Why Do We Speak In Tongues?

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   Andrew0208posted 15 years ago

   Why Do We Speak In Tongues? Speaking in tongues among Christians was first observed in Acts 2:4-5 "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."
   
   Speaking in tongues; is it the sign of the presence of the Holy Ghost? Many people including Christians have argued so much about this act(speaking in other tongues). Why do we speak in tongues? Is it still relevant? Whats the significance? How important? Do you speak in tongues?

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      sandra rinckposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      you mean a language of gobbly goo that doesn't mean anything?  really sounds sorta satanic to me. Miss communication perhaps. Wouldn't surprise me.

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         Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

         It's no English, French, Dutch nor Africans with common meanings. This language is of the Spirit. Is it only for Christians who believe they can? I like to hear from someone who prays in the Spirit.

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            earnestshubposted 15 years agoin reply to this

            Talk to Sara Pailin perhaps?

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               sandra rinckposted 15 years agoin reply to this

               ROTFLMAO!

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                  Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

                  More to it.

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      onthewritesideposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Why do we speak in tongues?"
      
      Ummmm....as a desperate plea for a thorough head examination maybe?
      
      "Is it still relevant?"
      
      Only to your psychiatrist.
      
      "Whats the significance?"
      
      See answer one.
      
      "How important?"
      
      See answer two.
      
      "Do you speak in tongues?"
      
      I haven't yet...but I only have like one nerve left, so we'll see.

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         sandra rinckposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         I think without a tongue it would be hard to speak in the first place.

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            onthewritesideposted 15 years agoin reply to this

            LOL....yep!

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      Make Moneyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      In the book of the Acts of Apostles "other tongues" means other languages that were understood.
      
      I'm not sure about how some people speak in tongues these days.  1 Corinthians 14 may help you understand this.  It says speaking in tongues should be interpreted.  "If any speak with a tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and in course, and let one interpret."

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         ellie1142545posted 15 years agoin reply to this

         You are right....Today, there are Christians who believe that Speaking in tongues is for every Christian....And there are those who believe only the Pastor/Minister should have this gift...I'm among those who believe it's for everyone....
         
         And it's also true about what you say should be done in Church...The verse you quote is 1 Corinthians 14:27....I will quote another verse 1 Corinthians 14:28:  "If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and God."
         
         Also, when you pray alone, God wants us to find a place of quiet and pray to Him....It could even be a closet....When you are alone with God, no distraction should be anywhere near....

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      gjohnposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Speaking in toungues is not like asking for a drink of water, it's not suppose to be common.  It's a holy and heavenly language that manifest itself at the onsight of the infilling of the holy ghost.  There is a procedure that must happen first before you would even speak in the toungues.  The toungues is really referred to as "a sound of a rushing mighty wind" it cant be duplicated or repeated. There are people that have the "gift of toungues" but there is also a holy lifestyle that is attatched to it not just because they so called feel something.  You have to start with Acts 2:38 before Acts 2:2-4 could be valid.

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      Davinagirl3posted 15 years agoin reply to this

      I think that speaking in different tongues doesn't have to be out loud.  In my mind, it is opening yourself up to clarity of spirit.  I don't pray, but I do sit in nature and clear my mind and speak the language of the spirit.  "Tongue" can also mean "language" and that is how I look at it.

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      ledefensetechposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      This has to be the most misunderstood passage in the New Testament.  Well maybe second to Revelations.  The gift of tongues is not the spastic babble that you see in certain evangelical churches.  The gift of tongues was supposedly the ability given by the Holy Spirit to the Apostles so that they could proclaim the Good News to the nations.  It has since come to mean in certain circles a direct line to God.  The gibberish comes from people supposedly not being able to handle that direct contact so the what seems like gibberish is actually people being unable to cope with being contacted by God.

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         sandra rinckposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         Have you seen this?  They got little children doing this garbage. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqNLMuijRyU
         
         It is really disturbing.

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            ledefensetechposted 15 years agoin reply to this

            Have you seen the rest of Jesus Camp?  That's pretty nutty too.  I swear it's the evangelical nutcases that give the rest of us a bad name.  It would be nice if people could inject just a little bit of rational thought into things, but it doesn't seem to happen in politics, mass media or anywhere else, so why should religion be any different?
            
            It really burns me.  I began studying religion because of my fascination with history.  When you learn why people believe what they do it gives you a better understanding of things.  People like this though, they don't care to understand things, it's all about being right and wielding power. 
            
            As an aside, I know you hate the Old Testament God, but I saw a documentary that looked at the Exodus as a military campaign and it did a remarkable job of explaining why Jehovah is portrayed the way he is in the Old Testament.  That's why Jesus bean his ministry with the New Covenant.  It was a move away from a bloodthirsty God who allowed things like the ban and attempted to make the idea of God more accessible to people.  Of course the Church Fathers had to screw all that up by including the Old Testament into the Bible, do you realize that it almost didn't make the cut?  In many ways it's a mistake to just dismiss things like the Bible, you miss out on so much if you don't delve into the history.
            
            Still I suppose there are two types of people in the world, those that learn from their mistakes and those whose lives serve as an example of what happens when you don't learn from your mistakes.

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               Make Moneyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

               I don't like to judge those that speak in tongues because the Bible says the only sin that God will not forgive are those that are against the Holy Spirit.  But this Jesus Camp in the video is part of Tim LaHaye's "Left Behind" organization, the ones that brought Grace Halsell to write her book called "Forcing God's Hand".  I find it ironic that the big girl in the video calls most Christians fat and lazy.  The kids in this video are going to turn out to be some spooky adults.
               
               
               
               The Second Vatican Council was an ecumenical council meaning that it was to bring forth dialog first amongst Christian denominations because we are suppose to be one in the Body of Christ and also for an open dialog with all religions.  Some Catholics feel the Vatican has gone too far with the ecumenicism without much gain.

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                  ledefensetechposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                  You'll get no argument from me on the spooky angle.  I suppose that's why I'm a tad biased towards the liturgical faiths.  At the very least, since they've been around so much longer, there's a wealth of scholarship on Christian beliefs and how they've changed and/or remained the same over the long years.  So many things that an evangelical might find new has usually been debated to death in the past, they're just unaware of the history behind the ideas they hold so dear.
                  
                  I do think it's a mistake just to take someone's word that they have a direct line to God.  You know the false messiahs we are warned about.  That's why I think the most useful piece of advice we get from the New Testament is the "By your acts, shall you be known" angle.  You pretty much can't go wrong when you use a person's actions as a yardstick to measure their devotion to the ideals behind Christianity.
                  
                  As for the Second Vatican Council, it's worth noting that the Church Mel Gibson supports is a pre-Council church and fiercer bunch of reactionaries you'd be hard pressed to find.  So perhaps there is something to ecumenism after all.

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         Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

         Was not only made manifest among the apostles, the Bibles brings to our knowledge the eficacy of praying in the Spirit as follows: In Mark 16:17-18. "And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues."
         
         Acts 19:6. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.
         
         "Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy. For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue, speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries" (1 Cor. 14:1, 2).
         
         Speaking in tongues is a spiritual gift of the Holy Spirit. Any Christian ought to desire spiritual gifts. They gifts of the Spirit are not by force but are desired and asked for, and God is ever willing to unleash them to him/her that believes and sincerely desire same.

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            ledefensetechposted 15 years agoin reply to this

            That sounded like the King James version of the Bible, which is notorious for mistranslating from the original Greek.  They used a flawed copy of Latin, I believe.  Walking around the ancient world gibbering and thrashing around would not have won the early Church any converts.  At least not converts they wanted to associate with.  The gift of tongues was the gift of communication, so that they could speak to the nations.  Your way has them dazzling people with BS, my way has them wowing people with their ability to talk.

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      ellie1142545posted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Speaking in Tongues is a gift of The Holy Spirit....This gift is for everyone who seeks it..Not all do...Some people believe in it, others don't...That's the choice of each person....Yes, it's relevant...The significence is to have an even closer relationship with the Lord...It's as improtant now, as it was in Acts 2:4-5....

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      fishmoxposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Because if the other guy knew what the other guy was saying about him there will be hell to pay in those days when knives and swords were probably worn even by kids as young as five.  Today ?  Our time ?  Ever heard of guns and grenades ?
      Seriously, some lady in the past and long dead thought it was more "spiritual" and "saved" to be able to speak in heavenly tongues and the fad was on.
      
      
      
      My sister speaks in tongues.  She's Full Gospel and hates me, a Baptist.
      She once told me that the Holy Spirit woke her up one night with a strong admonition to pray for her husband who was working in Saudi Arabia at that time and so she got on her knees and so like got into praying that she started to speak and pray in a heavenly tongue and she could feel the "spirit" entering her and it was so cool the sensation started from the bottom of her feet going up to her head and I stopped her short and cold with the question "isn't the Holy Spirit supposed to be in heaven and heaven somewhere above us, so why is he coming from below the ground".
      She didn't speak to me for some time.

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         mohitmisraposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         "isn't the Holy Spirit supposed to be in heaven and heaven somewhere above us, so why is he coming from below the ground".
         
         It permeates everything, god is omnipresent.

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            fishmoxposted 15 years agoin reply to this

            No, he is not.
            The Holy Spirit is not an "it", by the way.
            There is one place He is not, and will not be found, and that is in hell, the place of torment, which is a place of torment exactly because God is not there.
            But that is just my opinion.
            I may be wrong, happily.

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               mohitmisraposted 15 years agoin reply to this

               We are in hell and the holy spirit does permeate everything.I have come across the holy spirit and know its omnipresent.

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                  fishmoxposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                  We are not in hell.  You (no disrespect using that word) do not even know what it's like to be in hell.  Do you see maggots coming out of your body yet ?
                  
                  But, of course, you can believe we're in Mars for all I care.

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                     ellie1142545posted 15 years agoin reply to this

                     Agree with you here, fishmox....

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         ellie1142545posted 15 years agoin reply to this

         The Holy Spirit is sent to you when you accept Jesus.  If you have a Bible, take a very good, long look at it....Read the title until it finally gets to you...It's the Holy Word Of God....And maybe you'll come to find out what I now know....You'll have to learn it on your own, I say this to everyone....Holy Bible....
         
         Remind your sister, that if she hates you, she hates God....God is love, not hate....And also remind her, that you too have the Holy Spirit (Ghost) in you...He entered when you became a Christian...The very second you accepted Jesus....
         
         I'm Pentecostal, I'm Non-Denominational, and I attend a Baptist an Affiliate Non-Denominational Church.....

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            Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

            You're right my dear, praying in the Spirit will also be of much gains than praying in our own understanding. This is a believer's tool and gift of the Holy Ghost.

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   dingdongposted 15 years ago

   Speak in tongue... What does it exactly mean here?

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   fierycjposted 15 years ago

   Speaking in tongues ought to be articulated language, Whether by men or by angels.

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   Make Moneyposted 15 years ago

   Since 1967 there has been a charismatic group similar to the Pentecostals in the Catholic Church called the Divine Mercy Chaplet.  A lot of Catholics don't know what to think of it because some of them speak in tongues.  In fact my 93 year old aunt belongs to it and has told me she has spoken in tongues.  Because of her age I haven't had the nerve to ask her who interprets it for her.

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      Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

      He who speaks in tongues speaks unto God and he is speaking mysteries. To interpret is a gift of the same Spirit, it edifies one's spirit. I do speak in other tongues and sometimes the interpretations flow also in my spirit, you may ask how? Until you get started speaking in tongues. God is willing in this regard thru the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
      This also poses a question of how real is the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life as a believer in Christ Jesus? Not the religion.

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      ledefensetechposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      It sounds like they formed as a reaction to the Second Vatican Council.

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      onthewritesideposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Divine Mercy Chaplet...DMC...now all of the sudden I understand Rap music! 

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         Make Moneyposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         Yeah you got to "Focus"
         
         ump, fah, ump, fah, ump, fah.

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   Make Moneyposted 15 years ago

   I believe the power of the Holy Spirit can be very powerful in a person's life but come on Andrew, you are not actually trying to say that unless someone speaks in tongues they don't have a relationship with Jesus through His Holy Spirit, are you?  I've noticed that you don't have much good to say about religion and remember you saying that you don't attend church.  This causes me concern for yourself.  For example if you do not attend church services then how are you going to do what Jesus asks us repeatedly to do in John 6.  What Jesus asks us to do in John 6 is the most important part of the Bible.

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      Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Speaking in tongues is a sign of the infilling of the Holy Ghost. Being saved in Christ is the begining of faith walk. Recieving the gifts of the Holy Spirit is gainful and should be most desired and passionately taken by a believer. I do attend my local assembly of saints(church). God is different from religion and it's associated politics, never mix them up. The Life we now have in Christ as believers is beyond the play of religion which is void of power.

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   Dylithposted 15 years ago

   Mark 16:17-18 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
   
   I have seen the first two done (or attempted rather) quite a bit, and am even familiar with some Christians practicing the snake handeling (with defanged snakes of course).
   
   Not many though seem too keen on the last one though. I have always wanted someone to ask those preachers who pretend to cast out demons and speak in tongues to try the poison bit on stage (not that I would want anyone to actually be poisoned).

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      Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

      "If they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them." I wonder if it is self gratification, magical or stupidity to consciously take a poison and that is not what that scripture is saying. Wisdom is profitable to direct.

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   sciguyposted 15 years ago

   I always thought it was pretty clear that what the Bible meant when it talked about "speaking new tongues" (Mark 16:17-18) was miraculously speaking in a (real) foreign language that the speaker had never learned - not babbling nonsense sounds with no apparent meaning, as the people who "speak in tongues" seem to do today.
   
   Get back to me when someone who has never studied Chinese is suddenly able to speak it properly when they wish to explain the gospels to a Chinese person.

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   Zabbellaposted 15 years ago

   Speaking in tongues is perfct prayer. Sometimes we don't know the words to form when we want to pray. SIT comes naturally and God does hear it. God answers prayer even if we don't know the language of angels.

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      Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

      You're right my dear. There're much gains praying in the spirit often and long enough. It will edify and condition your spirit to interact with the Holy Spirit. It's Awesome!

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         earnestshubposted 15 years agoin reply to this

         Interact with the holy spirit my arse! Talking in tongues is just another example of how loony religion can get!

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            Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

            Your ignorance and unbelief of the Holy Spirit is your choice. Believers and not religionists do enjoy His communion.

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               earnestshubposted 15 years agoin reply to this

               Not ignorance Andrew, I have studied the Bible and Quoran extensively, and am an ex Christian.

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                  Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

                  You studied both for knowledge sake but never believed the Scriptures as a Christian then. Do you think the Scriptures were meaningful to anyone without believing? They're Spirit and Life which are beyond the letters.

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                     earnestshubposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                     Oh I believed alright. I just kept learning.

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                        Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

                           Your words displayed your unbelief of the same.

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                           earnestshubposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                           That is true, I have no remaining belief in Christianity.

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                              Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

                              Do you have any reasons for your unbelief?

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                                 earnestshubposted 15 years agoin reply to this

                                 Many, but I feel no need to discuss them here.

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   Blackngoldbananaposted 15 years ago

   Speaking in tongues could have been mistaken for Aphasia, which is a condition some people suffer after having a stroke.  Words might be mis-spoken or be totally garbled.  Maybe people that spoke in tongues simply had high blood pressure and a mini-stroke or TIA.

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    HealthCare Basicsposted 15 years ago

    I am thinking bipolar, schizophrenic, dillusional, and vampirism...

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    Mishaposted 15 years ago

    Sandy, you scared me again

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       sandra rinckposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       I figured I might so I changed it again just for you.

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    Mishaposted 15 years ago

    Thank you, yet now i can't see much except for the shoulder and a piece of the butt. Looks attractive, but not exactly parts of the body I got used to talk to

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    Inspirepubposted 15 years ago

    As always, any truly Divine inspiration is indistinguishable from madness to the average human being ...
    
    ... the only question one must answer is how to treat those events when they occur?
    
    I mean not EVERYONE who babbles nonsense is divinely inspired. Some just have a chemical imbalance.
    
    Jenny

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       Andrew0208posted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Are you a Christian?

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    Make Moneyposted 15 years ago

    Exactly, Matthew 7:20 "Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them."  I tend towards supporting the liturgical faiths too because we can receive the Eucharist from them spoken about in John 6 which I think is the most important message the Bible is telling us.  Grace Halsell wrote the book "Forcing God's Hand" to counteract the Tim LaHayes and other TV and mega church evangelist cause they support and defend the state of Israel because they think it will hurry up the anti-christ with the building of the Third Temple thus in turn hurrying the second coming of Jesus Christ.  In reality they are forcing God's hand by supporting the anti-christ.  At this time you might want to read 2 Thessalonians chapter 2.  Guys like Mel Gibson do not support the state of Israel for the same reason. 
    
    A few of the TV evangelist like John Hagee have had to changed their tone when they received flak but they still support the state of Israel because deep down they know the building of the Third Temple will bring about the anti-christ.  There's a guy by the name of Clyde Lot, a Christian Zionist from the US that is actually breeding red heifers for the blood sacrifice that will be carried out in the Third Temple.  These Christian Zionists were also the staunchest supporters of the war in Iraq, the last to accept global warming and dragged their feet about protecting our environment again because they are "Forcing God's Hand" by helping in the building of the Third Temple.  These Christian Zionists do give Christianity a bad name like you say, in fact I think atheists and agnostics lump all Christians into this same Christian Zionist movement which is not true.  I wrote this page a few years ago for the same reason why Grace Halsell wrote her book "Forcing God's Hand".
    http://www.whymostfail.com/chosen.html

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    ledefensetechposted 15 years ago

    Honestly those guys can do what they want.  I'm sure their descendants a millennium from now will be doing the same thing.  Again, I'm not too sure how much stock people should put into Revelation.  It was almost dropped from the Bible and scholarship has established that John of Patmos was talking about the Roman Empire when he penned it.  I've always found it interesting that Rome fell around 500 and the world entered the Renaissance period 1,000 years after the fall of Rome.  Which could lead one to expect that a sense of humanism is what the City of God is truly about, not old hoary outdated traditions from the Bronze Age.

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    earnestshubposted 15 years ago

    just thick as house bricks I guess, and not a little nutty.

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       ellie1142545posted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Little nutty?  Nope we're as sane as the next person :-)

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