Vents: Random Acts of Venting!

[Henry Hawk]

How convenient but there's more than a little irony to your not keeping track of any such donations in order to be able to deduct them from the tax burden that you fine so onerous.

are you really serious?

[Exterminator]

No, but if all Christians would STOP, it would cripple this country.

This is laughable as well.

[Anne]

Anne, here is an interesting read (excerpt) for you on faith and works:

http://www.wordwiz72.com/paul.html

Paul vs. Jesus

Faith/Works
Paul (originally as Saul of Tarsus) was an admitted persecutor of Christians who might have found a more effective way to undermine the followers of Jesus. Perhaps he infiltrated their ranks and taught a doctrine that opposed teachings attributed to Jesus on several fronts, replacing Jesus' alleged teaching of universal, compassionate, selfless action with a selfish teaching of desire to gain a "free gift" of salvation based only on faith and completely devoid of any behavioral requirement or obedience to law, and distracting us from the selfless teachings attributed to Jesus. (It must be noted that Jesus never wrote anything, and his reported teachings are based on accounts whose authorship cannot be verified with certainty, but we can still cite the body of teachings attributed to Jesus as the Jesus doctrine since that is what has been handed down to us as being his teachings.)

Despite the widespread, uncritical adulation of Paul by those who listen to others instead of thinking for themselves, independent-minded analysts of Jesus' teachings have often found great cause to find fault with Paul.  One of the most famous critcisms comes from Thomas Jefferson, who wrote in a letter to James Smith, that "Paul was ... the first corrupter of the doctrines of Jesus." (Works, 1829 edition, vol. 4, p. 327.) George Bernard Shaw, the English playwright, is widely quoted as having said that: "...it would have been a better world if Paul had never been born."

Jesus reportedly teaches that BEHAVIORAL requirements (works/deeds), rooted in an internal change of spiritual growth within the person (not external or apart from the person, though the gift of teaching and techniques to achieve this personal change are a gift of grace not earned or deserved by us, but requiring ACTIONS [deeds] to implement), are integral to salvation. While perhaps it is not possible for us to "earn" the "free gift" that Jesus reportedly provides -- a teaching of the universal compassionate love by which the evil within us CAN be transformed into a more holy kindness of love -- the Jesus account clearly includes a behavioral component to his requirements for "salvation." While he does not say that this satisfies any "debt," he still requires it; perhaps he is demanding merely a small partial "payment" as a gesture of "good faith." (In fact, James suggests this by his comments in James 2:26, that we demonstrate our faith -- if it is genuine -- BY our works or deeds.)

Some will say that puny mortals can never perform enough good behavior to "earn" or "merit" salvation based on the value of their deeds -- that the attempts at human righteousness is as "filthy rags."

Aside from the fact that this simply contradicts Jesus, the point is not whether or not our puny mortal attempts at righteousness have sufficient intrinsic value. Jesus never says that compassionate deeds "earn" salvation, or that any of us could ever "merit" the very gift of our existence. He merely sets that as the standard for compliance. Just as a child may offer its parents or grandparents an awkwardly-drawn piece of art, which likely holds little real artistic merit (perhaps in terms of art critics it might be as "filthy rags"), still the parents sincerely and genuinely cherish such efforts. It may not "merit" winning an art contest and may be able to "earn" very little, but loving parents find it good enough to represent the qualities THEY deem of real and lasting value. The point is that Paul sets the standard for salvation as faith or belief in accepting Jesus (see below) while Jesus explicitly rejects this standard (see Matt 7:21-27) and sets the standard at universal compassionate love expressed in actions, as noted in greater detail in the next few paragraphs...

Interesting, Y. I guess I feel that if you believe in Jesus and God that is the first step and doing what you are able to help others is the second. Maybe I should have said in my first post that I did not grow up in a go to church family, but learned about giving and taking care of others from the example of my parents and other members of the family and friends. My parents considered themselves christians.

[Palehorse]

Jump through hoops. . . . wait. . . Jump through hoops. . . . wait. . . Jump through hoops. . . . wait. . . Jump through hoops. . . . wait. . .

The corporate world is just like congress anymore; all talk and bluster, and nothing accomplished! 

[Anne]

Dang, unleaded regular gas is $2.99.9 this morning.

[The Troll]

Dang, unleaded regular gas is $2.99.9 this morning.

  BP got to pay for the oil spill some how and no better time than Christmas time.  Right? 

[Anne]

Isn't just BP.

[Palehorse]

Yeah, you gassers are now catching up to the diesel crowd surrounding price per gallon.

I've been paying 3.20 / gallon for months now. I suspect that the same increase that went to gas also applied to diesel too, but I have not been out to see it for myself yet.

They typically implement the up-charges to all of them, then when gas goes down diesel stays where it is at, or at best only incurs about 20% of the reduction and then over a course of time. It's unfair as hell and certainly uncalled for, given the fact that diesel is the dirtiest grade of all produced and is the cheapest to produce for the refiners. 

[Palehorse]

[Palehorse]

[Palehorse]

[Palehorse]

[The Troll]

  One night we went to a pizza place with some new friends.  We walk in and we were asked, smoking of no smoking?  I said I didn't care and our new friend spoke up and said, how about no kids.  We were seated in a corner all by ourselves.  Across from us as an older couple eating.  Just then a family of two adults walked in with their 4 small and mobile kids.

  The family got their order of pizza and the kid were up and jumping up and down with their pizza throwing it all over the old couple.  So now when we go in a pizza place we ask for the no kid zone.   

[Palehorse]

 

  One night we went to a pizza place with some new friends.  We walk in and we were asked, smoking of no smoking?  I said I didn't care and our new friend spoke up and said, how about no kids.  We were seated in a corner all by ourselves.  Across from us as an older couple eating.  Just then a family of two adults walked in with their 4 small and mobile kids.

  The family got their order of pizza and the kid were up and jumping up and down with their pizza throwing it all over the old couple.  So now when we go in a pizza place we ask for the no kid zone.   

Don't get me wrong, I love kids! And when you go to Chuckie Cheese for pizza you have to expect them to be acting out. But when I am going to an adult venue for pizza and a few beers, I don't want sugar fueled and frenzied kids running wild to drive my own digestive tract into a spasm! 

[Palehorse]

BAH HUMBUG