Hey Ken, remember "Jesus was a Capricorn" by Kris Kristofferson? Maybe we could use a link.

In case anyone's interested in reading something positive about the emerging / missional Christianity movement, I just came across this. Here's a little taster quotation, about the assumptions that we all make when thinking about Christianity, church and all that:

Jesus was a Capricorn. Technically, I think he was probably somewhere around a Taurus (born spring time).

Incidentally, if he was born Dec 25 but in this century that would make him a Sagittarius. Thanks to the precession of the earth's axis, we're now in the next star house. E.g. Taurus is now really Aries, Virgo is now really a Leo, etc--sort of "etc" anyway since the sun also spends a chunk of time in Ophiuchus and a bit of time in Orion, which you won't find on any astrology chart, but why let inconvenient facts interfere with a perfectly good outdated belief system that has been around for a few thousand years and that millions of people subscribe to.

Millions? Is that all?

Most likely not. I was just thinking N. America for our version of astrology.

Here in America half the population thinks you can predict the future with astrology. That's 150 million right there.

Well, as everyone who reads this "World Religions" thread with any amount of regularity knows, I, (Chess Fan), just *love* to talk about the "blessed hope" of the truly saved, born-again Christian, which is the Rapture of the Church!

Over the years here in this topic thread, I have talked about the Rapture *many times*, and, in many different ways, including things such as what the Word of God, (the Bible), says about the Rapture, and, how **VERY VERY MUCH** that I am looking forward to and anticipating the Rapture happening **AT ANY MOMENT NOW**!!

Yes, I DO know that no mortal person knows *exactly* when the Rapture will happen; but, from everything that I see going on here in this present world in which we live, and, when I "line it all up" with what the Bible says the world would be like in the End Times right before the Rapture of the Church, (and the subsequent **horrific**seven-year Tribulation period that will happen AFTER the Rapture takes place), well, in my humble, Biblical opinion, I think that we are right on **THE VERY DOORSTEP** of the Rapture taking place!!

Anyway, with all of this being said, and, with the fact that the Rapture MIGHT happen at any time now, I just wanted to post a link, (below), to a topic thread on the Rapture Ready Bulletin Board that is titled: --- "Passenger crashes at the Rapture."

Everyone who decides to click on to that link, (posted below), to that topic thread from the Rapture Ready Bulletin Board can read the posts that are made by many other Christians as to what *they also* have to say about the Rapture of the Church, and, what will happen here upon this Earth to those un-saved people who are left behind AFTER the Rapture takes place.

Indeed, I just wanted to give the people who read THIS "World Religions" topic thread here on this ChessNinja Message Board the opportunity to read what other Christians **besides me** have to say concerning the Rapture and what will happen AFTER the Rapture actually takes place.

So, with all of that being said, directly below is the link to that particular topic thread that I have been talking about from the Rapture Ready Bulletin Board:

*** "Passenger crashes at the Rapture" ***


Chess Fan

CF, why don't you talk about Jesus, rather than the rapture? Like, isn't Jesus 'the "blessed hope" of the truly saved, born-again Christian'? Our hope is in a person, not just an event - at least, as I see it.

Once again, Kevin, by your quote above, you DO reveal your utter lack of knowledge and understanding of what the Bible teaches concerning the Rapture.

Indeed, over the years here in this "World Religions" topic thread, I have explained **in depth** about just what that the Bible teaches concerning just what that the Rapture of the Church entails overall.

Kevin, it goes without saying that the REAL "blessed hope" of the Rapture for the Christian is the fact that every truly saved, born-again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ WILL go to be with Jesus Christ **forever** in eternal glory at the time that the Rapture takes place, and thus, they will escape the utter horrors of the seven-year Tribulation period that will be happening here upon this Earth AFTER the Rapture takes place.

**In closing here, once again Kevin, get away from your "politically correct" Emergent church doctrine for a while and READ YOUR BIBLE as the Bible truly is, which is, that the Bible IS the plain and inerrant and inspired Word of Almighty God!!

Indeed, Kevin: -- "READ YOUR BIBLE, LEARN YOUR BIBLE, READ YOUR BIBLE, LEARN YOUR BIBLE, and, READ YOUR BIBLE and LEARN YOUR BIBLE!!!!!"**


Chess Fan

I looked up 'hope' in the New Testament using the Bible Gateway website - results here. Several passages clearly talk about God or Jesus being our hope. But if you want to carry on focusing narrowly on one element of the good news of Jesus Christ, and indeed a specific interpretation of that one element, then go ahead. It's just that I think it might be more productive to talk positively about Jesus and how following Him makes a difference to your life now. Being a Christian is about far more than a ticket off this world, but that's all you ever seem to write about here.

And I've told you before, there is no 'emergent church doctrine' in the way there is for most churches and denominations (including yours, I'm guessing). The thing that unites emerging / emergent / simple / organic churches is, it seems to me, their thinking on how best to do church. There may be quite a bit of agreement over this limited aspect of doctrine, but I think there is much variation in just about every other aspect.

The emerging / etc. church is non-hierarchical so there's no top-down statement of faith kind of thing. Rather, it's more of an identity label; something like 'liberal' or 'conservative'. Words of this nature do have meaning but no single person or group gets to set that meaning - it's much more, um, organic that that. So if you (CF) have read anything by people in the emerging church camp, you'll see there's disagreement on what the words mean, even between people within the movement.