Hey kiLLeRrrr,
This is kinda long. Please bear with me. I'd really like to know what you,and others, think.
"how do people still believe in a book that...?"
Great question. It is nuggets of truth and understanding metaphors and allegories that I personally look for. There are many in the Bible as well as other places.
"none of this ever happens any more yet people are still faithful..?"
A keen observation that irritates me because I observe the same thing. Jesus said
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. (John 14:12)"
Wonderful! But were is this happening? Where are these people? Where are the real healings, miracles, life-changing power-of-god restoring-sight-to-the-blind kinds of things being done among the church(es)? I don't see it and that concerns me because I'm looking for this evidence rather than a warm fuzzy sermon.
"...probabaly every country or region of this planet has a different belief, so who's to say that any are right?"
True. Who's to say any of them are wrong either? Perhaps they all have portions of truth, and error.
"so, in theory, i believe in some sort of an eternally anonymous higher being that created the universe and..."
You seem to believe in what the Hindus call
Brahman -
"the unchanging, infinite, immanent, and transcendent reality which is the Divine Ground of all matter, energy, time, space, being, and everything beyond in this Universe" - that gives rise to... creation. In the Bible, he is identified as "I AM" and "I AM THAT I AM", which can be translated "I am what exists" or "I am what will become".
"so what makes us subject to the word of "god" and not animals?"
I suspect it's that we are
aware of "god" and thus have a desire to know him/her/it and what he thinks. Defining exactly what is "the word of god" is the challenge, which is why we tend to look for evidence of someone who knows it.
"in the bible, the term "herb salesmen" was later translated to merchants."
Right. And also "Spice merchants".
Rakal, in Hebrew.
"the term christ is hebrew or arabic for the annointed one, and in biblical days people used marijuana resin as a topical oil, annointing oneself with cannabis."
Yep, and Cannabis is a spice. A "chief" spice, that is, a
head spice, as in
spice for the head - where your brain is.
Meditation spice.
Are your last two statements about Cannabis objections to Christianity or just great insights into the Bible? If they are objections, I understand because Christianity (the religion) denies this truth in favor of the anti-christ propaganda that's been pushed on us.
"And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them." (Mark 6:13)
"Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." (James 5:14-15)
We hear about anointing all the time. Anointed meetings here, anointed teaching there. But where's the oil?
The real Exodus 30:23 oil? Even if they believe the "Calamus" (also psychoactive) translation, then where is
that oil? I've never seen it in church or among professing Christians. Perhaps this is why we don't see
"the works that I (Jesus) do... and greater works than these" in the "Church". The masses
want to believe, but not if it involves cannabis because they've been duped into believing it's "Satan's weed" and that intoxication of
any kind is sinful. Dogma is a powerful thing even when it's false.
"I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. " (Rev 3:18)
All of this from a shiny yellow metal? Or is "gold" something else? "Tried" is
puroo in Greek. Here is the Strong's Concordance definition:
G4448 πυρόω puroō poo-ro'-o
From G4442; to kindle, that is, (passively) to be ignited, glow (literally), be refined (by implication), or (figuratively) to be inflamed (with anger, grief, lust): - burn, fiery, be on fire, try.
- "Gold" is a common metaphor for illumination. You can decide if that the meaning here.
- "White" in Greek is leuko meaning, from λύκη lukē (“light”); white
- "And" in every occurance in this verse is kai in Greek, "Apparently a primary particle, having a copulative and sometimes also a cumulative force", which means that Rev 3:18 is one complete interconnected thought, including the "anoint thine eyes" part. With what? Shiny yellow metal refined with fire? Or is it "illumination" kindled with fire? Hmm... Which one relates to anointing that helps one "see"?
What is "gold"?
"And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." (Matthew 2:11)
Frankincense:
incense (that's one)
Myrrh:
incense (that's two)
Gold: The same "Gold" of Rev 3:18? (is that three, or not?)
Food for thought... What do you think?
Regarding "Christianity", I personally think we need to discern what is of the contemporary religion vs. what is of the Christ.