Cliffy - I think those who present Christianity within a reward/punishment perspective miss much. Sounds like those born againers of which you speak were indeed trying to scare you. Methinks God should want us to worship and believe freely.
Goober - You asked, “Why do Christians have to prove they are tolerant yet others are exempted.?” Mostly because Christianity is a hard message to hear. We are sinners and are going to hell. That’s why those born againers gave Cliffy such a time about going to hell. The message of Christianity to the individual initially is condemning.
No One Is Righteous
9*What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. 10*As it is written:
“There is no one righteous, not even one;
11*
****there is no one who understands;
****there is no one who seeks God.
12*
All have turned away,
****they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
****not even one.
Before one sees a need for Christ, one must become aware of that they are not righteous before God. The message necessitates a conversation on this topic of sinfulness. It is easy to see why people would find this message intolerant, judgmental and condemning. They then conclude that Christians are intolerant.
I think I promised an ill conceived analogy. Don’t remember the topic - well here’s one for you in regards to the Christian message and why Christians are compelled to share it.
Let’s say the following happens. All senses confirm that this actually happens.
One day before dawn you awake to an alien ship landing in your back yard. A creature approaches you and tells you a number of things. Doesn’t matter what this creature tells you. What is important is that he tells you things. He then flys off. Would you not then be compelled to tell everyone you know? Would you not have written down the things he said to ensure you do not forget? Methinks you would. That is sort of like Christianity. Jesus (GOD) came to live among mankind. He taught many wonderful things, people wrote them down and shared them with everyone they knew. Should we not be interested in what God has said?
I told you it would be an ill conceived analogy....indeed a tortured analogy.
I believe that all creatures big and small are the Creator's children. I feel no differently when I hear of a deer killed by a car than I do when I hear of a human killed by a car (or any other instrument of destruction). When I see a clearcut forest, I get a physical pain in the pit of my stomach. I do not feel any differently about the death or wonton slaughter of any creature: wolf, bear or buffalo culls or wars on humans.
Human have been heading downhill ever since the evolution of agriculture, It was agriculture that spawned the first civilizations and religions. It spawned an attitude of superiority, not only of nature but of those humans who were "not civilized" and made both targets for exploitation and annihilation. The Pope declared in the 1480' that any group of humanoids not mentioned in the bible could not possibly be human so it was perfectly OK to kill, enslave and take their lands in the name of god. They were called papal bulls and are still in effect today. It is that attitude which allowed Europeans to colonize the world and to slaughter hundreds of millions of aboriginal people the world over.
It is this same attitude that motivates humans to think they have the right to "manage" nature to our liking, cutting down vast swaths of forest, extinct thousands of species of fish and wildlife. The human ego knows no bounds in its race toward the eradication of other species, not realizing that we are only a part of a greater whole and that the process will eventually lead to our own extinction. We are the only species that is hell bent on destroying the world's life support system, the biosphere. That is why I have no more sympathy for human suffering than I do for the butterfly that ends up squashed on the grill of my car. I see all life as having an equal right to life.
So, Cliffy. Let's say you, me & a cricket were trapped in a burning building. You manage to free yourself and are then only able to rescue just me or the cricket. Which one do you choose. Nevermind....I don't think I want to know your answer.