Pagan Rings

Roger is the one differing with you. I agree with you. The ring is a symbol of the unity that I have with my wife.

 

Ironic. That's the only word I can think of. Ironic.

My husband and I enjoy our wedding rings, though I have to lose a few more lbs to fit back in mine. My ring doesn't make or seal my marriage. It is what I wear to remember the day, to think of him, and to tap to show some loser that I am indeed taken.

What bothers me about wedding rings is that it is tradition to spend one month's salary on one. Oh my! Weddings, wedding rings, the dress, the cake..... it's all so expensive----and so many put that above the marriage itself.

 

Good point, I know some view Christmas as a pagan holiday but I celebrate the birth of my Lord and Saviour. It doesn't matter to me that it may not be His birthday, I know He was born and am content setting aside a season for peace on earth and goodwill toward man.

Now what's really Ironic, is how God got every religion to set this season aside for this purpose. Be it Christmas, Kwanzaa, or Haunekah, etc... This is the season for peace on earth and goodwill toward man...

 

He who is without sin . . .



I should have put a winkie in my earlier post.

The thing is we have absolutely NO IDEA how many and what traditions we have today that have roots in pagan history. Probably many more than we like to consider.

Until someone starts pointing them out that is.

Life is short.

I'm not pulling off my wedding rings. (I did mention that :tongue3:.) I'm not dumping my Christmas decorations. (Although they did stay in the closet this year but that's because we are traveling.)

 

So kindly apply the same logic and principle to the 'pagan tree' thread.

 

NO Roger is merely pointing out your Illogic on the pagan tree thread.

Like is posted before, kindly apply your logic in this thread to the one about pagan trees...

Both are neutral, It is only when someone adds meaning to them they become symbols for something.

 

Don't you think there is a big difference between a symbolic thing, despite its origin, associated with a public ceremony commanded for all mankind, compared to a symbolic thing, despite its origin, associated with a specific celebration of Christ, voluntarily celebrated by Christians but also celebrated by naive unbelievers who know nothing about the true gospel message?
I find a big difference.
One is secular having to do with a secular ceremony. The ceremony may or may not be "Christianized." So what.

The other supposedly is Christian; but in reality it is not. It is pagan celebrated by the unsaved world-wide. In reality, per-centage wise, very few born-again Christians celebrate it compared to the unsaved. And those that do celebrate it are just like the unsaved imitating the ways of the world, and that is a shame. We are called to be different from the world; not to be conformed to the world. That is the difference.

 

The wedding ring is supposedly christian but it is not. It is pagan and used by unsaved people world-wide. In reality, percentage wise, very few born-again christians celebrate it compared to the unsaved. And those that do celebrate it are just like the unsaved imitating the ways of the world, and it is a shame. We are called to be different from the world, no to be conformed to the world. That is the difference.

Use the same logic brother either way, and it shows the futility of the argument.

 

No it isn't.
Marriage is commanded by God to all people whether they are saved or not--to every individual in this world. It is not a Christian ceremony. That makes the ring meaningless. It has no Christian symbolic value and doesn't need one.

But how dare one associate the Christmas tree with the birth of Christ, as so defile the birth of our Lord and Saviour with the godless defilement of the filth of this world.
If you are going to celebrate the birth of Christ, come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing, and then the Lord says, I will receive you.
For whosoever is a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

 

Thanks for making the point. Marriage is ordained by God! how dare one defile God´s holy institution with a pagan ring. If you are going to have a marriage that honors God, come out from among the world and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not he unclean thing (the ring).

So are you saying then that all who use Christmas trees are friends of the world and enemies of God?

 

No, DHK wouldn't do that.. because that would be making fun of those of us that have the conviction that a Christmas tree is an appropriate symbol of the birth of Christ...

The Christmas tree represents the eternal life that is only found in Christ.. because it is an evergreen.
The lights represent the fact that Christ is the light of the world.
The bulbs that reflect the light stand for us because we are to reflect the light of Christ.
The star represents the star of bethlehem that announced that Christ was born.

Those are my convictions, and DHK would never make fun or put down my convictions because that would be unChristian like...

And DHK is a Christian.

 

The ring is merely a symbol and cannot be right or wrong in and of itself. It depends on what it is being used for, so it's fine to use it for marriage.

The days of the week are all rooted in the names of pagan gods; lots of things have pagan origins.

I think crossing the line involves either practicing a pagan ritual that honors a pagan view or god; or wearing a symbol that is currently seen as occult or Pagan or New Age (like wearing a pentagram or yin-yang symbol). The latter is not necessarily wrong if you wear it for an aesthetic value, but is very unwise and misleading for a Christian to do so.

The question (and no offense, Roger) is very typical of the kind of concerns we see in the church today: a focus on the more meaningless spiritual things while ignoring the truly dangerous ones. This is one of my pet peeves and I am seeing it all the time.

Christians worry about using a Christmas tree but listen to Word Faith teachers or read New Age books or bad Christian books and think they are great. Then they get mad when you point out the theological flaws or errors and call you a "Pharisee" or "divisive."

 

I disagree.... Let's use a public prayer for example, the person praying will be praying to their God. In my heart, I am taking their words and sending them to my God. When done if I agree, I say AMEN for my God to hear and answer their prayer.

Now there will be some non-believers who will say AMEN. As long as they are praying within their hearts, God will hear their prayer. Like wise to the Muslim or Buddhist God, they are saying AMEN to their god. So now we have one public prayer being simultaneously prayed to many gods.

What you choose in your heart determines what a celebration means to you. At a wedding, I celebrate the spiritual union but I imagine there are others there for different reasons. You never know what's in a man's heart. This is why we can't judge actions. Don't let events or objects fool you because of their "common" use or interpretation, you have to know what's in each heart to know the true meaning.

 

A Muslim (or any unbeliever) cannot pray to the same God you are praying to. It is impossible. He doesn't know Him. He cannot say "Our Father." He has no Father but the devil. He has not been born into the family of God, and therefore God is not his Father. Therefore the necessity of the New Birth. All unsaved pray to another god, whether we like it or not. That is why I was not adverse when they took public prayer out of the public schools. Most of them were praying to a god, that they knew not.

However God says: "And they two shall be one flesh." God puts emphasis on the physical union. That is what the definition of marriage is--for everyone. It doesn't matter what emphasis you put on it. You must go by the definition that God himself defined marriage to be--for all people: saved and unsaved alike.
The only thing it says about Isaak's marriage, for example, is:
"And he took her into his tent, and was comforted."
Where was the emphasis?

 

Hammer raised high........ BAM!!!! Nailed to the wall!!!

Great post.