tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post1994498012668360997..comments2023-10-18T02:03:42.145-07:00Comments on LEARNING TO LIVE FREE: From Taboo to Wahoo!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-7146956170641315272014-05-10T15:17:36.391-07:002014-05-10T15:17:36.391-07:00it doesn't mean it's right when people do ...it doesn't mean it's right when people do wrong things, no matter who they are. the most important thing is the forgiveness and we are all just human. that's sad that you don't recall love, to me it's the only thing. we need to here about what's wrong to realize what we've done wrong, but we always get to hear the testimony of love and forgiveness in the end. longhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04462104613173308425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-21446304719743068642014-05-10T08:12:08.984-07:002014-05-10T08:12:08.984-07:00and very few books? i LOVE books and have at the a...and very few books? i LOVE books and have at the age of 21 a bookcase from roof to floor full of books! longhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04462104613173308425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-84680047655613142282014-05-10T08:10:20.290-07:002014-05-10T08:10:20.290-07:00that is SO NOT TRUE!
creativity is my big thing i...that is SO NOT TRUE! <br />creativity is my big thing in life, i'm sewing, drawing, baking, writing, knitting, building and so on, both for fun and i. e. sewing clothes that i need. i have drawings in my apartment that i've made myself and many others have too if they have someone that can draw or paint. longhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04462104613173308425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-48825558614246015212006-06-12T19:18:00.000-07:002006-06-12T19:18:00.000-07:00My favorite no-no? Being able to follow my conscie...My favorite no-no? Being able to follow my conscience where it leads. Adhering to the Laestadian dogma forced me into holding positions I thought were inethical, but I didn't know how to reconcile the dogma with my conscience.Ilmarinennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-88132325551260283152006-06-13T00:25:00.000-07:002006-06-13T00:25:00.000-07:00Reading scripture on your own? Hanging out in an a...Reading scripture on your own? Hanging out in an art museum? Volunteering at a foodbank?<br><br>Never heard these would be no´s! (In Finland)<br><br>btw; Akis family name is Kaurismäki.<br><br>H. FinnAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-58262453387291321232006-06-13T09:53:00.000-07:002006-06-13T09:53:00.000-07:00Re. Anonymous above: As an OALCer, I have not fou...Re. Anonymous above: As an OALCer, I have not found these 3 things to be no-no's either, and I am in America. Perhaps you were made to feel guilty if you had wanted to do these? I don't think this is standard for the churchAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-78751488963587256532006-06-13T13:01:00.000-07:002006-06-13T13:01:00.000-07:00Free, I love these threads of personal stuff. Sto...Free, I love these threads of personal stuff. Story-telling so enriches our lives.<br>RE the above comments: Art of all forms was and as far as I know is considered taboo. There are no artists in the community. I have a very talented cousin in Lapland (Free, my Lummi Is. cousin told this story) who was told by the preachers that he must stop painting. To this day his hand "itches" when he thinks about holding a paintbrush. So it follows that visiting art museums would not be considered appropriate for a "Christian."<br>Of course, humans being humans, the boundary is always tested and stretched where people can get away with it. So even though paintings are considered "sin," homemakers will decorate their walls with fabric hangings, calendars (about all we had as kids), fancy plates, clocks, and what-not. No photographs. They were considered more or less sin when we were growing up but reluctantly tolerated, and we NEVER had a camera.<br><br>I never got the idea we should not read scripture; in fact, from my dad's example, I thought we were supposed to. And volunteering would not be encouraged - I don't think anybody mainstream would even think of it - but not wrong per se.<br><br>I intend to look for Man Without a Past. There is a Saami movie called The Pathfinder (the ONLY Saami movie, apparently) that I ordered but got a movie about the Iroquois instead. Has anyone seen it? Did you ever see One Day on Earth? Fabulous. One of the vignettes is set in Helsinki. SOOO funny. And of course, there is Tango Finlandia. I laughed myself silly on that one.<br>Here's to ART!!! in its myriad forms. MTHMany Trails Homenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-57914159115164509772006-06-13T13:48:00.000-07:002006-06-13T13:48:00.000-07:00My favorite LLL no-no would have to be trusting my...My favorite LLL no-no would have to be trusting my own mind.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-56039139871003217342006-06-13T14:48:00.000-07:002006-06-13T14:48:00.000-07:00My posts keep disappearing! I don't know what...My posts keep disappearing! I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I'll try again.<br>This topic triggered a memory. I was at a young folks gathering when the question was raised, "What is the worst sin?" I remember the response was, "Denying your faith." The following discussion included comments such as:<br>If you denied your faith under torture, that's OK because it's a human response.<br>If you deny your faith in your heart, that can't be forgiven.<br>If you leave the church, your name in heaven grows dimmer and dimmer until it is gone forever.sisunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-9966753319619276342006-06-13T14:49:00.000-07:002006-06-13T14:49:00.000-07:00There is one more Saami movie, its called The Cuck...There is one more Saami movie, its called The Cuckoo and its Russian, but the languages spoken in the film are Saami, Finnish, and Russian, and it comes in English subtitles. <br><br>I can hardly believe an OALC painter was told he couldn't paint anymore! That's ridiculous.<br><br>When I was younger I had wanted to be a lawyer, but I was told a believer could not be a lawyer. After knowing a few lawyers, I am thinking it was not bad advice after all. <br><br>There are very few things I have ever wanted to do that I was told I couldn't do, I guess truth be told. But there are probably a few things I do or have done that would not be generally approved of. I go with my own conscious on those things.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-23502150543563654752006-06-13T16:14:00.000-07:002006-06-13T16:14:00.000-07:00I am AP, not Old AP, but i dont consider myself co...I am AP, not Old AP, but i dont consider myself completely different. I have been born and raised in the BG area, so i have seen my fair share of this culture and have learned much from it. Again, it's not too different from the OALC in many aspects. Our church is quite conservative as well, im sure it is number 2 in clark county, thats fine with me. There's too much picking apart going on, not real issues. I could go on all day about people i know who have some pretty different ideas, and many of them have been directed at me in hopes that i would change whatever i was doing. When i was younger i really wondered about this, because my parents had raised me well, and i didnt see a problem with what i was doing. The older i got, i realized my parents had raised me well, and i was not outside of God's will, and by God's grace i have been able to respect their opinions, and have become closer friends with them as well. In regards to what "many trails home" wrote, i agree that is absurd, but does that mean they all feel the same way. What i'm trying to say is much of this just creates animosity where there should be an attempt at cohesion. <br><br>I hope i didnt ramble too much, my brain works in mysterious ways, unknown even to me;)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-65255194916236280962006-06-13T17:12:00.000-07:002006-06-13T17:12:00.000-07:00Anonymous Ap, I have to respond to your ending com...Anonymous Ap, I have to respond to your ending comments. I think they (OLAC) all feel the same way about artists. It seemed to me that anybody who does pursue creative endeavors (besides building houses etc) does it on the fringe. Why else is there no ornamentation in church, on their persons, in their houses (except for the aforementioned calendars etc)? No musical instruments, no jewelry, certainly no sculpture, no attending plays etc, and very few books, for that matter. <br>I don't think I am trying to "create animosity" but rather to reflect on some of the reasons that I could not stay, beyond the fact that it would have been impossible to force myself to "believe." <br>Perhaps I should focus less on the "hard-liners" (the people I grew up with) and more on the "soft-liners" - they exist in any community, for sure, and I had plenty of fringy relatives like that as well, and more loving ones in general. Cohesion? I don't know about cohesion. Any thoughts? MTHMany Trails Homenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-39299685027486415482006-06-13T19:54:00.000-07:002006-06-13T19:54:00.000-07:00Would it hurt less to leave the LLL faiths if our ...Would it hurt less to leave the LLL faiths if our relatives continued to treat us the same as they did before we left?<br><br>I've been following this site almost from its inception. <br><br>And I came to the conclusion, is this what this all boils down to? <br><br>If we left, and our relatives just said, "We're sorry to see you go, loved one", and then continued to show us the same love and compassion they showed us before, when we were one of the fold, would we even be here on this site?<br><br>Is this the real reason people who don't take the LLL faith at 100% face value stay in, because of the real or perceived shunning that goes on thereafter?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-69025527527744018392006-06-13T22:17:00.000-07:002006-06-13T22:17:00.000-07:00Trails All OALCers do NOT feel exactly the same w...Trails<br> All OALCers do NOT feel exactly the same way. And "very few books"??? I've need heard of such thing. Our house is full of books.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-5656354066069405622006-06-13T23:22:00.000-07:002006-06-13T23:22:00.000-07:00To anon 7:54 p.m.,Yes, yes, yes, yes!To anon 7:54 p.m.,<br><br>Yes, yes, yes, yes!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-20622325078308093172006-06-14T00:19:00.000-07:002006-06-14T00:19:00.000-07:00Ap'er back here. I've been to Norway, Swe...Ap'er back here. I've been to Norway, Sweden and Finland twice and it was very helpful in seeing what our/my heritage is like, and why we are the way we are. Christians over there are plain. They are just as easy to pick out there as they are here. Houses are plain, the people, while well dressed, are quite modest. They live more simple lives, and frankly, wouldnt that be nice? Now with the music and what not, i play a couple instruments and love to sing, its something God has given me, and i can use it for his glory. The teaching that we are to leave Zion's instruments at the foot of the cross is unbiblical. But there is a flip side, as with everything. Can music be used by the Devil? What about art? Most modern art in my opinion is a disgrace. Theatre? Theatre has become an outlet for immorality. I have been to a few plays, and while the old classics are just that, classic, so many of the stuff acted is the polar opposite of what a christian is or should be seeing. In, and of itself, the OALC's cautious position on these things is not all that wrong. But.....there is a middle ground, and used to God's glory they can be beautiful.<br><br>I would like a discussion on the meat and potatoes if you will. The Doctrine and true belief of those here. As the OALC teaches, there is only one "true christianity", and that's true, there is only one way to get to heaven. <br><br><b>Revelation 22:14</b><br>Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.<br><br>There is only one way to enter into Glory. Do I believe one church holds this key? No. We are saved by grace through faith alone, not by works, lest any of us should boast. We are not saved by confession, though it is good and necessary for a clear concience. Christ died once for all, as the song says. I do not need to crucify Christ everyday for my sin, it has been paid in full. This gives me cause to rejoice in love for my redeemer. It does not give me the right to sin, but it frees me from the bondage of sin. My faith is not like sitting on a fence, wondering if i'm going to fall this way or that, I am his, and he is mine. I do not believe in the doctrine of "once saved always saved", we can stray, but God is faithful and he will call us, and if we are given grace to repent, praise be to God. Maybe it sounds like i think that there is no action on the part of a christian, i hope not.<br><br><b>James 2:20</b><br>But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?<br><br>The fruit of a true faith are works. Not works alone, but through faith they are evident in a Christians life. We shouldnt need to have a name tag or carry a sign for someone to see that you are a christian, "you" should show it. People think there is a battle between Paul and his emphasis on faith, and vise versa with James and works, but it's not so. They coincide beautifully, and they work together for the good of the kingdom.<br><br>Now other than the Elders, I think I touched on my beliefs about the basics of the OALC, am i correct? This has probably been discussed before, but i'd like to go into it again. I would like to know, where the differences in doctrine are. Please feel free to dispute, inquire, agree, whatever you want.<br><br>God's Peace and love to you all.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-8978095974280569152006-06-14T06:37:00.000-07:002006-06-14T06:37:00.000-07:00What I believe. (I feel like I'm on NPR) There...What I believe. (I feel like I'm on NPR) There is one true church. That church is made up of the followers of Jesus Christ. It is not one building or denomination. It is all of the soldiers for Christ who make up the one true church. It is a physical church because it is made up of physical beings (and spiritual ones too). It just has no walls. To enter this church we must confess we are sinners and ask for our sins to be forgiven in Jesus name. Here is the catch...I can confess and ask directly of God. I don't need a 'nen, 'la, 'ki, 'son ending last named person to be my intermediary. God's Peace, God Bless and Happy Flag Day!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-74168597325705283902006-06-14T08:27:00.000-07:002006-06-14T08:27:00.000-07:00AP'er--I have nothing to reply to that, becaus...AP'er--I have nothing to reply to that, because i agree with you. Grace can be given in solitude and a person can become a true christian without another to "help". But arent you a little gunshy of the canned "repeat after me to get saved" prayers that so many churches have. Where you just say the same words and you're saved. Kinda sounds like a numbers thing rather than true conviction for who they are. That is the beauty of confession with another christian. <b>Ephesians 4:32</b> "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." So there is a redeeming aspect in the confession with a person. Does it save? No.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-55290231273066398332006-06-14T16:25:00.000-07:002006-06-14T16:25:00.000-07:00Feel free to check out alc-discussion.blogspot.com...Feel free to check out <b>alc-discussion.blogspot.com</b> Not to advertise or anything, but i hope the material there can be beneficial to those here and others as well.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-7917294141499462172006-06-14T17:34:00.000-07:002006-06-14T17:34:00.000-07:00Couldn't get onto the site. Could you make it...Couldn't get onto the site. Could you make it easier?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-13877603077517846812006-06-14T20:11:00.000-07:002006-06-14T20:11:00.000-07:00For what it's worth: ALC Discussion.For what it's worth: <a href="http://alc-discussion.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow">ALC Discussion</a>.Ilmarinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00567915313339212565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-13125036688485405392006-06-14T22:42:00.000-07:002006-06-14T22:42:00.000-07:00Hmmm...good thoughts here on salvation that seem p...Hmmm...good thoughts here on salvation that seem pretty sound to me. I like that concept of a church without walls -- that a denomination does not save anyone. I need to think on that awhile! At first blush, I would add however, that the flip side of the coin is just as true -- a denomination does not damn anyone either!<br><br>Maybe I didn't understand the comment about the "canned prayers". I don't have a problem with repetitive prayers, as I find them to be comforting and soothing in their age old form. The OALC says the same opening prayers each time. As a Catholic, we have a lot of those "canned" prayers. I think a lot of thought went into those prayers, and I have no problem with them. Do you have to know them in order to be a better Christian? No. Can you pray from your heart and in your own words if you wish? Of course. I just happen to love tradition, and the things that those old words or actions bring back to memory. In a sort of related issue, I genuflect and kneel in church as well as repeat the prayers. Do you have to? Of course not! It helps me to focus my wandering mind and helps put me in the right place.<br><br>So let's consider another twist. I've heard many here say things to the effect that belief in Jesus Christ and his saving grace is the path to heaven -- and I certainly believe that. However, what about other faiths -- Jews, Muslims, Hindus...or those that are unsure and agnostic at best? I kinda think that God has a plan for all of them as well, and I sure hope to see some of my friends from those camps in the hereafter as well! I think they are pretty good folks that also believe their faith, which might be a lot different from a Christian's. I dunno, but the one I answer to does, and I'll let him sort it out. He doesn't need my help -- that's for sure!cvownoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-64084054460422378672006-06-15T09:05:00.000-07:002006-06-15T09:05:00.000-07:00I just checked the alc discussion site and I think...I just checked the alc discussion site and I think there is a big difference between that branch of the Laestadian church and the OALC.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-14917448466857558342006-06-15T10:49:00.000-07:002006-06-15T10:49:00.000-07:00And there is. But so many people instantly lump e...And there is. But so many people instantly lump every laestadian faction into the ultra conservative/legalistic group, and it's not that way. There is such a negative view in our area about "apostolic lutherans" and it shouldnt be that way. The laestadian faith is not the problem, it's everything that's been tacked onto it as a means of salvation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8088717.post-58414521456471052482006-06-15T13:16:00.000-07:002006-06-15T13:16:00.000-07:00anon 10:49... You are so right about that. It'...anon 10:49... <br>You are so right about that. It's sad though... for those who add things and think that they are being a "light" to the world, when in reality, they are only identifying themselves as Apostolics(or whatever term is used for a particular area).<br>It definately shouldn't be that way, as in all of the factions being identified as the same. BUT it will only change, when those who don't hold man's traditions/ideas as part of salvation, start to SPEAK up, whether in church, or in public.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com