Thoughts 10/28/2007 October 28, 2007
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy, Religion.Tags: Philosophy, Religion
15 comments
Tests from God. Do they exist? This very question has plagued my mind for the last week or so, because of things I’ve been experiencing. I guess the truth is, in my life as of late, the existence of God as I’ve always perceived Him, has changed a little. I still believe in God, I just don’t know what to believe. I don’t know how much to accept from the Bible as accurate, and I’m searching for the answer as to why I should arrogantly accept Christianity as the “right” religion. However, I’ve had experiences in my life that help me believe. Christians use the word “heathen” to describe religions that they believe are wrong from their own personal standpoint, or simply use it for people that do not attend church. The thing that most Christians do not understand however, is that the word was used far before Christianity was born. The arrogance of most Christians bothers me. There’s a religious arrogance that some take that just gives you the vibe that they think they are right, and the rest of the world is wrong. There are also civil disputes within sects of Christianity. Baptists vs. Methodists vs. Catholics vs. <insert any other here> The doctrines of beliefs sometimes vary greatly.
Does God test you to the point where you will become an Atheist? Does that make sense? For an example, if you know the story of Job, you know that Job got royally screwed throughout the story. I stop and ask myself if I lost that much, would I have remained faithful to God? I feel like my faith has been tested so much over the spring and summer. Things that I never thought would have happened to me, actually did happen. I think 2007 overall has been a crappy year for most people. Is it God testing me? Is God testing all these other people? If so, how far is it going to go? What else am I going to have to endure to prove that I am faithful? If I theoretically renounced Christianity and became an Atheist or an Agnostic, and all these hardships were “tests,” is that what God wants? Let’s philosophically twist the idea; Let’s say I fail the test. God knew I was going to pass or fail, so why should I endure it? Didn’t God know whether or not Job was going to remain faithful? I get so tired of hearing the phrase that suffering builds character, etc… Such an overused, scapegoat phrase.
I feel like I give out more in life than I receive. I don’t really say that arrogantly, it’s just the truth. I feel like I keep on giving and giving to people, and I am the one that gets screwed in the end. I feel like this year has changed my outlook on a lot of things. My trust in people for one thing. It’s been completely and utterly destroyed. I went to trusting almost every friend and acquaintance I know, to trusting about six people on the planet. But, maybe that’s not such a bad thing.
Thoughts 10/2/2007 October 2, 2007
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Politics.Tags: Politics
3 comments
I was browsing on the popular social-networking site facebook.com earlier and found that some local individuals had started an anti-liberal group. Ok is it just me, or is this a little extreme? I think it’s absurd. These people are so closed minded to any ideas other than their own. I find it impossible to think that way. I think everything should be about free-thought and expressing opinions, not close-minded ignorance.
I’ve always been that way on most issues. I am against the death penalty, but I’m not one of these people that will argue you down about it. I respect your opinion. To me, people that want to argue with you on political points-of-view are either ignorant, or insecure in their beliefs. Just like faith, people hate having their views and opinions shaken. Why can’t everyone stop and respect what other people think? This issue alone is why I choose “apathetic” as an option on politics. Not necessarily because I don’t care, but because I am not making a statement when I answer a question like that. I don’t believe what I believe to sway people. I don’t believe what I believe to hate others or belittle others. I believe what I believe because in my eyes it’s what is morally right. People that are extreme are doing nothing but ridiculing themselves in my opinion. I don’t discuss politics when my friends do, because what I have to say won’t change their mind, and most likely someone will just get upset. I know a guy that will turn blood-red and get fighting mad if you disagree with him on a political issue. I’m sorry but that’s over the top.
Living in the south though, just about every single person here is a conservative nut, to the point where they are willing to get their 20 gauge shotgun out of the back of their pickup if you make a statement that disagrees with their doctrine of belief. As I stated before, I never have believed in the death penalty. It doesn’t follow with my personal beliefs and what I think is right and wrong. If you don’t believe that, it’s ok with me. However, if I were to make that statement to 90% of the people in the state that I live in, they’d say I was a liberal son of a bitch that needs to be burned at the stake. What’s wrong with this picture?
**Update October 17th, 2007**
I’ve received several emails similar to the following:
Kelsey,
Does this secure your seat politically as a liberal? That’s the vibe I get from reading this post.
Answer: No, this post doesn’t reveal my political standpoint. You’re probably referring to the statement “However, if I were to make that statement to 90% of the people in the state that I live in, they’d say I was a liberal son of a bitch that needs to be burned at the stake.” That statement simply implies that people place stereotypes too fast, especially in the south where I live. I haven’t and never will reveal my political standpoint on this site.
