(NB: I'm not a Christian, but I am a medievalist. :)
God is pretty big, and kind of clever. I don't see how He/She could have made us to be sentient and soulful and then set up a game where our own curiosity would damn us and our kin thru one silly temptation.
I just don't think that God is that foolish or that mean. Among other things it runs counter to my experience of "A sea that refuses no river."
Well, there's the gnostic doctrine of the Fortunate Fall, which goes: the Eve eating the apple was a happy thing because it ultimately resulted in God sending Jesus: no apple, no cross. "Ave fit ex Eva" and all that.
Ne hadde the apple take ben The apple taken ben Ne hadde never our lady A ben hevene queen Blissed be the time That apple take was Therefore we moun singen "Deo gracias!"
"Fortunate Fall" Still buys into the Doctrine of Original Sin, tho, which is (in my opinion) just so much Rubbish.
It's fine that Jesus came with a good message, but to make buying into that message a precondition of being put back into Grace? Rubbish!!!
So it's a *good* thing that God stacked the deck in favor of mortals' *inevitable* damnation just so His Children could celebrate their Saviour? Rubbish!
What(non-dysfunctional)parent would DO THAT kind of crap to their beloved child?
I still say that if we feel separated from God's grace, it's because WE are making ourselves blind to it. It's there. How can it not be?
I still say that those who propogated the notion of "Original Sin" were hucksters and charlatans who were greedy for wealth and power. They thought to get it by exploiting people who-longing to be in touch with the Divine, had trouble getting past the challenge of doing so on a Material plane.
All of those beautiful words about Love and Forgiveness twisted into one big lie to enable a power grab. So sad that it still works.
"Original Sin" is the snake oil of organised Christianity and human marks are still lining up to buy it.
(no subject)
God is pretty big, and kind of clever. I don't see how He/She could have made us to be sentient and soulful and then set up a game where our own curiosity would damn us and our kin thru one silly temptation.
I just don't think that God is that foolish or that mean. Among other things it runs counter to my experience of "A sea that refuses no river."
Well, there's the gnostic doctrine of the Fortunate Fall, which goes: the Eve eating the apple was a happy thing because it ultimately resulted in God sending Jesus: no apple, no cross. "Ave fit ex Eva" and all that.
Just figured I should throw that out.
‘
(no subject)
The apple taken ben
Ne hadde never our lady
A ben hevene queen
Blissed be the time
That apple take was
Therefore we moun singen
"Deo gracias!"
(no subject)
It's fine that Jesus came with a good message, but to make buying into that message a precondition of being put back into Grace? Rubbish!!!
So it's a *good* thing that God stacked the deck in favor of mortals' *inevitable* damnation just so His Children could celebrate their Saviour? Rubbish!
What(non-dysfunctional)parent would DO THAT kind of crap to their beloved child?
I still say that if we feel separated from God's grace, it's because WE are making ourselves blind to it. It's there. How can it not be?
I still say that those who propogated the notion of "Original Sin" were hucksters and charlatans who were greedy for wealth and power. They thought to get it by exploiting people who-longing to be in touch with the Divine, had trouble getting past the challenge of doing so on a Material plane.
All of those beautiful words about Love and Forgiveness twisted into one big
lie to enable a power grab. So sad that it still works.
"Original Sin" is the snake oil of organised Christianity and human marks are still lining up to buy it.