On restrictions- certain activities are deemed unchristian?
“We build walls to set us free.”
“We try to remain holly by staying within the walls.”
“It is just a protection.”
“The bible never forbids gambling or drinking.”
“All principles are good essentially. Just that when they become dogmatic, people begin to forget the principles.”
“It is always easier to follow the rules than to remember the principles.”
“By adhering to certain rules people felt that they have done their parts in salvation.” i.e. gain the merits
On discrimination- if you are not with us you are against us.
It appears to me when we say love others like yourself we never quite extend the love beyond our Christian fellows.
“The bible never teaches us to treat everyone equally.”
“We are struggling to deal with them [homosexuals]. We try to extend our care but in a way not to condone their behaviours.”
On kidnap in Afghanistan- Shouldn’t we love our enemies and pray for them more?
“I am not saying that they are evil. I think they are being controlled by evil forces.”
“Of course we hope that they will be released safely. But that is secondary. More important they shall glorify God and bear witness to Him in front of the terrorists.”
There is a spiritual warfare.
On division- why discriminate against other churches?
“The main problem is that they don’t believe in Jesus[‘s divinity].”
“The Mormons is just a Christian imitation. They use the same terminology but the theology is distorted.”
“Like a fake diamond- it is sparking and beautiful but it is worthless in the eyes of the master. [dream]”
On church leaders- is that the exemplar figure to follow?
When they put condemnation before love.
When they say the wicked ones shall be condemned to eternal damnation.
When they say the Taliban (and…) shall be destroyed by God.
“Human are flawed.”
“Churches are made up of human and human are messy.”
“We agree on most of Osama’s manifesto: the west exported vices and corruption to the Arabic world. We are no superior to them to criticise them as barbaric. However that allegation is based on the assumption that their world was once pure and unblemished.”
“If we were to examine our society, isn’t this rampant consumerism another form of evil?”
“The whole world is tainted by evil.”
“Human are quick to see flaws in others.”
“Some criticised the church people as hypocritical. The reply: well, there is always room for one more…”
Can I just dissociate myself from the corrupted church and just focus on my personal relationship with God?
If we love our church we shall stand up to correct them.”
It is not enough to have a personal relationship with God. We are told to build churches. The communion is important.”
On God- the apparent discrepancies in the Old Testament
Do I just swallow those unfavourable accounts and think that: that’s what makes him real cause he cares
“We have to read those stories in the context. What other options does God have?”
“God has noticed the wickedness of evil since the time of Abraham. But he did not act until he felt that those evil has came to peak after five hundred years. That shall show that he is patient enough and do not get angry easily.”
“You have to notice those cities which God wiped out the people are so evil that they are killing each others and the babies. Extermination is a mercy.”
“Sometimes I too wonder about their salvation plan.”
Human can’t understand God’s mind.
On Bible- is every word come from God?
Internal consistency- across all authors and time, parallel verses
Scientific foresight- toxic food, quarantine law, big bang
Personal experience- living words, God speaks to me through Bible, deeper appreciation every time reread, never get bore.
Historically honest- the defeats in wars and the fall of King David
Culturally unbiased- it is women that first met Jesus after resurrection
Documentation proof- the
On canonisation- who decided, on what basis?
“The difference between Catholics and Protestants bible is secondary.
It does not affect the basic teaching.”
On Paul’s writing- personal opinion?
When people tried to attribute Paul’s attitude towards women to the cultural setting it appears to me that it was just his personal opinion and shall not reflect on God’s opinion. But how can we decide which things are only culturally relevant and what are universal?
“Paul confessed that some of the teachings are just his personal thoughts e.g. on marriage and celibacy.”
“Paul said man does not need to obey those dietary laws since the new covenant. Why did he still want to burden the women with those rules?”
“It never really bothers me as a man.”
“If we were to discount his advice as a cultural thing this could potentially be argued by others that practice homosexuality, serial monogamy and other sexual sins.”
“No, God and Jesus speak very clearly about homosexuality. That won’t happen.”
On liberal theology- do they have a point?
The feminist theology argues that the Bible is a male constructed thing intends to crush women at every instance. They think God treats man and women equally and they can have a satisfactory relationship with God without subjecting to male chauvinistic agenda in the Bible. The church views them as a departure from orthodoxy and the proper way.
“It is very dangerous to read the Bible with an agenda. That is how the suicide bombers etc found justification in their actions. You do not change the Bible to fit your story.”
“We are just following Jesus to address God as Father. He is certainly not a male or female.”
On pluralism- exclusiveness of Christianity
“I have to say that Christianity is exceedingly narrow.”
“It is up to God to choose the way of salvation not us.”
On Baha’i- the all-encompassing religion
“All worldviews are exclusive to the detriment of others.”
“It does not hold water. All religions are different. It can’t possibly from the same God.”
“If you believe that the Bible is true then the Quran must be wrong. There can only be one truth.”
“If they are multiple ways to salvation why Jesus had to die on the cross? What is the meaning of that salvation?”
On Islam- isn’t it inspired by God as well?
There are huge similarities between the Quran and Bible.
“The Arabs are pretty familiar with the Bible stories at that time. ”
Are you implying plagiarism?
“The rule of Ramadan indicates that Muhammad is clearly oblivious of the fact that there are places on earth where the sun never set.”
On the divine call
“There are Muslims that convert after Jesus appeared in their dreams. They remain firm in face of various prosecutions and intolerance.”
“There are tribes that had been waiting for generations for the missionary to bring them the Bible as indicated in their dreams.”
“The Chinese characters contain the hidden message of the creation.”
“God has prepared human for his message long time ago. ”
