Suggestions from the members for posting in General Theology

[Sojourner1]

These suggestions were contributed by members of the GT forum and staff.
Thank you to everyone who participated in the discussion thread which led to the creation of this thread.


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But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. ~ Galations 5:22,23

The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant words promote instruction. ~ Proverbs 16:21

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer. ~ Psalm 19:14

• Apply the Golden Rule: Treat others as you would like to be treated.

• Members who post in GT should be honest and use the correct faith icon that matches their faith and beliefs.

• Give honest, positive criticism backed up by scripture and reason in a loving manner.

• If flamed do not respond in kind, report it instead. Consider responding with kindness, patience and love and set an example of how to post and not how to flame back.

• When answering a theological question based on official church doctrine, preface your statements with "The official teaching of the ________ Church says this," and follow with a link describing their teaching.

• When speaking from personal opinion and not from official church doctrine, preface your statements with "In my opinion," or "I believe."

• Ask questions, do not accuse or assume what others believe. For example: "Does venerating icons or statues conflict with worshiping the Trinity?"; "Is Sola Scriptura all we need?"; or "Do you believe that infant baptism is Scriptural?"

• When asking questions please remember that questions can also come across as a flame. For example, "Why does the RC worship Mary?", or "Why are evangelicals always twisting Scripture?"

• Do not try to speak for the beliefs and theologies of other denominations or churches that you are not a member of.

• There is a profound difference between reasonable, informed debate and name-calling and deliberate misrepresentation of another's belief.

• It is one thing to question a church tradition or teaching and another thing entirely to call all members of a church idol worshipers or heretics or anything that could be considered a flame.

• When speaking about well-known, revered and highly regarded leaders, theologians, saints (living or deceased), of other Christian denominations, please show a measure of respect. These public religious figures are brothers and sisters in Christ and are respected by the members who belong to those denominations.

• Please do not "quote mine" and take quotes out of context in order to distort the intended meaning of the original post.

"I statements" and not "you statements":

When communicating use "I statements" not "you statements". Pointing the finger and using 'you' messages puts blame onto the other person. When we feel someone is blaming or criticizing us we often become defensive. "I statements" share opinion. When someone uses "I statements" they are talking about themselves instead of judging us. Once people become defensive or angry, communication usually breaks down. Remember, discuss the topic, not each other or other posters. Example of using "I" and not you: I think, I feel, in my estimation, in my experience. Also avoid "your." Your opinion, your topic, your view. Instead use: "the topic, the response, this opinion, this view." Do not used disguised "you statements." I think that "you"... or This logic is flawed because you....In my estimation you... Just about the only time to use a "you statement" is when paying a compliment. Then it's positive and usually very well received.

When using "I statements", make sure these are not flamey.
For example:
Good I-message: I disagree with the doctrine of the Church of Such-and-Such.
Poorly disguised flaming I-message: IMO the Church of Such-and-Such is full of beans.
YouTube - The Power of Words.mov