No arrogance you say?
No pride you say?
It took a thousand and thirty-nine posts, but it's here in red and black and white. Of course he put it in small print, but let me requote for you the word's from OrthodoxPresbyterian in print for all to see:
"I'm never going to run out of answers, Shadow... the Bible is on my side!!"
My dear Calvinist friends, the argument that you are not prideful is OVER!
Carry on with your other discussions, this one is settled.
My dear Calvinist friends, the argument that you are not prideful is OVER! Carry on with your other discussions, this one is settled.
Not Pride.
Confidence.
There is a difference.
RnMomof7 opposed me for months. And I will defer to her impression of me, good or bad, for judgment. For though I am prideful in many things (this I freely admit), I expect that she will tell you honestly: In this I am not prideful. I am confident.
I know whereof I speak.
The Bible is on my side, because I am on the Bible's side.
Believe you me, Ward -- six months ago, RN would've agreed with you that I am "prideful" in such a statement.
She will no longer agree with you.
Because she knows that I know what I am talking about.
It is not "prideful" to speak as One who Speaks with Authority.
It is an Imitation of Christ.
And I am an Imitator of Christ.
"Yes, with just a little clipping, twisting, jamming, shoe-horning and most of all, forgetting -- the Bible "is on our side." And you can do it all at home in just 15 minutes a week. And think of the fun you will have amazing your friends by quoting long-dead and forgotten "thinkers" nobody has ever heard of who twist even better than you do.
But most of all you too can enjoy the immense pride that comes from being perceived -- at least in your own mind -- as the One with all the answers. And people will think your god is the biggest, baddest dude in the whole world because he is absolutely mean to everyone. No longer will you have to be satisfied with the God of those namby-pamby Christians; you won't have to take a back seat in sheer brutality to the moslems. No, now you will have a brutal god too. Remember, you can't make a omlet with scrambling a few souls -- er, eggs.
Now don't be discouraged, there will be some who will try to put your favorite proof-texts back into context, but that takes so much time and effort that most of their listeners will give up trying to do that. So just turn to page 2 of our handy, in-depth 2 1/2 page guide to the Bible and keep SHOUTING your favorite little verse -- or better yet half a verse -- over and over. That will give a patina of authority to your construct and will readily mislead the uninitiated and the tender.
Remember, in a society with a 30-second attention span, the guy with half a verse WINS!
And just think of the pride you will have in adding those "followers" to your entourage. Wow, it's even better than buying a foreclosed house for nothing down. And the best part is that you can keep telling everyone -- ad nauseum -- that you have all the answers.
And don't worry that you will have to change your way of life. The beauty of this whole thing is you just keep talking about how mean your god is to your enemies and how you're a favorite of his and only your friends get to be be favorites with you. And the best part is, unlike that demanding God of the Bible, your god doesn't demand anything of you. More pride than the real thing and none of those pesky demands.
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