"Illusions of Faith"

We’re still waiting.

By William Alexander

   How many different interpretations are there of the Second Coming of Christ? How many of them have passed there use by date? Doctrine just continue to change as times tick on. One interpretation supersedes another, as they fail to come to pass.

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   According to the International Best seller, "The Mayan Prophesies" of 1995, by Adrian G Gilbert The world will end on the 22nd. December, 2012. I've heard this all before.

I remember an Evangelist named Barry Smith that came to Australia from New Zealand in the early 1980's saying that the world will begin to end in 1984, due to the alignment of the planets. He said that Christ would return as predicted in Matt.24: (Incidentally, I sent him a message reminding him of this, he has not responded.) I can't imagine how many of these dooms day prophets have been around over the past 2000 years.

See you on the 23 of December 2012, I'm buyin'

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   Every generation since Christ, has believed that his return would happen before the end of their life time.

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   Jesus himself promised his disciples that he would return before THEIR generation had passed away. (Matt. 16:28) "There will be some STANDING HERE, that shall not taste death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom." Similarly, in (Luke 21:32), Jesus said, "This generation shall not pass away, til all be fulfilled" (Capitals added)

The Old Testament states that a false prophet and blasphemer's should be stoned to death. History itself bears witness to the FACT that he did not fulfil his prophecy. This is undeniable proof of the falsity of Christ’s words. Liar, liar, pants on fire!

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   In Mark 14:62, Jesus says to his accusers that 'They would see him coming in the clouds with great power' and again in Revelations 1:7, it says, "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him"

When is the church going to wake up, and stop trying to re-interpret and justify these verses to fit each new generation?

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   The Second Coming of Christ, has got to be the churches all time greatest embarrassment.

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   Jesus made a prediction regarding his soon return. He says that many things will happen as a sign of his soon return. He foretells of "Earth quakes, famines, wars. All of which have been going on since the beginning of mankind.

There is nothing supernatural in predicting natural disasters. China has records dating back for thousands of years with stories of earthquakes, wars and famines. War has been recorded since the beginning of written history. False Prophets are abound and always have. The list of predictions are so general and so easily interpreted as fulfilled.

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   The Rapture, is not a biblical word. However, it is a major doctrine in many denominations. It is reference to the church meeting Jesus in the air at his coming. There is nothing about it in Revelations. ive it up and admit, it’s all just a crock of shit.

By William Alexander.

 As I was watching the news the other night, there was a report of a little boy and his father that were involved in a car accident. The father was badly injured. The little boy (about 6) tried CPR and mouth to mouth. He then ran 2 kms alone at night. His dad was saved. Now this is love. There was no divine intervention. Just the love a child for his dad. His real dad, not a figment of his imagination.

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   Love is not the exclusive property of religion, it is a very natural component of the human condition.

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"I have been astonished that men could die Martyrs for religion -I have shudder'd at it - I shudder no more - I could be martyr'd for my religion - Love is my religion - I could die for that"  John Keats.

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   The sacrifice of human life in the name of love, is nothing new. Many a man or woman has given their lives in defence of their children or loved ones. There is nothing supernatural in this, it doesn't take a God to show us this basic survival skill.

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A LOVE SACRIFICE:

   Human sacrifice is nothing new to the world, with religion and politics alike. (At times they are interchangeable.) When soldiers are sent to war on the whims of a dictator, where many lives are lost for religious, finical, or property gain, when it’s used as a means toward usurping power over others, then it is morally wrong. However, when men, women and boys voluntarily to go out and sacrifice themselves to defend their country from destruction, then it could be considered as a legitimate, loving and righteous a sacrifice. Love itself is the instinctive drive behind this kind of sacrifice.    These kinds of men or women do not ask for the blood of others, without offering their own. There is no eternal or supernatural motive is this, only the defence of their families. It’s simply natural.

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   Love is a concept, a belief. It requires faith in a person. It's a trust issue, an emotion, a feeling. Faith in something or in another. Faith is a subjective view. It is in the mind and is based on hope.

By William Alexander.

   The Bible describes hope as, things unsubstantiated and unseen.

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen"

Hebrews 11:1.

It claims that hope has no substance within itself, but promises that it can if you add faith to it. All we need is faith as our assurance to these unseen things (hopes).

   The book of Romans says something similar.

"Hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seethe, why doth he yet hope for it? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." Rom.8:24.

It’s simple, if you can see these things, then you don’t need hope. Hope is the central theme of the Gospel. Without hope, there is no Gospel. Faith relies on hope and hope relies on faith.  The only evidence hope needs is faith, and faith only needs is a story of hope. No conclusive evidence is required, just a story. If it were actual, you wouldn’t need hope. The bible is its own worst enemy. It tells you that you do not need any proof other than faith.

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   How to create hope: Give a man a cause, with the promise of reward, and you’ve got hope.

Obviously it matters not to some, how ridiculous the cause or outrageous the reward.

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   Hope will always contain an element of doubt (anxiety). This is simply because the certainty of the dream is still unsure/unseen. Religious faith offers that measure of certainty, by creating stories an eternal heaven or paradise. The story itself creates the hope in which we are told to believe. As our hopes appear to offer a measure of security, the anxiety SEEMS to lesson. Then when charged with passion and conviction, things begin to appear true and real. But be assured, it’s all based on nothing more than doctrine, theory and dreams of possibility. The fact is, we only hope for things we do not have. Once the goal, wish or objective has arrived, hope simply disappears.

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   Hope is a necessary force. Hope is what drives us forward in our attempts to achieve. It involves our imagination and has the potential to accomplish great things, in whoever’s name you wish. All the things that have been attributed to God, other than nature, have been achieved by man.

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The need for hope.

   Hope and belief are basic human needs. However, what we hope and believe for, maybe entirely different to that which is. So we need to place our hopes and beliefs in things that are achievable, probable and substantial.

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   We do not need astrology or a god in order to have hope. All we need has been starring us right in the face. It can be found in the faces of our children. They are our future, they are our hope. By teaching them the value of kindness, respect for all life and the beauty of nature, by teaching them how to treat others, about the value of humor, honesty, honour, sincerity and integrity. Teach them to hope in things that are achievable, not in things of ghosts and goblins.

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   The purpose of our existence is simple. The continuation and preservation of the human race. If you can't see the purpose of our existence in the eyes of your children, you must be blind, and my advise to this, is to look again, because no amount of faith or religion can substitute for the truth of it.

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"Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to divine a purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: that man is here for the sake of other men-above all for those upon whose smile and well-being our own happiness depends, and also for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy" Albert Einstein.

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"I am an atheist, and that's it. I believe there's nothing we can know except that we should be kind to each other and do what we can for other people" Katharine Hepburn.

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   It is easier to believe in a god, than it is to believe in yourself. It is easier to believe in something detached from ourselves, that it is to believe in the internal value of humanity. We have been told for thousands of years that there is no hope in humanistic endeavors, that they are useless and pretentious. Everything that I did in the name of God, I achieved myself. I believed it was God, but it wasn’t, it was me. Hope starts internally, and then can become an external reality.

Faith in yourself and in the abilities of others.

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There is hope after Christianity!

By William Alexander.

Everyone needs an anchor, something that holds us from drifting. Religion has offered this for centuries, when the true and undeniable anchor has been starring us right in the face! The continuance and preservation, of the human race. The Family.

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Family should be the number one priority to any human being. There should be nothing more important than preservation and safety of the family. The bible says otherwise. It promotes the alienation and death of our children if they disobey us as parents. It commands us to hate our families and follow Christ. Family is NOT a biblical concept. It commands us not to flatter (encourage) our children, but to beat them into submission with a rod. This is the wisdom of God.

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It is instinctive in most animals to protect their young. Religion promotes and justifies the punishment of the weak and vulnerable.

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Jesus commanded his disciples to place him before their families. He taught that they must deny both themselves and their own children, if they wished to follow him. I have seen this on many occasions, where sons and daughters have been left and rejected, on account of a belief in religious dogma. Families destroyed, where children have been subjected to psychological abuse. Where doctrine and faith/fear have taken pre-eminence over the lives of their children.

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Religion can alienate father from son, mother from daughter, purely on the basis of belief, and not reason. I know, because I did it myself, in the name of faith.

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"Family, are those that want nothing from you, but everything for you" Author unknown.

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"Your children deserve a better world"

John Grey. “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.”

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Christians should be ashamed of how they teach parents to reject their children in favor of their beliefs.

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How many people have committed suicide because of the shame placed on them through their religious belief?

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"How sad it is, when you choose something that you cannot see, over your own family."

John Licence.

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Birth rights promote sibling rivalry. This can be seen in the lives of Jacob and Ishmael, not to mention the way King David favored one sons above another, who ended up killing each other.

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"It is, I think, an error to believe that there is any need of religion to make life seem worth living"

Sinclair Lewis.

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Children learn what they live.

"If a child lives with criticism, they will learn to condemn.

If they live with hostility, they will lean to fight.

If children live with fear, they lean to be apprehensive.

If they live with pity, they will learn to be shy.

If a child lives with jealousy, they learn to feel envious.

If they live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.

If children live with encouragement, they will learn to be confident.

If they live with tolerance, they learn to be patient.

If a child id praised, they will learn to be appreciated.

If they live with acceptance, they will learn love.

If they live with approval, they will learn to like themselves.

When a child lives with recognition, they learn it is good to have goals.

If they live with sharing, they learn about generosity.

If they live with honesty and fairness, they will learn what truth and justice are.

If a child lives with security, they learn to have faith and hope in themselves and others.

If they live with friendliness, they will learn that the world can be a nice place.

If you live with serenity, your children will live with peace of mind"

Author still unknown. I believe this is wisdom.

A wisdom that far surpasses that of religion.

By William Alexander

FUNDAMENTALISM

Religious fundamentalism is a frame of mind. Most are born into and live in this world.

Everything around them promotes the status of this world. They do not challenge it, they do not question it, they don't know any different.

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ADAM AND EVE:

A fundamentalist believes that the Scriptures are without fault and divinely inspired of God.

Every word is correct, accurate and literal in its interpretation. The stories of creation, Adam and Eve, a talking snake (serpent) and that the trees of life and knowledge actually

existed in a literal garden.

QUESTION:

Adam was offered the choice of two trees. If he ate of the tree of life, he would live.

If he ate of the tree of knowledge, he would die.

My question is:

Where did he stand before he ate of either tree? He could neither live nor die.

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DOCTRINE:

There are many schools of thought. Doctrine is simply a formalization of that thought.

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Fundamentalism, restricts god to a book, my question is: which book?

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LIBERLISM

If you have a more liberal approach to interpreting Scripture, and believe that the stories of creation and Adam are not literal, but allegorical, then you are presented with a fundamental problem. This would mean that your beloved Christ was crucified, for a symbolic sin (original sin) with symbolic fruit (apple?) committed by a symbolic man (Adam) who is the symbolic father of the literal human race, who was tempted by a symbolic snake (Satan) in a symbolic garden (Eden), with symbolic trees (Life and Knowledge). The only other alternative, is to believe it literally, as do the fundamentalist.

Maybe the whole biblical story - is simply, symbolic.