I just recently called it quits with my ex-girlfriend. She cheated on me with an old flame of hers, and I didn't want to play second place to anyone. But why is it I feel worthless and unwanted and unloved?
It seems natural to me that what you perceive as betrayal would leave you questioning yourself. How could it be otherwise? Your trust was violated. It is normal to wonder what one did to cause the violation. Eventually, you will see it as her decision and not as a sign that you are unworthy of a woman's love. How will that happen? Time. And perspective. And trying again.
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I have a friend who lost her husband through cancer. She is a Christian. What would you say is the "Christian" accepted time before she should remarry?
I don't think there is a single, definite “Christian” time for grieving, for remaining single, or for remarrying. Common sense would say that a widow still deeply embroiled in grieving probably isn't ready for a new commitment and should wait until she is emotionally and spiritually ready to enter into a fresh marital relationship. If the marriage was a healthy and long-lasting one, it is likely that she will never be entirely beyond grieving over its loss. That shouldn't by itself prevent her from entering into another marriage. But if the grief is still too raw, it would be good to wait. Some say that one shouldn't make any major decisions —sell the house, remarry—before the first anniversary of the death.
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If God is a non-interfering, loving God,what are we doing when we pray for certain results? For example, that a friend's cancer be healed, that one's marriage be saved, that children in some areas of the world be saved from starvation, that wars end? Some think that prayers make the persons who pray feel better. Feeling better may make the person stronger and more able to do good in the world, but does prayer ultimately change things in others or other places?
I don't believe that our prayer changes God's mind or improves God's disposition. God will do what God will do. Our basic prayer is: God, be God. Be the God you have shown yourself to be.
Would God be something else if we didn't pray? No. Would God hate if we didn't beg God to love? No. Would God ignore a cancer or marriage unless we remembered to pray and did so fervently? No. It is God's nature to love, to show mercy, to forgive, and to redeem. Our prayers don't modify God's nature.
What, then, do our prayers do? At one level, they are like a child's cry for a parent's help. They just burst forth. We see a need, and we cry to God. We feel a pain, and we cry to God. Our prayers don't cause events to change, rather they recognize God's presence.
Our prayers also align us with God, assuming they are prayers that are true to God's nature, and not prayers that seek wealth or revenge. What does alignment with God accomplish? You never can tell. It certainly would put us in a mind to help another. It would ease the other's burden. It would amend our lives and, thus, amend the lives of others, in ways we might never see. The positive, radical and transforming impact of one person's choosing to love another cannot be fully known, but it is sufficient reason to pray.
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How do we know if we have accepted Christ?
We will show our Christian identity, Jesus says, when we “love one another.” Accepting Jesus Christ as the center of one's life isn't a credential, a liturgical moment, or an accomplishment won by prayer or good works. It is a decision to love, as Jesus loved. Such a love is oriented toward the good of the other, not oneself. It is sacrificial, willing to suffer, and grounded in God's mercy and compassion, not in one's own righteousness. How can we possibly attempt such a love? Only by the grace of God.
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We know that Jesus was/is the full, sufficient, and perfect sacrifice for our sins. No other sacrifice is needed. But why were burnt offerings given to God in the Old Testament? Did God desire these animal sacrifices? Was God thought to be pleased/placated with these "offerings"?
Animal sacrifices were a standard part of ancient religious practice. The Hebrews specifically remembered how the Passover lamb was offered as a sacrifice to God and to change the heart of Pharaoh about releasing the Hebrews from captivity. The book of Exodus specifies how and when to offer animals “as a sin offering” to “make atonement.” By consecrating an altar for this purpose, whatever touched the altar became holy. The Israelites, thus, would be consecrated to God as a holy people. One primary purpose of the priestly caste was to offer these sacrifices, as well as grain sacrifices and harvest thanksgivings.
Such practices might seem strange to our modern faith, but at the time they were part of Israel 's obedience to God. By practicing such cultic rituals, they identified themselves as Yahweh's people. During their early years, they believed God was pleased by such sacrifices.
Later, the prophets believed that the rituals had become empty and that God was offended by them. God wanted, not ritual observances, but amendment of life, justice and faithfulness.
When the early followers of Jesus were trying to understand his nature, one common theme was to identify him as the “Paschal Lamb,” the new lamb of God's new passover, that is, the agent by which God's people would be liberated from bondage. The heart of that understanding is the need for a new exodus.
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How do I explain the existence of God to a non-believer, who has just recently read The Da Vinci Code and watched the movie?
First, remember that The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction. It raises some interesting questions and spins a good murder-mystery and conspiracy yarn. But deep questions of faith require more work than reading a novel and seeing a film.
Second, you can only explain God if your friend is interested in hearing an explanation. One cannot force an explanation on anyone. So if your friend is asking, then this is a good time to respond.
Third, the best witness is always a personal witness. Who is God to you? What do you see of God in your life and world? What “face” does God wear for you? How has God changed your life? There is more to God than this, of course, but you tell best what you know from personal experience. Faith isn't about theology or doctrine; it is one person telling another where to find food.
Finally, I happen to believe that a healthy faith community can do wonders in bringing God alive for someone. If you are part of a healthy faith community, I encourage you to bring your friend to a Sunday service or an event where people can “incarnate” Jesus through acts of servanthood, love and compassion.
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I am Methodist, and my son-in-law is Church of Christ. He said that their church does not have Maundy Thursday or Good Friday services, nor do they believe in Lent. I found this disturbing. Can you give me some good information as to why a religion would forfeit these services and the practice of Lent?
Each Christian denomination has its unique liturgical practices. Some celebrate saints' days, and others don't. Some observe national holidays like July 4 and Thanksgiving Day, and others don't. Some celebrate Christmas with lavish music, flowers and pageantry, and others prefer something plainer.
Lent and Holy Week are among those church seasons where churches show diversity. Some, like the Roman Catholic and Episcopal Churches, urge total commitments during Lent, with fasting, prayer, study, and confession, perhaps a midweek study time. They observe each day of Holy Week with special liturgies. Others focus on the Sundays of Lent, perhaps as a time of teaching, and then observe only Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday during Holy Week. Some don't even do that.
As to why, much Protestant liturgical practice is a reaction against Roman Catholicism. Some simply prefer plain worship. Cultural, national and denominational history come into play. I wouldn't make too much of the differences between your preferences and those of your son-in-law's church. We need more mutual respect in modern Christianity. Also, I urge you to accept his explanation as worthy for him, just as your preference is worthy for you.
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What is the real explanation for a woman being pictured on the right side of Jesus in The Last Supper? I saw the actual painting in Milan when I was very young. Of course, I did not study it as well as I wish I would have; I only looked at the painting as a whole and "assumed" that all the figures were males. So why did Da Vinci put a woman in the painting, and who is she?
You are asking the question that intrigued author Dan Brown and led to his novel The Da Vinci Code. In that novel, Brown speculates that the figure to the right of Jesus (or left side, as we look at Da Vinci's painting) is Mary Magdalene, and that she was Jesus' “companion,” meaning “wife.” The postures of the two characters suggests such intimacy, in Brown's fictional view. The Gospels offer differing accounts of the Last Supper. They don't say exactly who was present, how they sat, or who was next to Jesus. They offer different details on what took place, what was said, what they ate and drank, and what Jesus meant by this meal. Da Vinci's artistic vision was of a single table at which Jesus and his disciples were seated. Brown takes it farther by noticing the feminine characteristics of the figure to Jesus' right side and speculating that Da Vinci meant to postulate a “sacred feminine” by having that be Mary Magdalene. Such details and conclusions are entirely speculation, of course.
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My sons and I were discussing whether Jesus actually spent any time in hell, during the three days between death on the cross and his resurrection. If so, could you please point out where this is discussed in the Bible.
To the best of my knowledge, the four Gospels say nothing about Jesus spending time in hell. As they tell the story, Jesus died, was laid in a tomb, was found missing three days later, appeared to various disciples over a period of 40 days, and then ascended into heaven. The early church wanted to fit that sequence into their beliefs about heaven and hell, so in the Apostle's Creed, they stated that Jesus “descended into hell,” later changed to “descended to death.” But the point of the Easter story wasn't where Jesus spent the time between death and resurrection, but what the resurrection meant to his disciples and, through them, to the world.
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Who was the woman at the well in the Bible and did she have a name? What good part did she play in Jesus life when they met there?
This incident recorded in John 4.1-42 was a pivotal moment for Jesus. By interacting with this “Samaritan woman” (never named) as he did, Jesus revealed several critical dimensions of his messiahship.
- First, he interacted with a woman, a clear message that his circle didn't respect the ancient traditions concerning roles assigned to women.
- Second, he interacted with a Samaritan, whom Jews normally shunned, a clear message that his gospel was for all humankind.
- Third, he explained the difference between water from this well (known as “Jacob's well”) and the “living water” that he offered as Messiah, “a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.”
- Fourth, he loved and accepted the woman and also told her the truth about herself, a sign, as Paul said separately, that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
- Fifth, when she asked him if we was Messiah, he said, “I am he.”
- Sixth, the disciples were astonished that Jesus was speaking to a woman, but she went to her people and said, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done!” The contrast between those two reactions revealed how Jesus confounded traditional expectations.
Finally, many of the Samaritan villagers came to believe in Jesus, at first because of the woman's testimony, but then because “we have heard for ourselves.” Thus it happens that people come to believe, as the Samaritans said, “this is truly the Savior of the world.”
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How can I begin to reconcile my knowledge of evolution with the biblical theory of creation? I have a genetic disease that occurred as the result of a random mutation. …I'm one of evolution's less successful blind alleys, my children less likely than others to reproduce. Why have I not been created in God's image? And are genes destiny? If not, can I change my future, and what positive actions can I take spiritually?
First, my sympathy on what clearly is a difficult and confusing situation.
I know that those who insist on creationism as a way to protect the sovereignty of God and the authority of the Bible think they are doing the right thing. I don't doubt their sincerity. I do question their grasp of Scripture and believe that they cause a great deal of confusion about the nature of God and unnecessary suffering in situations like yours.
Genesis 1 never purports to be a science of origins. It is a story told during a time of Israel 's distress to help them understand God as one who could bring order to their political chaos. An earlier creation story, Genesis 2-3, was told some 400 years earlier during a more prosperous and confident time as a way to understand humanity's relationship to God and the problem of evil. It is simply bad Biblical scholarship to view either of those accounts as a literal record of how creation came to be.
The theory of evolution is a much more likely explanation of how what we see came to be over time. (It still leaves open the question of when and how creation began. Perhaps a “big bang,” as some suggest.) Creation is dynamic. Species change. Life changes. Human systems change. Human bodies change. Sometimes those changes are for the good, and sometimes, as in your situation, they are not. What causes each change can be known in some situations but not always. As I understand it, medical science continues to probe what triggers mutations, such as cancer.
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Does God evolve? I don't mean how does God reveal himself. I mean does God change? Is God of the book of Genesis the same God of today?
Scripture describes God as being in a dynamic relationship with creation, especially with humankind. In the course of that relationship, as with any parent and child, God has changed direction, rethought certain matters, tried successive ways to draw humankind closer, allowed Israel to fail and then redeemed Israel from the consequences of failure, spoken tenderly one moment and harshly the next.
Some of that changing, no doubt, reflects changes in Israel 's own history. The need for a prophetic voice, for example, grew out of the injustice and apostasy into which Israel fell. Was that prophetic voice part of God all along, or did God develop the prophetic voice in response to Israel
's descent? My way of understanding it is that God's fundamental nature is described in words like love, mercy, compassion, justice, and forgiveness. Like the love of a parent, changing circumstances evoke different expressions of that love. Thus, the parent who simply held and fed the baby eventually walks beside the child, guides the teenager, gives wings to the young adult, and supports the older adult as needed. Every step of that journey seems different, and the child certainly develops in response to it, and yet it's fair to say that the original orientation to love the child has remained in force.
I don't see any sign that God has gone from love to hate, or from mercy to cruelty. In that sense, God seems constant. I do see signs that God's foundation for humankind, expressed perhaps as law, has changed over time. Certainly our understanding of it has changed. Thus, a social covenant that enabled Israel to cross the wilderness was changed later to a more inclusive, less tribal covenant under Jesus.
God's relationship to the global reach of humanity seems to have changed, too, as far as we can know that reach. In the early days, God worked through Israel as a “beacon to the nations.” Later, when Israel seemed unable to fulfill that role, God worked through Jesus of Nazareth and, in his followers, set in motion a new and farther-reaching community of faith. As time went on, God seemed to work beyond Christianity, by adding other expressions to humanity's journey, such as Islam.
Finally, throughout this journey, God has shown a willingness to suffer along with, and on behalf of, humanity. From betrayal in the Garden to death on the cross, and surely beyond, God has felt the pain that comes from loving another. I believe that suffering has changed God.
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