religionandtheology.org

 

 

 

 

Follow the truth, whatever its source

 and wherever it leads.

 

Information, letters, news articles, essays, quotations, and

links relating to important topics for our times.

 

 

 

 

Topics Relating to Religion

 

 

Some Popular Topics

 

Religion 101: Examining the Definition of Religion
and Religious Beliefs,
by Austin Cline, About.com

Definitions of the word "religion," and why none
are totally satisfactory, from religioustolerance.org

Comprehensive "Religion" article from Wikipedia

A Recent [2008] Discussion of "Top Five Most
Important Christian Theologians in History"

"Theology" article from Wikipedia

Answering a Fundamentalist Regarding the Bible

 

What did Jesus mean by saying, ‘I am the way.’?
(Or, does a person have to be a Christian to be saved?)

 

Primacy of Conscience: Why Reason is Higher than Authority

 

On the Bible's Condemnation of Homosexuality

 

Sacrifice of Sexuality and Sacrifice of Gender

 

"Faith: A Journey of Trust," a short sermon by Dr. Marcus Borg which
discusses four different elements in the meaning of the word "faith"
[A longer treatment of the material in this sermon can be found in
Chapter Two, "Faith, the Way of the Heart," in Dr. Borg's book,
The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith,
HarperSanFrancisco Publishers, 2003]

 

Why wasn't my prayer request granted?

 

Can Agnostics Pray?  What would an agnostic's prayer sound like?

 

What about Original Sin?

 

Original Sin "Proof Texts"?

 

What about Jesus' Virgin Birth?

 

Biblical Miracles vs. Theological Miracles, and the Efficacy of Prayer

 

Christians and Religious Pluralism -- Three Answers to an
Important Question for Christians: "Can Christians accept
Christianity as the way to God and still give credence to the
truth of other religions?"
Answers given by Marcus Borg,
Rev. Lowell E. Grisham, and Tom Ehrich

 

Why Won't God Heal Amputees?

 

The Christian’s Standard-Model Theistic
God, and Ten Questions for Christians

 

Why are there two Bibles (Protestant and Catholic)?

 

On the Alleged Human Faults and Failings of Jesus

    

 

 

Specially for Unitarian Universalists

 

Excerpts from Some Unitarian Universalist Association Pamphlets

 

Cultural Appropriation and Misappropriation (Includes
two links to video, six articles from the UUA website,
and a Wikipedia article on Cultural Appropriation)

 

"How Do UUs Frame the World?" Chapter 5 from Engaging Our
Theological Diversity
, a 2005 report of the Commission on Appraisal

 

Engaging Our Theological Diversity, a May 2005 report of the Commission on Appraisal

 


Related to the UUA's 2009 General Assembly in Salt Lake City


Reaction of GA Delegates to the Proposal
to Revise Article II of the UUA Bylaws

 

Present Article II in the UUA Bylaws and the Committee
on Appraisal's Proposed New Article II Compared

 

"On the Review of Article II of the UUA Bylaws," Report of the
Unitarian Universalist Commission on Appraisal,
May 1, 2009,
(html format)

 

"On the Review of Article II of the UUA Bylaws," Report of the
Unitarian Universalist Commission on Appraisal,
May 1, 2009,
(pdf format)

 

The “Rationale” Section of the Report by the
 Commission on Appraisal -- Changed Slightly
 and with Numbering Included to Facilitate
Discussion of Points Made by the Commission

 

Recommendations of George Desnoyers for Article II
of the UUA Bylaws -- Recommendations given both
with and without the rationale for recommendations

 

Four Responsive Resolutions Relating to the Proposal
of the Commission on Appraisal for Changes in Article II
of the Bylaws [All four of these resolutions passed on
Sunday, June 28, 2009, by a vote of two-thirds or more]

 

 

Some Articles Related to Community Building

117 Tested Ideas for Membership Growth

Ten Ways to NOT Build Community

Community Engagement

Community Building

Sense of Community

Friendraising

A Program Useful in Community Building

 

 

 

Topics Related to the End Times

(Especially for you fans of the Left Behind series)

 

The Beasts of Revelation 13

 

Little Horn and the Four Kingdoms of Daniel

 

What about the Millennium?

 

The Rapture Racket

 

So, you’re a premillennialist, and you say you believe the Bible?

 

 T/F Quiz on Apocalyptic Literature

 

 

 

Specially for Roman Catholics

 

Text of All Sixteen Vatican II Documents (Appended for Word-Search Purposes)

 

Twenty-one General [Ecumenical] Councils of the Church

 

Roman Catholicism and the Ordination of Women

 

Was Mary a perpetual virgin?  And what about the Biblical "brethren" of Jesus?

 

Contraception, Sex, and Women in the Roman Catholic Church

 

Tobias Days, Sex, and the Purpose of Marriage

 

Apostolic Succession and Papacy in the Roman Catholic Church

 

Can a person disagree with the Pope and still be a good Catholic?

 

Mary as Co-Redemptrix - Answers to Seven Common Objections, an

Article by Dr. Mark  Miravalle, Professor of Theology and Mariology

 

How many Ascensions of Jesus were there, and when did it (or they) occur?

 

Fides et Ratio (Faith and Reason) - Encyclical issued by
Pope John Paul II on September 154, 1998

 

The Spanish Inquisition  (Article from Wikipedia)

 

 

 

Specially for Seventh Day Adventists

 

Predictive prophecy and the Year-Day Principle

 

Must Christians Obey the Sabbath Commandment?

 

Babylon in the New Testament

 

 

 

 

Islam

 

The Noble Quran (Full Text)

 

 

 

 

Other Topics

 

Hey, what's the difference between ethics and morality?

 

Boundaries and boundary-setting

 

Decision in the case of Elizabeth Dovydenas v. The Bible Speaks

 

"Physics and the Mind of God: The Templeton Prize Address,"
Paul Davies, Address given at Westminster Abbey on May 3, 1995

 

 

 

 

Follow the truth, whatever its source

 and wherever it leads.