Can Should a Christian listen to secular music? - the debate will never die. Rather than trying to convince you one way or another, how about a quick list of some great songs from each classification?

My Top Secular Songs

• Yellow Ledbetter - Pearl Jam
• 80’s Music (the higher the hair the better)
• Anything Zeppelin
• Vindicated - Dashboard Confessional
• One and Pride - U2
• 90’s Grunge (Alice In Chains, Nirvana, Soundgarden, STP, Smashing Pumpkins, etc)
• Hey Jealousy - Gin Blossoms
• Ms. Jackson - Outkast
• You Enjoy Myself - Phish
• Informer - Snow (don’t judge, you love it too)

Honorable Mentions: Incubus, Live, Queen, Radiohead, Muse, 
Guilty pleasures: Deftones, Tupac, Biggie, Flogging Molly, Metallica, Motley Crue, Pantera, Primus, etc<

My Top Christian Songs

• Albertine - Brooke Fraser (see this post)
• Tomalo - Hillsong (Spanish version of Take It All)
• Mighty To Save - Hillsong
• You Never Let Go - Matt Redman
• Sweep Me Away - Charlie Hall
• Lifesong - Casting Crowns (anything Casting Crowns)
• Old School dc Talk (Luv Is a Verb, Nu Thang, etc)
• Studying Politics - Emery
• Every New Day - Five Iron Frenzy
• Many Relient K songs
• I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever - Delirious?

Honorable Mentions: Lecrae, Newsboys, old POD, KJ 52, Chris Sligh

If you’re really interested in finding out if it’s ok for a Christian to listen to secular music, pray about it. Surely God will reveal himself to you. Another good resource is this list from Greg Surratt: Is It Ok For A Christian To Masturbate?

How about you? Fav Christian/Secular songs?

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Last week I wrote about false assumptions and how Christians suffered in the past because of them just as atheists suffer today.  Atheism doesn’t have a philosophy or principles to counter these false assumptions any more than it has a philosophy or principles to deserve them.  Secular humanism does put forward a set of positive traits and promotes a world view.  These are:

1. Need to test beliefs
2. Reason, evidence, scientific method
3. Fulfillment, growth, creativity
4. Search for truth
5. This life
6. Ethics
7. Building a better world

The first one I wish to discuss is the need to test beliefs.

Need to test beliefs – A conviction that dogmas, ideologies and traditions, whether religious, political or social, must be weighed and tested by each individual and not simply accepted on faith. Read the rest of this entry »

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I’ve always imagined that Christians feel a lot of guilt.  I’m not exactly sure what Christians feel guilty about but I’m sure it’s something.  It could be a passing rude thought about the checkout girl or boy.  It could be over a greedy thought of undeserved wealth.  I might even be a hidden desire for one more piece of chocolate cake.

I’m sure you’ve got them.

As you know, we atheists have our guilt gland removed when we deconvert.  It’s better that way because it stops all those annoying thoughts of edible babies and 24 hour orgies from interfering with our devil worship.
OK, not really but I do think that without the added impetus of a watchful father figure atheists do experience a lower aggregate guilt quotient.

So, in the spirit of lighthearted and cheeky cooperation I’d love to hear what your guilty pleasures are.  Go on, you show me yours and I’ll show you mine.

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Seriously, you guys make this site what it is. Every now and then I want to take a swing at ya, but in the end I wouldn’t want FriendlyChristian.com to be any other way. 

• You provide honesty
• You provide intelligence
• You challenge me
• You provide arguments (or “conversation” as we so kindly like to put it)
• You provide spice!

I might be a little crazy in the head (take your cheap shot here) - I am a passionate follower of Jesus Christ who enjoys spending time with unbelievers just as much as spending time with believers. I believe that encouragement and reassurance are helpful and critical in growth, but I grew tired of nothing but “amen brother!” and “I agree” comments long ago. Now that I’m surrounded by atheists, the encouraging comments and emails mean just that much more
Atheists, thank you for helping me learn so much about you guys, myself, and everything in between. I love you guys and I’m so glad that you are along for this crazy Christian ride.

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I’ve written an entry over at the eBay atheist site on how the figure of Jesus used stories in his lessons.  I thought it would be interesting for Christians to know how an atheist like me views the parables.

I’m picking one at random from the 33 listed on the wikipedia page, the Parables of Jesus, to give my interpretation.  I’m taking the Parable of the Guests because it’s both straightforward and short. :) 

Luke 14:7-15 (New King James Version)

Read the rest of this entry »

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I’ve recently finished Hemant’s book I Sold My Soul on eBay.  He particularly looks at what does and doesn’t work in attracting people to church.

I think that’s the first thing that’s wrong with the idea: Attracting people to church.  Shouldn’t people want to come to church of their own volition.  Do you need to advertise?  Should you advertise or are you going to attract people who are insincere in their worship?  If you need to advertise the message then maybe the message isn’t reaching people.

For me, faith should be personal.  A strongly held personal conviction of some inner truth.  Of course a person who holds to a deep faith will feel enlightened and wish to share that enlightenment with others, to raise them up to the same standard.  The very nature of a personal conviction though is that it is different for everyone.  Your idea of God differs from your neighbour’s idea of God.

To me anyone trying to share their idea of faith is about as effective as a stranger phoning me up trying to sell me car insurance. I walk and get the train, I don’t need car insurance and I don’t care how cheap it is or how many bells and whistles it has. I don’t care if it comes with a free doohicky and how the hell did they get my number and, by the way, I want to talk to your supervisor.  It is ineffective advertising that turns people away.

If I want to explore religion then there are a dozen churches within walking distance of my house who advertise various faiths. I can turn up and ask questions if I want to. Any form of advertising turns me off and makes it less likely that I will choose to listen to your message, not more likely.

What doesn’t work?  Selling Jesus.  That doesn’t work.

I’ll tell you what works best. Getting out there and doing some good. Feeding the hungry, offer shelter and warmth, being a friend to people who need it. If they ask what your motivation is for doing good then tell them.

That would be the most effective way to get me to church.  Show me the benefits, pique my interest and let me explore.

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Today is the anniversary of Thomas Jefferson’s birth. Apparently he’s an important figure in American history, what with him being the third President of the United States and all. Given the significance of the day I thought that it was worth spending a few minutes talking about him. Please take into account that I’m not an American and American history and politics were never part of my childhood education. Any errors and omissions are a result of the dodgy websites where I’m getting my information.
I’m going to concentrate on Jefferson’s famous religious opinions.  It seems reasonable given the emphasis of the site.  Raised in the Church of England (the name itself is conclusive proof that God is English, as if the sense of humour weren’t a big enough clue) he converted to the deist philosophy. He believed in one God, divine moral law and divine providence but not in supernatural revelation. He viewed Jesus as a great teacher but not as the incarnation of God or as a messiah.  Perfectly reasonable beliefs if you ask me.

Jefferson’s conclusions about the Bible are noteworthy. He considered much of the new testament of the Bible to be lies. He described these as “so much untruth, charlatanism and imposture”. He described the “roguery of others of His disciples”, and called them a “band of dupes and impostors” describing Paul as the “first corrupter of the doctrines of Jesus”, and wrote of “palpable interpolations and falsifications”. He also described the Book of Revelation to be “merely the ravings of a maniac, no more worthy nor capable of explanation than the incoherences of our own nightly dreams”. While living in the White House, Jefferson began to make his own condensed version of the Gospels, omitting Jesus’ virgin birth, miracles, divinity, and resurrection, primarily leaving only Jesus’ moral philosophy, of which he approved. This compilation was published after his death and became known as the Jefferson Bible.

When I read that I just had to laugh. It’s a fine example of cherry picking and is about as close to atheism as you can get and still believe in God.

The separation of church and state was an important issue for Jefferson. The argument being that a religion that is endorsed by the state would not benefit the citizenry but act as a tyrant.  Those not of the state religion would be denied rights, possible even punished. He and James Madison wrote the Bill of Religious Freedom which read:

No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burdened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer, on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities

This just makes me like the guy even more. Of course, a wall of separation between the state and church works to the benefit of both. The church is unable to interfere with the proper running of government and the state is unable to interfere with freedom of the individual to express their faith as they see fit. How he managed to marry his belief in divine providence with the secularization of government is testimony to his strength of character and his intellect.

Biographer Merrill Peterson summarizes Jefferson’s theology:

First, that the Christianity of the churches was unreasonable, therefore unbelievable, but that stripped of priestly mystery, ritual, and dogma, reinterpreted in the light of historical evidence and human experience, and substituting the Newtonian cosmology for the discredited Biblical one, Christianity could be conformed to reason. Second, morality required no divine sanction or inspiration, no appeal beyond reason and nature, perhaps not even the hope of heaven or the fear of hell; and so the whole edifice of Christian revelation came tumbling to the ground

It the modern political climate I swear that the history and opinion of Thomas Jefferson should be required learning for anyone in public office. He was President at the beginning of the 19th Century, and contributed to the formation and structuring of the United States of America as few others did. I don’t know if Jefferson Day is celebrated by his countrymen but, speaking as an outsider looking in, I really think it should be.

(Source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson#Religious_views)

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“Secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering into the public square.”

“Moreover, if we progressives shed some of these biases, we might recognize the overlapping values that both religious and secular people share when it comes to the moral and material direction of our country.”

“No matter how religious they may or may not be, people are tired of seeing faith used as a tool to attack and belittle and divide,”

 - Senator Barack Obama, June 2006

For me these are very wise words. I’ve a tendency to allow my anti-theist bias to take control.  I assume either an attempt to convert me or an attack. This means that I can miss the point as I leap either to my own defence or straight into a counter attack. I don’t want to allow my biases to rule me.  One thing I enjoy about FC is that it has helped me to shed some (not yet all) of my bias and allowed me to be more open to ideas that the faithful may have.

Thanks Bill.

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This is from the Observer on Sunday (a British newspaper)

A wealthy philanthropist known as ‘God’s postman’ died in a car crash just two days after an extraordinary act of charity in which he handed out cheques worth £2m to help people fallen on hard times, staying up until 4am to ensure that no one was left out.

Benzion Dunner, 45, was killed behind the wheel of his £175,000 Bentley Arnage last weekend when it collided with a Toyota Celica on the A338 near Bournemouth, Dorset. The passengers of both cars, including two of Dunner’s nine children, survived with slight injuries.

Two days earlier, hundreds of people had queued through the night outside Dunner’s home in Golders Green, north London, asking for help with their financial troubles. He listened to each in turn before sharing out part of the personal fortune gained from his property business.

Dunner, an Orthodox Jew, gave away the money to mark the religious festival of Purim. His grieving father, Rabbi Aba Dunner, told The Observer: ‘He was singing and dancing with them and made each one feel special. He listened carefully and each one was given help according to their needs. It went on all Thursday night through to Friday morning.’

The act of generosity was an annual event at the home of Dunner, who was known for welcoming in people throughout the year and helping to cover their educational, medical or other essential costs. He was also a school governor and an often discreet benefactor of charities, hospitals and homes for the elderly.

‘He saw himself as God’s postman,’ his father continued. ‘He said to me, “God doesn’t give it to me to put in the bank. He entrusts me to do with it what he would want me to do.” He lived life to the full and described himself as a poor man with money; he wasn’t looking for the bright lights and the trappings of wealth. He was interested in people on the edge of society and bringing them back into the fold. I just hope it’s drawn attention to what’s possible when someone doesn’t keep wealth for themselves.’

Rabbi Dunner, who is executive director of the Conference of European Rabbis, is trying to come to terms with his loss: ‘There’s no comfort at all, just pride in learning about everything he did, some of which I never knew about. I’ve been learning new things from thousands of people coming to the house and pouring out their hearts. If it’s supposed to happen, it’s supposed to happen, if that’s God’s will.’

The tragedy has stunned north London’s Orthodox Jewish community. The funeral last Sunday at the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations’ cemetery in Enfield was attended by more than 3,000 people.

Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks described himself as ‘truly heartbroken’ and said: ‘Benzion Dunner was an outstanding exemplar of Jewish values and Jewish responsibility. He was a person of exceptional chesed [kindness], much of whose work was done quietly behind the scenes and was all the more impressive for that.’

Isn’t that how all religious people should act?  Indeed, how all people should act towards one another regardless of faith.

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I know how busy Bill is with his studies and it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything so I’d thought I’d share this news story from the Guardian newspaper today.  It details a dispute between a Hindu temple and the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) which is a charity in England.

Essentially the RSPCA put down the temple’s sacred cow after it had been injured in order to end it’s suffering.  The temple is suing the charity.

“There are theological and legal aspects to our decision to sue,” Mohandas said. “It is illegal to enter private religious property and the idea of killing a cow, especially a sacred one, is sinful in our religion.”

Do you think that he has a point or not?

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