format_quote Originally Posted by
glo
Jesus as the sacrificial lamb is a direct reference to the old Jewish custom of sacrificing animals as atonement of sin. That's exactly what Jesus did: paid for our sins, once and for all!
This is a good place to begin any discussion of Early Christianity and its relationship with Paganism and the birth of modern Christianity. In some ways the statement quoted epitomises all that is wrong in modern Christian attitude. However, first I want to blast this thread right out of the water. Off the topic is not so much the point as that each post is not speaking distincly enough to the overall topic; and the overall effect in reading it is that any person not already a believer in monotheist Religion could take from it that perhaps even Islam is just a trick of Pagans! So I thought that warrants me having my two cents worth.
In the first instance one of the questions asked is whether Satan tricked Christians. The answer is of course YES! They all fell down, not to Pagans; but to Satan himself! Remember Satan manifested to Jesus and Jesus refuted Him and immediately thereafter accepted Crucifixion. In teaching His disciples he told that each one must die to live in His example. Satan manifests to every person whom adopts a Christian identity and offers them to suppose that Jesus already died to attone their sins; but that is the temptation. They thereby began to imagine that perhaps they may not have to accept Allah. The original teaching of Holy Trinity was true, but already by the time Arch Angel Gabriel began to teach Qur'an to Mohammed; the Christians were falling into a temptation to suppose, that if Jesus could have died so that they might not have to, then maybe Jesus is Allah.
The picture that is drawn of the triangle that says Father is not Son is not Holy Ghost, and each of is God, is not the real belief of a real actualised Christian, but only that belief of the occultists whom sustain the modern perversions to Christian teaching that dominate the Catholic church and all churches subservient to it. The actual teaching, as Jesus intended it, began in an understanding that we each learn to stablise our belief in reality through our Fathers. So Father is a symbol of Faith. Then Son is the Symbol of Hope, the denying and passive quality of matter. And Love is symbolised by Holy Spirit and the undoubtable reality of Jesus resurrection; that is the outstanding legacy of His teaching which none can deny.
So, where Pagan belief structures enabled Satan, then surely it is that Paganism mixed with the real and truthfully grounded Faith in Jesus that early Christians sustained; but Paganism is symbolic of so many different beliefs. Just as there are today many Christians whom retain actual Faith in One God, who is Allah, and whom never doubted the reality of Jesus; there have also always been self decent Pagans sustaining Faith in Allah.
So Judge no system of belief except that it can sustain any individual alone and unique in Allah. As for what a culture is, why surely we must hold the definition of culture by that same regard. If there is no comprehension of reality in Allah, then insanity is all that can exist. So a Religion is only different in that it provides a quality of structure of sets of the same sequences in mental associations that can work in many different persons minds, so as to sustain unity in Allah. Religion is Taqleed and in that unity in Ummah. Surely Paganism implied only that there were many various little Ummah, rather than any large unified Ummah? There may have been, and still now be, tribes of Pagans whom sustain no Faith in Allah, and other tribes who can and are sustaining Faith in Allah, and within one larger Ummah. Islam has considerably more success in permanently converting such persons into a permanent position of Faith in Allah, than could Judaism or Christianity, though clearly Christianity has been far more successful than Judaism.
But it is also that once in full Faith in Allah, and with Qur'an and ahadith learned; there could readily exist persons manifesting their Islam within contexts that seem to be Pagan.
So it need to be said that it is important to be more specific about verbal expression. Insha Allah, the worth in the discussion in this sort of thread can be drawn out by making more explicit the actual belief of each person posting. There is no point in engaging in discussion when beliefs have no accordance because they only manifest as blind attempts at entrappment of each other's belief; so unless you have either a direct question, or a certainty of belief that is able to be clearly expressed, then why post? And if it is only to seek fault in others, then discussion waffles off into nonsensical speculation that bears little relation to either actual Religion or any other manifestations that express a culture sustaining to true belief. Now I might here add that this particular thread is only quite slightly heading in that direction, but I stumbled into it while in a state of mind of being fed up with such matters, and so unable to continue to support without speaking my mind. When speculation is that which tempts folk into a position in which they learn that they need to sustain Faith in Allah, then it is matter of worth, but when such waffles about in respect of the importance of believing in One God, whom is Allah, then there is no possibility of the discussion being useful.
What is clear cut in the initial post is that there is a question about whether early Christianity was thwarted by contact with persons whom had no belief in One God, or whether it was thwarted by Satan. Both are true. The answer is that as Christianity grew Satan tempted persons whom were converting so as to begin to seperate whom would fall into the Synagogue of Satan (manifiesting these days as the Catholic Church while ever it supports any belief in Rosicrucianism and other occultist falisfications of Jesus); from who is truly able to sustain real belief in their own redemption, and thereby accept following Jesus. Jews are those whom are enabled to sustain their Faith in Allah with enough strenght of conviction that they can live true to Jesus example without needing Gospel. But take the caution seriously that there are many whom believe and manifest as like a pagan. There exist, for example, true believers within Masonic Lodges. Also Wicca is an example of a Religious Faith in which Islam has been sustained.
Perhaps my point should be only that when a discussion such as this commences, there is a need to consider the massive breath of population that such forums are accessible to, and so to establish in each thread a shared comprehension of word meanings?
Mu'asalam.