[QUOTE=Surya Deva;45222]Yes, I understand none of this goes on in contemporary Christianity. However, you do need to realise that in older Christianity this did go on. Much of the violence and bloody history that Christianity has was justified using the OT.
If I just take the NT ONLY there is no way that any of that can be be used justify violence, death and destruction. On the contrary it promotes a message of peace, tolerance, love.
However, later on the original Christianity was usurped by the Roman empire. They tagged alongside it the OT in order to justify their henious crime in ethnically cleansing pagans. They set up clergies where men were arbitarily given positions of being people of god - and spokespeople of god. These men could order whatever they wanted and then claim it was god’s will. They could interpret the gospels as they wanted and then claim it was the real message. This is how the Roman empire used the religion of Christianity to justify the death and destruction and oppression of the masses. Anybody that challenged the religion of Roman catholicism, even Christian traditions who did not agree with their interpretation of Christianity, was put to death, arrested or penalized.
Later on, the same tactics were used by the Church to slaughter and convert Africans, Native Americans, Australian Aborgines, Indians.
In contemporary times these kind of genocides no longer go on, because the Church would never get away with it. However, the Church does sponsor subversive activity in third world countries in order to make them hate their indigenious religions and cultures. Activities like targetting vulerlable tribal and lower castes in India for mass conversions and telling them to hate Hindu culture and not associate with Hindus is a common practice by the Church in India. It is sponsored by powerful Church organizations internationally such as the Southern Baptist Church.
You need to separate the Church from Jesus Christ. There is Jesus whose teachings and stories are recorded in the OT. And then there are men who have appointed themselves as the arbiters of your religion, who do horrible things in the name of your Jesus.
You do not need a Church to practice what Jesus taught. Jesus taught you to live in a way of love, peace, tolerance and to imbibe within yourself the divine qualities. To live for god and live for him. You can do that in your own private space. You do not need the Church to do that.
Reject the religion of Christianity that has been created by men. Embrace Jesus and his teachings in the NT.[/QUOTE]
I am glad that this is the stance that you have on Christ. But I believe that there are some Christian denominations that abide by the above. Brethern, Amish and Quakers (all members of Anabaptist) subscribe to no creed or “formal” set of rules. The only goal in life is to live as Christ did. Peacefully, Simply, and together. The church is thought of as a community of believers that support and love one another in all things. There is no badgering to join the community and all people of all backgrounds, creeds, relgions, race and sexuality are welcome to attend as a seeking believer.
As for the “Church” (the whole of all Christian Believers) there are many differing factions. However, there must be a church (or rather a community of believers according to Christ) that share, grow and learn together. Christ taught in this way and his followers traveled with him. The purpose of this community of believers is this:
we can each learn some of what Christ taught on our own, but as humans we also learn by watching the lives of others. When we see their pain from a death, divorce, affair, or the joy that comes from children, marriage, success; we learn how to love, have compassion, and most of all faith. Faith that we are not alone on this little blue planet, in the middle of a universe so large that we can not fathom its size. Faith that we are all a part of the same family whether we are Christians, Hindus, Buddest, Muslims, Athiest, Mormons, Baptists, Agnostics, or Pagans.
Nameste
TeeA
