My creativity usually comes to life right around midnight... guess it's a blessing and a curse. At the moment I'm not feeling terribly creative... just listening to some music and reading about random and sundry things on the web, and pondering all that I take in. My reading tonight has included the blog that was created to debunk everything Threnody and I say on this blog. Because I personally know the author, and know she has only the best intentions, I will be kind in what I say here. A decent amount of Undertaking Liberty's traffic comes over from her blog (she links to our posts and then writes what she thinks about them, from the Christian side). The extra readers are nice, but I can only hope they read both blogs with a discerning eye and an open mind. If you come to me from her blog, or even if you have simply been reading my blog but do not know me outside of the words I write here, you may have an inaccurate view of who I am and what I believe. It is very easy to read what someone has written and then interpret it many different ways. Several of Varda's posts have left me frustrated because what I said was taken to the extreme, at least in my opinion. That is, of course, a danger of writing these posts and making them public... but it's frustrating nonetheless when you see it happen, and increasingly so when it's on a regular basis. The longer I am removed from Christianity, the more frequently I am misunderstood by Christians I once knew, and the more I see myself and my words misrepresented in exaggerated ways. So, let me lay some things out for you, my readers:
1. I was "saved" at the age of four. My mother answered my questions and guided me in prayer, and from that moment on I believed I was saved. I had the relationship. I was going to heaven. I was a Child of God. I read the Bible, prayed, went soul-winning, sang in the choir, attended and worked at a Christian camp, attended a Baptist college, attempted to go to Ukraine on a mission's trip (was thwarted by health problems), etc. I was the model Christian young lady, looked up to by many, seeking God's will and doing my dead-level best to live by the Bible. A once-friend told me that there had never been any doubts in his mind that I was saved - that was early in 2011, if my memory serves me correctly.
If the Bible were true, then I would be one of those people who would have died and asked to be let into heaven but turned away by Jesus because he had "never known" me... and spent an eternity in Hell after honestly believing I was a Christian. What kind of craziness is that anyway? Was my belief, my very heart and soul, not sincere enough to make it work? I find that logic to be silly.
2. One day I believed, the next day I didn't. My un-conversion is that simple. I read my Bible, read commentaries, heard sermons, prayed... then saw what the world was really like - without religious tinted glasses - did a lot of thinking, a lot of searching... and then I could no longer believe. I can never go back. If you are a Christian reading this, please don't bother to pray for me... it's pointless. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you will save yourself a lot of trouble.
3. I'm not some crazy person telling you to go out and have sex anytime you wish, with anyone you wish. My philosophy about life is this: All things in moderation. That includes sex. I think all should have the freedom to love whomever they wish, but that doesn't mean that they should always act on it. Just because you can doesn't mean you should. Does sex have consequences? Yes. Self-discipline, not being selfish, and remaining pure in heart are important for anyone, and must be applied to all aspects of life, including sex. I am now a firm believer in wholesome forms of sex education. Repressing sex, ignoring it, or treating it (even if it's indirectly done) like it is in any way bad... it's wrong and will cause harm.
4. I am not writing this blog to slander anyone, Christian-or-not, and have not written this to cause harm to family or friends. I write this blog, partially, so that I don't say hurtful things to my family and friends. This is my personal blog, my place to think aloud without rules or frowning faces to influence what I say. However, I do not write to offend people. I do occasionally poke fun at Christianity and/or the Bible, but when I do that, I do it to make a point. The TV show South Park is an excellent example of comedy being used as the medium to hit home specific points.
Please take everything I say with a grain of salt.
5. My philosophy is always changing. I read a lot. I listen a lot. I see a lot. Therefore, I am constantly evolving. I may hold to one opinion one day, only to obtain some new knowledge or insight that makes the previous knowledge obsolete. I don't maintain ideologies or opinions simply because it's what I was raised with or it's what is popular or accepted. You can't grow if you shut out everything that is not in agreement with your position on something. I have a journalist's spirit. I ask questions. I find answers. I make my findings known. I don't accept the norm or allow the truth to remain covered up.
6. I am not an atheist. See my post for further explanation on the matter of my beliefs.
7. I am hard to offend. I enjoy and appreciate comments, but please be relatively nice. I bare my soul for you to read, I share my innermost thoughts, I share my life. Please have the courtesy to not call me (or Threnody) stupid, ignorant, or make pointless, hateful comments. If you don't have facts and are commenting to refute something we say... don't bother. If you have facts, a valid point, a positive critique, a humorous anecdote... feel free to comment. :-) I appreciate a nice debate, between knowledgeable, mature people. Mindless rants and personal attacks are not welcome here.
That's it for now.
No comments:
Post a Comment