Christian Martial Arts Union

[cjurakpt]

there is a very reasonable body of evidence that suggest Jesus was influenced by the Buddhist teachings that had plenty of time to get from India to his area over 500 years or so (evidently Alexandria had its fair share of Buddhist scholars); that and his association with a group like the Essenses would make sense as well; when did this happen? well, if you recall, the gospels that made the cut describe his life up to a young teenager, and then, bango, noting until he reappears in his early 30's; whaddaya think he did during the intervening 25 years or so?

so he was basically a spiritual teacher with some new ideas that got misinterpreted by his disciples and subsequent followers who came up with the nifty idea that he was the one true son of god and this got further corrupted and dogmatized by guys like Augustine and Origen and others (I foget specifics - it's been a while since I've read anything like History of God by Karen Armstrong)

also, the whole idea of CMA being a gateway to the occult and demonic possession - I guess I must be living proof of that

for a guy who said everyone should just love each other, there sure has been a world of pain generated by those who claim to follow him (funny, it's the opposite of Buddhism - how many wars started by / fought on behalf of Buddhists have there been?) - personally, I think that he started preaching too early - he wasn't quite "cooked" and so was not able to deliver his message with the same equanimity as the Buddha - he spoke out of his passion, which got transferred to his followers, etc. etc.; if he had waited another 20 or 30 years, it may have been much different...

and yeah, he prbably was married, most likely had a relationship with Mary Magdalene - certainly celibacy was not on his agenda...

oh, and he was a blonde white guy (at least according to the pictures in the books)

[Royal Dragon]

I thought he was a long, dark haired arab looking dude....

[NJM]

and yeah, he prbably was married, most likely had a relationship with Mary Magdalene - certainly celibacy was not on his agenda...

oh, and he was a blonde white guy (at least according to the pictures in the books)

Lol, he was a white blonde guy because of the King James version of the bible. And it's already been proven that Dan Brown's theory is full of holes, almost as many holes as there were plot holes in the ****ty, horribly bad book "desception point."

Please, JKD. I'm practically BEGGING YOU here. Please, religion is a personal thing, it involves introspection, elaboration, even questioning it's validity. Once you make one assumption that isn't the word of Jesus, you're making inferences. Inferences are something to be shared with others only if you first make it clear that you're guessing.

I believe in Jesus and the New Testament, with the exception of the vengance, threats and superstition, which I have guessed myself was added into the New Testament later. You see, I don't need to choose to interpret the bible either literally or figuratively. I just take it into consideration when I act. Weren't you taught that the only way to truely see evil is with your concience? Don't try to look for symbols, patterns, etc in non-Christian religions to find evil. That isn't rooting out evil, it's superstition, paranoia and the desire to improperly equalize the universe. I embrace Daoism because I feel that it is incredibly true, just as I embrace the New Testament because I find it incredibly true, and aspects of the Qua'ran and the Eightfold path, and the Vedas.

You see, you're looking for a solid, never changing rule to live your life by. That's just being lazy and cowardly. You think that Jesus wanted you to not question or think on religion? I seriously doubt that.

How do I justify my use of the martial arts while still following the ideals of nonviolence laid out by these texts? I am merely preparing myself. To quote the Daodejing, "Keep weapons and armour, but do not employ them." I am simply gathering the means. If a situation arises where I have to fight, I will not be any more guilty for being trained in the art of fighting.

And just because you have a notion about Christianity doesn't mean that you have to tell other people. I think that people can mess with your Qi. I also think that evil isn't the worst force out there. There are forces which appose good, evil, and all of existence. There is no diety worship in the southern styles of spiritual meditation. They are just interpreted that way by the Catholic and Evangelical churches (among others, probably the LDS.) That would be like saying Buddhists worship buddha. It's just flat out idiotic to think that way.

[Anthony]

"there is a very reasonable body of evidence that suggest...."

Sure. But still, nothing is definite. I saw a doc. that suggested that Jesus might have travelled to China for a time. It was very interesting but in the end they don't give you any definites. You still can't say for sure.

There is reasonable evidence, for example, to suggest that Marco Polo was not born in Venice (as every encyclopaedia states). The borders of Venice at the time of his birth were not the same as that of today. Anyway, you get my point. It's so long ago that different theories pop up based on what could have happened.

The gnostic gospels can be taken as frauds and forgeries (I'm guessing frauds existed back then too) or you can be some sort of conspiracy theorist and say that they were covered up for some religious political reason. Or, you can take the gnostics and tweak history to come up with the DaVinci code. There is fuel out there for any viewpoint. Depends on what you want to accept in order to suit your purpose. But, I don't see too much certainty or else there would be no discussion. Faith is a choice. And for those who believe (whatever their reason), I don't see a need to look any further than the Bible.

Was Jesus a cellibut, was he black or white?........It's all in the "whatever" category for me. I don't really care. It's about the message.

I am Roman Catholic, by the way and I don't see anything more worth believing in.

If people say "youre brainwashed" then fine. Anyone who's ever bought a Valentine's Day or Mother's Day card is also brainwashed. Your'e doing what society tells you to like some sheep. It's just one brainwashing vs. another I guess.

[mantis108]

there is a very reasonable body of evidence that suggest Jesus was influenced by the Buddhist teachings that had plenty of time to get from India to his area over 500 years or so (evidently Alexandria had its fair share of Buddhist scholars); that and his association with a group like the Essenses would make sense as well; when did this happen? well, if you recall, the gospels that made the cut describe his life up to a young teenager, and then, bango, noting until he reappears in his early 30's; whaddaya think he did during the intervening 25 years or so?

so he was basically a spiritual teacher with some new ideas that got misinterpreted by his disciples and subsequent followers who came up with the nifty idea that he was the one true son of god and this got further corrupted and dogmatized by guys like Augustine and Origen and others (I foget specifics - it's been a while since I've read anything like History of God by Karen Armstrong)

also, the whole idea of CMA being a gateway to the occult and demonic possession - I guess I must be living proof of that

for a guy who said everyone should just love each other, there sure has been a world of pain generated by those who claim to follow him (funny, it's the opposite of Buddhism - how many wars started by / fought on behalf of Buddhists have there been?) - personally, I think that he started preaching too early - he wasn't quite "cooked" and so was not able to deliver his message with the same equanimity as the Buddha - he spoke out of his passion, which got transferred to his followers, etc. etc.; if he had waited another 20 or 30 years, it may have been much different...

and yeah, he prbably was married, most likely had a relationship with Mary Magdalene - certainly celibacy was not on his agenda...

oh, and he was a blonde white guy (at least according to the pictures in the books)

Ah, Karen Armstrong! Well, I think she outlined the history of God as:

El -> Baal -> Yawhaw (I am who I am) -> Trinity [not the hot chick in Matrix]

something to that effect. It was and in essence still is a tribal war god no matter how all the preachers try to spin it. If it isn't why would we still have war after war in not only middle east? How many major war in the world is not done in the name of this war god? BTW, Christian often use the fish as symbol which in Hindu tradition is associated with Vishnu the preserver. Is it really that farfetch to see that there is similarity in Baptism and Hindu's who purify themselves in the River Gange?

To All,

Buddhism doesn't equal atheism or pacificism for that matter. BTW, people equated the Buddha (human prince) with Vishnu in India as well. But non violent, self help and helping others are pretty much the core of Buddhism. Didn't Jesus claimed to be the son of God? Isn't Jesus supposed to be the Priest-King from the Davidic line? Are the Christian values that far away from that of Buddhism?

Mantis108

[Anthony]

"and subsequent followers who came up with the nifty idea that he was the one true son of god..."

Not to harp on the whole "is religion for real" thing but I was always taught that Jesus did claim to be the son of God and claimed that he was God. Either way, the above statement seems to have a negative spin on it (which I understand if youre not religious). Like I said above, we believe what suits our purpose. Couldn't one just as easily say that they (his followers) were "convinced" that he was the son of God rather than they simply "came up" with the notion. I mean, they gave up their lives to follow him, at the very least they must have been convinced somehow to do this.

Again, this is all lost to time and rhetorical but it illustrates how things can be twisted.

As far as one teaching sounding like another it's not a news flash. Truth can be universal. Does anyone discredit Dr. King for sounding like Ghandi.

There's hardly anything pertaining to religion that can't be argued/counter-argued.

And this whole "is martial arts evil" thing. Can't we take a lesson from the movie "Footloose" in the book burning scene.........."The evil is not in these books, it's in your hearts...."

[SevenStar]

Lol, he was a white blonde guy because of the King James version of the bible. And it's already been proven that Dan Brown's theory is full of holes, almost as many holes as there were plot holes in the ****ty, horribly bad book "desception point."

blond? according to the bible he had skin of bronze and hair like wool...considering the location of these events, I would say that he was arabic looking.

I believe in Jesus and the New Testament, with the exception of the vengance, threats and superstition, which I have guessed myself was added into the New Testament later.

why do you think this?

How do I justify my use of the martial arts while still following the ideals of nonviolence laid out by these texts? I am merely preparing myself. To quote the Daodejing, "Keep weapons and armour, but do not employ them." I am simply gathering the means. If a situation arises where I have to fight, I will not be any more guilty for being trained in the art of fighting.

to quote the bible: "he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one."

And just because you have a notion about Christianity doesn't mean that you have to tell other people.

In a sense, yes it does.

[NJM]

1. blond? according to the bible he had skin of bronze and hair like wool...considering the location of these events, I would say that he was arabic looking.




2. why do you think this?




3. to quote the bible: "he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one."




4. In a sense, yes it does.

1. First: I was saying that he is depicted as white because of the king james version of the bible, not because he actually was. He was probably arabic. Please make an effort to read and understand posts before you relpy to them.

2. Why do I think vengance and threats were added later? Because they create a consequence if you don't believe in the faith, it's part of informational contagion theory. A being as all-knowing and belevolent as god wouldn't send everyone to hell just because they didn't believe in him. I believe that god wants this so that people can benifit, not out of the desire for worshippers. I believe that we exist for two reasons: To bear witness and to share god's image; I think that god's image refers to a concious being, because until we came along, with the exception of possible aliens, he was the only conciousness. Again, that is my NOTION, and I would never make anyone swallow my elaboration.

3. Exactly my point.

4. I said you shouldn't spread YOUR NOTION of Christianity. If you spread it at all, don't elaborate and give it in it's pure form. The reason that we have so many secs of christianity is because every smart guy who thinks on the bible comes with certain dissagreements with his church, and instead of just disagreeing and forming his own opinion and looking inward, his ego forces him to make others interpret it as he does. Please make an effort to read and understand posts before you relpy to them. The Bible doesn't say "Read the Bible, draw conclusions, and preach those conclusions instead of showing people the bible."

BTW, if you guys are Christian Fundamentalists, I won't argue about this anymore. Simply because there's no changing your opinion. If you think that the devil is going to take your soul because you did some movements or spoke some words, There really isn't anything I can do to change that. If the devil exists, he's not even close to what's out there.

[lunghushan]

1. First: I was saying that he is depicted as white because of the king james version of the bible, not because he actually was. He was probably arabic. Please make an effort to read and understand posts before you relpy to them.

In all the photos that my parents and grandparents had, they always had him as a tanned white guy. LOL

Seriously, who the heck cares what these people believe? As long as they aren't bombing us or shooting us because we don't believe. And if the bombing or shooting starts, then, we'll all be sure to go to Church on Sunday. LOL

[qiphlow]

well I like to believe that humans were genetically engineered by a race of aliens from sirius--just read chariots of the gods and you will see the light...

[Royal Dragon]

well I like to believe that humans were genetically engineered by a race of aliens from sirius--just read chariots of the gods and you will see the light...

Reply]
Agreed. Although, we may be an early colony of thiers, and not know it too. That would explain how early civilisations had such knowledge, and understanding of herbal medicine accupunture and accupressure.

I mean, how did a technically primitave society figure out accupunture anyway? It had to have been taught to them by a superior intelect, or a more advanced civalisation, someone with the advanced (even beyond our current) technology to plot and map the human nervious system, and also had the technical means to identify all the acupunture points and study their effects in a discaplined and scientific way to created a functional medicinal system.

Think about it. Back in ancient time, there was no mass comminucation, so the disvoveries of a point, and it's use could not be shared on a wide spread scale, yet somehow a really deep and inclusive system of accupuncture and herbal healing developed under those condititons?

Look what it takes to get a modern drug to the market, all the clinical testing and such, and the amount of science it takes to figure it all out. It's on a scale that is absolutly geometric compared to what the Chinese had 10,000 years ago.

[qiphlow]

well I like to believe that humans were genetically engineered by a race of aliens from sirius--just read chariots of the gods and you will see the light...

Reply]
Agreed. Although, we may be an early colony of thiers, and not know it too. That would explain how early civilisations had such knowledge, and understanding of herbal medicine accupunture and accupressure.

I mean, how did a technically primitave society figure out accupunture anyway? It had to have been taught to them by a superior intelect, or a more advanced civalisation, someone with the advanced (even beyond our current) technology to plot and map the human nervious system, and also had the technical means to identify all the acupunture points and study their effects in a discaplined and scientific way to created a functional medicinal system.

Think about it. Back in ancient time, there was no mass comminucation, so the disvoveries of a point, and it's use could not be shared on a wide spread scale, yet somehow a really deep and inclusive system of accupuncture and herbal healing developed under those condititons?

Look what it takes to get a modern drug to the market, all the clinical testing and such, and the amount of science it takes to figure it all out. It's on a scale that is absolutly geometric compared to what the Chinese had 10,000 years ago.

or perhaps all our modern technology has caused us to forget all our "superhuman" abilities because we have machines and electronic devices to do everything for us. i do think that the planet has been visited before, and the australian aboriginal people have an oral history that spans about 40,000 years--their paintings of the dreamtime look like maps of planetary energy lines, and the shamans paint themselves with markings that look suspiciously like qi meridians. humans have probably been in contact with other beings in the universe for a long, long time

[Shaolinlueb]

ok, my 2 cents of trollign this thread

hail satan!

[Royal Dragon]

or perhaps all our modern technology has caused us to forget all our "superhuman" abilities because we have machines and electronic devices to do everything for us

Reply]
I don't think so, we have not been technologically advanced for very long. It seems doubtfull we would lose that so quickly.

[SevenStar]

well I like to believe that humans were genetically engineered by a race of aliens from sirius--just read chariots of the gods and you will see the light...

I have that book.

speaking of sirius, The dogons are an amazing people