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5 Differences Between Democracy And Christianity

January 15, 2021 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

Christianity does not equal democracy but democracy is Christian

Democracy’s Concept Is Accepted By All
The Definition Is Not

Democracy is one of those words that every American owns. We love it, embrace it, and repeat it ad nasueam but I question whether it is truly understood.

The definition is simple:

Democracy is a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.

On the surface, we get that. The people (you, me, and everyone else) are ultimately in charge but there is a downside. When we say the people are in charge, we are talking about all the people. Not the wealthiest, the smartest, the most attractive, the morally normative, or any other high profile group.

The people refers to all the people and as the culture becomes more diverse so too do the democratically legislated laws. The body of elected officials who legislate laws take into consideration the entire constituency when writing those laws.

Everyone has a say. Every group is represented equally and that is the Christian approach to governance. Democracy is a very comfortable form of government when everyone in the country agrees with you. As differences begin to accumulate and the laws expand accordingly, discomfort rises among the more religiously rigid.

Admittedly, my thoughts about democracy have moderated over the years. I’ve always considered it a Christian concept and it is, but how far can you extrapolate that idea?

Are Christianity and Democracy equal? Is one exactly the same as the other? Is Democracy the word we apply to government so we can make it seem like a religion? I would say no, no, and probably.

Faith Over Fear Tees

There are underlying Christian principles in a democratic form of government but democracy is neither sectarian nor religious. It can’t be because then it ceases to be a government of the people, for the people, by the people. Democracy is Christian but not in the way many Christians think. Democracy gives expression to those aspects of Christian doctrine that most Christians love to ignore.

Jesus taught us to love our neighbors. Not some of our neighbors. Not the neighbors we think are the right class or look like we do or agree with our personal beliefs. We are to love our neighbors period. Even if we consider them enemies, we are to find a way to love them.

Jesus said that too, but it’s not easy to do mostly because it runs contrary to our natural responses. How can we love our neighbors if we don’t allow for their differences, distasteful though they may be?

With a community as large and broad as the USA, you’re bound to find people you disagree with, lifestyles you could never accept personally, and personal choices you aren’t comfortable with. But that is the nature of community.

It’s logical. The larger the community, the more pronounced and widespread the differences. [Read more…] about 5 Differences Between Democracy And Christianity

Filed Under: Philosophy, Political Issues, Religion

In Quiet Moments by Tim Pepper

September 11, 2020 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

Praying on the beach.

Torn Between Furious Action and Patient Waiting…

God has a plan for you… That’s what I was taught. What do I do with that information though?

“God can steer a moving object.”

“Prayerfully wait on the Lord’s timing.”

“Put feet to your prayers.”

These are all things I’ve heard people say about what we are supposed to do with the knowledge that God has a plan for us. They are contradictory and platitudinal at best. What do they even mean and is there any truth to them?

I pray a lot. In quiet moments at work sometimes I breathe the words, “God, get me out of here….. Please?” I pray at night when I’m going to sleep. I pray throughout the day. My prayers have changed in later life. They used to just be angry rants about what I thought I deserved from life. Now I’ve learned that none of us deserve anything from life really. But I still sometimes pray those prayers.

What they really mean is that I’m not happy with where I am, or with what I’ve achieved, or with what I believe my hope for change is. I want someone to blame for it all. God’s an easy target. So I vent. I let all my anger out and direct it at my loving creator.

I think about what I must look like to Him sometimes when I see my 4-year-old melting down in tears because he can’t put his pants on straight. I think I must look like that to God, crying over my lot in life. He sees the bigger picture. I see the bigger picture too and help get the pants straightened out. I often can’t resist making some comments about how all that crying didn’t really help things much. God doesn’t add those insults to my injury. He just helps out and keeps the earth revolving around the sun so that I don’t die in flames or ice. [Read more…] about In Quiet Moments by Tim Pepper

Filed Under: Christian Living, Faith, Religion

Prayer – Universal, Accessible, Immediate, Personal

August 6, 2017 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

If you think it, God hears it.

Prayer Is A Tool
Not A Drive Thru Window

Have you ever lived in a world where the only means of communication was sending smoke signals?

No, I’m sure you haven’t but you can imagine how involved the process was.

You had to collect dry fuel to start a fire, wet fuel to create smoke and then generate a spark to get the fire going. None of that is easy to do.

There was no simple way to start a fire without matches and you couldn’t skimp on fuel. You needed clouds of smoke, not puffs. And to regulate the smoke you needed a blanket.

Sending smoke signals required a lot of hard, skillful work just to get started.

Distance was a consideration too.

Smoke dissipates quickly so line-of-sight and distance were critical factors. If the recipient was too far, the connection was lost.

Smoking your message from Venezuela to California wasn’t going to happen. [Read more…] about Prayer – Universal, Accessible, Immediate, Personal

Filed Under: Christian Living, Religion

4 Difficulties Confront Bible Interpretation

July 7, 2016 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

Bible content is neither alphabetized nor categorized.

The Best Way
To Respect Your Elders
Is Challenge Their Beliefs

You don’t have to be Christian very long before you realize how much people differ on various Bible teachings. You also learn quickly that these teachings are generally referred to as Beliefs, and a belief is something you don’t tamper with.

They’re like holy cows. Irreverence is not tolerated.

Just raising a question can be dangerous. Writing about it is heresy. It’s a burnable offense! Heretics rank right up there with witches.

The penalties aren’t so severe today but the attitudes haven’t changed much.

The Lord’s Supper (aka Communion, Eucharist, Lord’s Table) is a good example. There are many different ways this ordinance is observed.

Attend an Anglican church and you feel compelled to take the bread and wine. Attend a Catholic church and you’re prohibited. Attend a Protestant church and you get long-winded explanations, and you’re likely to get a different story with each church.

It’s only natural to ask why all the differences, but it’s not a question you can easily ask. The frequency with which churches observe the ordinance and who they allow to participate, are not topics for discussion. Churches generally have very fixed ideas. [Read more…] about 4 Difficulties Confront Bible Interpretation

Filed Under: Bible, God Speaks, Religion

Solitude, Silence, Contemplation? Please!

February 23, 2016 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

Personal notions always appear impeccable when protected in the solitude of our imaginations.

Sustained Conversation
Curbs Brashness

“Solitude, silence and contemplation?”

A friend recently sent me an email sharing a few snippets from material he had been encouraged to read by a friend who was into a religious leader, whose name I won’t mention.

One of the snippets promoted “solitude, silence and contemplative prayer.” It was somehow interwoven with “loving one another” and being connected to Jesus.

I’m paraphrasing because, quite frankly, all the ideas, though very acceptable separately, came across as mumbo jumbo. It was like the alphabet soup of religious, idiomatic jargon swirling together in a suspended state. The order of the ideas could shift with no change in meaning.

My friend wrote me wanting to know my thoughts.

To be honest, I don’t get it. Besides confusing, it is all so yesteryear.

The terminology harks back to a time when solitude was fairly common, silence was required and contemplation was allowed only in prayer, the silent kind. No audibles allowed.

I don’t know why we still use these terms.

The words were popularized when religion was owned and operated by the powerful few, centuries ago. The Spirit was entirely regulated.

Whatever ideas individuals developed through personal contemplation had to be kept a secret lest they be accused of heresy.

Today we’re smarter. We understand that these words describe the very issues that deprive people of feeling alive. Jesus commented on this very thing, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free!”

“Free” being synonymous with “Alive!”

And He said this to the most rigidly religionized people of the day. He didn’t say anything about solitude, silence or contemplation. According to Jesus, all they needed do was “continue in His Word.”

That sounds like action to me.

Should we still be using such words? Let’s look a bit closer. [Read more…] about Solitude, Silence, Contemplation? Please!

Filed Under: God Speaks, How To, Philosophy, Religion

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