If you are in my age bracket, you probably remember the skit from Saturday Night Live, where representatives from a five minute college would tell the students things such as "five minute business school: buy low, sell high."
Well, this is Five Minute Seminary - a few things you wanted to know about Christianity.
1. The argument about the six days of creation is like the chicken and the egg argument, and just about as important - after all, we ARE here. The next time someone asks you who created God ask them what caused the Big Bang.
2. The Hebrews were an ancient tribal people. They didn't have refrigerators, which is why you see instructions about not eating pig meat or shellfish. (Ever hear of trichinosis? How about salmonella?) Most of the ancient Hebrew laws were either moral laws, such as not killing or stealing. The rest were either ceremonial laws or sanitation laws, as I just mentioned. Today we have refrigerators, which is why we don't have to avoid foods that spoil quickly.
3. We believe Jesus of Nazareth was the "christ" (annointed one) the ancient Hebrews spoke of. He did not come to start a new religion, he came to bring Judaism to the Gentiles (non-Jews).
4. The Catholic Mass is a Jewish service that dates back to the first century and has been modified for Christianity knowing that the Christ is with us. This is not to say that other liturgies are wrong, but if you are wondering why they do it, that's why. They have fancy furniture and accoutrements because they want to put their best foot forward for God.
5. The last Crusade was almost 1000 years ago - get over it.
6. Christianity is a RELATIONSHIP, not a prison sentence. Be happy.
7. If you are ever sitting in a service and the one you are worshipping is the pastor, head for the exit.
8. If you are sitting in a service and the pastor tells you that you will go to hell for not giving enough, head for the exit. Jesus was the greatest evangelists of all time, and he never had a church of his own. BUT, if you want a nice place to meet, that's another thing. Personally, I don't think it affects your salvation one way or another. Don't let people guilt trip you, if you don't have anything to give, don't bother, unless you WANT to - even a cup of water offered in Christ's name is significant.
9. If you are ever sitting in a service and the pastor tells you that God is punishing somebody for goofing up, head for the exit. There are non-believers who utter the most vile blaspheme against Him, and they still prosper. Feces occurs.
10. The "Church" is not a building, it's not a denomination, it's not a "religion". It is comprised of every soul who names the name of Christ as Lord. YOU are the church. You meet together on Sundays to worship together and to support each other, not to pay homage to a building.
11. Your "denomination" is merely your expression of worship. Don't get constipated over someone else's expression. Just keep your eyes on the prize.
12. God has ordained marriage as the institution best suited to the family, and to society. Children who grow up with a stable home relationship and two parents are generally better off. He intends for your marriage to last a lifetime. Don't let ANYBODY interfere with your marriage, not even the church.
13. Barring that, adultery is NOT the only reason for divorce. Paul gives other reasons for divorce in his epistle letters, up to and including allowing an unbeliever to leave the marriage. I think abuse is implied, too, as a reason for divorce. There is no reason to stand for being a punching bag, thinking that it's God's will.
14. God gave you a brain so you could use it. There are just some things that are not mentioned in the Bible. Pray, then go with what your gut tells you, as long as it's in concord with the entirety of scripture. Murdering your spouse will be frowned upon.
15. Don't believe it when people tell you the world is going to end tomorrow, or that a new messiah is in town. If someone tells you that God gave them a message for you, be skeptical. God does use other people to communicate with us, but I find it hard to believe that a lot of people can even hear His voice.
16. Finally, it's just not that hard. It's a lot to remember, but use your own style. If you think God isn't answering your prayers because you forgot to say "Simon says", you would be wrong. He hears all prayers, and they all make a difference, but what prayer does is change you, it doesn't change God. And that change will always be for the better.
Love God with all your heart, all your soul, and all of your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself.
Really, Green Eyes? Wow. There are a lot of people who don't buy into the whole institution of organized religion. I beleive it is a man-made construct.
However, I would not be suprised if there is some kind of higher power or force in this universe or beyond, but I don't believe that it is anything that our puny minds could even begin to comprehend. It would not be Allah, Jesus, or Buddha, or any of the evolving "gods" people have created.
I just think it was a pointless post in this guy's thread, it's not like he posted a thread saying what do you think of this? I think it was a pretty awesome post and could have done without the one liner, I'm pretty sure judging from your other posts that most people on here know what you think of Christianity/the bible....just sayin, nbd
Five Minute Seminary 
