Newbie...first thought about this board... wow.

[Lennox]

Hi Everyone,

I am up North, in Big Trout Lake, a fly in first Nations community in northern Ontario.
I am a nurse and sometimes I fly up here for extra work...its -39 outside, and its my day off. This morning I was online and googled "loosing my religion" by almost accident (I was actually searching for sites on losing weight, as I have about 10 more pounds to go) .....and this is were I ended up. so much for ...how to get ripped!! lol.

This board is a wonderful exchange, hats off to everyone here. I have enjoyed my look around as I sip my coffee and think I will enjoy following your discussions and hopefully be able to add to some of them.

I am particularly interested in discussions related to our human nature, and the afterlife. I struggle to sort out many issues related to my faith and I am always looking for honest exchanges. For example, with the idea of being born sinful, I have observed inately selfish nature in humans and also and inately good side, and in my mind, this is not so cut and dry of an issue and an important one in my mind, with many repercussions. Although I am a Christian, I now read the scriptures very unconventionally I see most of the NT and OT as history. I do not have a literal hermenutic and look at most of the text as historical document, for me much of the text speaks to our over arching humanity. Parts that are true that stick with me and guide my personal life (the parts that are most likely truth) ...and the passages that are not (or are most likely not truth,) don't stick....that is my take on the bible. What an abomination I am !!. .so as you can see I am also interested in links or threads on the validity of the scriptures and ideas that related to our human nature. As I do have quite a bit of experience with human nature being a nurse for the past 10 years. Please post links to any of my interested areas so I can catch up!!

I'm currently am a Christian unaffiliated officially, it would be difficult to affiliate with most churches with my take on scripture. But I do enjoy the music worship and miss that in my life. I have a past history or involvement with Young Life (evangelical youth org) ..was eventually baptized in a Baptist church (Vancouver) where thankfully at least women were allowed to speak, teach and be in leadership. After undergrad went on to study at Regent seminary..lived with with strong minded Christian women who were trying to navigate the sharky waters of pastoring churches and getting their PhDs in theology...etc...I saw that and felt like Nemo in the evangelical ocean ..most of them could not jobs in the church...so I opted out of all that and stuck with healthcare. particularly health of the first nations communities...which I am most passionate about.

On a more personal note, I was married into a evangelical family, for over 10 years. That ended 2 years ago, and I am now living with an wonderful and kind Atheist, and my partner's kids believe in God but describe themselves as (not affiliated with any church). We are respectful to each other's beliefs and as a family of 4 seem to have good conversations about various aspects of faith and life.

I look forward to meeting all of you and the discussions here.

Jenna

[Lawrence]

Hello and welcome to the forums

It's nice to have another southern Ontarian (Waterloo here). I think you'll find that we're a very inclusive and laid back group that get into some pretty interesting discussions.

If you want to jump right in to some interesting discussions going on at the moment I suggest a topic in the General Discussion section called "atheist: to be rude or not?". A few posts down in that topic is a post by Mitch that has a list of fundamental Christian positions/beliefs. Giving your take on those would probably convey your interpretation of the bible very well. Also, a topic in the Christian section called "Proof for atheists" has an interesting discussion going.

Finally, I recommend listening to the podcasts. Unfortunately at this point they're more or less once a month but it's how I found the forum and there are some interesting discussions. Specifically, I suggest listening to this latest "season" episodes 80-86 + ep. 78. These recent ones have a large variety of Christian and atheist opinions from a Unitarian Universalist to an ex-Reverend as well as three voices from the forum Norton, Mitchell and Tony (episodes 78, 83 and 85 respectively). Emery is always interested in new show ideas so if you believe you have an interesting story or a unique take on the bible, private message Emery and you can star in the next podcast.

See you

[mitchellmckain]

This board is a wonderful exchange, hats off to everyone here. I have enjoyed my look around as I sip my coffee and think I will enjoy following your discussions and hopefully be able to add to some of them.

It is indeed, with considerable variety and rationality.

I am particularly interested in discussions related to our human nature, and the afterlife. I struggle to sort out many issues related to my faith and I am always looking for honest exchanges.

I am rather interested in these as well. Coming from theoretical physics to the Christian arena I have a somewhat theoretical approach to Christianity grounded in my understanding of science. If nothing else, you will hear from me some interesting ideas about what could be the answer to some of these questions. But if you are looking for proofs, sorry, I don't believe in them.

For example, with the idea of being born sinful, I have observed inately selfish nature in humans and also and inately good side, and in my mind, this is not so cut and dry of an issue and an important one in my mind, with many repercussions.

That would a good topic to start in either the Christian or General discussion areas, for although this has been touched on in previous threads, it may have been off topic and so they may be difficult to find now. Being born sinful makes no sense to me but there is another way to understand the relevant scriptures on this subject and support in historical Christianity (Eastern Orthodoxy) for doing so.

Although I am a Christian, I now read the scriptures very unconventionally I see most of the NT and OT as history.

If you mean that you take the historical claims of first books of both the NT and OT seriously then I do also. The only book that many Christians take as historical that I do not is that of Job.

I do not have a literal hermenutic and look at most of the text as historical document, for me much of the text speaks to our over arching humanity. Parts that are true that stick with me and guide my personal life (the parts that are most likely truth) ...and the passages that are not (or are most likely not truth,) don't stick....that is my take on the bible. What an abomination I am !!. .so as you can see I am also interested in links or threads on the validity of the scriptures and ideas that related to our human nature. As I do have quite a bit of experience with human nature being a nurse for the past 10 years.

Sounds to me like our ways of looking at the scriptures are very similar. I call it reading the Bible in the context of life and I think there is ample support for this in the examples of Jesus and the New Testament writers.

Please post links to any of my interested areas so I can catch up!!

There is a discussion just starting in the General Discussin section entitled "Afterlife". You can also follow my two links in my signature to find more of what I have to say about some of these things (on the relspace web page find the link to essays and on the blog site continue to the comment section where there is more).

I'm currently am a Christian unaffiliated officially, it would be difficult to affiliate with most churches with my take on scripture. But I do enjoy the music worship and miss that in my life.

I can totally relate to that. I was drawn to the worship experience first in Calvary Chapel then found a Vineyard that had the same worship practices but had a far more inclusivist way of thinking and so it is the Emerging Vinyard of Salt Lake City that is currently putting up with me and my radical ideas about Christianity.

I have a past history or involvement with Young Life (evangelical youth org) ..was eventually baptized in a Baptist church (Vancouver) where thankfully at least women were allowed to speak, teach and be in leadership. After undergrad went on to study at Regent seminary..lived with with strong minded Christian women who were trying to navigate the sharky waters of pastoring churches and getting their PhDs in theology...etc...I saw that and felt like Nemo in the evangelical ocean ..most of them could not jobs in the church...so I opted out of all that and stuck with healthcare. particularly health of the first nations communities...which I am most passionate about.

On a more personal note, I was married into a evangelical family, for over 10 years. That ended 2 years ago, and I am now living with an wonderful and kind Atheist, and my partner's kids believe in God but describe themselves as (not affiliated with any church). We are respectful to each other's beliefs and as a family of 4 seem to have good conversations about various aspects of faith and life.

By contrast I was raised in a completely non-believing family, my father was even a Maoist atheist activist in the United States, blacklisted from teaching in the McCarthy era, and watched by the FBI (told to me by the head of the FBI in the area whom I met later). I started my own quest for truth, first in science (ending up with a masters in physics), then philosophy, and then only after that in religion, where to my complete surprise I have ended up a Trinitarian Christian, though an open theist and rather pluralistic in my outlook.

[Kiwi]

A very warm welcome to you Jenna.
I'm greatly encouraged by your opening post and look forward to your contributions. In my own marriage I'm the Atheist to my wife's very faithful Christian. It makes for interesting times.

By the way, did you mean to say that you do NOT see the OT and NT as history? That's how the surrounding sentences read.

[Emery]

Welcome Jenna, glad you found us.

[StillSearching]

Hello Jenna and welcome to the C&A forum, from a fellow "unconventional" Christian.

My father is a retired pastor from the United Church of Christ (UCC) so I spent my childhood and teenage years within that denomination. In early adulthood I fell away from the church for many years, mainly due to a dissatisfaction with organized worship, and perhaps a dash of youthful rebellion (though what I was rebelling against, I have no clue - my parents were not the tyrannical type). In my early thirties I met my wife, who had been attending a high church Episcopal parish for a few years, and she and I have been attending together ever since. We both enjoy the traditional liturgy and music of our church (we both sing in the choir), but it is the open-mindedness and intellectualism of the church that keeps me there. I would not remain in a church that does not allow its members to question and openly debate issues of faith.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your time here and I look forward to your contributions to the discussions, should you choose to engage in them.