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Online Church - For or Against
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| Former-Teacher | Date: Saturday, 25.09.2010, 12:29 | Message # 1 |
 Dean
Group: Admins
Messages: 504
Status: Offline
| Do you think that people can practise their religion and share their religious beliefs online? With the development of new technologies will a new Cyberchurch appear? Can you imagine cyberpraying? Can you talk to a priest in a discussion forum? Will you ever confess to a priest in an sms-message? Does a priest have a right and blessing to start a personal weblog on the matters of faith? Will we become virtual church-goers? Will it be objective if we compare them to real-life parishioners? Can you light a virtual church candle online? Is this a new cultural concept or a case of blasphemy?
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| Nadya | Date: Saturday, 25.09.2010, 17:52 | Message # 2 |
 Union committee president
Group: Moders
Messages: 213
Status: Offline
| I believe in God.I think that people must talk to priests face to face. People can't send an e-mail or sms to them because it's not right, it's blasphemy. I think that church isn't for entertainment. Online Church is a really bad idea because online church is not a sacred place. Is there such an online church really in our country or abroad? I doubt.
Message edited by Nadya - Sunday, 26.09.2010, 17:06 |
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| lovefootball) | Date: Saturday, 25.09.2010, 18:14 | Message # 3 |
 Dean
Group: Users
Messages: 662
Status: Offline
| Oh, I think that's just unnatural and even immoral to some extent! We shouldn't let the Internet penetrate into our mind!
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| Kaisa | Date: Sunday, 26.09.2010, 03:18 | Message # 4 |
 Student
Group: Users
Messages: 17
Status: Offline
| I don't think that it's a good idea. This is not a new cultural concept. The church has always been a sacred place where people pray and worship God. It should stay the same. Such thing as Cyberchurch is just a blasphemy.
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| lovefootball) | Date: Sunday, 26.09.2010, 16:26 | Message # 5 |
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Dean
Group: Users
Messages: 662
Status: Offline
| By the way, who may benefit from it?
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| 8davids8 | Date: Sunday, 26.09.2010, 18:14 | Message # 6 |
 Union organizer
Group: Admins
Messages: 166
Status: Offline
| I've already thought about commerce here but it's hard to say things about the Church and commerce.
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| Luck | Date: Monday, 27.09.2010, 00:16 | Message # 7 |
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Union organizer
Group: Friends
Messages: 172
Status: Offline
| I don't like the idea of online church at all. Well..a priest can start a personal weblog, why not. He can discuss different faith matters there, why not. People can read it and leave comments, why not. BUT I just can't imagine it in my mind HOW it is possible to "go" to such a church, to pray there, to light any candles, to look at the icons...Can it be sincere? I doubt so much. I just think that it would be more natural to go to church only several times a year rather than send sms messages to a priest every day and believe that God can help you. I'm not sure that God "lives" in the Internet. He is in our souls, inside us. So first of all we should understand that God and church are sacred and respect such things.
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| Former-Teacher | Date: Monday, 27.09.2010, 10:20 | Message # 8 |
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Dean
Group: Admins
Messages: 504
Status: Offline
| These are the first three verses for the New Testament, the Gospel by John.
[1] In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
[2] The same was in the beginning with God.
[3] All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
What kind of sacred values are we talking about? WHy can't we extend the concept of sacredness to include a natural chance for a human being to communite to God and practise their belief in more thatn a traditional way? Can't we find God's words in the Internet?
Why are you speaking of commerce? Do you mean that if you can buy books and other things in a church, this is commerce? What is so bad about church taking care of its material and financial status?
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| Former-Teacher | Date: Monday, 27.09.2010, 10:26 | Message # 9 |
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Dean
Group: Admins
Messages: 504
Status: Offline
| Quote (lovefootball)) By the way, who may benefit from it?
Well, you have already answered the question - you! A human being! Homo Sapiens! Home Veritus! Can you imagine a 3D virtual church in which you can go around and participate in sermons and other services? Why are we saying that it is good to communicate online but it is bad to do the same on religious matters? A conventional church building or a virtual church building - are they the matter of tradition or the development of civilization? What was first - God or Church? What if there is another new testament after the second comming of Christ? Will HE include the concept of Virtual Communication?
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| Teacher | Date: Monday, 27.09.2010, 10:47 | Message # 10 |
 Head teacher
Group: Admins
Messages: 375
Status: Offline
| May be I am wrong, but I have a thought about it. Actually, it came to my mind when we were discussing these questions at our lesson, but there were no more time. What are the Bible, the Crucifix, houses of God? All these phenomena are sybmols of religion. They were created many years ago in order to structure religion, to make it easier for people to understand that religion is not just an ideal thing that we can't touch, see or hear. The symbols I've mentioned are great helpers for us. People didn't know how to speak with God that's why they created prayers. People wanted to see those whom they worshiped to that's why they started to paint icons. And many other things. So why is Cyberchurch bad? It's a possibility for every member of one religion to meet others in one place. Yes, this will be the Internet. But is it so bad? Online churches, icons, candles - just another new modern symbol of religion.
In Vino Veritas...
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| lovefootball) | Date: Monday, 27.09.2010, 18:39 | Message # 11 |
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Dean
Group: Users
Messages: 662
Status: Offline
| Of course, church should take care of its financial status, I'm not against at all. Actually, didn't mean this, I just wondered if someone who has little to do with church is behind that.
And about the word "modern"...Church is constantly developing and it's rather natural and even necessary, but still "modern" is too much here, I think.
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| Teacher | Date: Tuesday, 28.09.2010, 01:06 | Message # 12 |
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Head teacher
Group: Admins
Messages: 375
Status: Offline
| lovefootball), probably, you are right. Not modern, but changed. I mean the Church must be up to date.
In Vino Veritas...
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| lovefootball) | Date: Tuesday, 28.09.2010, 15:50 | Message # 13 |
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Dean
Group: Users
Messages: 662
Status: Offline
| Of course, and it's getting more democratic, I think.
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| 8davids8 | Date: Tuesday, 28.09.2010, 21:59 | Message # 14 |
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Union organizer
Group: Admins
Messages: 166
Status: Offline
| Anyway in my opinion it's a crucially subjective thing, I mean attending online churches. It's the business of each of us to do it or not. Sometimes maybe all of us will come to this, but I guess that Russian public is not ready so far. Only few people can begin doing it.
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| Former-Teacher | Date: Wednesday, 29.09.2010, 09:05 | Message # 15 |
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Dean
Group: Admins
Messages: 504
Status: Offline
| I have read all of your thoughts a few times and I have doubts that you know what you are talking about. Have you ever been to church? Have you ever confessed/revealed your sins to the priest? Have you ever prayed in church? Have you ever received the Sacraments? Have you ever read any book from the Bible?
Subjective. Democtratic. Symbolic. Natural. Sincere. Commercial. Immoral. Modern. Sacred. These are you adjective to describe church. Why arguing without real life fatcs. Find time to go to http://cyber-church.com/ Explore the content and the options. You can also read the article on Online Religious Webquest at http://russiaregionpress.ru/archives/42685. Do you want to test your knowledge? Then go to the http://azbyka.ru/test/ and learn more about Christianity.
These are just a few examples. I'm not saying that I have my own opinion. I don't know. I am asking you to be informed before making decisions or shaping opinions. What I have read are your attitudes.
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