As the Christian Church became more organized and doctrine became a more imporant means for identifying Christians, the concept of heresy came to be used to denote divisions or schisms within the church. In Titus a heretical person is described as one who chooses to follow his own self-willed questions. Heresies in Christianity came to refer to self-chosen doctrines not emanating from God.
Well, I think the message of
A God that loves everyone no matter what your belief is, or even if you believe in God or not.
is certainly biblical, a Christian ideal at the least, however, it depends on how debbiejo reached this ideal. Was it as a product of much meditation, prayer and reference to tradition? Or because thats what she wants to believe as it makes her feel best.
Originally posted by Storm
Her views however aren' t consistent with and are contrary to the Christian doctrine. She definitely fits the profile of a heretic.
Yes, but that wasn't really the question I was asking. That one belief she has is part of the greater Christian teachings, so does that mean the belief is not heresy even though she is? (To be honest though Storm it is very easy to declare 5 billion people on the earth heretics-based on Catholic teaching)
I am a Muslim. I follow the religion of Islam.
I worship the God of Abraham whom Muslims call "Allah" in the Arabic language. Allah is One; He has no partner, is neither male nor female, is all-powerful and all-knowing, begets not nor was He begotten, always was and always will be, and will judge us all on the Last Day and give each of us our just reward or just punishment.
I believe that in order to get into heaven, you should believe in the One God of the Patriarch, reject evil (follow the 10 Commandments) and be charitable to your fellow men, i.e. spend of your wealth and time to help those around you whether they ask you for that help or not. I believe if you strive to do this, God will forgive you of your lesser sins and you will win your reward.
I'm a Christian Protestant. I'm a member of the Norwegian State Church, but I don't support it. I find it kind of amusing really, that Americans seem to be more religious than us Norwegians, even though we have a state church. As most Norwegians, I think religion is something very private, therefore I do not attend church and I do not "act" religiously as some would call it. To quote Jane Eyre; "I believe what I believe".
Regards, Yvonne
Officially I was baptised as a Christian (Church of England according to my dog tags) as a child.
Now I have renonced my CoE title and just follow a Bushido/Jedi/"talk softly but carry a big stick" style of doing things.
My time in the Forces has made me more cynical of all organised religions.
I don't have any problems with religions though (until you start preaching, thats where the big stick comes into play).