{"id":7310,"date":"2017-04-16T08:32:11","date_gmt":"2017-04-16T12:32:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=7310"},"modified":"2017-04-16T08:32:11","modified_gmt":"2017-04-16T12:32:11","slug":"what-i-think-about-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=7310","title":{"rendered":"what I think about today"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

For a few select years, this semi-humble parent took time out to homeschool two of her three children. It was no intended disrespect of any of the excellent educators in our community, nor was our family any less involved; we love our local schools and will always support them. This was simply a choice that for two of our three kids, for those few, specifically selected years, a more targeted one-on-one educational approach would be fruitful. Socialization was never an issue (\u2026 and no, with all due respect to my homeschool family friends, I never wore a denim skirt nor some sort of bun in my hair).<\/em><\/p>\n

One of the educational units we most enjoyed during those years was the study of world religion; it was fascinating!<\/em> While some have opted for religion being on the short list of things people don\u2019t talk about, I felt it was wise and appropriate for my children to understand the interworking of each major faith\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2026 what is the origin?<\/em>
\n\u2026 who was the founder?<\/em>
\n\u2026 are people encouraged to worship God or worship man?<\/em>
\n\u2026 what is the primary doctrine?<\/em>
\n\u2026 what are the primary behavioral components?<\/em>
\n\u2026 where has the information come from?<\/em>
\n\u2026 how do we know if it\u2019s true?<\/em>
\n\u2026 what parts are hard? \u2026 and if so, why? \u2026 because they don\u2019t make sense or because of any stubbornness or unwillingness on my part to understand and attempt to comply?<\/em>
\n\u2026 how through the centuries, has its prophecy proven true?<\/em>
\n\u2026 what seems based merely on human thinking?<\/em><\/p>\n

Such is a fascinating study. And while I believe that true religion must fully affect a person\u2019s head, heart, and feet (meaning it needs to make sense, spur us on to love other people well, and then put our feet into motion\/service),<\/em> that study gave us excellent head knowledge.<\/p>\n

For example, did you know that the Jehovah Witnesses teach that only 144,000 people will go to heaven? (\u2026 someone might want to review those odds with their 3.5 million members\u2026)<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2026 or that Scientology, founded by L. Ron Hubbard, teaches that 75 million years ago, an evil leader called Xenu decided to eliminate the excess population from a galactic confederacy, tricking billions of people and then exporting them to Earth? (\u2026 note that Hubbard was a career science fiction writer\u2026 shocking\u2026).<\/em><\/p>\n

All that to say that it is an entirely false statement to say that all religions are equally good, true, and right. That is simply untrue.<\/p>\n

One of the aspects, no less, that fascinated my boys and I, as we took advantage of the opportunity to learn together some dozen years ago, was that as we studied the world\u2019s religions, only one teaches about a central figure who died and came back to life. The bodies of all other founders and leaders of the world\u2019s religions remain dead and decaying in a tomb somewhere.<\/p>\n

Let me not be callous nor disrespectful. Such is not my intent.<\/p>\n

My intent is simply to share that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the one aspect of Christianity my boys and I could never shake. We could never quit thinking about how it’s the one aspect that differentiates Christ from the leaders of all other faiths and ideologies.<\/p>\n

I am not saying that all parts of Christianity are easy for me; they\u2019re not. But on Easter Sunday, the day the world remembers that radical, unparalleled-by-any resurrection, I must pause. I pause asking myself what I believe and why\u2026 where am I right? \u2026 where am I wrong? \u2026 and for me, where has my own stubbornness and unwillingness gotten in the way?<\/p>\n

I think of the resurrection this day.<\/p>\n

Respectfully\u2026 always\u2026
\nAR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For a few select years, this semi-humble parent took time out to homeschool two of her three children. It was no intended disrespect of any of the excellent educators in our community, nor was our family any less involved; we love our local schools and will always support them. This was simply a choice that … <\/p>\n

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