from Naked Pastor
MANIPULATORS in the PULPITS
The strange mystery as to why so many people think those who are public speakers are "God like" is indeed weird. What was the magnetic appeal of Herbert W. Armstrong to so many people and for that matter why do millions think the Mormon church represents truth, or why the Jehovah Witnesses are the bearers of truth? What is this weirdness in the human mind that submits itself to follow human leaders, as if they are Jesus Christ in the flesh or God in the flesh? Whatever it is, it is for sure a ticket to destruction. The same is true for those who bow to political leaders thinking they are the source of truth and have the answers to all the human issues of life on earth. They don't!
Life is a merry-go-round and it goes in circles. Every voice that speaks proclaims "truth." Zeal, emotion and fervor are components of the human psyche. Many of us wish fervently that we could change the world and yet we seem to be helpless. We may detest violence and the never ending wars of the mad men in power and yet the wars never cease. Human greed for power over others never ends. The love of control and the never ending flow of free money (as in tithes and taxes), never stops. The world has its rulers and its slaves to the rulers, both in religious circles and in human governments. The rulers don't work for their food, but depend on the welfare of those they control. Those controlled comply and stupidly give of their labor to support the lazy rulers who think they have a "right" to a free lunch for life and plenty of luxuries to boot. Such is the reality of life on earth.
We have two classes of people and that is those who rule and those who are ruled. Does it seem strange that humans have brains and minds to think and yet so often those who are ruled are brainless? Church goers check their brains at the door of the church as they enter and allow those who stand in pulpits to do their thinking for them. What makes preachers the store house and library of all truth, wisdom and understanding, when they themselves are totally human as are all others? Millions fall prey to the clergy/laity system of the church world, in the belief that those who are "ordained" represent Jesus Christ and truth. NOT!!! I would suggest that the reason all humans have a mind and the capacity to think and reason, is because you are intended to be self-governing and self-thinking. That is not to say that we cannot learn from others, because we indeed do, but no one has a right to rule over another or make anyone think or believe that they must bow to religious "authority", as in the Worldwide Church of God or its silly splinter groups.
If the "Bible" is total authority over what humans think, then reason, intelligence and independent thinking has no place in human existence. Bible infallibility is censorship to using ones own God given brain to think. Simple reason is enough to prove that it is not rational to think that men who lived in ages past had all the answers to life on earth. They didn't then and they don't now.
Fundamentalist/literalists Churches are stocked with Bible readers. These are the ones who come up with "God said it, I believe it, that settles it for me."
ReplyDeleteIt would never occur to them to view the Bible as having an actual human origin or the words put into the mouths of the characters by other humans who are using it to teach a principle or forward an agenda.
How they think all the long "and God said..." were recorded in antiquity never seems to occur to them. It is the one place where oral traditions that are thousands of years old, make it thru time intact and totally accuate as originally intended.
It's a miracle.
M.T.Craniums
It's illusory madness, pure and simple. We start out as infants innocently trusting what our parents and other adults tell us and the habit continues. All our lives, we look for the innocent simplicity of someone to believe and follow.
ReplyDeleteThat is, until something jars our complacency and makes us start to think. Even then, the process is halting, long and hard.
The key, in my opinion, is to have a personal and independent relationship with God, without being taken captive by some of these "collectors."
ReplyDeleteIt would be very nice if there were groups of people such as in the times of the early apostolic church. But, we must remember, at least in the case of the Jewish Christians, followers of Jesus were pretty much declared personna non grata by their families, the priesthood, and their employer or the local business community. They could not turn to the Roman government for assistance, because the Romans considered any who did not worship their own pantheon of gods to be atheists. So, the early Christians became the ancient equivalent of hippies (minus the psychedelics of course!), and banded together in communes, often living in catacombs for their personal protection. No worries about their own ministers, because they were the apostles at this point in time.
The problem today is that everyone seems to want to play a game of Bible! So, instead of believers having a personal relationship with God, and the guidance inherent in that process, they are "persuaded" to equate a church with God. Unless members follow the doctrinal approach and teaching of that particular group, they are judged as not having the Holy Spirit.
Once one is ensnared by some magnetic "orator", as opposed to straight Christ-centeredness, the trouble begins, and usually involves financial and authoritarian slavery which has nothing at all to do with the Bible. Signing forms of loyalty, or covenant membership documents, being forced to acknowledge someone as an "apostle", "prophet", or other Biblical title, and being made to single source all spiritual input through that particular group can be what comes next! All this is used to co-opt what should be a deeply personal matter!
To me, church is part of my reference work, a place to take the Lord's Supper, participate in group praise, hear an inspiring message, and in some cases, to create a large pool to do something for the needy within the church, or distressed members of the secular community, and other worthy projects which tend to influence the surrounding culture in a positive way.
At this point, I'd be very reluctant to single source to any church unless the pastor were Jesus Christ Himself.
BB
BB noted: "So, the early Christians became the ancient equivalent of hippies (minus the psychedelics of course!),"
ReplyDeleteAre you sure? :)
"Unless members follow the doctrinal approach and teaching of that particular group, they are judged as not having the Holy Spirit."
"Let God's curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you." Galatians 1:8
Paul got really angry at those who did not follow his views.
"At this point, I'd be very reluctant to single source to any church unless the pastor were Jesus Christ Himself."
And then we'd have to be really sure it really was Jesus Christ himself! Personally I'd be skeptical of that too. Besides, after about two weeks, Jesus would be quoted saying, "My God, My God...where did you find these people!"
M.T.Pews
No matter how many times a minister says that he has no spiritual authority over any lay members there are still many in the congregation that look at him as if he does.
ReplyDeleteIt is just the dinamics of organized religion to look at the paster as the man who is specialy sent by God.
My Question is--Why belong to any organized religion? The benefits of belonging to a religion can be gleened by simply having a personal relationship with your God what-ever or who-ever your concept of God is.
All the COGs preach that submitting to them is the only true freedom, and they just want to make you into their slave for the rest of your life.
ReplyDeleteI think I'll convert to Catholicism just for the hell, so I can believe all these preachers are going to go there.
Well, MT, Galatans 1:8 is yet another scripture these anal canals lifted from context and falsely applied to themselves! It applied to the apostles and their students, not to anyone specific today.
ReplyDeleteDid anyone else ever find it strange that the original apostles were content to be identified as Jesus' apostles, while HWA and his toadies all called him "God's Apostle"?
BB