Reflections of church

[SwampGas]

Today was the first day I went to church. Being of a non-christian background, I had no idea what to expect.

Last night when I got home from http://www.tractortwang.comTwang</a>, N IMed me...we chatted...and then she asked if I'd like to join her for church. While you NEVER say no to a beautiful woman asking you to do something, I was genuinely curious...so it worked out well.

Full band, singers, 2 Powerpoint presentations on projectors to compliment what was going on, huge sound system, integrated lights, puppet show for the kids....I was in shock. I was quite entertained. I thought church was about sitting around and being quiet then hearing a boring speech by an old man that made no sense.

It was interesting. If she requests my presence again, I'll certainly say yes...and not just because she's hot <img src=smilies/magbiggrin.gif>

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[Narvick]

Sounds like a contemporary church. You see that in the north more often. Down here in the south, some Baptist churches are going towards a contemporary movement. I don't like it as much, but it's just a preference.

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[punjman]

heh, reading that made me think of the episode of the Simpsons where Burns builds a new church for Springfield. Nice and commercialised.



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[The 9th Sage]

> Full band, singers, 2 Powerpoint presentations on projectors
> to compliment what was going on, huge sound system,
> integrated lights, puppet show for the kids....I was in
> shock. I was quite entertained. I thought church was about
> sitting around and being quiet then hearing a boring speech
> by an old man that made no sense.

What the hell church is this? Wow that's elaborate...my church never had anything like that, although the minister was awesome. Genuinely nice guy, pretty funny too.

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[SpaceTiger]

> What the hell church is this? Wow that's elaborate...my
> church never had anything like that, although the minister
> was awesome. Genuinely nice guy, pretty funny too.

I recommend speaking to ministers. They're basically glorified philosophers, and that makes them extremely wise. I've never spoken to any of the hell and brimstone ones, though, so perhaps I shouldn't speak too soon.

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[Fla Flash]

I've been to three different ones here and two in Daytona Beach. One in DB reminded me of the church I belonged to in CT. Small white building, steeple, traditional stuff. Cept a woman minister who is really cool. I try and get down there every other month.
The three I've been to here are all like what you've described. One of them, however was quite persistant about joining. That's when I stopped going. If you're going to join, you should do it when you feel right, not when someone else feels it's right for you.. <img src=smilies/magbiggrin.gif>

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[Tsyni]

resisting temptations...barely.... *makes a break for the backroom*


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[Goku]

> If this woman is a faithful christian, she will definitely
> give you more attention (the kind you really want) once she
> notices you are starting to become more serious about her
> "religion"

Horseshit. I have been with 2 christian women. They were both indecisive people concerned only with themselves who were always right! Not the kind of attention you want.

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[fairykiller]

> If this woman is a faithful christian, she will definitely
> give you more attention (the kind you really want)

As opposed to what <img src=smilies/erm.gif> ??

Damn... all this time I thought I made a good girlfriend, but now I see what went wrong... not enough Christian attention...

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[SwampGas]

> She will definitely not abandon her beliefs because of you.

Who said I wanted her to abandon her beliefs for me? Who said I was against Christianity?

I don't understand your point.

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[Danoz]

> Horseshit. I have been with 2 christian women. They were
> both indecisive people concerned only with themselves who
> were always right! Not the kind of attention you want.

Wow, 2 Christians?!?! Well you may as well have dated them all
<img src=smilies/upeyes.gif>.

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[Goku]

> > Horseshit.

I know, I know. Complete over simplification. I was very very very angry at my college when i wrote that. It had nothing to do with his post.

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[SwampGas]

> Well, I'm not trying to say that (heh, perhaps I should have
> not posted anything at all). I'm not saying that you wanted
> her to forget her religious preferences. All I'm saying is
> that if she is a faithful christian she will not change her
> mind regardless of what happens.

By saying that you're insinuating that I'm trying to get her to change to something. I'm not.

Why is it that I say I went to a Christian church, had a good time, and suddenly I'm a satanist trying to convert everyone away from it?

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[RedXIII]

> As opposed to what ??

This idiot is under the impression that if a woman is a true Christian then she is to be totally subserviant to a man. I've heard this many times from other so called Christians. In other words, I think he's trying to say that if she's true to his idea of a Christian woman, that she must satisfy Swampy's desires at any time, even if she does not really want to.

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[Danoz]

That's not what he said, and I think you know that. He said that being a good Christian girl she'd likely be good to him. You sure know how to put words in somebody's mouth.

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[Danoz]

> Man, I ought to take some courses on how to express
> myself...

Don't worry about it, idiots here will blow things out of proportion and put words in your mouth.

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[Danoz]

> Well, there is one thing I learned from all of this: I can't
> express myself for shit. Please ignore my stupid comments...
> You won't be hearing much from me again...

You didn't say anything wrong, but the people here sure did a good job making you think you did. <img src=smilies/headshake.gif>
Some of you really need to figure out what somebody is actually saying before you respond.

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[SwampGas]

> You didn't say anything wrong, but the people here sure did
> a good job making you think you did.
> Some of you really need to figure out what somebody is
> actually saying before you respond.

Well, let's find the misconception...

Since when was God supposed to be boring?

Rhetorical question hinting that He's not boring.

Most people picture him as being this extremely dull ruthless being. If you keep going to church though, you will eventually notice he is not like this at all.* Certain people * are the ones who make church/God seem lame.

Supportive statement for the above. I'm in agreement.

If this woman is a faithful christian, she will definitely give you more attention (the kind you really want) once she notices you are starting to become more serious about her "religion" (I like to view christianity as a way of living).

True...I've mentioned to her that I've been moving more Christianity into my life recently. It's not like I'm a satanist, though...I come from a semi-religious background that involves the same god that Christianity has.

She will definitely not abandon her beliefs because of you.

This insinuates that I'd be trying to get her to stop being Christian simply because I'm not. That's not the case. At this point, I'm not willing to accept Jesus as Gd. That is blasphemous to me. However, I've recently come to terms with Christianity in that when they reference Jesus, they're referencing Gd since they believe them to be one in the same. To me, Gd is Gd. There is no other. HE said that. The new testament says "oh, wait, nevermind. Just kidding. There's actually three." I can't accept that after I've been raised with the values in the old testament.

I've mentioned it before and I'll mention it again...I've revoked, rebuked, and taken back all my ill sentiments towards Christianity. That's why I attend Christian Fellowship at the college here with some friends...that's why I went to church when she invited me. I want to educate myself on the subject in my own way rather than the stereotypical bible-beating Christian telling me to believe it or burn in hell (which is a whole other subject).

There is a reason why she was suddenly brought into my life. To help me get over the ex and fix my life? To help me with the religious situation (after all, she was the first person to invite me to church)? While I'd LOVE to be romantically involved with her, maybe she was put into my life to help me out rather than to be a wife....and at this point I think it's a combination of helping me get my life back together and giving me some info in the religious side of things.

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[Danoz]

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr>

?€?She will definitely not abandon her beliefs because of you?€¯. --- This insinuates that I'd be trying to get her to stop being Christian simply because I'm not. That's not the case. At this point, I'm not willing to accept Jesus as Gd. That is blasphemous to me. However, I've recently come to terms with Christianity in that when they reference Jesus, they're referencing Gd since they believe them to be one in the same. To me, Gd is Gd. There is no other. HE said that. The new testament says "oh, wait, nevermind. Just kidding. There's actually three." I can't accept that after I've been raised with the values in the old testament.

<hr></blockquote>

First off, I can see where you would take that line the way you did. I was referring more to the hostility towards him by others on this forum. Second, the Old Testament references to the coming of a savior. As often as it?€™s heard, Jesus came to create a bridge for us?€”a Christian believes that bridge is essential. I too, believe that God is God?€”but I also believe that Jesus is God, that they are one in the same. I would say that Jesus is God as a man, (Emmanuel meaning, God with us) the son of man?€”the son of God. I also don?€™t believe that the NT contradicts the OT, instead of the it is fulfilled by the Gospels. Even Jesus said he did not come to destroy what was written.

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr>

I've mentioned it before and I'll mention it again...I've revoked, rebuked, and taken back all my ill sentiments towards Christianity. That's why I attend Christian Fellowship at the college here with some friends...that's why I went to church when she invited me. I want to educate myself on the subject in my own way rather than the stereotypical bible-beating Christian telling me to believe it or burn in hell (which is a whole other subject).

<hr></blockquote>

Oh, I couldn?€™t agree more. I?€™ve become most of all obsessed with knowing the history of Christianity (the reformation, Protestantism and the apocryphal books, how the bible came into being, more accurate translations of meaningful words).

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr>

There is a reason why she was suddenly brought into my life. To help me get over the ex and fix my life? To help me with the religious situation (after all, she was the first person to invite me to church)? While I'd LOVE to be romantically involved with her, maybe she was put into my life to help me out rather than to be a wife....and at this point I think it's a combination of helping me get my life back together and giving me some info in the religious side of things.

<hr></blockquote>

Yup, just find a way to be happy bro?€”that?€™s what it?€™s all about. I sincerely hope things work out for the best. Keep pushing the questions on the Christianity. Before I really knew what I meant to be a Christian, I had to find out why I was a Christian and what Christianity really was.


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[fairykiller]

> That's not what he said, and I think you know that. He said
> that being a good Christian girl she'd likely be good to
> him.

That makes no sense to me. How is being a Christian girl any better than being another kind of girl? Or even more likely to make her good to him than any other human being that he doesn't know at all? And don't try to say there wasn't any hint of a comparison to other girls there... he said "[she'll give you] the kind of attention you really want" (obviously as opposed to some other kind of attention, presumably non-Christian)... I know this is not the Backroom, so sorry about the argumentative tone, I was just sort of put off a bit there.

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[SpaceTiger]

> > If this woman is a faithful christian, she will definitely
>
> > give you more attention (the kind you really want)
>
> As opposed to what ??

The kind you don't want, I assume. I don't get the impression that he's trying to badmouth any specific group of non-Christians, just that he's trying to goodmouth (I know it's not a word) Christian girls. I interpreted it as "Christian girls will be good to you."

In my (limited) experience with devoted Christians, I would have to say that this is probably true. A strong sense of ethics and humility are extremely good qualities for anybody to have in a long-term relationship. That's not to say that everybody would be happy with such a person, just that they would be good partners from the practical standpoint, particularly if you want to have a family. I think you can probably get the same qualities from anybody with a strong sense of ethics, be they Christian, Muslim, athiest, or whatever.

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[Danoz]

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr>

That makes no sense to me. How is being a Christian girl any better than being another kind of girl? Or even more likely to make her good to him than any other human being that he doesn't know at all? And don't try to say there wasn't any hint of a comparison to other girls there... he said "[she'll give you] the kind of attention you really want" (obviously as opposed to some other kind of attention, presumably non-Christian)... I know this is not the Backroom, so sorry about the argumentative tone, I was just sort of put off a bit there.

<hr></blockquote>

Believe me, it's not an insult to non-Christian girls, but a compliment to Christian girls who stand strongly behind their beliefs. I think you're just reading too much into it.

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[RedXIII]

> That's not what he said, and I think you know that.

Well that's what I'm sticking to because there doesn't appear to be any attempt to refute what I said.

"the kind (of attention) you really want"

Come on now. What kind of attention does Swampy want and what exactly made this guy think he knows what kind of attention Swampy wants?

That's what I want to know.

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[punjman]

Sam,

I think he meant that if you ended up NOT joining her religious organization, she will not change her mind (with regards to her liking you) about the relationship.

I don't see how he was insinuating you were trying to convert this girl.

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[SwampGas]

> I think he meant that if you ended up NOT joining her
> religious organization, she will not change her mind (with
> regards to her liking you) about the relationship.

I don't know if she "likes" me in that way or not. I'm pretty certain there's a definite friendship vibe going on...but I'm as thick as a pile of bricks when it comes to picking up signals.

Besides, she said she didn't want a relationship right now. Too busy with school and stuff to give her man the proper attention. Of course, I'm just as busy...so seeing her twice a week would work out nicely for us both.

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