the Spirit of Detroit
check out the pic below:
why, it’s the Spirit of Detroit… a fine sculpture indeed… but look behind it… there’s some writing back there… what does it say??? it says, “now the Lord is that spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty”… huh??? where’d they get that from??? well, actually, they got it from the Bible… 2 Corinthians 3:17 to be exact… ultimately, this landmark is saying that the Spirit of Detroit is the Holy Spirit, God, the God of the Christian Bible… i am proud that this is displayed right on the grounds of our city’s municipal building… however, where are the atheists!?!? why aren’t they protesting??? why aren’t they suing the city??? city dollars certainly paid for it…
y’all know i’m a Christian, and if you didn’t, you know now… do you hate me now??? do you think you already know me??? have you already thrown me in the Right-wing extreme Conservative box and disregarded anything i have to say???
i’m pretty peeved about the news of an atheist group suing the city… as if the city doesn’t have enough problems of it own… this atheist group is upset because some of the funds went toward improving church facades… it was an aesthetic move for the superbowl!!! it wasn’t to fund the church, it was so that when people came to Detroit, it wouldn’t look like crap!!! gimme a break… shoot, give Detroit a break… it’s a town full of people of faith… the landmark at the municipal building proves it…
this country was founded on Christian principals… up until the latter half of the 20th century people prayed in schools and swore on the Holy Bible in our courts… i realize that things are different today, and that people think that things should be different today, but you cannot deny that the USA was founded on Judeo/Christian values and that the Church and God were a huge part of our government and life in general… furthermore, no one had a problem with it until recently… for nearly 200 years, praying in school and swearing on the Bible was the norm in our country… even when the Constitution was authored and immediately after, they prayed in schools and swore on the Bible… .
this may not be coherent enough, but i’m actually tired of writing this already… people twist the truth around all the time and when they can’t do that, they try to erase it… one day the atheists will try to get that reference to Scripture removed, but there was a reason for it and they'll try to erase that too...
that’s my rant today…
posted by Grande Baliad @ 7:24 AM
10 Comments:
I'm with you. Atheism/schmatheism. They'll just have to learn to deal.
If there were no God, it would be necessary to invent him.
_____VOLTAIRE
To deny something is easy but to accept something is really hard.
And when you have to accept that there is someone up in the HEAVEN who has created all universe, who you can’t see with your naked eyes then it’s difficult for a person(who don’t think and not even bother to observe the miracles of creation) to accept the existence of GOD.
I don’t remember the name of physicists but what he said reflects the view of MAN OF UNDERSTANDING, one who really thinks and observes things in order to form an opinion.
HE SAID AFTER STUDYING THE COMPLEX SYSTEM OF THE GLAXIES (STARS AND PLANETS)AND ANALYZING THE FORCES THAT GOVERNS AND DIRECT THE WHOLE UNIVERSE WITH SUCH AN ACCURACY AND PERFECTION, I REALIZED THAT THIS UNIVERSE HASNT CREATED BY JUST AN EXPLOSION, MATTER CANT SHAPE ITSELF IN SUCH A MASSIVE AND ORGANIZED SYSTEM IN WHICH EVEN THE SLIGHTEST ALTERATION COULD RUIN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE. THERE IS A SYMMETRY IN A DESIGN THAT MUST HAVE BEEN CREATED BY A DEVINE BEING.
i agree that it is difficult for those without faith to have faith and understand those of us with faith... however, it's one thing to not be able to understand and it's another thing to be bitter and hateful... i find that a lot of people who attack Christianity are bitter towards it... my thing is: i am in complete disagreement with some other faiths, but i am not bitter towards them... it is quite possible to disagree with something, and in addition, greatly desire for their belief system to not prevail in my country, yet still not be bitter and hateful... there are numerous people from all faiths who can share this sentiment and also several who can't... i suppose the atheist who sued the city are of those who can't...
As an atheist I disagree with your view of the situation.
Churches belong exclusively to theists. They are paid for with the tithe money that believers voluntarily give to them.
Churches serve no useful function to an atheist. We have no interest in whether your church has pretty windows or a new parking lot.
The government takes tax money from everyone - including atheists - by force. We established the government and gave them a set of rules that they have to follow in order to remain in power. One of those rules is that they can't promote religious causes.
Taking my money and giving it to your church is wrong. Members of the church should pay for their own improvements, through voluntary tithes. When the government gave my money to your church, it broke the law.
The money your church saved (by using mine instead) is then free to be used towards whatever religious goal they want. I was just forced, without my consent, to subsidize your religion.
can you imagine if everyone complained about the government how the government is using their money???
dustin, i feel rather strongly about the government using MY money to defend views like yours... i don't like it, but i'm not sueing anyone...
atheism not only serves no useful function to me as a Christian, it works against my belief system completely... fantastic... not only is my money going towards something contrary to my belief system, my money is being used to promote things that work against it... nice...
furthermore, i have been forced, without MY consent, to subsidize your atheistic views...taking MY money to subsidize a view completely opposite to what i believe is wrong...
you wanna talk about forced without consent??? atheism has been forced on this country without it's consent... God has been a big part of this country from it's inception... all of a sudden in the last 50 years, atheism comes along and changes all the laws??? do you think the millions with faith across America agree with the minority amount of atheists in the country??? i doubt it...
Yes! I can imagine if everyone complained about the government. That's the only way to bring about any sort of change in the system. I don't know what specific cases you're refering to, but I'd be happy to address them. In fact, I'd probably agree with you that the government is misusing its power (and our money) in most of them.
I agree that government should not promote any religion or nonreligion with taxpayer money. In the words of Thomas Jefferson "To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves and abhors, is sinful and tyrannical." Even when those opinions are mine, it's not the government's job to spread them for me.
As far as atheism being "forced on this country without its consent," most people are misinformed on this topic. European nations all invoked "God" as the source of the ruler's authority. Our Founders deliberately left "God" out of the Constitution in order to establish a secular government - one that was neutral towards all beliefs.
Religion's influence in the government has been illegitimate from the beginning. The Establishment Clause clearly prohibits Congress from making religious laws, and the Equal Protections Clause later extended this to the states. With literally tens of thousands of legislators in the country, all promoting their own agendas, some religious laws have slipped through the cracks. They are not evidence of a Christian government, rather they are evidence of individuals who have no respect for the principle of separation of church and state.
It may interest you to know that the first Christian president was the seventh - Andrew Jackson. Most of the Founders, including Washington, Jefferson, Adams, etc. were either Unitarian or Deist. Both are monotheistic religions, but most definitely not Christian. There's no Bible, no Jesus, no flood, no Garden of Eden, and no Ten Commandments in either belief system.
Coins did not bear the slogan "In God We Trust" until the mid-to-late 1800's. It did not become the official national motto or appear on paper money until the 1950's.
US Treasury History: http://www.ustreas.gov/education/fact-sheets/currency/in-god-we-trust.shtml
Atheism isn't a new movement. Everyone is born an atheist, with no concept of what a "God" is. "God" is an idea that people introduce to you in your childhood and you either accept or reject their claim. I believe that without evidence there is no valid reason to accept that claim. Even if I did decide to find a religion, I have no valid reason to choose any one of them over the others. NONE present credible evidence.
Most public misconceptions about atheism are a result of the government's smear campaign during the Cold War. The government subsidized anti-atheist propaganda because Communist Russia was a largely atheist country. Nazi Germany was a largely Christian nation, but of course nobody wanted to point that out.
Our goal is not to "force" atheism on others. We want to restore a government that is completely neutral towards all nonviolent beliefs. Liberty and justice "for all" was once a treasured American value. True liberty is diminished every time Christian politicians abuse their power and use the force of law to promote their private beliefs.
Freedom FROM Religion can coexist with Freedom OF Religon only if the government stays out of the picture.
while i obviously don't agree with you, you have made some good, cordial and educational comments... thanks dustin...
I was surprised that you approved my posts in the first place. I really do appreciate it. I enjoy having the opportunity to show people the *other side* of a disagreement without receiving a violent or rude rebuttal. Thank you.
there's too much weak dialogue going on these days... i.e.- people being rude, slanderous and resorting to name calling... i enjoy hearing the opposing view... it sharpens me and helps me understand the person behind the argument... too often people don't even consider what the real person behind a position is feeling or where they are coming from... that's a huge problem with society... while i'm not sure i agree with you that freedom from religion and freedom of religion can coexist, we don't even have a chance of getting there if people fail to consider the human aspect of all sides...
What God is doing in Detroit is amazing. I love our "spirit of Detroit" statue. Check out some incredible things that are happening July 2007, the 21-23. It is 40 years after the riots and God finally wants to bring healing to our region. Several churches are partnering with us for "Celebrate Freedom" we want to undo spiritually the bondage that has come as a result of racism, poverty, fear and see our beloved City become a place where "Liberty and Freedom Reigns again! There will also be services going on at churches that entire weekend, and on the 23rd the day of the riots, we are asking people to stand on street corners at noon and pray. For more information visit www.solidrockdetroit.com
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