>>>>>Despite the respect I may have for such a system of thought, for its sheer audacity and level of sophistry, I can't trust it to be a source of any truth. Historical value, yes. It's a human accomplishment and will be a part of history forever. But truth... I prefer the things which work even if you don't believe in them.
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>>>>That's fine - but - what if you're wrong? If I'm wrong, I live a good life and die - the end. If you're wrong, you live a good life and die - and then spend eternity in Hell. If I were you, I'd sure want to be really, really sure of this before I dismissed it as folly. How can you dismiss it without even reading the Bible (as you said earlier you do not wish to read it?)
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>>>Is it faith or is it fear? In your heart you want to steal that bike that's lying around but, for fear of ending up with pich-fork in your fundament, you leave it.
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>>Can't it be both? I fear offending God and by faith I believe that even if I do, I'm forgiven through the blood of Christ. Mind you, my attitude towards sin is not that I can sin all I want because God will forgive me. I truly desire not to sin. However, I realize I am still at war with sin and will loose that battle at times.
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>I suppose you can always go and sin all you like, so long as there's someone to confess to and forgive you, on behalf of God, on your death bed. But if you die in a ditch, tough luck for eternity. I believe that great "father of Catholicism", Emperor Constantine, only converted to Xianity on his death bed, to cover all the bases.

But that's a Catholic thing, not a fundamentalist Christian thing. Fundamentalist Christians have no need to confess to anyone since they have already been forgiven by their belief in Christ. Being a 'friend of Christ' is really all one needs to enter into the Kingdom of God. Dying in a ditch, therefor is not an issue.

In spite of all the debate going on, I really have no problem with Howard's view of God, Christ, or the Bible. My only problem with it all is his (and others') desire to bring into being, civil laws based on 'standards' that are in turn based on Christian beliefs. Thus turning us all into mandatory Christians by law.