Holy cow! I'm not a true Christian!
- Controversial Christian Theology
- 7 Replies
Would love to read the link from this forum that describes one must believe in all the tenents of the Nicene Creed in order to be a Christian.I just realized how extremely narrow these forums are. The Forum Rules define those who are "truly" Christians as those who fully accept the Nicene Creed. I just happened to be reading a book by Marcus Borg in which he distinguishes between "popular" Christianity and "academic" Christianity. Academic Christianity includes many NT scholars who identify as Christian, including Borg, but are almost unanimous in their judgment that popular Christianity simply isn't true, period. None of them would be able to post here as Christians. The academic perspective, like it or not, is simply that Jesus was not, and did not think he was, who and what the Nicene Creed and popular Christianity posit him to have been.
As mentioned elsewhere, I entered Christianity via a startling, "mystical" conversion experience some 55 years ago; attended a Baptist seminary; served with Campus Crusade for Christ; and have been neck-deep in theology and apologetics for decades. Do I fully accept the Nicene Creed, the "full eternal deity" of Jesus Christ, and Paul's status as a full Apostle, equivalent to or greater than the Apostles who actually walked with Jesus? Well, no I don't, at least not in the sense the Forum Rules and Statement of Faith are talking about. Probably like Marcus Borg, however, I think of myself as a "mature" Christian but certainly not "not a Christian." Here, alas, I am apparently not a true Christian.
I guess I shouldn't even be posting on the Controversial Christian Theology forum since I discovered to my surprise that it, too, is restricted to Christians as so defined and that discussions "may not contradict the Nicene Creed." Again, the majority of the very best NT scholars would be unable to post here.
To be clear, I have no "problem" with the Nicene Creed, the CF Forum Rules of the CF Statement of Faith. A forum can obviously operate however it wants. Those who can accept the Nicene Creed as their definition of Christianity are welcome to do so with my blessing. But it certainly isn't the only understanding of Christianity or what Jesus was all about. Since a forum is not a denomination or church, I'm not sure what is gained by such a restrictive definition of "true Christian" or by so narrowly restricting discussions. Is the idea to "protect" true Christians against challenging views, even those of the most renowned NT scholars? If so, doesn't that seem kind of odd and even cult-like?
Having been here long enough to have participated on a number of threads, it certainly appears to me that a fair number of folks are paying lip service to the Nicene Creed and other forum requirements of being a "true Christian" while the substance of their posts says otherwise. I'm not comfortable playing that game, nor with constantly wondering whether something I have said has crossed the line. So, I will accept being a non-Christian for purposes of these forums, strange as this may seem to me, and limit myself to discussing recipes for guacamole at The Kitchen Sink.
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