It's something that has annoyed me for some time.
It seems a lot of people have a very narrow worldview which they often defend with bible verses or other religious references.
What am I talking about here? I am talking about ethical convictions with faulty basis being defended by religious zeal. For example ranting about playing cards being evil and satanic. Either based on people's gambling issues or the use of tarot cards in divination. Now, I can understand an argument against divination and gambling both. But solitaire or kids' games with cards? What's wrong with those? And other things like dancing, alcohol, Dungeons and Dragons, Fantasy literature, Rock...
It seems to me that many Christians live lives in fear of what they do not understand, or have a tendency to fuel a form of fear by somewhat rampant generalization. Cards are bad for the aforementioned reasons, dancing is wrong because it leads to sexual tension, rock is bad because of people like Kurt Cobain and the like, people who do drugs and mess up their lives.
They ignore people who are saved and brought to close, wonderful relationships with the Lord through rock and metal. They see dancing at nightclubs and all the sex drunkenness and drugs often associated with such places by many. And forget that David danced naked through the streets of Jerusalem to God's glory.
Their arguments can make sense if you close your eyes to the complexity of the respective issue, but once you start looking at the issues more seriously it doesn't make a lot of sense. It seems to me many throw the baby out with the bathwater in so many areas. Instead of seeing the whole picture it seems many suffer from a legalism which robs them of so much, a view which forces them to look for the bad in every situation instead of rejoicing in the wonderful gifts of God. I see it as inhibiting your potential relationship with the Lord and with people around you. As well as alienating Christians from the general public, not in a good way as in us being 'the salt of the world' or 'lights in the dark' but rather in a condemning and legalistic fashion which serves to portray Christians as legalistic, dry and condemning.
Now I don't advocate that Christians should join in gay pride parades and attack the sanctity of marriage or any such thing. However, there's a clear difference between condemning the sins shown in the bible and loving the sinner as decreed - and what it seems many do - condemning not only the sinner and the sin both. But condemning things, thoughts and human traits which have not been said to be sinful in the bible. Aspects of the human mind and culture which are not wrong or sinful in themselves. It's like bashing any and all sex because of the fornication going on in the world, forgetting it's holy and wonderful place in a marriage. Or shunning worship because some people worship other 'gods' than God.
It seems a lot of people have a very narrow worldview which they often defend with bible verses or other religious references.
What am I talking about here? I am talking about ethical convictions with faulty basis being defended by religious zeal. For example ranting about playing cards being evil and satanic. Either based on people's gambling issues or the use of tarot cards in divination. Now, I can understand an argument against divination and gambling both. But solitaire or kids' games with cards? What's wrong with those? And other things like dancing, alcohol, Dungeons and Dragons, Fantasy literature, Rock...
It seems to me that many Christians live lives in fear of what they do not understand, or have a tendency to fuel a form of fear by somewhat rampant generalization. Cards are bad for the aforementioned reasons, dancing is wrong because it leads to sexual tension, rock is bad because of people like Kurt Cobain and the like, people who do drugs and mess up their lives.
They ignore people who are saved and brought to close, wonderful relationships with the Lord through rock and metal. They see dancing at nightclubs and all the sex drunkenness and drugs often associated with such places by many. And forget that David danced naked through the streets of Jerusalem to God's glory.
Their arguments can make sense if you close your eyes to the complexity of the respective issue, but once you start looking at the issues more seriously it doesn't make a lot of sense. It seems to me many throw the baby out with the bathwater in so many areas. Instead of seeing the whole picture it seems many suffer from a legalism which robs them of so much, a view which forces them to look for the bad in every situation instead of rejoicing in the wonderful gifts of God. I see it as inhibiting your potential relationship with the Lord and with people around you. As well as alienating Christians from the general public, not in a good way as in us being 'the salt of the world' or 'lights in the dark' but rather in a condemning and legalistic fashion which serves to portray Christians as legalistic, dry and condemning.
Now I don't advocate that Christians should join in gay pride parades and attack the sanctity of marriage or any such thing. However, there's a clear difference between condemning the sins shown in the bible and loving the sinner as decreed - and what it seems many do - condemning not only the sinner and the sin both. But condemning things, thoughts and human traits which have not been said to be sinful in the bible. Aspects of the human mind and culture which are not wrong or sinful in themselves. It's like bashing any and all sex because of the fornication going on in the world, forgetting it's holy and wonderful place in a marriage. Or shunning worship because some people worship other 'gods' than God.
