This is Ponderable
Came across this at Internet Monk. As he said, it may come from some anti-Christian atheists or whoever but it does make a Christian of any stripe sit up and take notice.
The Top Ten Signs You Are A Fundamentalist ChristianEven with all that, many of us still believe, even in things that people might make fun of. In some ways Christians need to be aware of these perceptions. They are the perceptions of that will be found, in one form or another, among many who are not Christian. That does not mean that they are "hostile". It means that when you have not been brought up in the culture of the faith with all its intricacies of meaning and understanding, you should not be expected to understand what all this means.
10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.
9 - You feel insulted and “dehumanized” when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.
8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.
7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the “atrocities” attributed to Allah, but you don’t even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in “Exodus” and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in “Joshua” including women, children, and trees!
6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.
5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.
4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs — though excluding those in all rival sects - will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most “tolerant” and “loving.”
3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in “tongues” may be all the evidence you need to “prove” Christianity.
2 - You define 0.01% as a “high success rate” when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.
1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.
Can we as Christians be like Paul on Mars Hill and face these issues without resorting to quoting the Bible, for example, since the people we talk to may have no understanding or acceptance of the Bible? Paul was probably criticized for quoting pagan poets, but it worked!
Anyway, this all brings to mind one of my favorite classic quotes, which is appropriate at this point to bring this to an end. It reminds me, at least, that this is not about logic and "proof," but about faith:
“There is no use trying,” said Alice. “One can’t believe impossible things.”
“I dare say you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”
--Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
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