Can you be Christian and Greek?

[BruhMan06]

Hey all, I ran across this story "Can you be Christian and Greek?" Greeks tend to receive a bit of criticism from the general population regarding Christianity. I am a strong Christian, but it really baffles me when this topic comes up. Why do folks consider us to be Satanic? I just hope we can really have a serious on this so this topic will stopped being brought up in convos.

http://kollegekidd.com/news/can-you-...tian-and-greek

[Andre Turner]

Originally Posted by BruhMan06

Hey all, I ran across this story "Can you be Christian and Greek?" Greeks tend to receive a bit of criticism from the general population regarding Christianity. I am a strong Christian, but it really baffles me when this topic comes up. Why do folks consider us to be Satanic? I just hope we can really have a serious on this so this topic will stopped being brought up in convos.

http://kollegekidd.com/news/can-you-...tian-and-greek

Before anybody can answer your questions, we first must understand what Christianity is and where it's teachings came from. Most of us call ourselves Christians because our parents call themselves Christians. And their parents call themselves Christians, because their parents call themselves Christians. Is this the truth? Of course it is. But why were they calling themselves Christians? They were calling themselves Christians because a man named Jesus visited the slave-plantation one day and baptized them in the waters of the Mississippi River. Jesus did not come to them in a vision or a dream, and say to them…"from this day forward, I declare you all to be Christians!" So, now if Jesus didn't come to the slave-plantation to give us this so-called Christianity, then who did come? Who was it that gave our forefathers and mothers these teachings of Christianity? Who was it that taught us this? You know who taught us this. The white slave master gave us these teachings of so-called Christianity, and we accepted these teachings with no questions asked, just like we accepted everything else that he gave us. Christianity, as we know it, is only the white slave masters teachings of what and who God and the devil is. We really were never taught the true teachings of Jesus. All that we have is the teachings of the white slave master, with Jesus' name on it.

[DrPhil]

There have been a lot of threads about this topic over the years including 2011-2012 threads. There is truly nothing new and profound to say on this topic. Everything is redundant.

[PiKA2001]

Originally Posted by Andre Turner

Before anybody can answer your questions, we first must understand what Christianity is and where it's teachings came from. Most of us call ourselves Christians because our parents call themselves Christians. And their parents call themselves Christians, because their parents call themselves Christians. Is this the truth? Of course it is. But why were they calling themselves Christians? They were calling themselves Christians because a man named Jesus visited the slave-plantation one day and baptized them in the waters of the Mississippi River. Jesus did not come to them in a vision or a dream, and say to them…"from this day forward, I declare you all to be Christians!" So, now if Jesus didn't come to the slave-plantation to give us this so-called Christianity, then who did come? Who was it that gave our forefathers and mothers these teachings of Christianity? Who was it that taught us this? You know who taught us this. The white slave master gave us these teachings of so-called Christianity, and we accepted these teachings with no questions asked, just like we accepted everything else that he gave us. Christianity, as we know it, is only the white slave masters teachings of what and who God and the devil is. We really were never taught the true teachings of Jesus. All that we have is the teachings of the white slave master, with Jesus' name on it.

HA, Love it!

[PrettyBoy]

Originally Posted by Andre Turner

Before anybody can answer your questions, we first must understand what Christianity is and where it's teachings came from. Most of us call ourselves Christians because our parents call themselves Christians. And their parents call themselves Christians, because their parents call themselves Christians. Is this the truth? Of course it is. But why were they calling themselves Christians? They were calling themselves Christians because a man named Jesus visited the slave-plantation one day and baptized them in the waters of the Mississippi River. Jesus did not come to them in a vision or a dream, and say to them…"from this day forward, I declare you all to be Christians!" So, now if Jesus didn't come to the slave-plantation to give us this so-called Christianity, then who did come? Who was it that gave our forefathers and mothers these teachings of Christianity? Who was it that taught us this? You know who taught us this. The white slave master gave us these teachings of so-called Christianity, and we accepted these teachings with no questions asked, just like we accepted everything else that he gave us. Christianity, as we know it, is only the white slave masters teachings of what and who God and the devil is. We really were never taught the true teachings of Jesus. All that we have is the teachings of the white slave master, with Jesus' name on it.

[BruhMan06]

Originally Posted by Andre Turner

Before anybody can answer your questions, we first must understand what Christianity is and where it's teachings came from. Most of us call ourselves Christians because our parents call themselves Christians. And their parents call themselves Christians, because their parents call themselves Christians. Is this the truth? Of course it is. But why were they calling themselves Christians? They were calling themselves Christians because a man named Jesus visited the slave-plantation one day and baptized them in the waters of the Mississippi River. Jesus did not come to them in a vision or a dream, and say to them…"from this day forward, I declare you all to be Christians!" So, now if Jesus didn't come to the slave-plantation to give us this so-called Christianity, then who did come? Who was it that gave our forefathers and mothers these teachings of Christianity? Who was it that taught us this? You know who taught us this. The white slave master gave us these teachings of so-called Christianity, and we accepted these teachings with no questions asked, just like we accepted everything else that he gave us. Christianity, as we know it, is only the white slave masters teachings of what and who God and the devil is. We really were never taught the true teachings of Jesus. All that we have is the teachings of the white slave master, with Jesus' name on it.

Where do we find the true teachings of Jesus?

[Andre Turner]

Originally Posted by BruhMan06

Where do we find the true teachings of Jesus?

First of all, I don't want you to think that I am saying that there is no truth in the Bible or in the teachings of Jesus. That is not what I am saying, because the true teachings of Jesus, is not what the slave master gave to our people. There is truth in the Bible if you can break through all of the symbolism. The teachings of Jesus are very valuable, but that is not what the preacher has been teaching. That is not what the slave master has given the preacher to preach. Open your black mind for a second and be objective. Open your black mind and try to think emotionally for a while. I want you to reason with me. I want us to just reason together. Let us try to be mature, honest and objective about this subject. Please don't let the truth offend you or make you upset. The only way to oppose the truth is to defend and uphold a lie. So I want you to be on the side of the truth. Now where do you want to be? So let us reason with this thing. Let us use our logic and reasoning to find the real truth, or the real reasons. Now before we find the real truth or the real reasons we first must ask the real questions. Why is it that most black people call themselves Christians? What is the reason? Why do most black churches display the image of a white Jesus? What is the reason? Why are all the angels white? What is the reason? Why are there no black people at the last supper? What is the reason? Why is it that when most black people close their eyes to pray, they see a white God in their mind? What is the reason? Why did King James feel that he was holy enough to revise and issue his own version of the revealed word of God? What is the reason? Why did black slaves whole heartedly accept the teachings of Christianity from the same white slave master, who gave them pure hell 24 hours a day? What is the reason? Why are we in a terrible mess that we are in today? What is the reason? You need to know the reasons before you can determine the real truth. The Bible is the history/prophecy of black folks. Read your Bible from a black theological perspective, not from a white theological perspective. After you have finished your Bible, get a Holy Quran. In times like these, we need to have all the revealed word of God, not just part of the truth. We need all of God, not just part of God.

[dekeguy]

Originally Posted by Andre Turner

Before anybody can answer your questions, we first must understand what Christianity is and where it's teachings came from.
Most of us call ourselves Christians because our parents call themselves Christians. And their parents call themselves Christians, because their parents call themselves Christians. Is this the truth? Of course it is. But why were they calling themselves Christians? They were calling themselves Christians because a man named Jesus visited the slave-plantation one day and baptized them in the waters of the Mississippi River. Jesus did not come to them in a vision or a dream, and say to them…"from this day forward, I declare you all to be Christians!" So, now if Jesus didn't come to the slave-plantation to give us this so-called Christianity, then who did come? Who was it that gave our forefathers and mothers these teachings of Christianity? Who was it that taught us this? You know who taught us this. The white slave master gave us these teachings of so-called Christianity, and we accepted these teachings with no questions asked, just like we accepted everything else that he gave us. Christianity, as we know it, is only the white slave masters teachings of what and who God and the devil is. We really were never taught the true teachings of Jesus. All that we have is the teachings of the white slave master, with Jesus' name on it.

===============================

Does anyone else find this to be as deeply and fundamentally flawed as I do?
I find this to be grossly offensive to my convictions concerning the nature of Christianity and the two millenia of scholarship, careful consideration, and prayer on the sources and means of understanding the message of Christ.

What you want to believe and profess is your business and as an American I support your right to believe it. By the same token I assert my right to believe what I profess. What I challenge is your position that Christianity in the 21st Century is a recent construct filtered through the teachings of "white slave masters" of the early-18th Century to the mid-19th Century.

The historical Yeshua bar Yusef or Jesus, as we now refer to Him, was a swarthy complected, dark curley haired Semite. Not exactly the blond blue eyed Northern European type by any means. The message He gave to all of us was to love the Lord our God and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
So, What is Christianity? Christianity is the acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the acceptance of His blueprint regarding how we should see and act upon our relationship with God and our fellow human beings. Where did it come from? From the teachings of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, handed down to us by the Apostles and their successors carefully studying and preserving the scriptures and traditions of the earliest time of His revelations. Not the filtered interpretations of "white slave masters".

What I personally profess is fairly well summed up in the Creed from the Council of Nicea which in the 4th Century A.D. promulgated this simple statement of what a Christian believes:
"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, and born of the Father before all ages. God of God, light of light, true God of true God. Begotten not made, of one in being with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven. And was incarnate of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary and was made man; was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered death and was buried; and the third day rose again according to the Scriptures. And He ascended into heaven, where He sits at the right hand of the Father, and shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, of whose Kingdom there shall be no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who together with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who spoke by the Prophets. And I believe in one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen."

OK, You have had your say and I have had mine. I would however suggest that if you are going to propose your interpretation of Christianity and its origin and development you might want to support your argument with historical fact clearly traceable through 2000 years rather than by simply playing the race card. Considering the centuries of persecution suffered by
all shades of Christians for the faith of Christ, and the ancient seats of Christianity in Africa and Asia, that card cuts with a two edged sword!

AMDG

[naraht]

Originally Posted by dekeguy

The historical Yeshua bar Yusef or Jesus, as we now refer to Him, was a swarthy complected, dark curley haired Semite. Not exactly the blond blue eyed Northern European type by any means.

Don't forget the beard. (Only Greeks Shaved themselves to the bare skin at the time)...

I find the portrayals of Jesus looking like he is from Ghana to be just as bizarre as the ones where he looks like he is from Denmark...

The other oddity that happened as the Christian traditions moved north is that the story of the innkeeper in regards to "No room at the inn" gets uglier and uglier. In a place like Germany or England, being forced to sleep out with the animals near the winter solstice is Cruelty to Mary and Joseph and places the young babe at risk. Late December in Bethlehem is simply the rainy season with temperatures *rarely* dropping below freezing. And straw was probably the sleeping padding for those in the Inn as well...

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by naraht

The other oddity that happened as the Christian traditions moved north is that the story of the innkeeper in regards to "No room at the inn" gets uglier and uglier. In a place like Germany or England, being forced to sleep out with the animals near the winter solstice is Cruelty to Mary and Joseph and places the young babe at risk. Late December in Bethlehem is simply the rainy season with temperatures *rarely* dropping below freezing. And straw was probably the sleeping padding for those in the Inn as well...

Except that nowhere do the gospels say that Jesus was born in December, and to the degree to which they say anything about the timing of his birth, they suggest summer, not winter. It's well-known that the celebration of the nativity and Incarnation was liked to the winter solstice for a variety of symbolic reasons, as well as because of a theory of Jesus' conception happening on the same (spring) date as the crucifixion.

But two thing that Luke tells us -- that shepherds were in the fields with their sheep at night and that Mary laid Jesus in a manger (which presumably wasn't needed to feed an animal at the time) -- suggest the warmer weather of summer or early spring. Animals in that part of the world were penned at night from October/November until March/April; only in the warmer months would they have remained in the fields at night. And Luke also gives information relating when Jesus was conceived and born to when John the Baptist was conceived and born. That information also suggests a late summer/early autumn birth for Jesus.

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by dekeguy

"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

Yep, I agree. Kind of reminds me of when Moses was walking with God and receiving His command to take His people out of Egypt. Moses thought that if he went to the people and told them, that they wouldn't believe him. He asked God what should he tell them. God responded and told Moses to tell them "I am has sent me to you." That's in Exodus 3:13-14. Straight to the point, meaning whatever it is you need, God says, I AM that. No human being can say that. I mean, we can be a few things one at a time, but He is all things all the time. Yep, totally agree with you. I also believe that there is only one God. He is the only aspect of the life I am building that is not manufactured. He is the beginning and the end of life, because He is the source of it. We can't get around Him, because He is larger than life. I just believe that the Holy Spirit is the component that gives instruction, interprets the will of the Father, and reveals the heart and inner workings of the Father and the Son.

[Andre Turner]

Originally Posted by dekeguy

===============================

Does anyone else find this to be as deeply and fundamentally flawed as I do?
I find this to be grossly offensive to my convictions concerning the nature of Christianity and the two millenia of scholarship, careful consideration, and prayer on the sources and means of understanding the message of Christ.

What you want to believe and profess is your business and as an American I support your right to believe it. By the same token I assert my right to believe what I profess. What I challenge is your position that Christianity in the 21st Century is a recent construct filtered through the teachings of "white slave masters" of the early-18th Century to the mid-19th Century.

The historical Yeshua bar Yusef or Jesus, as we now refer to Him, was a swarthy complected, dark curley haired Semite. Not exactly the blond blue eyed Northern European type by any means. The message He gave to all of us was to love the Lord our God and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
So, What is Christianity? Christianity is the acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the acceptance of His blueprint regarding how we should see and act upon our relationship with God and our fellow human beings. Where did it come from? From the teachings of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, handed down to us by the Apostles and their successors carefully studying and preserving the scriptures and traditions of the earliest time of His revelations. Not the filtered interpretations of "white slave masters".

What I personally profess is fairly well summed up in the Creed from the Council of Nicea which in the 4th Century A.D. promulgated this simple statement of what a Christian believes:
"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, and born of the Father before all ages. God of God, light of light, true God of true God. Begotten not made, of one in being with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven. And was incarnate of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary and was made man; was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered death and was buried; and the third day rose again according to the Scriptures. And He ascended into heaven, where He sits at the right hand of the Father, and shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, of whose Kingdom there shall be no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who together with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who spoke by the Prophets. And I believe in one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen."

OK, You have had your say and I have had mine. I would however suggest that if you are going to propose your interpretation of Christianity and its origin and development you might want to support your argument with historical fact clearly traceable through 2000 years rather than by simply playing the race card. Considering the centuries of persecution suffered by
all shades of Christians for the faith of Christ, and the ancient seats of Christianity in Africa and Asia, that card cuts with a two edged sword!

AMDG

No, I am not pulling any race card, sir. If I was, what would be wrong with me pulling the race card? Your people have been pulling the race card for the past four centuries and still continue to pull the race card that seems to always be in your favor. Now, you tell me, how many people with blonde hair and blue eyes were living in the Middle East during the time of Jesus? It is impossible for there to have ever been a blonde hair, blue eyed Jesus... something that the slave master instilled in the minds of black people. My people were also directly and indirectly taught (by the slave master) to hate their natural black selves. "Black is bad". Wear white to weddings, and black to funerals. Devil's food cake is black and angel's food cake is white. If I know something bad about you, I could "blackmail" you. You can tell a little "white lie", but you better not tell a big bold "black lie". Do you see the psychology in this? My people were conditioned (by the slave master) to hate everything about themselves that was natural and black. We hate our black beauty because we were taught to define our own beauty according to these white, anglo, caucasoidal, European, westernized, beauty standards. As an example: a white, blonde hair, blue eyed Jesus. This means that anything less than blue eyes and blonde hair is considered less than beautiful. The further you get away from blonde hair and blue eyes, the uglier you get. This is what we were taught. This means that if you got black eyes, black, tight, nappy hair and dark black skin, you are the ugliest thing on the planet. What is sad is the slave master was successful in the brainwashing of black people and this still continues to this very day. As an example: Chris Rock’s "Good Hair" movie. The question I have to my people is why do we want to look like the slave master?...the murderous, cold-blooded, rapist "mutha-fucka". I said rapist "mutha-fucka" for a reason, not just to use foul language. I am speaking the truth. Let me define what a "mutha-fucka" is. A "mutha-fucka" is an individual who is the "fucka of muthas". The white man is a historical "fucka of muthas" around the world. A historical rapist. He was the "fucka" of our "fore-muthas". This is why we come in so many different shades of black now. I find it to be sad that we want to look like, and worship (the image of a white Jesus), the same image type of people who hung us from trees. I'm not arguing your religious beliefs. What I am saying is we have been taught that Jesus is white, with blue eyes, and blonde hair, when that is impossible. I am not using any race card, sir, I am only speaking the truth. I have not lied about anything here.

[dekeguy]

[QUOTE=Andre Turner;2160649]No, I am not pulling any race card, sir.
============================

Peter: Gee, you could have fooled me! Your whole argument is about playing the race card and attacking Christianity as a racist tool for oppression. You ignore the historical truth that Christians have suffered persecution for many many centuries in defense of the rights and dignity of all humankind.
============================

Andre: If I was, what would be wrong with me pulling the race card? Your people have been pulling the race card for the past four centuries and still continue to pull the race card that seems to always be in your favor.
============================

Peter: My people? Who are they, pray tell, who have been playing the race card for four centuries? I am an American, incidentally of mostly French origin and liniage. I am a Roman Catholic both by accident of birth and by considered and informed choice. The card I play is my obligation to follow the two great commandments given by Jesus. That card has been around for about two thousand years.
===========================

Andre: Now, you tell me, how many people with blonde hair and blue eyes were living in the Middle East during the time of Jesus? It is impossible for there to have ever been a blonde hair, blue eyed Jesus... something that the slave master instilled in the minds of black people.
============================

Peter: I suppose you missed my comment about the historical Jesus being swarthy complected, dark curley haired semite? No way was He a blond, blue eyed, scandinavian.
============================

Andre: My people were also directly and indirectly taught (by the slave master) to hate their natural black selves. "Black is bad". Wear white to weddings, and black to funerals. Devil's food cake is black and angel's food cake is white. If I know something bad about you, I could "blackmail" you. You can tell a little "white lie", but you better not tell a big bold "black lie". Do you see the psychology in this? My people were conditioned (by the slave master) to hate everything about themselves that was natural and black. We hate our black beauty because we were taught to define our own beauty according to these white, anglo, caucasoidal, European, westernized, beauty standards. As an example: a white, blonde hair, blue eyed Jesus. This means that anything less than blue eyes and blonde hair is considered less than beautiful. The further you get away from blonde hair and blue eyes, the uglier you get. This is what we were taught. This means that if you got black eyes, black, tight, nappy hair and dark black skin, you are the ugliest thing on the planet. What is sad is the slave master was successful in the brainwashing of black people and this still continues to this very day. As an example: Chris Rock’s "Good Hair" movie. The question I have to my people is why do we want to look like the slave master?...the murderous, cold-blooded, rapist "mutha-fucka". I said rapist "mutha-fucka" for a reason, not just to use foul language. I am speaking the truth. Let me define what a "mutha-fucka" is. A "mutha-fucka" is an individual who is the "fucka of muthas". The white man is a historical "fucka of muthas" around the world. A historical rapist. He was the "fucka" of our "fore-muthas". This is why we come in so many different shades of black now. I find it to be sad that we want to look like, and worship (the image of a white Jesus), the same image type of people who hung us from trees. I'm not arguing your religious beliefs. What I am saying is we have been taught that Jesus is white, with blue eyes, and blonde hair, when that is impossible.
===========================

Peter: Your argument seems obsessed with race. I was never taught to worship a vanilla Jesus. I was taught that Jesus was the Son of God who came to deliver ALL humankind and offer us ALL the gift of salvation.
So, following your argument, I suppose because I have dark hair and dark eyes I am ugly? I never thought I was great looking but I never thought I was ugly either. I would suggest that we both know and appreciate many women of great beauty who just happen to be Black, White, Asian, or any of the many variations in the range of humankind. Same goes for our male side of the human race.
I never worshiped a blond blue eyed Jesus because even when I was a little kid it seemed obvious that He looked more like an Egyptian than a Guy from Norway. In any event it didn't seem to matter, either He was who I believed He was or there was no point to it. What he looked like was an irrelevance when measured against Who He is.
I have no sympathy for oppressive slave masters who I figure had a lot of explaining to do when they faced Jesus, but I have great admiration for the countless thousands who proclaimed their belief in Christ at the cost of their lives over all of the many centuries that Christians have been persecuted for the faith.
==========================

Andre: I am not using any race card, sir, I am only speaking the truth. I have not lied about anything here.
==========================

I did not suggest that you lied, only that your argument seems based on unsupported and inflammatory statements. I suggested that you might want to approach the question of 21st Century Christianity in light of two thousand years of carefully preserved multi-source historical Christianity.
You might remember that some of the greatest fathers of the church were not Northern European but Asian and African. The greatest philosopher of the early church was Saint Augustine of Hippo, African bishop of an African diocese.

[DrPhil]

There is no such thing as a "race card" and therefore there is no "playing the race card." Why do people still use that stupid phrase?

[agzg]

Oh, brother.