- Mar 21, 2012
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- United Kingdom
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- Catholic
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- Single
Hi guys, I was just wondering if anybody could help me a little.
My problem is this:
I grew up in a Christian family (Catholic) however I was really the only one that took it seriously. All I relied on when I was younger was Catholic School to get my religious education. I have been a Christian all my life and I love the Christian faith. I love the teachings of Jesus, I love the History, the Worship, the music etc. However, there are some things I find incredibly hard to believe and it has lead me to looking into Judaism.
My main argument is Jesus' claim to be the Messiah. Having looked at the prophecies regarding the Messiag in the old testament, there are many ways in which Jesus simply does not fit the description. There is also the question of Jesus being the son of God. The Messiah was meant to be an ordinary man, not Gods son. The coming of the Messiah was meant to usher in the Messianic age, an age of peace. Jesus did not bring that. Yes there is talk of the second coming, but to me, that just seems like a bit of a cop out. The OT never mentioned a second coming.
Then there is God becoming man in the form of Jesus. Why did God feel the need to make Mary conceive, then spend 9 months growing inside of her, then go through infancy, childhood, adolescence and adulthood when God could have just come down as a man without going through all those stages and wasting so much time? I just don't get why God had to be born in order to come to earth. This makes no sense to me. Also, the word that translates to Virgin, in the Hebrew Bible it actually means "maiden". So the whole concept of the Virgin Birth falls into doubt for me.
Then we have Jesus as a descendant from King David. In those times, as it is a lot of the time now in Orthodox Judaism and Conservative Judaism, ones tribe would be determined by the Mother. It was Joseph who was said to be from the line of David, however since Jesus is the son of God and does not have a biological father, then that would mean Jesus was not a descendant of King David, which the Messiah was said to descend from.
Lastly there is the concept of the Trinity. While I understand the concept in it's simplest explanation, I really find it hard to comprehend further. The OT never mentions such a trinity. It only ever talks about ONE God and ONE essence. However in the New Testament we have the SON of God who actually IS God and then we have the Holy Spirit. 3 parts of the same one God. This to me doesn't seem like pure monotheism. If Jesus WAS God, then who did Jesus pray to? If Jesus WAS God, why did he pray to himself?
I'm not here to bash Christianity, on the contrary i'm hoping someone can explain this to me in a way I can understand and help me believe. I do not want to leave Christianity and go to Judaism without first really truly understanding the religion I was born into and the Religion I love.
I am a Liberal person, so I am open to a wide variety of opinions. My current choice of Church would be Church of England (Anglican) or if I was to convert to Judaism, it would be with the Reform Synagogue. So I am open to any interpretation, explanation, you get the jist
Thanks Guys! I'm going to post this in one or two other forums as well, just in case not many people see it here.
My problem is this:
I grew up in a Christian family (Catholic) however I was really the only one that took it seriously. All I relied on when I was younger was Catholic School to get my religious education. I have been a Christian all my life and I love the Christian faith. I love the teachings of Jesus, I love the History, the Worship, the music etc. However, there are some things I find incredibly hard to believe and it has lead me to looking into Judaism.
My main argument is Jesus' claim to be the Messiah. Having looked at the prophecies regarding the Messiag in the old testament, there are many ways in which Jesus simply does not fit the description. There is also the question of Jesus being the son of God. The Messiah was meant to be an ordinary man, not Gods son. The coming of the Messiah was meant to usher in the Messianic age, an age of peace. Jesus did not bring that. Yes there is talk of the second coming, but to me, that just seems like a bit of a cop out. The OT never mentioned a second coming.
Then there is God becoming man in the form of Jesus. Why did God feel the need to make Mary conceive, then spend 9 months growing inside of her, then go through infancy, childhood, adolescence and adulthood when God could have just come down as a man without going through all those stages and wasting so much time? I just don't get why God had to be born in order to come to earth. This makes no sense to me. Also, the word that translates to Virgin, in the Hebrew Bible it actually means "maiden". So the whole concept of the Virgin Birth falls into doubt for me.
Then we have Jesus as a descendant from King David. In those times, as it is a lot of the time now in Orthodox Judaism and Conservative Judaism, ones tribe would be determined by the Mother. It was Joseph who was said to be from the line of David, however since Jesus is the son of God and does not have a biological father, then that would mean Jesus was not a descendant of King David, which the Messiah was said to descend from.
Lastly there is the concept of the Trinity. While I understand the concept in it's simplest explanation, I really find it hard to comprehend further. The OT never mentions such a trinity. It only ever talks about ONE God and ONE essence. However in the New Testament we have the SON of God who actually IS God and then we have the Holy Spirit. 3 parts of the same one God. This to me doesn't seem like pure monotheism. If Jesus WAS God, then who did Jesus pray to? If Jesus WAS God, why did he pray to himself?
I'm not here to bash Christianity, on the contrary i'm hoping someone can explain this to me in a way I can understand and help me believe. I do not want to leave Christianity and go to Judaism without first really truly understanding the religion I was born into and the Religion I love.
I am a Liberal person, so I am open to a wide variety of opinions. My current choice of Church would be Church of England (Anglican) or if I was to convert to Judaism, it would be with the Reform Synagogue. So I am open to any interpretation, explanation, you get the jist
Thanks Guys! I'm going to post this in one or two other forums as well, just in case not many people see it here.