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Thank you all for the commments. God tells that “24 a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh,” and Jesus repeated it, so it must be important. Some takeaways: * God is telling us that lifelong married men & women, and their...

Thank you, and congratulations. Generic questions: * how did you decide this particular person was the right one, and how has that turned out over time? * do you believe God had a pivotal role in bringing you together? * what questions would you ask a couple thinking about marriage? Peace.

Thank you for your comments. Agreed: teaching religion does not belong in a public school. So, may be civics should be taught again—Not just the structure of our government and the political duties of citizens, but respect for the rule of law. In our city there is increasing violence...

Good one! Related: Benjamin Franklin had a list of a dozen “values” or “behavioral attributes” against which he would review his own conduct (hard look in the mirror). One of those was humility, and he had to admit it was the most difficult one to evaluate. ”My how humble I was today”...

Thanks for introducing an interesting topic. Some sound reasons why Christians can speak and should about their faith with (quiet) pride: —started first hospitals and continues to fund them —started and maintains prison ministry (unique to Christianity) —faith is backed by an internally...

Thank you for the response. To begin: a God-given conscience means we each are endowed with the ability to understand concepts like “right” and “wrong” independent of reward/punishment. In contrast, other social mammals do not have this understanding: they live in “might makes right” worlds...

Thank you for the response. Now we have another issue. Good Christians know that without God’s help, we are tempted to stray and rationalize strictly un-Christ-like behavior. Born-again Christians must be diligent and appropriately prayerful. (Aside: And there are contributors to this space...

Thank you (and others) for the thorough analysis of the new topic. Impressive! My question is: what exactly is the Apostle referring to in these verses? What behaviors did he discover when preaching to these gentiles? Some clues are in Acts 28:1-7 28 Once safely on shore, we found out that...

Ok, so now consider Romans 2:14-15 14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also...

Thank you for the comments. Our remaining differences are so small they do not appear worth pursuing in this format. Instead, here is the Apostle Paul on Original Sin. Does this resonate with you? Romans 5: 12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin...

Could we back up and clarify some points? You said it doesn’t make sense that God would punish all of humanity for A&E’s (unrepentant) transgression (and I agree, actually). But that is the standard definition of original sin: our inheritance of the first corrupted souls. Yet a few sentences...

Excellent response. So: if we reject original sin, how do we account for the behavior of toddlers (self-centered, selfish desires, means justify ends, etc.) and the need for parents to inculcate Love Thy Neighbor? And if we were to reject original sin, what is Jesus’ role in Judgement...

Thank you for drawing our attention (to yet another enigma). Herewith a possible explanation. Elohim makes a creature in His image: able to create new things, able to understand His creation (science), given an eternal soul, given shared stewardship of the planet, given the ability to love...

Thanks, but all you did is link the page on which the above is printed.

Thank you! So, can you provide a 21st century translation of Article VII? (I understand, sort of, all the words, but the intent? Is it just an archaic restatement of Original Sin, or is there more, or less?) Peace.

Here, for example, is Article VII— ARTICLE VII — OF ORIGINAL OR BIRTH SIN “Original sin standeth not in the following of Adam (as the Pelagians do vainly talk), but it is the corruption of the nature of every man, that naturally is engendered of the offspring of Adam, whereby man is very far...

Thank you for the post and question? My question: why are you concerned whether it constitutes praying? (Do you have a number of daily prayers required for yourself?) God always knows what you are thinking, and in this case surely welcomes this type of thought. Or would He be disappointed...

Thank you for your post. Where is it written that if you do not judge, then God won’t judge on your behalf either? Here is additional scripture on judging, which is crucially important if a community of the faithful is going to survive: 15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out...

Thank you for the question. Answer: it would not have help—Eve would have pestered, nagged, and harangued Adam until he relented. (Also, her intense verbiage would have been contrary to Love Thy Neighbor, which would have made matters even worse for her.) On the other hand, what if both had...