Hi Ellen,

Thank you for your kind words. While I disagree with some of your
ideas, I don't think that matters. One of the ways I differ from many
Christians is that I don't believe in the necessity of convincing
other's of Christ's identity. I believe that G-d is a bit different
for each person, and that He judges not so much whether a person
believes in Him in a certain way (or at all!) but in whether a person
has expressed love for self and others, and has made good use of
his/her time on Earth.

In response to your questions:

> It gives you comfort to know that there are those who try to destroy
> truth? How is this possible? If you had said that God protects you
> from them or that Jesus' example gave you inspiration to face your
> own struggles, that would have made sense and may have been
> what you meant. But it came out otherwise and to take comfort
> in the fact that enemies exist needs some explanation.

What I meant is that it gives me comfort to know I am not alone in my
struggles... that the battle between truth and lies is an ancient and
important one. Kind of how Prometheus feels at the end of Anthem when
he identifies with those who fought for the truth in the past.


> And were you from a Christian background before and just
> decided to join the Church or was it all new to you? This is mere
curiosity
> based on my thinking about how people come to believe stories like
that of
> Jesus.

It was entirely new to me. I was raised as an agnostic Jew. That is,
my father is agnostic but felt it was important for his children to
know something about Judaism, while my mother hated the religion, felt
it was dangerous to stand up for Judaism because of anti-Semitism and
terrorism, but feared that G-d would punish her if she didn't worship
Him. So the compromise struck by my parents was for the children to be
sent to the least religious school possible, where we would be taught
to give lip service to religious tradition, to memorise prayers
because we were supposed to say them, and not be taught anything that
had any meaning. My knowledge of Jesus' existence or teachings was
limited to hearing Christmas carols in school (I was the only Jewish
child, and feared G-d's wrath if I participated in holiday concerts),
and hearing my grandfather rant that the Messianic Jewish movement,
which is my religion today, was an evil force equivalent to the Nazi
party because it embraces belief in Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus).

I came to my religious beliefs with some skepticism. My boyfriend
believed deeply in G-d. I did not, at the time. But since G-d was
important to him, I decided to experiment with praying, with reading
the Bible, with following the spiritual principles I found within its
pages. I found that what I was doing worked better for my life than my
atheism had. The more I sought G-d, the more I realised the G-d of my
childhood had nothing to do with the real G-d.

When I moved out here and Dave passed away, at first I turned away
from G-d because it didn't seem fair that Dave had died. Finding a
pastor I related well to really helped me get past my initial shock
and grief and begin to move forward with my life. However, that
pastor's church closed due to lack of funds, and I found that other
churches in this area were very dogmatic. They were far too based on
avoiding eternal condemnation and forcing the gospel down people's
throats for my taste. My grandmother--another one of those traditional
Jews who believes that anyone who believes in Jesus is evil--actually
suggested I look at a Messianic temple, which surprised everyone.
There's one in all of North Carolina, about an hour away from me. I'm
much more comfortable with the services there... it combines for me
the best of Jewish traditions and Christian beliefs, IMO.

Anyway, sorry this got long, but that's my journey...
> Good luck with your problems. Problems usually have solutions.
>
> Ellen
>
> > [Original Message]
> > From: stephanie_m_silberstein <stephanie_m_silberstein@...>
> > To: <nathaniel_branden@yahoogroups.com>
> > Date: 7/1/2007 4:51:27 PM
> > Subject: [nathaniel_branden] Re: Leaving the church
> >
> > Mike R., you've asked what sounds like a simple question but which is
> > actually quite a bit more complicated than it seems. A full answer may
> > be beyond the scope of this list--however, I'll do the best I can to
> > answer.
> >
> > Before getting to that, however, I'd like to clarify why I'm answering
> > at all. I don't want to take the list in the direction of debating
> > religion vs. non-religion, particularly if participants are bent upon
> > convincing those who disagree that their beliefs are wrong. I do,
> > however, want to express the truth as I see it, and hope that others
> > are interested.
> >
> > Now, I have many reasons for my belief in G-d. They mainly boil down
> > to the simple fact that my life before faith was a nightmare I would
> > never want to return to. I was a frightened, angry confused mess of a
> > person, a girl in a woman's body who held herself to impossibly high
> > standards and hated herself for failing to achieve them. I lived by
> > the emotion of the moment while wishing I could be more rational. I
> > had very little respect for myself or for the world in general for not
> > being as it should be, and I made poor choices most of the time based
> > upon a desire to force the world to act as it ought to.
> >
> > My embracing of G-d, and specifically of Christ, changed all that.
> >
> > You see, my basic values haven't changed. I still believe passionately
> > in the importance of ideals such as integrity, truth, and fairness. I
> > still believe that my life is a precious gift not to be squandered,
> > and in making every moment count.
> >
> > However, with G-d in my life, I'm able to express those values rather
> > than get mired down in hatred for the world when it doesn't work the
> > way it ought to. Instead of trying to be this perfectly moral person
> > in an immoral world on my own, I work in partnership with G-d. I allow
> > Him to help me to continue doing that which I know is right to do even
> > when the world is trying to wear me down.
> >
> > On a more theoretical level, I believe that Christ's life prior to His
> > resurrection is a testimony to the strength of truth and the way that
> > fear and lies try to, but ultimately fail, to destroy it. While I know
> > that I am not suffering for my truth in the ways that Christ suffered
> > for His, it gives me comfort and strength to realize that whenever one
> > tries to live by the truth, there are those who will try to destroy
> > them in the name of protecting whatever passes for reality in their
> > minds. I also find Christ's call to be the "light of the world"
> > inspiring, and I am living that call every day.
> >
> > As if all that weren't enough, I have experienced a personal
> > relationship with G-d which has allowed me to trust Him and to allow
> > Him to lead me forward through my life. This is something that is
> > difficult to explain to people who have never experienced it. I don't
> > mean that in any snarky way. It's just been my experience that there's
> > a disconnect occurring between people who have directly experienced
> > G-d and those who have not, and the latter tend to write me off as
crazy.
> >
> > Anyway, I've prayed and I've felt G-d's presence. When I've been
> > depressed, spending time in prayer and meditation has lifted my
> > depression and filled me instead with joy. I've also had felt sense
> > messages from G-d--things like, "You're going to get a job by the end
> > of the week"--and each time these predictions have come true. Not 90%
> > of the time, not 95% of the time, not 99% of the time--100% of the
time.
> >
> > Now, none of this means that my life is somehow perfect because I have
> > aligned myself with G-d. I've had some difficult times in my life. I
> > lived in poverty for two years. My boyfriend, who I loved so very
> > much, died suddenly last August. And I've had the same heartbreaks as
> > everyone else.
> >
> > Why, then, do I believe in G-d? Because as bad as things have
> > sometimes gotten, I truly believe they would be worse if they weren't
> > for Him. I don't think my brain could cope with the idea of some of
> > the things I've experienced being random chance. I think that if it
> > weren't for my faith that G-d has a larger plan and will make good
> > come out of everything I've suffered through, I'd be a confused and
> > frightened mess, always waiting for the next thing to go wrong, always
> > worrying so much about what might happen that I wouldn't be able to
> > function.
> >
> > Of all the reasons I believe in G-d, I think the replacement of fear
> > with peace is the most important. My faith in G-d has translated for
> > me into faith that I will have a good life. I'm no longer afraid to
> > dream big and to stand by my dreams, no matter who tries to discourage
> > me. I know that if I take good care of the things G-d has blessed me
> > with, like my home and my car and my job, He will bless me with even
> > more. I can wake up in the morning and be grateful for this beautiful
> > world He has created and for my part in it instead of angry at the
> > world for being broken and frightened of my own shortcomings.
> >
> > In conclusion, I believe in G-d because my faith is helping me to live
> > my best vision of all life has to offer.
> >
> > One last thing: I'm talking about my life here on Earth. One mistake
> > that I think many Christians make is focusing only on the glory of the
> > world to come, and missing the central question of how to live this
> > life. I'm iffy when it comes to afterlife stuff--my faith in this area
> > is far from perfect. While I do believe that my soul and my
> > boyfriend's will someday be intertwined for eternity, I'm a bit
> > agnostic about what happens after death. I just don't worry about it.
> > I'm here on Earth and I'm going to be the light of the world on Earth,
> > not waste my time here waiting for the world to come.
> >
> > best,
> > Stephanie
> >
> >
> > --- In nathaniel_branden@yahoogroups.com, Mike Rael <mikesrael3@>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > Stephanie,
> > > Why do you believe in God?
> >
>