Category: Philosophy & Religion

I have much to say on this topic and how the church has lost its way in the world today.

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Teach theology, not religion

RJ Walters

The quotes below come from input from Irish high school students when asked about having religious studies in their school system. The wisdom of these kids’ words are way beyond their years. By giving all children the opportunity to learn about the beliefs and values of diverse groups in society, the government would be providing for their education in some of the liberal democratic values on which the State itself is based. They include openness to a range of views along with inclusive and respectful citizenship. MANUS CHARLETON Perhaps, as religion is one of the greatest causes of conflict in … Continue reading Teach theology, not religion

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Why Not A Trampoline??

RJ Walters

When George Bush  in 2000 said he was a “compassionate conservative”, my first thought was there is no such thing. But then after some thoughtful meditation I had to take back those words. I must admit that compassion, at least beyond a minimum level, seems to be pretty far away from most in the GOP. They seem to be much more concerned about the top 1% than the bottom 20%. Its been a while since I collected the quote below but I’m pretty sure it came from Jim Wallis at Sojourners just before he retired from that organization. When my … Continue reading Why Not A Trampoline??

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Letters To The Editor…

RJ Walters

I occasionally write a letter to the editor of our small town newspaper. They allow me to put my two cents into the topic at hand. But since our town is so small I am often reluctant to chime in on some sensitive issues for fear of being labeled by my neighbors.  Anonymity is not an option in small town living. When I ran across this “letter to the editor” from Buffalo NY it got my attention.  To me the author spells out the relationship between government and religion  as concisely as possible: Like the Bible, the writings of the nation’s Founding … Continue reading Letters To The Editor…

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When Leaving Religion Costs You Everything…

RJ Walters

When I read the words in the source article below they rang very true to me. Even though I was not a minister like he was I too felt the cost of being forced  out of a church community for having  different/unacceptable beliefs. I dared, among other things to say the earth was more than 6,000 years old. After 36 years in the Evangelical Charismatic movement in Tennessee, Dave left his faith. “For me,” he says, “it all started with a critical examination of the Bible and how it came to be…when I quit making excuses for the inconsistencies and … Continue reading When Leaving Religion Costs You Everything…

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Memorial Day Is Not On the Church’s Calendar

RJ Walters

I have been holding off on this post so as not to offend some people’s views of that holiday. My friends at Red Letter Christians have spurred me in thoughts once again. This time it is about Memorial Day. I have always found it strange that we as a nation celebrate our wars. Some even seem obsessed with them. To me war is the failure to accomplish our goals in a Christ-like manner of peace. “Bound together by Christ, not nationality” is a real but seemingly pretty naive thinking in today’s world but that is my reality. I know I am … Continue reading Memorial Day Is Not On the Church’s Calendar

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Wicked Theology

RJ Walters

When I came across this post a while back it got my immediate attention as the topic is probably one of the primary reasons that more and more people are declaring themselves spiritual but not religious.  There is just too much baggage attached to too many of our religious institutions today.  Too many twist the words  of Jesus to match their current view of the world. It is kind of surprising that the author of the words above is a Baptists professor. Flat- Bible advocates, of which many Baptists are a part, believe that every word in the Bible comes directly … Continue reading Wicked Theology

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‘Of course’ ISIS is driven by Islam…

RJ Walters

I know that it may not be politically correct to say that ISIS is driven by Islam but the truth is the truth.. ISIS and all their offshoots take a part of the Koran and use it as an excuse for their extremism the same way that the KKK does with the Christian Bible. Spiritual beliefs are a big part of human nature. Almost everyone has a basic need to know who created them and what is the “right” way to live on this earth. I chose the teachings of Jesus Christ as my spiritual foundation.  I take the red … Continue reading ‘Of course’ ISIS is driven by Islam…

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In The Beginning…. And Then…

RJ Walters

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. He created the birds of the air and the fish of the sea and the beasts of the land.  And then he created man,  and it was down hill from there on out…. Forgive me that this is not an exact quote from any bible but for the purpose of this post you get the idea where I am going. The very first family that God made ended up with a murderer. One brother killing another. That wasn’t a very good start to humanity. It seems that the seven deadly … Continue reading In The Beginning…. And Then…

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How Studying Religion Made Me a Liberal

RJ Walters

What happened, however, wasn’t an abandonment of my faith, but a shift in my understanding of Scripture. While I had always read the Bible and knew large portions of it by memory, I had relied on the expertise of my religious mentors (some of whom were simply laypeople teaching Sunday School or Christian education classes) to help guide me through its interpretation. The more I read the text through unfiltered eyes and the more I learned about scholarly investigation, the less sense their point of view made. Their old Jesus looked nothing like my new Jesus. I could no longer … Continue reading How Studying Religion Made Me a Liberal

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Christianity Is Hard…

RJ Walters

I must admit, at least in my senior years, I am a rebel rouser of the Don Quixote variety. That is I seemingly fight for lost causes. Things like less killing because of an overabundance of guns in our society or that we Christians should start acting like Christians. The latter is the topic for this post. For so many years I comfortably fell into the belief that Christianity is a “something for nothing” religion. That is all we have to do is to say the right words and believe the right things in order to self proclaim that we … Continue reading Christianity Is Hard…

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Religious Certainty…

RJ Walters

Some of the biggest problems today are caused by religious certainty. People who are very certain that their religion is better than all the others tend to want to impose the rules laid out in their Holy Book on everyone. They have little respect for the fact that some people are guided by other Holy Books, and other equally valid types of ideals based on values instead of beliefs. Unfortunately this concept has spread into the political arena where religious literalists often try to impose their religious standards on our nation. They fight important social trends, like the acceptance of … Continue reading Religious Certainty…

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How Well Do You Know Religion?

RJ Walters

In fact, religion is invariably a tangle of contradictory teachings — in the Bible, the difference between the harshness of Deuteronomy and the warmth of Isaiah or Luke is striking — and it’s always easy to perceive something threatening in another tradition. Yet analysts who have tallied the number of violent or cruel passages in the Quran and the Bible count more than twice as many in the Bible. There’s a profound human tendency, rooted in evolutionary biology, to “otherize” people who don’t belong to our race, our ethnic group, our religion. That’s particularly true when we’re scared. It’s difficult … Continue reading How Well Do You Know Religion?

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This Christmas Season…

RJ Walters

I want to spend some time this Christmas season talking about Jesus. After all, as the old saying goes, “Jesus is the reason for the season” at least for us Chrisitans. I have said more than once on this blog that I am  spiritual but not currently aligned with any particular religious organization.  At the same time I try to be a faithful follower of the teachings of Jesus Christ.  That might be a dichotomy to some but  not to me. I just believe that religious organizations today are too mired down in their dogma and theology that is simply … Continue reading This Christmas Season…

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ISIS and the KKK… Whose Responsibility??

RJ Walters

Is ISIL a Muslim Organization? Is the KKK a Christian Organization? The first question came up during a recent Obama press conference in Turkey after the Paris terrorist attacks.  Yeah, I watched the entire thing. President Obama sure can talk :)    At near the end of the 50 minutes or so of questions he made the comment that one thing the mainstream Muslim community needs to do much more of is to try to understand what it is about the way they currently practice their religion that allows so many follower to take a radical path?( I wish I had … Continue reading ISIS and the KKK… Whose Responsibility??

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Which Came First??

RJ Walters

“Which came first, the chicken or the egg??” has been the question of the day for as long as I remember. But I have a different version now. Which came first a ranting populace or radical right radio?? Lets look at that question some in this post. I know that Rush Limbaugh has been around a long time now.  He has made millions of bucks ranting about almost everything. I also know that there is a faction within our population who simply adore him and listen to him constantly. He is without a doubt their hero.  He has been so … Continue reading Which Came First??