have dual citizenship with a country like the U.S. or Great Britain," Elboctorcy said. "We can share experiences we've had in living in both cultures and speaking both languages."
Although Khan is not yet a U.S. citizen, he has begun the naturalization process and will more than likely become a citizen before the end of his deployment.
Whether it's learning from cultural awareness training, or from a fellow soldier who has lived in a certain region of the world, Task Force 12 soldiers have plenty of options to educate themselves on unfamiliar cultures and ways of life.
"I've never been stereotyped or judged by the soldiers I work with; they know me, and they know I'm from New York," Khan said. "Don't get me wrong, I still love Pakistan, but America has my heart, and I will always be an American."
(Army Sgt. Brandon Little serves in the Task Force 12 Public Affairs Office, Multinational Division Baghdad.)
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