inquirer_for_truth

Since you use the Bible as evidence, I will reply with a passage from the Bible. Actually, the same passage you used. Sadly, you a have taken it out of context. The passage, from beginning to end, is Romans 6:1-11(in the NIV): This part of the passage begins by reminding us that all those who were baptized into Christ Jesuswere baptized into His death, buried with Him, all of them will be raised with Him to glory. The reward, that glory, is promised to those who are baptized into Christ. That is, true believing Christians. Now that everyone knows the context, we can move on to the passage that bija provided, again in the NIV: "For we know that our..." Who is this 'our'? Remember the context... believers in the Lord Jesus Christ (Christians). "Because anyone who has died has been freed from sin." Died? remember, believers who have been baptized into Christ's death died with Him. Now comes the climatic point... "once for all". I believe that, looking at the context this passage gives, 'all' would refer to the same "all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death" and therefore died in Him and will be risen in Him (in verse 3...^up there ). Now the last verse... NIV again, of course : "alive to God in Christ Jesus." Sounds pretty obvious to me. A person needs to believe in Jesus Christ, or else they will die, dead in sin, and face the judgment God has prepared. And since the Bible is valid evidence here (since it was quoted and such), then you all should also check out the book of Revelation, where Jesus Christ Himself speaks of the judgment that will come upon those who do not place their faith in Him. at least before you deny that there will ever be a judgment. lol. Sorry. Here I go making trouble again...

Thanks so much for the advice and pointers, Clayton! I've learned A LOT about Hindus and the paths they've chosen on this forum, and all of this has helped so much with my project!! I presented today, and it all went well. Everyone thought the facts and answers to the questions I asked were very interesting and *lol* were jealous about what a great experience I told them I had. Thank you again to everyone who responded in all their different ways and helped me out. I am extremely grateful to all of you, and it has been a great experience making friends here and learning about your views and way of life!! *hugs* I'll stick around and try to keep in touch... Thank you thank you thank you again!!! *waves* ~HannahM, aka inquirer-for-truth EDIT: like I said, I'll hang around! I've made such nice friends here... ^.^

Thanks, Sridas!! Wow, this is all very interesting! So much information, and gHari, you're right, the textbooks really don't say everything about the Hindu way of life!! Thanks so much, everyone, for the responses... it really means alot to me, that people are willing to share their faith and thoughts with me!! *hugs everyone* Lol, sorry, Sridas, if it feels like school... *poke* it IS a school project, y'know . Thanks again for your six cents worth!!

gHari... thank you SO much!! I'm incredibly grateful for your response and everything. And you're totally right! Many Christians are so hypocritical (which makes me mad) and only minister to others for simply adding numbers to a church (which is just WRONG). There are some of us (including my family and me) that believe in what you just said there. If there was an hugging emoticon, I would use it. Erm. I had said before that I had to present just a couple of the answers to the class. In case you hadn't noticed that, is that ok with you? It'll simply be a max of 3 of the questions and answers that I thought the most interesting to me. If you have a problem w/ that, please, go ahead and tell me... And I owe you a favor... hehe, the best I can over internet. ^.^ P.S. and thanks for the advice! I'll add it to my 'Helpful Tips for College' list... EDIT: another P.S. if you wish, I could answer the questions too. I know there were some concerns about fairness, etc.

Alright. Let's just say that I'm one of those rare occasions. Seriously. Let me give you my teacher's website: pottersschool.org/profafann Click on World Religions Class. That's my class. You can find the dates for 'interview presentations' on that page as well. There y'are. My name is on the last day. HannahM. That's me... Don't trust me if you don't want to. It's true.. I would like some information. About the Hindu way of life. If you want, during the interview, I can answer any of your questions. So that you can get information outta me. I'm definitely hurt. But I see what you mean. I wouldn't trust someone off the internet either... EDIT: Btw, check the 'Basic course description' on the World Religions class homepage. You'll see that we are assigned to interview. Check it. Please...

Wow. :ponder:That gives me a lot to think about... *scribbles notes* That's very helpful, thank you!! Would you mind chatting with me and answering some of my questions? (If you're concerned about things being fair and everything, I can answer these questions, too, from my perspective! It should be interesting ) Thanks again

Sure! Sorry I didn't respond right away, I was at drama club practice. I was introduced to Christianity by my parents. They are both devoted and true believers in Jesus Christ. For most of my life, I assumed that 'Hey, since my parents are Christians, I must be a Christian too!', acting as if faith and belief is something that can be inherited or passed on from parent to child. I led a life of self-deception. I thought I was a Christian only because I grew up in a Christian home, and didn't care to bridle my actions or to live for Christ myself. Until -- praise God! -- the beginning of last summer. I attended a conference where I heard the calling of God through believing, Christian speakers who taught straight from the Bible. God spoke to me, and called me to Him. And now, I can truly say that I am a Christian, because I have handed my life over to Him! He is now in charge of my life's steering wheel, and I dedicate my life to Him. That's my testimony. I hope that serves as a good answer... As is Christianity! I'm sorry if I offended or insulted anyone. I'm rather new at these terms; now that I know, I shall be more careful! (psst, thanks for pointing that out!!)

Ok, I'll try to avoid the 'Hindu' label. I think it would be very interesting to get to know what you believe and how you live your faith! I think my teacher might be looking for someone with a more defined faith in the Hindu religion, so I can interview a number of people so that I can learn even more! Praise Jesus indeed! Thanks very much, theist! How would you like to chat? By pm? or email? I'm open for either! Hehe, I'm getting really excited about this! It sounds very interesting!

Ok, thanks for the advice! Ok. Some of the questions I added since I'm a Christian, I'd like to know what Hindus think about teh Christian religion. What does your faith mean to you personally? Socially? Culturally? How do you live your faith day-to-day? How easy or difficult is it to practice your faith in the United States? Which portion of your sacred scriptures is most meaningful to you and why? Which is most challenging? What holy places are especially significant to your faith? Why? Have you ever been on a pilgrimage to a holy place or sacred site? What was it like? Are you planning to go in the future? How important is it for you to go? What role does your family play in the practice and living out of your faith? How do you view Christianity and the Christian church? What is your general impression of Christians? What do you think of Jesus? Do you know any followers of your faith who have converted to Christianity? Why do you think they became Christian? If anyone wants to pm them to me, or if you want to answer them right here and now, that's fine. Or you can email them to me. Whatever. Again, Guest1, thanks for the advice!

Please everyone? I'm seeing that I'm getting a few views, but could someone just please respond or something? that would be sooo great. Like, private message me or something if you want. Thanks...

Not sure exactly where to put this... but here it is. Hello! I'm really new here. I'm a highschool senior and I need some help with an assignment for one of my classes. We are required to chat with someone who holds a different view of life or practices a different religion from ourselves. I am a believer in Jesus Christ, and I thought it would be very interesting to interview a follower of the Hindu way of life. I was wondering if perhaps someone from this forum would be willing to talk with me? All it is is a list of questions that I will ask (and can answer too, if the interviewee likes) that talks about what the interviewee, as a Hindu, thinks about God(s), their religion, the natural state of man, etc, etc. Rest assured, it will not be some heated debate where I will blame the interviewee or tell them that they are wrong or anything. All it will be is a discussion about the differences in our faiths and learning about the different beliefs and how each of us feels about our religions. This is all for an assignment for my history class, and I would be presenting some parts of our chat to the class as a short presentation. I would be very encouraged if someone from this forum would help me out... I've already asked people on other forums to chat with me, but they haven't responded at all to my posts... I hope someone replies!! Like I said, I am only doing this so that I can learn some things about the Hindu religion on a deeper level than the textbooks or other resources say. I'd like to know what a Hindu personally feels about their religion and understand it! It should be very interesting, and I honestly promise that is will not be a debate or hateful speech type thing. Thank you! inquirer-for-truth, aka, Hannah M.