If more churches actually followed what Christ taught they'd all have signs like this...

[Playinghardball]

[Wounded Bear]

1. There was a day when....

"Everybody welcome here" actually meant that everybody was welcome and signs like that were unnecessary.

Maybe I'm dreaming, but what can I say. My memory isn't what it used to be, among other things.

[1StrongBlackMan]

3. I can't read the OP's sign ...

But, as an African-American, I have welcomed seeing an "Everybody welcome here" sign.

[physioex]

5. It says...

Gay, Lesbian, Straight, Bi, or Transgendered? You are loved by god....You are welcome here.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

6. No there wasn't...

Let's be honest, being gay in the 1940s or 1950s would have been a miserable existence. Being a mixed-race couple in the 1950's or 1960's could have been somewhere between illegal and dangerous, depending on where you lived. Even being female wasn't a day at the beach.

I know. Before you respond, I know that being any of those three things isn't exactly easy even today.

But my point is that there was no "Golden Age" of tolerance in this country that occurred somewhere in our dimly-lit past. As a society, we're becoming more open and tolerant every day, perhaps not as quickly as some of us would like, but we're a damned sight better than we used to be.

[Heather MC]

12. I am a black Sista, married to a white man living in the south

before 1967 my DH and would have been arrested in the state we live in. I must say whenever I hear a politician talking about taking us back to the golden age I get a little scared for me and my children.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

14. The "good old days" kind of sucked...

Channeling my best Louis CK, "unless you were white."

Oh, hell. Watch him yourself: http://lybio.net/louis-ck-being-white/comedy/

[RebelOne]

20. I have 2 nieces who are both married to black husbands.

We live in Georgia. They also have children. When I first learned of this, I was living in South Florida where there was still racial discrimination. I was a bit disturbed about it because they lived in the deep South. But people have accepted it now. I grew up in South Florida in the '50s, '60s and '70s when it was not accepted.

[Aerows]

36. You should be

If they can invalidate one marriage (gay marriage) they can invalidate another (such as yours).

You know better than anyone, I suspect, how desperately some people would like to make your union illegal.

I don't understand it, but as a gay woman living in the South, I certainly know the underlying motivation for it - bigotry.

[Heather MC]

40. I can tell you this

After 12 years of Marriage I don't give care what anyone has to say we are married for life nay sayers can suck it!

[Aerows]

56. I'm on your side

My dear, and the day they try to take your marriage away, is the day I stand up and say that it is bullshit.

[Heather MC]

58. Prayfully that day will never come but then again

I am still in shock at the many of the days that have come that I thought never would.

[yellowcanine]

54. And that is exactly why I don't understand why so many black pastors are not only opposed to but

lead the charge against gay marriage. And they base it on old testament scripture which back in the day was used to justify segregation by race. I don't get that.

[Aerows]

57. You allow them to invalidate one marriage

They will invalidate another. It is plain logic of bigotry.

[Bertha Venation]

2. This does my former fundy's heart good.

I no longer believe in that god, but I believe in people, and these are good people.

[RKP5637]

26. +++ 1,000,000 +++ n/t

[4th law of robotics]

4. But no prostitutes, poor people, or hairy unkempt radicals

Jesus never would have associated himself with those kinds of people.

[physioex]

9. From an atheist perspective....

Why is it that people in modern day have to take their clues from a guy who lived two thousand years ago? You would think some of these things would be common sense.

[cbdo2007]

11. whether you believe in god or not....

or Jesus or not, the stories in the bible are meant to humanize problems and make them relatable to anyone.

It isn't that those things aren't "common sense" but if there is a story that goes along with a lesson to help people relate it to their lives then it is proven to be more useful to them. Just like math for me....I can't understand a mathematical equation, but if you give me a story problem I can figure out the answer by thinking about it in a real life scenario that I can relate to on some level.

That's why I never understood athiests being against the Bible. Real or fake, who cares?!?! The lessons are universal and if followed are positive for society. People distorting the teachings in the Bible is where problems occur.

[physioex]

13. Athiests arent against the Bible...

As a matter of fact the more I read mythology the better I can understand scientific principals like quantum mechanics where a particle can be in two places at the same time. The problem comes when Christians take stories like Genesis and Noah's Ark as literal.

[jeff47]

18. Atheists are not against the Bible, as a work of philosophy.

Treat it like Plato and it's fine.

Use it to beat me until I follow your warped interpretation of it, then there's a problem.

[RKP5637]

27. Exactly, it's the warped interpretation that is the problem, and

Last edited Wed Aug 8, 2012, 12:47 PM - Edit history (1)

compounding that with authoritarianism and those wanting the laws of the land to be biblical based. As a philosophical work it is interesting to be read and discussed.

[stopbush]

42. Sorry, but the warped interpretation of the Bible is the interpretation that white washes

what Jesus actually said.

This is the guy who said that unless you hate your immediate family, you can't love him. This is the guy who called the Canaanite woman a dog. This is the guy who made himself a scourge and beat people with it. This is the guy who said to have no care for the morrow.

The Xians white wash all of these loathsome acts/sayings, putting the best possible spin on it (by assuming Jesus WAS god incarnate, and a loving god, at that) and call it "what Jesus taught."

Jesus was a loathsome creature. Save for the few universal truths he espoused (like the tenet of reciprocity) that were common to all religions at the time and even before Jesus supposedly lived, the rest is gruesome, megalomaniacal, paternalistic bullshit.

Even famed Christian writer/apologist CS Lewis said, "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg - or he would be the devil of hell. You must take your choice. Either this was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse." (Source: Mere Christianity)

If one doesn't believe in gods - any gods - let alone sons of gods, then what is one to make of Jesus based on his actual teachings, which even CS Lewis points out are NOT moral, and the ravings of a madman...or something worse?

[RKP5637]

45. Interesting, thanks!!! n/t

[atreides1]

55. Let's be fair

We really don't know what Jesus said or did...what we have are writings from people who more then likely weren't even there and got all of their information either 3rd or 4th hand!

And then the church edited it sometime in the 4th Century, from at least 8,000 documents, that for all we know were never authenticated...and a small group of men then decided what was and wasn't acceptable based on thier own personal desires.


In other words the final result was a document based on hearsay and manipulated by men more interested in power and control over the people...and who were able to use this same book as a reason to murder others who had a different opinion....kind of like what the religious right wants to do to any who don't tow their line!

[heaven05]

46. interpretation?

THE WHOLE PROBLEM. AND A HANDY TOOL FOR BIGOTS AND RACISTS!

[RKP5637]

49. Yep, they've been using it as a tool for eons. And then on top of that you

have things like this ...

Missouri passes 'Right to pray' measure, passes by wide margin

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/right-to-pray-measure-passes-by-wide-margin/article_4b916011-c4cb-5f69-85c0-2fc8e3f6a36e.html

"This is going to be a nightmare for school districts, which will end up getting sued by individuals on both sides of church-state debate," said Alex Luchenitser, associate legal director for Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. "This is the most far-out constitutional amendment we've seen in the church-state area."

But the amendment's supporters were thrilled with the large margin of victory Tuesday.

"You don't have to see bringing religion to public square as a threat," Hoey said. "We see it as positive thing, and most Missourians did too."

http://www.examiner.com/article/missouri-s-religious-prayer-amendment-could-affect-public-school-students

"According to the language in the amendment, if a student who believes in creationism is asked to take a test on the scientifically accepted theory of evolution, the student could point to the new amendment and get out of the class. While the idea of creationism is allowed in private Christian schools, using it as an excuse in a public school could create a situation that makes everyone uncomfortable. Controversy could also arise if religions outside Christianity were used in public schools. Christianity is the most dominant religion in America, but other religions, such as Islam, are often looked down on. One could only wonder what the reaction would be if a Muslim student complained that their religious freedom was being infringed."

[Scootaloo]

31. I'm "against the bible" like I'm "against the Prose Edda"

Neat mythology. Nicely poetic in parts. Interesting snapshot of a culture lost in history. But not a basis for living and thinking in the 21st century.

[MADem]

32. Perhaps it gives a sense of continuity? No different from taking ones cues from Darwin, really.

The only difference is time.

When people start telling me how their belief system or lack thereof is the Be All and End All, I usually wonder if they're trying to convince themselves.

Live and let live. I don't worry about what people believe or do not believe, so long as they aren't telling ME what I must believe or not believe.

I think that's a good rule of thumb for all of us.

[nichomachus]

7. If everyone isn't welcome, then it's not a church

and it's definitely not Christian.

[ZombieHorde]

8. Perhaps, but we would also see some really sexist stuff too.

Jesus Christ wasn't really into gender equality.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

15. He was....His fan club? Not so much (nt)

[ZombieHorde]

16. 1 Corinthians 11:3

"Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God."

This link has many different interpretations of the line: http://bible.cc/1_corinthians/11-3.htm

[wryter2000]

24. That's Paul, I believe

It's definitely Christian, but not from Jesus. Actually, who knows who wrote most of the Bible, but that wasn't supposed to be a quote from Jesus.

[MADem]

33. From what I understood, not one word of the Bible was written by Jesus--it's just other people

putting their spin on what the guy supposedly said...hundreds of years after his death.

Also, who believes that a 33 year old Jewish guy, in that day and age, was UNMARRIED? That's just not believable.

The Bible is one of the most heavily edited books in history--it was cut and pasted to support an agenda by the universal church.

[Aerows]

37. Paul was a raving misogynist.

I can't imagine that Jesus would ever say such a thing.

[nanabugg]

44. Paul even says it's him speaking, not God. nt

[Bertha Venation]

10. I hate to rain on this parade . . .

This is a wonderful thing to see, no matter where it is, but it's sad that it's not in the U.S. This church is in Canada.

http://standrewsuc.com/

[physioex]

17. Good catch....EOM

[wryter2000]

25. That's my church's policy/philosophy

We don't have any sign outside at all, but we welcome everyone, including atheists and agnostics. We're Episcopalians in liberal Oakland, CA, but you'd find this true of most Episcopal churches.

[JBoy]

28. It's in a suburb of Vancouver. The United Church

is the most progressive protestant church up here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Church_of_Canada

In structure, the United Church has a "bottom-up" governance, where the congregation selects its clergy, rather than clergy being appointed by a bishop or other body. The policies of the church are inclusive and liberal: there are no restrictions of gender, sexual orientation or marital status for a person considering entering the ministry; interfaith marriages are recognized; communion is offered to all Christian adults and children, regardless of denomination or age.

[BlueNAlabama]

19. Bravo!

"Love your Christ but don't care for many Christians,they aren't very Christ like".
With apology to Ghandi for failure to accurately quote the great man.

[spanone]

21. that's the christianity i was taught, but that was a long time ago.

a religion that doesn't abide by those words is not christian imho

[RKP5637]

29. Same here, but a long long time ago. Looking back the church I went

to as a kid seemed very accepting. It was not a religious family at all. I think my father thought it was good for his politics.

Long story short, over the years it became more and more RW and really obnoxious and fundy.

I've never been a religious person. My mother (who wasn't that religious) kept going into her 80's, mostly for some activity I think, but then they kicked her out for not giving enough money and not being fundy enough. Long story short, she burned all of the bibles in the house and said F religion.

[deaniac21]

22. Any paying customer is welcome.

[part man all 86]

23. nice.

[unblock]

30. if churches believed what jesus believed, they'd be synagogues.

[Johonny]

38. +1

[spotlight]

34. Love thy neighbor

is the most frequently avoided commandment in churches today. Bless this church for following it!!!

[Bertha Venation]

35. Hi, Spotlight

Welcome to DU

[Raster]

43. Another that tends to completely evade American Christians...

...is that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

"I didn't understand that last comment... it's all Aramaic to me."

Welcome to DU!

[Nye Bevan]

39. My local church has a simple "Everyone is Welcome" sign,

which I think does the job. It's hard to list every single type of person there is.

[Raster]

41. Unfortunately, when it comes to many flavors of Christianaity...

...HATE SELLS! Hate is what fills the collection plate and church's coffers. Hate gives the ministers subject matter for their sermons and hate fills their congregations with righteous indignation. Hate fills the pews. Oh yes, in most American Christian churches, HATE is a profit center.

[RKP5637]

50. Well said! "HATE is a profit center. n/t

[Raster]

52. Thank you. Most Christian ministers know that "love they neighbor" is not prophetible.

And yes, pun intended. It's hate that makes the American Christian religious world go around. And what a oxymoron considering the King of Kings taught "that you shall love one another as I have loved you."

[99Forever]

47. Excellent!

One church on board, ten million others to go.

(and yes, I know there are some others, but they are the exceptions not the rule. So please save the kneejerks for someone else.)

[VPStoltz]

48. If the people who go to those churches...

actually followed what Christ taught - there wouldn't be any churches!
He said (or was it G_A_H_D_ who said it) outward displays of devotion only shown by hypocrites.
Worship should be private matter - done in the privacy of ones home.

[raouldukelives]

51. Yep & any charitable donations should be done anonymously.

You should never appear better than the lowest person near you in lodgings, dress or diet, always give the best seat in the house to the poorest bum around, heal the sick, feed the poor, never judge anyone unless you are without sin and if Caesar asks for money you give it to him.
Not exactly the mindset of "Conservative Christians"

[Raster]

53. Very true. Christ did not say "build me a grandiose temple to my glory," nor...

...did Christ say "I want you to be financially successful." Sorry, Rick Warren, but the Christ was very clear about rich men and the Kingdom of Heaven. Christ was also very clear about false prophets.