I can only imagine how stunned and surprised you are to receive another letter from me in about a month or so.
In my last letter, I was a little all over the place, and I wanted to clearly mention a big difference in my life—religion.
Before going further, let me clarify that everyone is entitled to their ideas and perspectives and the freedom to worship whoever and however they like. I'm not attempting to convert anyone, or worse, to compel them to embrace my knowledge. Along with my letter, I've sent material from one of the researchers I follow and one of my favorite books. I watch Mark Passio's videos on YouTube and listen to his podcasts on his website. Not everyone can sit through Mark's YouTube videos and audio. Mark can be rather vile and crude at times and is an extremely intense person. He sounds angry and furious, but I can understand why. However, I don't like it when he loses it and begins calling people names. He has the right to express himself, even though that is too extreme.
As you are aware, I have always been interested in religion, mostly Christianity. When I returned home in 1994, I looked for an ideal church where I could worship Jesus. I was raised Catholic, so one day I went to St. Peter's Church, a well-known church in my old neighborhood. My family and I frequently visited this church, particularly for midnight mass on Christmas Eve. Pope John Paul II visited this church in 1979, and we were fortunate to see him and shake his hand. I was so thrilled that I considered joining the church at one time in my life. Now that I think about it, I can't help but laugh at how stupid I was.
Once inside the church, I realized something, or rather, my eyes began to open. The church is lovely, and the inside is ornamented with stained glass depicting "Jesus" at various phases of his journey to the crucifixion. There is a large altar in front of the church, as well as flowers, incense vessels, candles, and a painting of St. John Neumann. Although I hadn't studied the Bible or truly read it at the time, I was familiar with the Ten Commandments, even if I couldn't recite them in sequence. One commandment that came to mind was to not create any graven images. And yet, here I was in church, looking at all of these graven representations of Jesus. Then I noticed a few elderly individuals bowing down in front of Saint John Neumann's portrait, praying. I also remembered a few of the other saints to whom people prayed. And it made me wonder. Why do people pray to deceased individuals?
They are human beings, not God. Aside from that, Jesus emphasized that you should pray to God, our Father, not to so and so the "Saint"- A person who has been raised to sainthood by other humans, which is a joke.
Anyway, I left the church feeling disgusted by the hypocrisy. I went to a few other churches but they didn't feel right. One day, while traveling down 95, I noticed a sign advertising a Christian radio station with a guy saying the end was near, lol. So I turned to the station, and I have to admit that I really enjoyed the music. I appreciated two things about this station: the music and the Bible-related call-in questions. People could call in and ask the bible teacher any questions about the Bible. I was curious and wanted to know more. One day, while I was downtown, some random guy handed me a Bible track. It included information on the Christian radio station I had been listening to, as well as information about a Bible study group.
I called the person indicated on the track, Kevin. We spoke briefly, and I met him. Kevin, his wife, and their four children were extremely kind and nice people. Kevin told me about the church he and his family went to, a Protestant church, Presbyterian. He invited me to come along one Sunday, which I did. I was pleased with the church. There were no images, paintings, or even a crucifix with a dead man on it. They had a cross hanging, but it was bare. And the church's music was beautiful. When church concluded, we all returned to Kevin's house, where he hosted Bible study.
Now this is where my eyes started to open. For the first time, I started going through the entire Bible, the Old Testament as well as the New Testament. I was also reading and studying the Bible with other church members. Along with the Bible study group, reading the Bible, and listening to the radio station's call-in Bible question show, I learned a lot about the Bible that I had never known before. And then the questions started.
I had several questions that no one could answer. If there wasn't an answer, I'd hear a theory. Questions for example, who created God? If God knows everything from beginning to ending and end to beginning, why did he permit Satan into the Garden of Eden? And the answer I received was that God was testing them. What? But God already knew what would happen. And the reply would be: to show them. So, why couldn't God simply inform them rather than allow them to listen to Satan? Well, to simply put it, they were not too thrilled that I was asking so many questions, lol. They were much happier when I was quiet and followed along like everyone else. And, embarrassingly and shamefully, I fell for the "end of the world" hoax, lol. When the "end" didn't happen (obviously), I realized that no one knows the end.
What truly drove me away from the church and even the God of the Bible was ONE story. The story is about Jacob and Esau. After reading that account, I began reading the Bible with critical eyes. And once again, started asking the hard questions that no one could answer. After the "end" did not occur, I parted ways with Kevin, his family, and the church. However, I continued to study the Bible and occasionally listened to the radio station for the music and the call-in Bible questions.
The account of Jacob and Esau is as follows: Jacob and Esau were twin brothers born to Isaac and Rebekah. Esau was born first (reddish and hairy), therefore he became the legal heir to the family birthright, which meant, among other things, inheriting the Covenant between God and Abraham. Esau was a skilled hunter and his father's favorite, whereas Jacob was a plain man who lived in tents and was his mother's favorite. When Isaac was near death, it was time to deliver Esau his blessings. Isaac instructed Esau to search for a special feast before passing the blessing. While his brother was still hunting, Rebekah stepped in and helped Jacob disguise himself as Esau to present the food to Isaac. Because Isaac had impaired vision, he was deceived into giving the blessing to Jacob. Esau was infuriated, and Jacob had to run to save his life.
The Bible portrays Jacob as a just and holy man, while Esau is the opposite. Jacob and his mother lied and deceived Isaac, yet God did not punish them; instead, Jacob received the blessing. I know that the story states that Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of stew (then why deceive Isaac?) but why would Jacob make the offer in the first place? He was not the firstborn. In my eyes, Jacob was being sneaky and deceptive. Of course, Esau made a bad decision by selling his birthright. However, he would not have sold it if Jacob had not made the offer. Jacob desired the blessing for himself. And it gets even worse. God (Jesus) states in Romans 9:11-14 (talking about Jacob and Esau): (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid." Yes, that is unrighteousness with God. How can a all-loving God (God Loves You! LOL!) love one human (that he created) and hate (but Jesus said to love your enemies?) the other BEFORE they were even born. Esau was born to be damned?? What kind of loving God does that?? Not my kind. *Another contradiction in the Bible: God, who is Jesus, hated Esau before Esau was born, but then at the same time Jesus said to love your enemies.*
What about the story of Lot's two daughters? Bigots and homophobes enjoy telling how Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because the males desired to "know" the two angels. Yet they NEVER mention what his two daughters did.
Based on online comments I've read on social media platforms, most Christians either don't read their Bibles, selectively choose which books and/or passages to read and ignore the rest, or depend on their pastors and priests to advise them on which biblical information is important and relevant. Since I was one of those, I would know. What adage is that? "It takes one to know one."
Let's revisit the story of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Christians (not all, of course) believe that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because the men of Sodom (only Sodom was mentioned) desired to "know" the two angels who came into the city to meet Lot. Genesis 19. However, if you read Genesis 18:20, it specifically states why judgment was cast upon four cities, not two. "And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and because their sin is very grievous;" Even before the angels entered Sodom, God declared that their sin was grievous. God did not say that the cities would be destroyed because gay men lived in Sodom, or that the men wanted to "know" the angels. No. The cities would be destroyed as a result of their wickedness and sin. Then Abraham bargained with God. God would spare the cities if they had at least ten righteous people. However, according to Romans 3:10, "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:" So, they were all guilty of sin, including Lot and his family. It's amusing (but not really) how God says there are no righteous people but then claims that specific persons were righteous (Noah, Enoch, Abraham, Job, Daniel). So, which one is it? The four cities that were destroyed: were Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim; Deuteronomy 29:23.
Thus, if Christians believe that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because the males of Sodom desired to "know" the angels, then why would a loving, kind, patient, longsuffering, and righteous God destroy the women, children, babies, and even the cattle and animals if they had nothing to do with wanting to "know" the angels? Sounds unfair and unjust to me (just like Jacob and Esau). Sodom is the only city mentioned ("the men of Sodom") as to where these men came from. As a result of the conduct of a group of men in one city, Sodom, the whole population of the other three cities was destroyed, including women, children, babies, innocent men, cattle, and animals. This is illogical and unjustified. It is only logical in the sense that the four cities were destroyed because of their transgressions, which was stated in Genesis 18:20. Ridiculously, Christians will perform extraordinary mental gymnastics and verbal judo to explain that the destruction was brought about by the men of Sodom looking for the angels. And if they actually believe this, they have demonstrated that their "loving" God is unjust, unrighteous, unmerciful, and definitely not loving. Rather than only punishing the men of Sodom, he punished and slaughtered everyone in four cities unrelated to the two angels scenario. Again, unfair and unjust.
After Lot and his family fled Sodom, his wife looked back and perished, and then Lot and his two daughters fled to a cave in the mountains. This is where things get bizarre and appalling. Both daughters believed that no more men remained on the Earth to carry on their father's bloodline. So, instead of praying to God or even the angels who had just saved them from "fire and brimstone," they both decided to get their father drunk on wine and have sex with him (obviously he would not have agreed to this or they would not have felt the need to get him drunk first). They achieved their wish, as both became pregnant with their father's child.
So, the inhabitants of four cities—women, children, other men, and animals unrelated to the "wanting to know the angels"—were judged and destroyed along with the men of Sodom who did desire to "know" the angels but they did not actually carry out the deed (because the two angels blinded them), and God responded by slaughtering everyone in four cities.
Lot's two daughters, however, get him, Lot, intoxicated on wine, abuse him, and become pregnant (they actually did the deed), while God remains silent. There was no judgment, no fire and brimstone, and no angel visitation. Instead of incurring the wrath of God (as the four cities did), both daughters are blessed. How so? Both daughters bore sons who would be the forefathers of future civilizations. Genesis 19:37-38; "And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day."
Along with the lack of evidence that "God" inspired human men to write the Bible, the evident hypocrisy, favoritism, and contradictions lead me to feel that this is not God's work. I don't even like to use the word "God" because it's dog backward, which is close to the word Dogma. Dogma- "A doctrine or a corpus of doctrines relating to matters such as morality and faith, set forth in an authoritative manner by a religion."...by a RELIGION (meaning human beings), not the Creator (s). Christianity asserts that God is perfect. A perfect God simply cannot have an imperfect book. Even Jesus said so himself- Matthew 7:18, "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit."
According to the Bible, God created the Earth, the universe, the multiverse, and all living creatures in six days, just by speaking it into existence. And he accomplished this without the assistance of humans. So, why would God assign the duty of writing his holy book to sinful, evil-hearted, finite humans (men) when he certainly could have just spoken it into existence, as he did with creation? God is omniscient, omnificent, and knows that humanity will fail to respect and keep the integrity of his word. Because of the evilness of mankind's hearts (as God states in the Bible), the Bible has been used as a weapon for separation, slavery, discrimination, conflict, strife, war, and murder.
What has God done in response, knowing that his word has been distorted, perverted, modified, and used to slaughter millions of people? (Remember the inquisitions?) Absolutely nothing. Otherwise, there would be no religious conflicts today.
Before I continue on, let me bring up another individual that God showed favoritism: David. Did he not watch a married woman bathe herself (without permission), have intimacy with her, have her husband killed in combat, and get her pregnant? What did they receive as punishment? God murders the infant. But I digress.)
The God of the Bible could have simply spoken his word into existence, as he did with everything else, and made it legible, readable, and understood in every language on the planet. No matter what language you speak, what country you were born in, or what culture you grew up in, you will be able to read and understand God's word.
There would be no room for mistranslations (because humanity would not write it), no misunderstandings (because the author, God, would make it perfectly understood in the reader's subconscious regardless of language), no contradictions, no conversions to different religions, and certainly no countless amounts of varying translations.
Every day, millions upon millions of people all across the world pray to this biblical God- sending up billions of prayers. Everything from world peace to helping with a sick or terminal child to staying safe from dangerous situations and people. However, nothing changes. Prayers have not been answered, or the world would be different. Either your God does not listen to prayers, does not care, or simply does not exist. Well, not in the sense that you believe he exists.
I firmly believe in a creative force, a force composed entirely of pure energy; energy without form, or a body, or gender. Pure energy is just that- energy. I do NOT believe that the Creator (s) came down to Earth into the form of a man named Jesus and made himself known only to a small group of people.
Who has the authority to say whether there is only one or multiple Gods? No one knows the true number of Gods. In the ancient world, they discussed the Goddess (and worshipped her before the male God because she is the life giver) and the male God, which makes sense. Furthermore, the true Creator (s) who created everything is creative energy. Energy has no embodiment or shape; it is simply energy. Energy is not human, nor is it a biological being, and it does not have a gender. Since humans feel the need to genderize their God (and everything else), then the God should be female. Only females (Goddesses) may give birth to the universe, galaxies, planets, stars, humans, and other beings/entities, not males (Gods). Otherwise, men on the Earth would be capable of giving birth. And the ancient cultures knew this; they spoke of the Goddess all the time in their writings.
*Nintud- virgin Goddess of procreation
*Ninkhursag- queen of the Earth
*Aruru- Goddess of childbirth
*Ma or Mama- Goddess who created the first man from clay
*Innini- Earth mother
Isis- Egypt; Ishtar- Babylonia; Astarte- Phoenicia; Aphrodite- Greece; Venus- Rome; the same Goddess with different names observed and revered throughout the ancient world.
The new religions of today have purposely erased the Goddess from their texts and holy books. Why? Because the religions of today are all male-dominated. They want to maintain the patriarchal structure.
As I've already mentioned, the stories in the Bible are stolen and plagiarized narratives from cultures and civilizations thousands of years before Israel was even thought of.
Creation- The Anunnaki; related to the Sumerian Tablets
The Flood- Epic of Gilgamesh Flood from Ancient Sumeria and written on twelve clay tablets.
The Ten Commandments- "Written at least 2,000 years before the Ten Commandments of Moses, the 42 Commandments of Ancient Egypt, the " Ideals of Ma’at," were one of Africa’s and the world’s oldest sources of moral and spiritual instruction. In fact, 8 of the 10 Commandments originate from the Ideals of Ma'at."
The Story of Moses- The Mesopotamian Sargon Birth Legend and other legends birth with the similar story of Moses
The Ark of the Covenant- Egypt's Ark of the Contract
The New Testament- Astro Theology
Sorry, but I have some sad and depressing news for you. There is no such thing as "free will" when it comes to salvation. That is a human innovation.
You may be surprised to learn that the Bible contains references to God's election and predestination programs. He has decreed that only the chosen humans that he selected before he created the world, would be saved; all others will die and suffer eternal damnation in Hell. Basically, (before people were even born) if they were not chosen to be saved by God, they will be in Hell alongside Satan, demons, and murderers, regardless of whether they lived a morally upright life and made an effort to be the finest humans possible. In other words, God creates certain people and condemns them to eternal damnation. Without a doubt, they are condemned as if they were a follower of Satan himself. No ifs, ands, or buts, do not pass Go... It's over for them. This is what the Bible states.
Christians believe that if you simply confess your sins and accept Jesus into your heart and life (Billy Graham and other false teachers), you will be saved. However, this contradicts the scriptures. (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, NOT of works, but of him that calleth;)- Romans 9:11, Knowing that a man is NOT justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and NOT by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall NO flesh be justified.- Galatians 2:16, NOT of works, lest any man should boast.- Ephesians 2:9. And believing in God is a form of work. The word believe is a verb, and a verb is a performance of an action.
According to the Bible, free will exists only when God allows it. Did Noah have free will when God commanded him to build the ark? Did Moses have free will when god instructed him to go to Egypt and face Pharaoh? (Also, Moses suffered NO punishment from God when Moses slew the Egyptian. It was the reason why Moses fled Egypt.) In fact, Moses had questions for God and even admitted that he was unqualified. “And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.” Exodus 4:10 But God said, nope, you’re going, lol. Did Jeremiah have free will when he considered stopping prophesying for God? “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak anymore in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.” Jeremiah 20:9 Did Jonah have free will when God ordered him to preach to the citizens of Nineveh? No. In fact, Jonah tried to flee from God. And God stepped in and said, "nope", lol. Free will is only available when it’s convenient for God. And obtaining salvation through free will is not possible.
The Bible has numerous verses about predestination and election instituted by God. John 15:16, Jeremiah 1:5, Colossians 3:12–13, Proverbs 16:4, Ephesians 1:3, Philippians 4:3, and Revelation 20:15. The phrase ‘free will’ appears just four times in the Old Testament, and each verse refers to a people’s offering. Leviticus 22:18, Numbers 15:3, Ezra 3:5, Ezra 7:16.
According to the New Testament, Hebrews 13:8- Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. The Old Testament, Malachi 3:6- For I the Lord do not change.
There are three separate personas in one godhead, correct? To summarize, Jesus is the God of both the Old and New Testaments.
The God of the Old Testament that is ordering the deaths of countless people (including babies, children, women, and animals) from different nations because they worshipped other gods (even God himself acknowledged other 'Gods') although the God of the Bible never made himself known to them, only to the Israelites, is Jesus of the New Testament, the God who so loved the world, that he sacrificed himself for his "chosen.” A just and righteous God? No. A true, righteous God would make himself known to his entire creation, not just a small group. Love, Mercy, Forgiveness, and Life would be given to ALL, not to a specific chosen group of individuals. This is what causes division.
When Jesus had risen from the dead, he appeared to Mary Magdalene first (in this account: Mark 16:9-15). When she informed the eleven apostles, they didn't believe her. When Jesus appeared to the 11, he reprimanded them for their unbelief. In John 20:25, Thomas did not believe Jesus had risen. Peter denied Jesus three times. When Jesus was arrested, all the disciples fled, Matthew 26:56. Were any of them punished? Did the wrath of God fall on any of them for their UNBELIEF? No. And what does God say about unbelief? Hebrews 3:12, "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." There are a few other verses condemning unbelief, but it is evident that Unbelief is sin and leads away from God. But I guess they were the "Chosen" ones, which is unfair, unjust, and partial.
Meanwhile, in Acts 5, Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold a possession that was legally and rightfully theirs. They were supposed to give Peter the earnings but they kept some money. Both lied to Peter about the money, and Peter accused them of lying to the Holy Ghost. Both were slain by God immediately. I guess money is more important to God (oh, and lying, too) than belief in God. All of the disciples fled from Jesus when he was arrested; Peter denies knowing Jesus three times; and ALL of them did not believe Jesus had been resurrected (only the women believed who were NOT disciples). So, what did the disciples receive for their unbelief? (although they walked, talked, and ate with Jesus and they witnessed his miracles) Salvation. A married couple lies to God about money...instant judgment and death. And Christians "believe" this is a just and righteous "God".
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