Why is communication with God one way?

[marco]

Communication with the Christian deity seems one directional. If we try many times to contact someone and get no answer what should we assume?
The person is annoyed with us? The person has gone or is dead? Our method of contact is faulty - maybe a wrong number?

In the case of God what is the explanation for communication being only one way?

[marco]

Excellent, then join the Catholic Church. "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

But no word Catholic in the Bible. I personally want to be a disciple of Jesus.

The word catholic means "universal". The early foundations were not universal, for the act of "going forth and teaching all nations" was just beginning. Universality was Christ's aspiration for his ecclesia; universality is what the RC Church has.

If we read enough of the Bible we can find a verse to justify our private views. Universality seems to be what Christ wanted in his call to "all nations," but we could likewise argue that "few are chosen" brings comfort to the groups not blessed with a million members.

To be fair, when I attend a Catholic requiem mass I am in no doubt that inside the solemnity there is something powerful ascending to their heaven, and I can accept that, for some, there are words returned that only the fortunate can hear. It is as easy for you to say "they are wrong" as it is for me to say "you are wrong." I used to hope that another entity would indicate my own errors.

Thank you hopefully you too have very good Christmas. Surprisingly we dont have snow at the moment in southern Finland. Often snow comes after Christmas. Without snow the landscape is quite dark here. So, probably you have at least little lighter view. Here the day length is less than 6 hours and it is cloudy most of the time.

Here Nature is pretending to be autumn; my garden is green and the temperature deceptively mild. But Scottish weather can change from hour to hour and Nature, by the evening, might dress as winter again.

My mother will make sure we celebrate Jesus and I am happy to be part of the Christmas friendship. Perhaps the secret of life is compromise. As a boy I felt Finland was a fabled place as distant as Bethlehem. Later, when I studied various languages, I found that Finnish and Hungarian - both difficult languages for poor Anglo-Saxons to master - were linked. In Scotland we say "We are all Jock Tamson's bairns" meaning we are all of the same family. It is hard to weave one's way through theological sentences in one's own language; much more difficult in another, and you do it very well. Have a good Christmas and a prosperous, happy and healthy coming year.

[1213]

Interesting. I'm at about 46.2 degrees, N Latitude. We have about 8 and a third hours between sunrise and sunset today. Curious as to which cities in Scotland and Finland for you two. At any rate, as the Brits say, 'Happy Christmas!'

Nice that you have more sun. I live at 60.17N latitude.

I prayed long and hard to hear the voice of God

That is interesting, especially why you wanted to hear Gods voice and what you expected to hear. Would it have really made any difference, if you would have heard what you expect?

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Good night and Merry Christmas also for you and other readers.

[Zzyzx]

.

I'm at about 46.2 degrees, N Latitude.

I live at 60.17N latitude.

Here at 35.22 N. Lat (Arkansas) we had 9 hours 47 minutes of bright sunlight and temperature almost 70F

[1213]

we had 9 hours 47 minutes of bright sunlight

That is a good reason to have Merry Christmas, or holidays, if that sounds better.

[marco]

Nice that you have more sun. I live at 60.17N latitude.

And I'm at 56.0N. We are almost neighbours!

Meantime God is trying hard to communicate, regardless of latitude. It seems that we can readily communicate with each other, and elicit replies. Surely it should be easier for God to do something similar. If you cleverly reply that maybe he does, then why is it so easy to see the replies of fellow humans, and so hard to distinguish those of God?

We get down to the boast: "Because I am better than you. I am one of the sheep with special ears."

At least man's communication system does not distinguish between British, Finnish or American - we can all expect a reply, however hard of hearing we are.

[1213]

...Surely it should be easier for God to do something similar. If you cleverly reply that maybe he does, then why is it so easy to see the replies of fellow humans, and so hard to distinguish those of God?....

Maybe you should first know God, so that you could see. But, anyway, I would like to know one example, to what you want Gods answer?

[Danmark]

Let's examine the facts.
God wrote or inspired the 66 books of the Bible to an audience roughly 2000 to 3000 years ago. Then 'he' stopped.
Apparently he had nothing to say when man got past the iron age.

Despite the increasing rate of technological change and accumulation of knowledge, God said all he needed to by the 1st Century BCE. With our increasingly complex technology and knowledge, ethical and moral issues have expanded, yet this God who cares so much about our moral nature, even our thoughts, has nothing more to teach us. His interest communicating with us ended with the dawn of the age of science.
Very curious indeed.

This may be one argument our LDS brethren got right, but again, curiously, 'God' quit speaking thru latter day saints the moment Joseph Smith was killed.

What do we make of this?

That either there is no god at all, 'he' is merely and obviously a human invention; or at the very least the 'god' of Abraham either never was, or he died long ago.

[polonius]

Communication with the Christian deity seems one directional. If we try many times to contact someone and get no answer what should we assume?
The person is annoyed with us? The person has gone or is dead? Our method of contact is faulty - maybe a wrong number?

In the case of God what is the explanation for communication being only one way?

RESPONSE: Maybe He isn't a good listener or doesn't want to become involved???

[marco]

...Surely it should be easier for God to do something similar. If you cleverly reply that maybe he does, then why is it so easy to see the replies of fellow humans, and so hard to distinguish those of God?....

Maybe you should first know God, so that you could see. But, anyway, I would like to know one example, to what you want Gods answer?

Dear 1213, if I want an answer from God I don't think treating you as his divine secretary will serve any purpose. I do not rule out powers and principalities far greater than me - given my ignorance and the size of the universe I should imagine there are billions of beings greater than Marco. I think the portrayal of God in the Bible, as a petty warlord, cruel and vengeful, is not the being that perfected Mercury's anomalous orbit or devised the gruesome equations related to Black Holes. I accept higher dimensions: I don't believe a Hebrew warrior rules there.

[marco]

Maybe He isn't a good listener or doesn't want to become involved???

Or maybe he answers only those requests made in Hebrew or Aramaic but even then he still remains silent on important occasions such as in the Holocaust. Odd how Sodom was shot down for its wickedness and yet when his infant people begged for help there was no parting of the North Sea nor plagues of frogs. Just silence.