Christianity Lounge

I had a thought.

Halo as a series is very Christian themed.

I didn't think the controversy over 343 lore versus Bungie lore had anything to do with religion.

You see, they retconned the lore from Forerunners being Humans, to them being aliens. Bungie was split on the decision evenly, and 343 chose aliens.

However, no matter how I think about it now, it's a religion decision.

The Forerunners were all but wiped out by the Flood. Which happened to Humans, not Aliens.

Humans inherited the Forerunners technology, implying they inherited it from an Alien race that dominated the galaxy counters the message that Mankind was created to rule over Gods creations, and that all they have was gifted by him.

It also introduces an alien, secular ideology, the Mantle of Responsibility.

All of 343s games also remove almost any mention of religion, while attempting to create an almost secular religion in how humanity was modified by aliens after being defeated by them.

The human ancestors also look very non-white.

I was less educated on the enemy back then, so most of this went over my head, but it looks like part of the reason so many found 343s lore un-appealing, was because it stripped God out of it.

And their only good work since then, "Hunt The Truth", is about a conspiracy theorist who ends up being proved right and is killed for it, and it was completely ignored and none of it's content ever mentioned again.

In hindsight, it's quite hilarious.
 
The Chapel of the Miraculous Medal in Paris has seen a surge in interest from visitors, mostly tourists. The Virgin Mary appeared to a nun there in 1830:


www.lemonde.fr

In Paris, an almost unknown chapel is drawing millions of tourists

By 2025, Notre-Dame-de-la-Médaille-Miraculeuse in Paris will have welcomed around three million visitors from across the globe. This is a record, and yet it remains almost entirely unknown to Parisians.
www.lemonde.fr www.lemonde.fr
 
My mind has been on these verses about "Satan" and "the world" a lot lately.

And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.” Luke 4:5-6
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Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. 2 Corinthians 4:4
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What is everyones' take on these verses saying Satan is the god of this world?
 
Northumber said:
My mind has been on these verses about "Satan" and "the world" a lot lately.

What is everyones' take on these verses saying Satan is the god of this world?
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If the world is evil and worldly entities such as the flesh are wicked, then it stands to reason that the world has an ungodly ruler.

How can it not be Christ's Kingdom if it has no other ruler?
 
Northumber said:
My mind has been on these verses about "Satan" and "the world" a lot lately.





What is everyones' take on these verses saying Satan is the god of this world?
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I think it's not so much literal, because of course God Almighty is sovereign Lord of Creation but it hints at the fact that fallen man defaults to serving Satan rather than God.

I think there is element of pride and hubris in Satan offering Christ all the kingdoms of this world. Because of course Christ could raze them all to dust in an instant or rule over them irregardless if Satan's proposition if He wanted. But Satan thinks he rules them because he rules the hearts of so many. And he thinks that amounts to something.
 
Lawrence87 said:
I think it's not so much literal, because of course God Almighty is sovereign Lord of Creation but it hints at the fact that fallen man defaults to serving Satan rather than God.

I think there is element of pride and hubris in Satan offering Christ all the kingdoms of this world. Because of course Christ could raze them all to dust in an instant or rule over them irregardless if Satan's proposition if He wanted. But Satan thinks he rules them because he rules the hearts of so many. And he thinks that amounts to something.
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I like that interpretation as well. That Satan is essentially deluded even as he fancies he is god of this world.

Recently I've been separating "the world" and "creation" in my mind as well. Sure, creation is fallen too, but even the residual beauty we see now, after the fall, in nature, is absolutely astonishing.

It's "the kingdoms of the world" I wonder more about now. I'm finding it more difficult to see much that's even redeemable there. At the core of it.
 
Honest question that I've never asked anyone:
First off, I believe in our Saints and I know that Christians go to heaven.

My question is this: How can Saints or any of our loved ones be in Heaven *before* the Second Coming?

We state this in the Apostles Creed: "He will come to judge the living and the dead." No one (except a few, like Elijah) can be in Heaven before the Judgement...

Just something I've always wondered about. I guess it's fitting since tomorrow is Transfiguration Sunday.
 
Northumber said:
My mind has been on these verses about "Satan" and "the world" a lot lately.





What is everyones' take on these verses saying Satan is the god of this world?
Click to expand...
I'm not sure the "god of this age" verse in 2 Corinthians 4 is a reference to Satan. Elsewhere in the Bible, in Exodus, Isaiah, Romans, and especially the Gospels, God causes spiritual blindness or "judicial hardening" to non-believers so that they cannot receive the Gospel. It's one of those verses that could go either way.

As for Satan being given the kingdom of the world, after the fall this was true, but Christ was given all authority and dominion after His resurrection and ascension.
 
starlight said:
Honest question that I've never asked anyone:
First off, I believe in our Saints and I know that Christians go to heaven.

My question is this: How can Saints or any of our loved ones be in Heaven *before* the Second Coming?

We state this in the Apostles Creed: "He will come to judge the living and the dead." No one (except a few, like Elijah) can be in Heaven before the Judgement...

Just something I've always wondered about. I guess it's fitting since tomorrow is Transfiguration Sunday.
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There are generally realms and levels, even in the age to come. What is experienced is a foretaste; you'll see something similar in idea with the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. The Orthodox call the "chronological" state (how we are here and obviously the parousia/appearing of our Lord hasn't happened yet) of dying but before the final judgment to be a particular judgment. It makes sense in terms of the state of your soul, what it is close to, what it desires, what it approaches or gets locked into when finally dead. Still, until the last day there is nothing completely final, and even all of that is still speculative on our part.

You'll see this when you speak with universalists, which is not a teaching of orthodox Christianity, but you can see how it is alluring.
 
starlight said:
Honest question that I've never asked anyone:
First off, I believe in our Saints and I know that Christians go to heaven.

My question is this: How can Saints or any of our loved ones be in Heaven *before* the Second Coming?

We state this in the Apostles Creed: "He will come to judge the living and the dead." No one (except a few, like Elijah) can be in Heaven before the Judgement...

Just something I've always wondered about. I guess it's fitting since tomorrow is Transfiguration Sunday.
Click to expand...

Slightly off topic but this triggered one of my recent pet peeves.

There is a new heavens AND new earth in the age to come. One of the things that really sets Jesus apart from other religions is the physicality of it all. God is human. Physical. Our physical bodies are not throw away stuff.

For some reason in the modern age most Christians have drifted into a gnostic-type thinking that just heaven is where we ultimately end up.

Now, how some of the Saints have physical bodies in heaven (Elijah, Enoch, etc.) at the present moment is the mind bender for me.
 
starlight said:
We state this in the Apostles Creed: "He will come to judge the living and the dead." No one (except a few, like Elijah) can be in Heaven before the Judgement...
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I can take a stab at it as a layman- don't take anything I say as the official Catholic teaching, go to the certified sources for verification.

After death you face the particular judgement, it's just you and God, no third parties, or not that many, maybe your guardian angel and some saints who have interceded for you. You either enter Heaven right away or you're sent off to the Purgatory if there are sins you haven't made the effort to fully repent of or haven't tried to make amends for to the best of your ability. A lot of souls will still be stuck there on Judgment Day hoping for God's mercy.

I've seen this passage brought up as proof:

Luke 12:57-59

And why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right? Make every effort to reconcile with your adversary while you are on your way to the magistrate. Otherwise, he may drag you off to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and the officer may throw you into prison. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.
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Finally, Judgment Day will not be a private affair, everybody will be brought out for all of creation to see and witness who each person really is and why he goes where he is sent, God's mercy and justice will be evident to all, definite and indisputable- the truth and justice will be right before everyone's eyes like it ought to be, everybody will be shown what everyone's place is in the hierarchy and the reasons for it. We'll get our bodies back in the glorified state, unlike the Virgin Mary who has already been taken into Heaven body and soul upon death.

This passage confirms there are ranks among saints:

Matthew 11:11

Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
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edit: I suspect those who die on Judgment Day may have their particular and general judgment done simultaneously.
 
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Northumber said:
Slightly off topic but this triggered one of my recent pet peeves.

There is a new heavens AND new earth in the age to come. One of the things that really sets Jesus apart from other religions is the physicality of it all. God is human. Physical. Our physical bodies are not throw away stuff.

For some reason in the modern age most Christians have drifted into a gnostic-type thinking that just heaven is where we ultimately end up.

Now, how some of the Saints have physical bodies in heaven (Elijah, Enoch, etc.) at the present moment is the mind bender for me.
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Yes! I am very much looking forward to the resurrection, when we will receive perfected bodies!
 
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