Comments on: Tomorrow's Song http://sydneyunitarians.com/tomorrows-song/ Mon, 28 Nov 2011 02:15:26 +1100 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Ginna http://sydneyunitarians.com/tomorrows-song/comment-page-1/#comment-460 Ginna Sat, 02 Oct 2010 07:37:53 +0000 http://www.sydneyunitarians.com/?p=292#comment-460 My comment to this kind of fundamentalist Christian preaching is: Unitarian Universalism is not a Christian organisation, and does not subscribe to any theology. It's only guidance is the Seven Principles by which we strive to live. It is not an organisation that sets out to define what eternal life is nor what can "save us". It is about a "free and responsible" search for meaning. Unitarianism does not provide people with an excuse to do whatever they want regardless of the consequences to themselves or others. For myself I find that when I attempt to live out the Seven Principles consciously in all I do, I could never live totally selfishly. I take responsibility for my own actions. That is all I can do. I cannot change any other "life" that may be, so I leave that up to whatever God may be and do the best I can to live a responsible, caring life the best I can on a daily basis. Unitarianism offers people other ways to look at life and living responsibly with hope without having to submit to other people's definitions of what we "should" believe, none of which is provable anyway. It is a different vision on religion than mainstream religions, and it "works" for some people. Thankfully in our society we have the freedom to participate in a religion of our choice, and believe everyone should have such a right. We stand on the side of love and believe that compassion should be the basis of any religion. My comment to this kind of fundamentalist Christian preaching is:
Unitarian Universalism is not a Christian organisation, and does not subscribe to any theology. It’s only guidance is the Seven Principles by which we strive to live. It is not an organisation that sets out to define what eternal life is nor what can “save us”. It is about a “free and responsible” search for meaning. Unitarianism does not provide people with an excuse to do whatever they want regardless of the consequences to themselves or others. For myself I find that when I attempt to live out the Seven Principles consciously in all I do, I could never live totally selfishly. I take responsibility for my own actions. That is all I can do. I cannot change any other “life” that may be, so I leave that up to whatever God may be and do the best I can to live a responsible, caring life the best I can on a daily basis. Unitarianism offers people other ways to look at life and living responsibly with hope without having to submit to other people’s definitions of what we “should” believe, none of which is provable anyway. It is a different vision on religion than mainstream religions, and it “works” for some people. Thankfully in our society we have the freedom to participate in a religion of our choice, and believe everyone should have such a right. We stand on the side of love and believe that compassion should be the basis of any religion.

]]> By: weatherbill http://sydneyunitarians.com/tomorrows-song/comment-page-1/#comment-396 weatherbill Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:51:07 +0000 http://www.sydneyunitarians.com/?p=292#comment-396 we can agree, God is not one to torment people forever. the dotrine of eternal torment is a lie and not scriptural, but Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life. To start from a premis that everyone good is getting eternal life, is a license for peopel to ignore God for their own undertanding and their own self made righteousness. That is where universalism fails. It fails in basic sound intellect and reasoning. it justifies itself by looking at christiandoms failings and false doctrines, but does not address the issue of selfishness we are all born in. We nee dto be taught ho not to be selfish. This bares witness with anyone who has kids. We are born in selfishness, and so, we a re born in sin..... to deny this is to deny reality. We cannot use christendoms failings to ignore the Jesus who shed his blood and warns of the 2nd death, that being annihlation as the scriptures teach, not eternal torment. Universalitsts have yet to find the truth, Jesus the Christ, the only name given under heave by which we can be saved. You won't find the power gifts of the Holy Spirit even manifesting in Universlist churches either, unless demons one day decide to manifest to seduce the poeple further into doctrines on new age ism, which has no promise of eternal life we can agree, God is not one to torment people forever. the dotrine of eternal torment is a lie and not scriptural, but Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life. To start from a premis that everyone good is getting eternal life, is a license for peopel to ignore God for their own undertanding and their own self made righteousness.

That is where universalism fails. It fails in basic sound intellect and reasoning.

it justifies itself by looking at christiandoms failings and false doctrines, but does not address the issue of selfishness we are all born in.

We nee dto be taught ho not to be selfish. This bares witness with anyone who has kids. We are born in selfishness, and so, we a re born in sin….. to deny this is to deny reality.

We cannot use christendoms failings to ignore the Jesus who shed his blood and warns of the 2nd death, that being annihlation as the scriptures teach, not eternal torment.

Universalitsts have yet to find the truth, Jesus the Christ, the only name given under heave by which we can be saved.

You won’t find the power gifts of the Holy Spirit even manifesting in Universlist churches either, unless demons one day decide to manifest to seduce the poeple further into doctrines on new age ism, which has no promise of eternal life

]]> By: David Blair http://sydneyunitarians.com/tomorrows-song/comment-page-1/#comment-80 David Blair Thu, 14 Jan 2010 10:37:44 +0000 http://www.sydneyunitarians.com/?p=292#comment-80 (I am a Humanist.) I thoroughly agree with you about "original sin" and the teaching that we all deserve enormous punishment. Basing one's world-view on this is thoroughly unhealthy. Similarly, the idea that every wrong action (every sin, as they say) must, in the unalterable order of things, be "paid for" by a proportionate amount of suffering, is crazy, when you think of the fact that, in the modern (enlightened?) world, we humans can and do, over and over again (I'm not saying we should never mete out punishment) forgive other people rather than punish them. Yet the "paid for" belief is central to Christianity (too bad for it!), since it is the whole reason why Jesus allowed himself to suffer on the Cross. (I am a Humanist.) I thoroughly agree with you about “original sin” and the teaching that we all deserve enormous punishment. Basing one’s world-view on this is thoroughly unhealthy. Similarly, the idea that every wrong action (every sin, as they say) must, in the unalterable order of things, be “paid for” by a proportionate amount of suffering, is crazy, when you think of the fact that, in the modern (enlightened?) world, we humans can and do, over and over again (I’m not saying we should never mete out punishment) forgive other people rather than punish them. Yet the “paid for” belief is central to Christianity (too bad for it!), since it is the whole reason why Jesus allowed himself to suffer on the Cross.

]]> By: Eric Stevenson http://sydneyunitarians.com/tomorrows-song/comment-page-1/#comment-33 Eric Stevenson Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:51:33 +0000 http://www.sydneyunitarians.com/?p=292#comment-33 Thanks Martin! I believe I am nearly four times your age. What you have written gives an old man hope for the future generation. As a young person, you are not only teaching us oldies how to critique post modern literary art forms from a spiritual standpoint. You are also showing us how to gain meaning and inspiration from them instead of being bound by literal interpretations of the ancient scriptures. Refusing to be sucked in by the religious extravaganza of the fundamentalists, you have challenged their exclusive and judgemental philosophy and advocated an entirely different approach to faith. It is a faith which is not to be confused with the blood and thunder of traditional religion, but which embraces all of life with hope despite its heartaches and disappointments. Let us keep singing your song. E.S. Thanks Martin!
I believe I am nearly four times your age. What you have written gives an old man hope for the future generation.
As a young person, you are not only teaching us oldies how to critique post modern literary art forms from a spiritual standpoint. You are also showing us how to gain meaning and inspiration from them instead of being bound by literal interpretations of the ancient scriptures. Refusing to be sucked in by the religious extravaganza of the fundamentalists, you have challenged their exclusive and judgemental philosophy and advocated an entirely different approach to faith. It is a faith which is not to be confused with the blood and thunder of traditional religion, but which embraces all of life with hope despite its heartaches and disappointments. Let us keep singing your song. E.S.

]]> By: Jan Tendys http://sydneyunitarians.com/tomorrows-song/comment-page-1/#comment-4 Jan Tendys Wed, 30 Sep 2009 06:11:20 +0000 http://www.sydneyunitarians.com/?p=292#comment-4 Good on you, Martin. I believe the big trap for Humanists of any stripe is getting so passionate about what they don't believe they leave the reader clueless about what they do honour. Your talk was not just negative. And next time you will tell us even more about what gets you up out of bed in the morning. :-) Jan Good on you, Martin.

I believe the big trap for Humanists of any stripe is getting so passionate about what they don’t believe they leave the reader clueless about what they do honour. Your talk was not just negative. And next time you will tell us even more about what gets you up out of bed in the morning. :-)

Jan

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