71: David Patterson translated Leo Tolstoy’s Confession

[@BCSTS]

Notice though that Mother Theresa did not dump the dogma of Catholic Church.....she worked within the church...delved into the core of Jesus..."The greatest of these is Charity...."

[@BCSTS]

David Patterson's attitude, seeming beliefs are a little too Humanistic, perhaps it is because Tolstoy in all his brilliance, insight, & searching came to that conclusion, ignoring also The Transcendence of God . Yes I think Tolstoy learned that we must see & experience God in relationship to our neighbor, but I do not agree that the Gospels, miracles et al are only allegory....that would actually take out the Divinity of Jesus...and leave us with a prophet instead ! The Matthew passage... 'Sermon on the Mount' /beatitudes are my favorite part of the Bible, for sure, but there are also many other lessons & teaching equally important.....I think the Bible should be taken as a whole, in Faith, and seeking for God to help you find the truth in it, not wait for everyone else to water it down & pick it apart! Also in religion, in churches Instead of dumping dogma & replacing it with the "I am spiritual, but not religeous" contention as is soooo very popular today...as it was in '70's...as I used to also believe...I propose we assume that the key dogmas of Christianity be respected, lived in humility & search for the wisdom of them.....after searching for God most of my life, going through the 'God is dead' era......graduating university (where all these philosophies/writers are explored/taught).....I left the church.....did my own thing....searched esoteric beliefs, taught handicapped children in public schools....married, had a child......was unhappy in general.....finally came full circle back to Catholicism.....much more deeply than before....and have never looked back! I identify with Tolstoy because of his endless searching....so glad I found my home in the church, but searching for my need of spiritual growth & dealing with failures continues!

[@BrendanHoward]

Well, David and I are also Jews, so take that for what it's worth.