Why do Christians eat pork?

[fluffnik]

Originally Posted by jeffy777

Anyway, just being honest and open with you guys, so please don't think any less of me for sharing these sorts of things

The honesty and openess is what makes this bit of the site so interesting.

Nothing beats a good-going but friendly argument.

[Firecat]

Originally Posted by fluffnik

Religions are fundamentally political in nature...

The whole Shiite/Sunni conflict was political in nature, which has now adapted into something more theological.

[if0rg0t]

Someone mentioned that they don't understand why God would kill off a whole generation of children .. and other such events.

Religion, and the Abrahamic faiths in particular, cannot be understood unless you keep their perception of the universe in mind when trying to reason with such things. These religions, perhaps Islam moreso, do not make much sense without the notion of an afterlife. In fact, such occurances on earth (injustices, natural disasters, mass killings, etc ..) are used as proof by those who keep the faith in that there is another life to come - an afterlife. Couple that with the fact that God is just, and it all makes sense. So what if an entire nation is wiped out in a natural disaster, or if someone goes thru excrutiating pain and torture in this world .. ? This life 'tis but a few 70 odd years, while the afterlife is eternal. God tests people with circumstances not to see on what absolute scale they end on .. but to see how they attempt to deal with the circumstances .. and how well the person followed whatever advise God has given mankind in order to live life.

Pretend for a moment, that you know for a fact that there is an infinite afterlife to come, and that this life is finite. If you were to receive a guarantee thru whatever means, that you are to have a favourable afterlife (say ... heaven) in exchange for 75 years of pain and suffering in this world - would ya take it? Religion explains these, and other unexplanainable observations in this world.

Regarding why some food substances are prohibited and some are not .. Throw all the not-good-for-your-health arguments out the door. This life is a test, and God has made certain things lawful for man to utilize, and some things unlawful. Some things that he has made unlawful are things that we could derive benefit from and enjoy .. but in his Infinite wisdom and in His supreme position as Master and Lord has prohibited some things so as to see who obeys their Lord and is thus deserving of His bounties in the next life. This should be nothing surprising for us. We have seen similar examples in our lives. Sometimes people are deprived of certain luxuries etc .. as a training, to see how loyal/dedicated a person is. We are able to comprehend some of the laws of God, and other Laws are not within our limits of comprehension and reason. It is said that reason and intellect start where the five senses end. And revelation (from God) starts where reason and intellect ends.

[if0rg0t]

Originally Posted by Firecat

The whole Shiite/Sunni conflict was political in nature, which has now adapted into something more theological.

This is true. The theological divide is actualy quite dramatic now. The most revered persons after Islam's prophet (according to the Sunnis), are villified and cursed by the Shia's. In fact, the closest companions upon who's reports and recollections of the Prophet's saying and actions the majority of Sunni Law is based are demonized by the Shia's to the extent that they are considered hypocrites who were actually enemies of the Prophet. The Shia's go the extent of saying that the majority of the Companions of the Prophet turned their back upon Islam after the Prophet's death. This is an interesting claim, as they are accusing the Prophet that he could not even keep his close companions on the faith. Some of the more important theological differences arise in the discussion of the so-called 'Imams' of the Shia's. In Sunni Islam, it is an act of disbelief (by absolute consensus) to raise the status of any human being (who is not a Prophet) to that higher than that of God's appointed Prophets. The Shia believe that the Prophet, the Prophet's daughter, and the Prophet's Cousin, Ali, and 11 of his descendents aka Imams (14 in total) are the best of all mankind (which includes God's appointed Prophet's and the such). In short, the Sunni's claim that the Shia's go to an extreme in praise of the Prophet's cousin, Ali and his descendents ... sometimes to an extent which excludes them from Islam.

Anywhoo, I think this is sufficiently off-topic, and a primer on the Shia-Sunni divide.