Why so many rules?

[Yardstick]

One of the things I value within Christianity is its simplicity. Essentially there is one rule, the golden rule. Love God and your neighbor. Everything else can be summed up in that one rule. Don't kill, cheat, lie, etc. But it seems in both Islam, and Ba'hai many other laws were added. No drinking, wear this, say these things here. Why is this necessary, especially when they aren't relevant to the golden rule?


As a disclaimer, I'm not interested in attacking anyones faith. It's simply something I've never understood.

 

[JJWhite]

Structure? Constant reminders? Benefit to self and others? For example, in case of alcohol consumption that you mention, though small quantities of wine may be beneficial, the potential harms of alcohol consumption (especially in larger quantities) makes it better avoided for everyone's outweighing benefit. And God knows best.

 

[Exial]

One of the things I value within Christianity is its simplicity. Essentially there is one rule, the golden rule. Love God and your neighbor. Everything else can be summed up in that one rule. Don't kill, cheat, lie, etc. But it seems in both Islam, and Ba'hai many other laws were added. No drinking, wear this, say these things here. Why is this necessary, especially when they aren't relevant to the golden rule?

Christianity is anything but simple. There is not just one rule, that is a totally false statement. There are over 500 laws or rules in the Bible. Some as ridiculous as you claim Islamic rules are. I shall show you some examples.

Deuteronomy Chapter 14

Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.

Nevertheless these ye shall not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the cloven hoof; as the camel and the hare, and the coney: for they chew the cud, but divide not the hoof; therefore they are unclean unto you.

And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase.

And it goes on and on and on.. thou shalt not.. yadda yadda yadda.

Your entire argument is based on the false premise that Christianity is based on 1 rule, the golden rules when I have clearly demonstrated with these examples that it is not. You are just picking and choosing which parts of the Bible you want to follow and which you do not, which imo reduces the overall value of the Bibles message to virtually nothing.

 

[.Iona.]

I think there are a lot of rules in Christianity. perhaps not as many as in Islam or some others, but I find there are a lot.

 

[Exial]

Structure? Constant reminders? Benefit to self and others? For example, in case of alcohol consumption that you mention, though small quantities of wine may be beneficial, the potential harms of alcohol consumption (especially in larger quantities) makes it better avoided for everyone's outweighing benefit. And God knows best.

God knows his own creation are not responsible to consume alcohol that he created in the first place so he decides to just forbid the use altogether.

If he is going to ban us from using it why bother to create it in the first place?

God clearly does not know best.

 

[b&wpac7]

One of the things I value within Christianity is its simplicity. Essentially there is one rule, the golden rule. Love God and your neighbor. Everything else can be summed up in that one rule. Don't kill, cheat, lie, etc. But it seems in both Islam, and Ba'hai many other laws were added. No drinking, wear this, say these things here. Why is this necessary, especially when they aren't relevant to the golden rule?

I feel as if you forget what came before you guys came along...

That said, before Jesus came the rabbi Hillel said, "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow: this is the whole Torah; the rest is the explanation; go and learn" so it's a similar idea. It does not mean do not keep the Law. We are commanded to keep the Law "throughout every generation", and so we do.

 

[If Not For Grace]

so he decides to just forbid the use altogether.

When did He do that?

Man is given a choice in all things; there are consequences/rewards reactions for all choices-that's the deal. We are told the best answer:
"chose life" & given some guidelines for the "best" choices.

Paul said it best-all things are lawful unto me; but not all things are beneficial. Chose what is best for you, in your walk with God & let others do the same-just tell em why you chose to do or not to do, & then let them chose (or just try & stop em).

PEACE

 

[awitch]

I think when designing a religion, rules provide some exclusivity (keeps out the riffraff) and shapes who you are allowed to hate and why. But mostly, I think it's to instill power in the clergy. They make the rules and enforce them and sometimes even get the privilege of excusing themselves from secular laws when they conflict.

 

[Ishraqiyun]

deleted

 

[SithDoughnut]

Huh? Christianity has plenty of rules. Make a list of all the things that are sins in the Bible, and those are all different rules. If you want to sum them up under massive umbrella terms such as "Love God" (which could include sin and faith and so on), then you could easily do the same for other religions. The only reason you see simplicity in Christianity and complexity in other religions as because you're applying blanket terms to Christianity and treating each detail as separate in other religions.

For example, in Islam you could sum everything up as submission to God. That's just one rule. Very simple. In Judaism, you could just sum it up as "keep the law". Obviously these terms may not be brilliant but you get the point.

 

[b&wpac7]

They make the rules and enforce them and sometimes even get the privilege of excusing themselves from secular laws when they conflict.

Actually, I'd say in Judaism that Kohanim (priests) have far more restrictions on them than the rest of Jews. A very big chunk of the Law has to do with what they can and cannot do.

 

[b&wpac7]

Huh? Christianity has plenty of rules. Make a list of all the things that are sins in the Bible, and those are all different rules. If you want to sum them up under massive umbrella terms such as "Love God" (which could include sin and faith and so on), then you could easily do the same for other religions. The only reason you see simplicity in Christianity and complexity in other religions as because you're applying blanket terms to Christianity and treating each detail as separate in other religions.

This is a very good point.

 

[Zoness]

Christianity, given its sheer mass of variation has both hundreds of explicit rules and thousands of implied cultural rules that vary with denomination and culture. There is nothing at all simple about it. I would say the premise in the OP is a good starting point for Christians but it's not the end-all to a universe of theological confusion.

 

[HosannaHM]

One of the things I value within Christianity is its simplicity. Essentially there is one rule, the golden rule. Love God and your neighbor. Everything else can be summed up in that one rule. Don't kill, cheat, lie, etc. But it seems in both Islam, and Ba'hai many other laws were added. No drinking, wear this, say these things here. Why is this necessary, especially when they aren't relevant to the golden rule?


As a disclaimer, I'm not interested in attacking anyones faith. It's simply something I've never understood.

Some call Christianity rules, I call it freedom. Giving your life over to Christ is the absolute best thing anyone can do. Salvation, a Lord who will never forsake you, and the constant revealings brought on by the Holy Spirit itself.
"For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1

What I mean by revealings is that the more you grow in the faith, the more Christ reveals Himself to you. This of course is by seeking Him with all your heart, mind, and soul (Luke 10:27). The ways enforced by the law (which Christ took our burdens with the ultmate sacrifice because we cannot help but sin) are free in Christ, HOWEVER he does not want you to compromise with the Golden Rule. Comprising is always the work of the devil. He wants you to believe you can't do any better. Or saying things like "It's ok God will still love you go ahead and get drunk. Why don't you check out that porn site? Did God tell you not to look at that? He won't mind."

Trust me friends, we've all had these thoughts of temptation. But it is another victory for Christ everytime we break through the chains of comprimise and continue to pursue the holy example placed by Christ Jesus. ☨

 

[Jane_the_Bane]

The OP wanted to know why world views would set up so many rules, and here's one explanation:

Control.

If you can get people to follow even the most nonsensical rules, you've got them firmly under control.

Boot camps employ such tactics as well, as does Scientology and other cults aiming for a nice little brainwashing.

 

[peaceful soul]

The OP wanted to know why world views would set up so many rules, and here's one explanation:

Control.

If you can get people to follow even the most nonsensical rules, you've got them firmly under control.

Boot camps employ such tactics as well, as does Scientology and other cults aiming for a nice little brainwashing.

Are you arguing against control or the degree of control? Every imaginable system has controls. You are being controlled right now by some system(s).

Are you also arguing that control is a bad thing in itself? It seems to me that you are only seeing negatives in control when you mention brainwashing and boot camps.

 

[A_maize]

Christianity is anything but simple. There is not just one rule, that is a totally false statement. There are over 500 laws or rules in the Bible. Some as ridiculous as you claim Islamic rules are. I shall show you some examples.

Deuteronomy Chapter 14

Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.

Nevertheless these ye shall not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the cloven hoof; as the camel and the hare, and the coney: for they chew the cud, but divide not the hoof; therefore they are unclean unto you.

And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase.

And it goes on and on and on.. thou shalt not.. yadda yadda yadda.

Your entire argument is based on the false premise that Christianity is based on 1 rule, the golden rules when I have clearly demonstrated with these examples that it is not. You are just picking and choosing which parts of the Bible you want to follow and which you do not, which imo reduces the overall value of the Bibles message to virtually nothing.

I think what the OP is trying to say is that the motivation behind all rules in the Bible starts with loving God, and loving your neighbors. All other 'rules' or 'laws' are simply more detailed derivatives of the main, ultimate law or guideline. In a way, it does boil down to one law.

 

[A_maize]

Huh? Christianity has plenty of rules. Make a list of all the things that are sins in the Bible, and those are all different rules. If you want to sum them up under massive umbrella terms such as "Love God" (which could include sin and faith and so on), then you could easily do the same for other religions. The only reason you see simplicity in Christianity and complexity in other religions as because you're applying blanket terms to Christianity and treating each detail as separate in other religions.

For example, in Islam you could sum everything up as submission to God. That's just one rule. Very simple. In Judaism, you could just sum it up as "keep the law". Obviously these terms may not be brilliant but you get the point.

I agree, though how Jesus summed it up was very nice, no?

 

[b&wpac7]

I agree, though how Jesus summed it up was very nice, no?

Just not originally.

 

[Zoness]

I think what the OP is trying to say is that the motivation behind all rules in the Bible starts with loving God, and loving your neighbors. All other 'rules' or 'laws' are simply more detailed derivatives of the main, ultimate law or guideline. In a way, it does boil down to one law.

I think even if it all can be drawn to that fundamental law, people will always obsess over the derivatives of it. Besides, it doesn't account for the 100s of subsequent cultural rules that arise as a result of certain Christian belief systems such as no rock music, women not cutting hair, a general implied rule to vote a certain political platform. I would call those unwritten rules pretty important for acceptance in some circles, because otherwise you will be ostracized from one group. Not that its a bad thing inherently, there are a million others.