June 10

SolidusRaccoon · Post by **SolidusRaccoon** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 3:23 am

God is not a god of poverty or despair. He is a God of provision and prosperity. He cares for his children. He doesn

Carciofus · Post by **Carciofus** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 4:38 am

To quote your sig...
Yes, sir. I agree completely.

Being poor is *not* a merit, nor being rich is.

But not being attached to any material possession, and being able to deal with poverty and/or illness without losing oneself's faith or becoming hateful is, IMHO, a rather significant merit.
That is what Job did, after all, and he is praised for this.

If poverty is seen as a trial suffered by the misfortunate, is suppose that the "virtue of poverty" is the willingness to face such a trial if necessary, without giving up nor cursing.

Shyal_malkes · Post by **Shyal_malkes** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 5:46 am

the thing about star wars is that i didn't write it, neither did Ralph, nor did solidus (thankfully, i mean then the death star wouldn't have stopped with just alderan, or probably with just that galaxy for that matter), npr did any of us. it was written my george lukas and as such it must be entered following his rules

as far as religion i recognize immediately that the first thing i know about other people's religions is that i don't know squat about other's religions, this can be bad because even if someone isn't that close or even active to their own religion they are still willing to defend it with a few words.

i agree that poverty is more of a condition then a virtue. but i believe that this life is a test and a school classroom if anything else and all of us are tested based on who we are and what we can take. this allows us to either grow and prove ourselves, or it allows us to give up/give in and fail. we all fail which is why i believe that christ (no offence to any non-christians reading this) came and was and is a necessity on this pitiful little blue planet that one day will get blown up by the vogons (if solidus doesn't beat em to it)

might as well be as good time as any to just get this out there but i myself am a mormon.

The JAM · Post by **The JAM** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 6:22 am

[...unWARP!!!]

Good evening.

Concerning the Rich Young Man...

Yeshua asked him to give up everything precisely to see what was in his heart. He was ATTACHED to his material possessions, thusly, he loved money more than he loved God.

Sad.

I think Yeshua was more saddened than anyone else because He KNEW that 40 years later, the RYM was going to lose EVERYTHING anyway when Yerusalem was destroyed. Also, He KNEW Yehuda (Judas) was going to betray Him and that they would need a new treasury secretary after that. If the RYM had given it all up, he would have "sent it on ahead" "where the rust does not corrupt". Note that right after that incident, the apostles asked Him, "We've given it all up. What happens now?"

[paraphrased] "If you give it all up for Me, you will have 100 times more in this life WITH PERSECUTIONS (sorry, that comes with the deal), AND in the next life."

God doesn't want us to live in poverty. And, He doesn't want us to focus on the gifts instead of the Giver. I've given, and I've received, miraculously. But don't let that be your main focus in your walk with God.

Shyal_malkes · Post by **Shyal_malkes** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 8:44 am

i've drank milkshakes, and walked 20 milers before
i've laughed, i've cried, i've lived and sometimes wished i'd died
i've looked for treasure, the greatest you could find

i've longed for power, the best kind you could have
the greatest piece of happiness i've felt though
always came with a little peace of mind

SolidusRaccoon · Post by **SolidusRaccoon** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 9:26 am

Carciofus wrote:T
But not being attached to any material possession, and being able to deal with poverty and/or illness without losing oneself's faith or becoming hateful is, IMHO, a rather significant merit.
That is what Job did, after all, and he is praised for this.

I agree completely, you hit it tight on the head of the nail.

LoneWolf23k · Post by **LoneWolf23k** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 2:59 pm

Carciofus wrote:To quote your sig...
Yes, sir. I agree completely.

Being poor is *not* a merit, nor being rich is.

But not being attached to any material possession, and being able to deal with poverty and/or illness without losing oneself's faith or becoming hateful is, IMHO, a rather significant merit.
That is what Job did, after all, and he is praised for this.

If poverty is seen as a trial suffered by the misfortunate, is suppose that the "virtue of poverty" is the willingness to face such a trial if necessary, without giving up nor cursing.

Yes.. Yes, I think that sums up the general idea quite well. Don't be attached to material possessions.

Monastic orders just take it one step further, with members volontarily giving up worldly possessions and taking on extra vows as a way to better contemplate their relationship with God.

Shyal_malkes · Post by **Shyal_malkes** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 2:26 pm

many times i've found the mental posessions were worth letting go of for a while, things like hate and anger and greed and fear, i dont know how many times i have either gone through or had characters that went through where they were afraid and they just resigned themselves to it and decided to do the best they could, suddenly no fear, not even fear of failure! i heard that lucas had an origional idea of making the jedi more military like but as the idea evolved, they became more and more druidic and mysterious.