Intentionally Hidden (Religion)

by Balance_Maintained , U.S.A., Saturday, March 30, 2013, 07:38 (4039 days ago) @ BBella

As for your second post.. -> continued...
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> Bella: If men talked with God in the "beginning" and God spoke back or revealed himself to them, and God did this, that or the other thing, and we are made in his image, etc, then I suspect somethings afoot. If God is clearly seen by what is, then it's not the same God as the one that spoke and destroyed and hovered above, etc. The God that can be seen by what is, if it can even be called "God" is more like the Ein Sof we spoke of earlier. -None of this makes sense to me. Logically, if a scriptural view is taken, God did indeed reveal himself, but did not look face to face with any man, as that would have killed them. Moses face was glowing for a week after being in God's presence and he never saw God's face. -Also, you can tell a lot about the creator by his creation. To use a layman example, if you get a product from a manufacturer that is poor in quality, cheaply made, over priced, and toxic to boot, you can infer a lot of information about the maker of said product. They don't care about the environment, their customers, or their product. All they care about is getting rich quick. Conversely, we are 'fearfully and wonderfully made'. It is awe inspiring the amount of detail, complexity, and beauty that went into creation. Moreover, the very fact that we are capable of not only appreciating this beauty through our senses and our minds, but we are able to participate in the act of creation. That tells us a lot about the creator. -
>Bella: If, from this cosmic womb, a god person, who then created man in his image, and called himself YHWH, then dictated his word to man, but man can no longer can see, ..maybe he does have the right to dictate to us or require from us, or wait for us to have faith in him. But that god is not clearly seen. He has intentionally hidden himself from us. I cannot relate the two with each other. -'He' is a language artifact, disregard it at your leisure, though I do think it is fitting in a way(that has nothing to do with my being male). As for being hidden, it is clear from the scripture that it was not his original intent, but rather a means to an end. The challenge must be answered. -Think of it like this. One day, your child comes home from school and takes you aside and privately questions why you have authority as a mother and why he/she should do things your way. At that point, you can calmly explain what is going on. -Now, suppose a different scenario, where the child challenges your right to govern your house hold in front of your husband, other children, extended family members, and the neighbors. Now, you could punish your child, but if you did so you would be lending credence to their claim in the eyes of everyone else. If you completely ignore the child, you also give credence to their claims because you seem incompetent. What choice is there? It would seem like a damned if you do, damned if you don't. However, there IS a good way of dealing with it. You say, "If you know better than I what is in your best interest, then by all means, prove it." You have admitted no weakness, you have given no quarter, you have not lost face in front of anyone, but you have deftly shifted the burden of proof onto the accuser. -What happens as your other children watch the rebellious child struggle and fail?-See, one of the great follies of the 'church' is arrogance. They think that all the crap we have to go through is for our benefit. It isn't. We may be a favored creation but we are not the end all be all center of the universe. The things done here on earth are for the benefit of God's other children as much as they are for us. Yes, it is a universal power struggle. It is a chess game.. the original competition. It is a game played between two rivals for the right to be crowned king. There can only be one king of creation.-Like any game, it has its rules and strategies, and each piece is different and moves in different ways. Yes, we humans can get all twisted up over if we want and call names and point fingers and cry about how unfair it is. At the end of the day though, our ancestors volunteered us as pawns in this chess game. Once the game starts there is no stopping until only one king is left. There is no stalemate in this game. Just like in chess, sometimes pawns pawns are lost, sometimes they are sacrificed. The big difference is that God can reset the board and put the pieces back into play as intended from the start, but not until after the game is finished.-
There are two choices people have to make. The first is which side they are on, the second is whether they are capable of putting the safety of the king above their own. The sacrifice of Christ was more than a ransom, it was an example. Can you subject yourself willingly, not as a sheep with no mind, but as a free intelligent creature to the will of someone else for the greater good. Faith is the requirement for that. You have to have faith that not only can the board be reset after the game is played out, but that it will be and that sacrifice will not be asked for again.-See, the other thing people often forget is that it doesn't have to happen a second time. When two kings play, and one king loses, the winner doesn't have to take on every uppity prince that comes along. He has already proven himself.

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What is the purpose of living? How about, 'to reduce needless suffering. It seems to me to be a worthy purpose.