Mopac

I wouldn't call it a simple matter of tribalism, which seems to be what you are implying.

To believe on Jesus Christ as is taught in Orthodox, that is, true worshiping, right believing Christianity is not to simply believe in a prophet or teacher called Jesus and the club he started. It is to believe in The Son in Trinity with The Father and Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is God!

Specifically about your kick about organized religion and such...

The Orthodox Church would agree with you that God is not limited.

Also, interestingly enough I have heard the church referred to as "Not an institution with sacraments, but a sacrament with institutions!"

I am sure you would recognize a great deal of what you are saying in the teachings of The Church. 

If it is all about "winning debates", I'm sure you are a master of many persuasive techniques.

However, if you care about truth, your approach is more conducive to strife than learning.

If you would respond to my post in full rather than breaking it in pieces, I would appreciate it. 

Some people say seeing is believing.

In this case where the seeing are blind, it is necessary to believe before seeing.

When I am saying that Christianity is in essence apodictic truth, that means that once you understand it, not only is it obvious but it is undeniable.

Christianity is a mystery religion, something that is lost in the heterodox world. The Christianity you have likely been exposed to is unenlightened. It is not Orthodox Christianity. As that is the case, if you don't abandon preconceptions, we are working with salted Earth, a poisoned well.

So forget what you know, and here is the foreshadowing I will give you. The Truth is God. Yes, literally what that means. Not what anyone thinks The Truth is, not a collection of facts, but The Truth itself. By The Truth, I mean The Supreme and Ultimate Reality. The Most Real. The Truly Existing One. Actuality The Way it Is.

Everything about Christianity has to do with this, how we relate to this as creatures, and the discipline of abiding in it. Our religion very simply is Truth Worship.

If you don't believe me, you will never see. Instead, you will have superstitious ideas about my faith. Then, you yourself being superstitious will project your own superstitions on to the faith itself.

To give an illustration, asking that I prove God exists or to prove that God is truth is like asking, "Prove to me that it is true that there is truth! Prove that truth is truth!"

If you don't believe in truth, how can I prove truth to you? What is being asked of me is to show a sign. Perform a miracle.

Don't say, "I will believe it if I see it."

Believe first, and then you will see it. 

I'm not the one debating against something I not only do not understand, but am unwilling to understand.

When you stop arguing and start listening with the intent of getting understanding, let me know.

This is why Christianity takes the form of allegories and parables. Why it takes the form of a mystery religion. Why we educate initiates this way and reveal the Mystagogy after catechesis. Because when you speak plainly, those who hear are shown to be deaf, and those who see are shown to be blind. 

Christianity is Truth worship. That is the big secret.

Killing the incarnation of Truth in this world does not kill The Truth. Conquering death by death, The Truth will draw all unto it at the last day.

To the glory of God The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit, amen.

The Supreme and Ultimate Reality is God.

How can I be more lucid?

You have no argument against this God, that is why you wish it wasn't this.

Truly, those who receive not the love of The Truth are cursed with strong delusion.

You have no idea what you are talking about. Maybe you would if you were honest.

The Ultimate Reality.

Exactly what that means. What that Is.

That is God.

Quit lying.

I mean what I say.

You have no idea what you are talking about. 

I mean The Truth. The Ultimate Reality.

You are a liar.

The Truth is God.

If you don't accept this, you aren't talking about the same thing as me.

So you have no argument except to be a liar.

Your argument is to lie.

I am not interested in what you have to say. It would be better not to pollute 2 topics.

My God is Truth.

That isn't codeword for "not truth"

And like The Truth, you can kill it in the flesh, but you can't kill its spirit. It will rise again in the flesh.

You can't kill The Truth.

Maintaining your straw man with a straight face as usual I see.

I think we are done here, Mr pseudo logic.

Your argument is stupid.

It stands to reason that someone who doesn't believe in God would be more interested in debate. After all, if you maintain that there is no God, reality is whatever you can get away with. Sounds like a rhetorician's game.

I maintain that debating with people who have adopted a position that literally is a denial of Truth itself does not tend to be fun. If anything, it is truly a path of sorrows. If you love these people, you can't help but pity them for they are very sick.

It is right to say that God is not contingent, but everything is contingent on God.

The Truth, The Ultimate Reality, is God.

Atheism is nihilism, as I have always maintained.

The Truth exists, or it isn't The Truth.

Definition of being courtesy merriam-webster...

"the quality or state of having existence"

So you are in doubt about The Truth existing?

We preach a personal relationship with God. I can not have a relationship with God for you.

I don't expect you to believe me, no. I also see it ss a futile endeavor to appeal to the reason of the unreasonable.

The reason I have no compelling arguments for you is because I see you as an unreasonable person. After all, by rejecting what I mean by my terms, you are instead defining the language I use. In doing so, you are not only acting unreasonable, but you are behaving shamefully haughty.

And so your skepticism is not reasonable. To believe me would be reasonable. If you don't believe me, you are at a road block and won't learn anything. If you believe me, you will come to understand. As it stands, you don't understand, and you won't. You won't because you lack charity, which is love, and humility, which necessitates admitting that you don't understand and have a willingness to learn.

If you are really trying to learn, you will ask questions to clarify, not to dispute, undermine, or ask for evidence for things you don't even know what you are adking evidence for.

Whatever happens, God knows.

And though God knows what we are going to choose, God did not dictate what we end up choosing. We still make choices. For God this is not a difficult thing.

I speak not of gnosis, but epignosis, which is experiential. 

I am not trying to describe this experience with words. 

I may hope that others would experience the faith for themselves.

Faith is not simply belief for us, it is as I said, an experience. The west argues in their unenlightened theology about faith and works. We Orthodox understand how they are united in faithfulness. 

Believing in thanksgiving is not the same as being thankful.

If there was revrrence here, it might not be the shitfest you describe it as being.

Part of purifying the nous is purifying your intensions.

You are not ready.

The faith is not rational apprehension, it is experience.

Since you insist on doing things the wrong way, you will get nowhere. 

You can insist that you know what you are asking for all you want, but I know you are in the dark.

God preceeds time, and exists both before and after it. God is not time bound. It is no strange thing that God gave us the ability to choose while still knowing the beginning and end of all things.

You reach God through purifying the nous, not mental gymnastics.

Things that aren't going to happen don't happen.

No you aren't.

I don't think you understand that it is necessary to believe in order to learn. You don't learn by disputing everything the teacher says. If you did this, you would never have learned how to read.

I can't show you how to read if you keep disputing me on what the letters mean. It is not gullible to show charity for the sake of learning.

Really though, truthfully, you are gullible for accepting the great lie of the devil that God doesn't absolutely without a doubt exist.

No, you get nothing from me.

You have nothing to lose by believing me, and much understanding to gain.

By refusing to believe me, you make it impossible for you to understand.

I want you to know who you really are, a bearer of the image of God. I want you to know The One True God and the One He sent so that you may have eternal life.

You do not know me, because you hate me. You hate me because you hate Christ. Yet even Christ said to forgive you, because you know not what you are doing.

If you could believe, you would see. Since you won't believe, you remain in the dark. What can I do? I desire for you to escape from this world of darkness and death and be enlightened into Life. You do not believe me. 

Nevertheless, not my will, but God's will. I will remain content.

You don't really want to hear what I am saying. That is why you are inquiring with impure intentions.

And so I have nothing to offer you.

You are in the dark.

It would be vain to point out your folly, as you are simply looking to dispute with me.

If you accepted that The Ultimate Reality is what is meant by the word "God", you would have no need for your questions.

If either of you really wanted to know, you would show some charity and ditch the cynicism.

If you dispute everything, it retards your education. In the end, a foundation cannot even be laid, let alone a house. It is the wickedness within your own hearts that shuts you off from the Kingdom of God.

I don't need to prove your straw man god.

Our scripture is not for you to use. It nbn is our book, thank you. The devil uses scripture as well, and the devil comes to kill, steal, and destroy.

I am here because I love you, and I want you to know The Truth. I am not here to debate, I am here to declare The Truth. 

The Ultimate Reality exists.

If you say otherwise, you are a fool.

The evidence is accepting what we mean by what we say.

But if my word isn't enough, a source we should have in common is the merriam-webster webster dictionary which clearly defines God with a capital "G" as "The supreme or ultimate reality"

Oxford uses the term "Supreme being"

If you understand these terms correctly, they mean the same thing.

If this isn't sufficient for you, I suggest you look more into what apodictic truth means.