> Matthew 12/4
> Walt, I can certainly state my position in 50 words or less, but would not
> use any of these words. I am happy to address each and any of these,
> assuming that they are really part of the list's scope, but would not
> include them in my statement of fundamental belief and my foundation for
> this belief.
>
> I think that my 50 words would go like this:
> "My faith is in the one true God--the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--as
> revealed by Jesus Christ, whose power is demonstrated to me by His Spirit
> who lives within me. In God, I have all trust and live my life for Him in
> pursuit of His will."
>
> That about does it. The other concepts that you suggest are important but
> only in the context of the above statement.
WALT:
What you've written above explains nothing. Without God's Grace, for
example,
your faith is misplaced. When I see someone addressing "philosophical
foundations," I expect a bit more substance. If you delete the words
"the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit -- as revealed by Jesus Christ --" your foundation
is similar
to that of Jews and Muslims. And unless you explain the concept of
"Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit," anyone unfamiliar with your faith would think you a
believer in multiple gods.
Your statement above, is Christian shorthand, intelligible ONLY if you
are
alrady familiar with the underlying concepts. (The fact that you
downplay
God's Grace, Messiahhood and Sacrifice in your statement of makes me
think
you are stuck on the SURFACE of your philosophy, the "feel good" stuff,
without dealing with its substance.)
> I look forward to your statement or the statement of any other skeptic,
> atheist, or agnostic on the system.
Walt:
If I do it like you did, just meeting the 50 word limit, it's easy:
"The ordered universe exists, like mythical gods, without cause.
History and experience has shown me that it is my responsibility to
explore,
understand, and live long and peacefully within this universe. I try
to act
in ways that are consistent with this responsibility."