I am shocked but do I have any reason to have to adhere to such consensus ?
Stan: Christians themselves may disagree on the extent to which every
individual's nature is stained by sin (pride, selfishness, greed, hatred,
etc.), but you will find very few who believe in the literal death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ who would also agree that man is basically
good.
Count me as one of them.
Stan: This indicates to me that you are not very well informed about the
historic, Biblical Christian faith. What is the source of your personal
information about Christianity?
What does my personal faith have to do with the historical christian faith
?
Is the historical christian faith infallible ? Is my view that man is
basically good until corrupted by society and interactions with other
unchristian ? For some reason I have been able to combine both believes
quite satisfactorily.
Stan: 3. Your statement that you consider yourself to be a Christian is,
in light of the above, puzzling to me. Just what IS a Christian to you?
According to the "born again" doctrine, I am a christian (and saved as
well) by accepting JC as my savior and inviting him into my life.
Different christian religions themselves appear to disagree on what it
takes to become a member of their 'religion' from catholic to born again
and everything in between. What makes me a Christian ? My personal faith.
Stan: Here I insist on the objective meaning of words. The word
Christian, first applied to the believers and followers of Jesus in the
first century, can be defined fairly carefully.
Can it ? What is the definition ?
Stan: I think it would be helpful for you to read the preface/introduction
to C. S. Lewis' Mere Christianity before responding. Lewis has some very
helpful things to say about the way the word "Christian" has been abused
and redefined by people who really do not understand the Christian faith.
Aha, so there is them and there is us ? And them are wrong and us are
right ? That does not sound like a very objective standard now does it ?
Perhaps you are right, the word Christian has been abused by some but the
question remains, are you sure it is them ?
Stan: I really am curious about these things, and I am concerned that YOU
are
the one who has erected a mental "straw man" regarding the nature of
Christianity.
A mental straw man ? I am impressed how you are willing to doubt my
beliefs and faith Stan ? Is the word of a fellow christian not worth
anything ? Yes I consider myself a Christian and I also believe that man
is basically good. Both beliefs have worked quite well side by side.