Intro to Christianity for Teens

Off Topic Politics & World Issues
41

[quote]Mark Dugdale wrote:
Doogie,

I have a lot of respect for you trying to come alongside your son. I personally enjoy the ESV Study Bible, but sometimes final the NIV easier to read. The bible is essentially all about Jesus. Much the OT stories are a foreshadow of Him and God’s plan of redemption. I most often point people to the book of John in the gospels. John was in all likelihood the most intimate friend of Jesus and knew him best. Thus, if you want to get acquainted with Jesus that’s a good place to start.

Mark[/quote]

Little off topic but I just felt the need to say thank you for your Iron Legacy article on priorities. I actually read that at a time when I really needed it and actually I credit it with helping me to be a better husband to my wife and father to my daughter. Sincere thanks.

42

[quote]gutterballs wrote:
A fascinating introduction to the Bible:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Book-Genesis-Illustrated-Crumb/dp/0393061027[/quote]

I own this and like it a lot. Definitely recommend for lighter engagement with what is, in other contexts, not light reading at all.

43

Plus, 15-year-old boys tend to pay attention to bewbs, even illustrated ones.

45

[quote]jbpick86 wrote:
Little off topic but I just felt the need to say thank you for your Iron Legacy article on priorities. I actually read that at a time when I really needed it and actually I credit it with helping me to be a better husband to my wife and father to my daughter. Sincere thanks.[/quote]
Thanks, brother, I appreciate it.

46

[quote]doogie wrote:
My son has recently expressed a desire to begin attending church. He’s 15, and up until now he has shown no signs of belief. I don’t currently believe, but have no issues taking him to church. However, I’ve failed to teach him even the most basic stories from the bible he should know in order to not be a cultural moron (Jonah and the Whale, Noah’s Ark, the Garden Of Eden). He’s an avid reader. Can someone recommend me a teen friendly Christianity primer? Something he could read and we could discuss.
Thank you for any help.[/quote]

Try books by William Lane Craig. Might as well start him off heavy and with one of the best.

47

Give him a copy of the origin of species and the bible and let the young man decide for himself. Let him look at sources, let him see which side provides evidence. If he has access to science and religion and he believes in religion fair enough. Are you only helping him discover christianity? What about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism etc? Have you explained to him all religions have an equal chance of being right?

Good luck dude.

48

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:
Give him a copy of the origin of species and the bible and let the young man decide for himself. Let him look at sources, let him see which side provides evidence. If he has access to science and religion and he believes in religion fair enough. Are you only helping him discover christianity? What about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism etc? Have you explained to him all religions have an equal chance of being right?

Good luck dude.[/quote]

You didn’t even read the OP did you?

It is blatantly obvious you are young 20’s btw… it’s sad and annoying.

49

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:
Give him a copy of the origin of species and the bible and let the young man decide for himself. Let him look at sources, let him see which side provides evidence. If he has access to science and religion and he believes in religion fair enough. Are you only helping him discover christianity? What about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism etc? Have you explained to him all religions have an equal chance of being right?

Good luck dude.[/quote]

You didn’t even read the OP did you?

It is blatantly obvious you are young 20’s btw… it’s sad and annoying. [/quote]

How did my non aggressive response annoy you? Why are you so angry at everything? I read it, I asked something.

50

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:
Give him a copy of the origin of species and the bible and let the young man decide for himself. Let him look at sources, let him see which side provides evidence. If he has access to science and religion and he believes in religion fair enough. Are you only helping him discover christianity? What about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism etc? Have you explained to him all religions have an equal chance of being right?

Good luck dude.[/quote]

You didn’t even read the OP did you?

It is blatantly obvious you are young 20’s btw… it’s sad and annoying. [/quote]

How did my non aggressive response annoy you? Why are you so angry at everything? I read it, I asked something.
[/quote]

Doogie isn’t pushing his son into anything (doogie doesn’t believe per the OP) his son expressed an interest in going to church and being a good father is supporting his son’s self discovery. Yet you had to come in here with your obvious and known anti-religion bias.

That’s why it’s annoying Yamato.

51

[quote]usmccds423 wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:
Give him a copy of the origin of species and the bible and let the young man decide for himself. Let him look at sources, let him see which side provides evidence. If he has access to science and religion and he believes in religion fair enough. Are you only helping him discover christianity? What about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism etc? Have you explained to him all religions have an equal chance of being right?

Good luck dude.[/quote]

You didn’t even read the OP did you?

It is blatantly obvious you are young 20’s btw… it’s sad and annoying. [/quote]

How did my non aggressive response annoy you? Why are you so angry at everything? I read it, I asked something.
[/quote]

Doogie isn’t pushing his son into anything (doogie doesn’t believe per the OP) his son expressed an interest in going to church and being a good father is supporting his son’s self discovery. Yet you had to come in here with your obvious and known anti-religion bias.

That’s why it’s annoying Yamato. [/quote]

So saying a father should oblige his son’s request to investigate Christianity but also provide scientific literature which offers actual facts about life we can prove, is annoying? That seems like rational behaviour 101.

Let me ask you if the OP said his son wanted to investigate Islam would the advice to offer a counter narrative alongside teaching him about the Koran be annoying?
Why do religious people think that people being vocal about their disbelief is offensive but religious people can make grand claims without evidence and it isn’t seen as offensive or annoying?

If someone wants to learn abut christianity and make a rational decision they should be reading the counter narrative otherwise how can they make an informed decision?

One can read the bible and it condemns homosexuality. You can however read science books that clearly shows homosexual tendencies in thousands of species and acknowledges it as a healthy and natural proclivity. Should his son never be exposed to the other side?

If you read Capital you need to read wealth of nations, if you read Mein Kampf you need to read the history of modern antisemitism. Saying that to this guy isn’t annoying it is common sense. I am sure the OP is a great dad and will give his son access to all the information he needs to make a decision based on facts.

If he chooses christianity fine, great, but not exposing him to the other religions or the scientific evidence seems kinda messed up. But as we can see OP isn’t forcing anything on his son, his son wants to learn things for himself which is great. I just doubt if his son read some Hitchens and some Dawkins and then read the bible he could believe a man who was hundreds of years old rounded up two of every animal onto an ark while god ethnically cleansed the entire population including pregnant mothers and toddlers. I also think he would see the irony in this god being anti abortion.

52

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

So saying a father should oblige his son’s request to investigate Christianity but also provide scientific literature which offers actual facts about life we can prove, is annoying?
[/quote]

No. Your shitty assumption that Doogie isn’t already providing him with a quality education is annoying.

Your irritating need to point out the flaws, and desperate failed attempts at shaming individuals as “part of the group” is annoying.

Your stunning and irrational sense of self grandeur is annoying.

Your assumption that “they must think X if they think Y” and other consistent fallacy is annoying.

Your current iteration of the same tired trolling you’ve tried over and over again through various screen names is annoying.

edit: some your v you’re issues.

53

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

[quote]usmccds423 wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:
Give him a copy of the origin of species and the bible and let the young man decide for himself. Let him look at sources, let him see which side provides evidence. If he has access to science and religion and he believes in religion fair enough. Are you only helping him discover christianity? What about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism etc? Have you explained to him all religions have an equal chance of being right?

Good luck dude.[/quote]

You didn’t even read the OP did you?

It is blatantly obvious you are young 20’s btw… it’s sad and annoying. [/quote]

How did my non aggressive response annoy you? Why are you so angry at everything? I read it, I asked something.
[/quote]

Doogie isn’t pushing his son into anything (doogie doesn’t believe per the OP) his son expressed an interest in going to church and being a good father is supporting his son’s self discovery. Yet you had to come in here with your obvious and known anti-religion bias.

That’s why it’s annoying Yamato. [/quote]

So saying a father should oblige his son’s request to investigate Christianity but also provide scientific literature which offers actual facts about life we can prove, is annoying? That seems like rational behaviour 101. [/quote]

No, it is annoying because Doogie didn’t ask for anything other than beginner materials his son could read to understand the basics of Christianity. He didn’t ask us how to raise his son. He ask for some basic materials, but you couldn’t help yourself from pushing an anti-christian agenda.

[quote]
Let me ask you if the OP said his son wanted to investigate Islam would the advice to offer a counter narrative alongside teaching him about the Koran be annoying? [/quote]

Yes, it would be.

[quote]
Why do religious people think that people being vocal about their disbelief is offensive but religious people can make grand claims without evidence and it isn’t seen as offensive or annoying? [/quote]

lol, whut? You can not be serious…

[quote]
If someone wants to learn abut christianity and make a rational decision they should be reading the counter narrative otherwise how can they make an informed decision? [/quote]

How do you know this isn’t already happening in this case?

[quote]
One can read the bible and it condemns homosexuality. [/quote]

Yes it does.

[quote]
You can however read science books that clearly shows homosexual tendencies in thousands of species and acknowledges it as a healthy and natural proclivity. [/quote]

Again this is ridiculous.

[quote]
Should his son never be exposed to the other side? [/quote]

How do you know he isn’t already?

[quote]
If you read Capital you need to read wealth of nations, if you read Mein Kampf you need to read the history of modern antisemitism. Saying that to this guy isn’t annoying it is common sense. I am sure the OP is a great dad and will give his son access to all the information he needs to make a decision based on facts.[/quote]

Then there was absolutely no need for your post…

[quote]
If he chooses christianity fine, great, but not exposing him to the other religions or the scientific evidence seems kinda messed up. [/quote]

That’s really none of your business.

[quote]
But as we can see OP isn’t forcing anything on his son, his son wants to learn things for himself which is great. [/quote]

If this is how you felt when you posted your initial comment then your comment was obviously just to push your perspective.

[quote]
I just doubt if his son read some Hitchens and some Dawkins and then read the bible he could believe a man who was hundreds of years old rounded up two of every animal onto an ark while god ethnically cleansed the entire population including pregnant mothers and toddlers. [/quote]

Of course you think this.

Not if he actually thinks about it.

54

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

So saying a father should oblige his son’s request to investigate Christianity but also provide scientific literature which offers actual facts about life we can prove, is annoying?
[/quote]

No. Your shitty assumption that Doogie isn’t already providing him with a quality education is annoying.

Your irritating need to point out the flaws, and desperate failed attempts at shaming individuals as “part of the group” is annoying.

Your stunning and irrational sense of self grandeur is annoying.

Your assumption that “they must think X if they think Y” and other consistent fallacy is annoying.

Your current iteration of the same tired trolling you’ve tried over and over again through various screen names is annoying.

edit: some your v you’re issues. [/quote]

Show me where I claimed he wasn’t. I was simply giving my opinion that that would be the best way. Stop whining like a liberal because someone has a different view than you.

56

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

Show me where I claimed he wasn’t. I was simply giving my opinion that that would be the best way.[/quote]

Sigh… There are two options here

  1. You’re dumb, and this response is valid
  2. You’re not dumb and you know this response is bullshit.

We both know you aren’t, by any stretch of the imagination, dumb.

[quote]Stop whining like a liberal because someone has a different view than you.
[/quote]

Stop trying to label people and fit them in a neat little box so you can judge them and put them down by assuming they are like others due to their association with the group.

I’ll take Varq’s making fun of “freedumb” and the less than stellar “culture” of America, all of America, than the baseless snobbery and overvalued self worth I see out of Europeans on just about every board I read.

57

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

Show me where I claimed he wasn’t. I was simply giving my opinion that that would be the best way.[/quote]

Sigh… There are two options here

  1. You’re dumb, and this response is valid
  2. You’re not dumb and you know this response is bullshit.

We both know you aren’t, by any stretch of the imagination, dumb.

[quote]Stop whining like a liberal because someone has a different view than you.
[/quote]

Stop trying to label people and fit them in a neat little box so you can judge them and put them down by assuming they are like others due to their association with the group.

I’ll take Varq’s making fun of “freedumb” and the less than stellar “culture” of America, all of America, than the baseless snobbery and overvalued self worth I see out of Europeans on just about every board I read.
[/quote]

You say stop labeling people then label an entire continent. At the slightest athiestic science supporting sentence you go full nationalist and revert to saying all Europeans are this or that. Something I never do about Americans or any other people.

Well done. And saying religion has no proof to back its claims and kids should be taught the scientific narrative along with any religious teaching is not elitist, it is merely being sensible.

If that offends you that is your issue. I am not saying christians can not be smart people, are not often good people. Saying I think the OP should be careful to arm his son with scientific fact that to be quite frank, disproves many claims by religions is not an assault on your nation your culture or your personal beliefs.

58

[quote]countingbeans wrote:
I’ll take Varq’s making fun of “freedumb” and the less than stellar “culture” of America, all of America, than the baseless snobbery and overvalued self worth I see out of Europeans on just about every board I read.
[/quote]

meanwhile in Europe …

Could you even imagine if parents read their kids the Bible, the unfair humanity of it all!

59

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:
is not an assault on your nation your culture or your personal beliefs.

[/quote]

reading your posts is assault to everyone’s intelligence.

60

[quote]YamatoDamashii92 wrote:

[quote]countingbeans wrote:

I’ll take Varq’s making fun of “freedumb” and the less than stellar “culture” of America, all of America, than the baseless snobbery and overvalued self worth I see out of Europeans on just about every board I read.
[/quote]

You say stop labeling people then label an entire continent. At the slightest athiestic science supporting sentence you go full nationalist and revert to saying all Europeans are this or that. Something I never do about Americans or any other people.[/quote]

Might want to read their sport. I didn’t say anything remotely close to what you contend I did.

In fact I labeled specific individuals from specific places, and even left the comment open to clearly show I’m NOT saying ALL.

I’m clearly saying that, when a European posts on the boards I read, they typically have issue X. You’re claiming I said All Europeans have issue X. You’re clearly fucking wrong here.

[quote] Saying I think the OP should be careful to arm his son with scientific fact that to be quite frank, disproves many claims by religions is not an assault on your nation your culture or your personal beliefs.

[/quote]

No, your stumbling entrance into this tread was a asinine assumption on your part that OP wasn’t doing what YOU think is the RIGHT thing. Your shit posting is an insult to Doogie, not anything else, and to that I take exception. He’s a good man, with more life experience in his little toe than you could comprehend.

You’ve soundly insulted him, his parenting and his children, and continue to do so with each moronic reply further down the drain that is your though process.

You’re going to wake up one morning in a decade or so and think back to moments like this and realize the err of your ways. You’re a bright kid, no doubt. But it won’t be until you truly understand and accept how dumb you are that you’ll actually begin to gain knowledge.