CHURCH

Internet polls are a very poor source of information to cite for research. The reason is that you cannot be sure that the results are representative of the general population. I hope this isn't your only source. as for the poll, you left out a lot of other choices that would apply to formerly religious people or agnostics and atheists. These people cannot find an appropriate response in your choices.

My church is nature. I have been to a very cool christian church called Glide in San Francisco. They are extremely non-judgemental (in fact they welcome gay people as they are) and do alot of great things for the community. Unfortunately, many other Christian churches have a fear based model where they dangle this "hell" and "sin" concept in front of you so you won't dare question them.

I was a biblical scholar and evangelist. Unlike most people involved in these pursuts I started reading those bits of the bible which we usually avoid and was horrified with what I found.

Christianity is to my mind an evil and reprehensible religion which follows a cruel and unjust god.

Read it for yourself and you will see for yourself. Do not read it with your christian hat on but with an open and honest mind and you too will be sickened by what you find.

I could not answer the last question honestly because there was no "The church is evil and should be expunged from the face of the earth!" option.

I do agree with Dan though. You could conduct a survey and follow up with a focus group which would give a more balanced view. I may be the only person in the world who feels the way I do. may be the norm. How will you find out on the net? The other thing is to work out how to get a representative sample. A survey conducted within a christian group would hardly be accurate but then you have to get census returns and discover the make up of your target population. The trick then is how do you reach a reptresentative sample?

Good luck with your research but do please allow for a few skeptics. We don't bite and some of us are even quite pleasant.

I've read the entire Bible and find that Christianity follows a loving God. A God of forgiveness, compassion and mercy. I could see where God would be recognized as 'unjust' - afterall, with all humanity does in opposition to God's ways, for God to forgive us and desire us to be with Him in Heaven is exceedingly 'unjust' - justice certainly is not what God offers us. FORGIVENESS is.

I can't help but wonder, given your description of yourself 'a biblical scholar and evangelist' whether you follow the misguided view that every word in the Bible was literally true - or did you, as a scholar, recognize the allegorical nature, the historical nature, the fictional nature, and the apocryphal nature etc. found within the writings in the Bible?

What part of the genocide of the people living in the land that became Israel is loving, compassionate, forgiving or merciful?

That's just one example.

Either the bible is the word of god and is literally true or it isn't. If it isn't it isn't a holy book but a fairy story and a fairy story is not something to lead your life by.

You really need to start again with open eyes and understand what is happening and why. Youo need to question why it's ok for unjust things to happen to a people who have done nothing wrong just because of a cultural difference between them and the Jews. And before you start saying I'm anti semitic, I'm half Jewish and proud of it.