How much of Christianity is based on Paganism?

That's better..
Nobody minds forking out to "nice" beggars, but the "aggressive" ones are a pain. For example there's a notorious scruffy middle-aged ungrateful one here in Plymouth, people got fed up with him pestering them, so he was arrested and the court banned him from begging.
But I felt sorry for him and made a point of always giving him something, usually a £10 note (15 US dollars).
BUT he blew it because after handing him the cash he always said something like "thanks but could you make it £20?", so now I don't give him a penny any more, he must be where the term "cheeky beggar" comes from!

PS- I hear some students have printed out fake £20's on their computer to give to him so that he'll get nicked when he tries to pass them, ha ha serves him right..

The thing is, you included everyone who has had cause to beg in your blanket condemnation of beggars. It's a bit late to start making distinctions.

What would you be willing to sacrifice in order to win that race of yours?

Sacrifice? Not sure what you mean.
Like I said we have to run our own race-
"Work out your own salvation.." (Philip 2:12 KJV)

Many people like to run with the big herds of organised religions and cults but
I prefer Frankie's approach..-

And therein lies your problem.

by the way, "Frankie" was a cathoholic

I'm the neologist; but that was fantasimo!

[edit] Oh! Cathoholic is a real word already. Thanks for using it. I like the way it rolls off the tongue.

I believe what Cal is getting at is with regards to change.

In order to become acceptable to God one must change, not conforming to the world, so we must learn about Gods personality and change the way we live in accordance with his will.
This could mean sacrificing things you naturally are inclined to enjoy, but in order to ascertain what god loves or indeed hates, one must study the bible.
Unfortunately mans inclination is to have God serve him, and thus many mainstream religions teach a god that has very few standards, and requires very little sacrifice. After all, who would want to serve God if he actually wanted something back that would require effort?

What god hates . . . you people are pathetic.

Bishop Burnet was a primary source for the restoration in England. (The restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the person of King Charles II.) He once wrote to a friend saying that the king had a strange notion of god's love. He quoted Charles as saying: "The only things that God hates are that we be wicked and that we design mischief." I'm sure Bishop Burnet found that strange because i suspect he had a much, much longer list of the things that god "hates."

You people really disgust me.

Taking into consideration that you do not believe in the reality of god, I am happy to talk hypothetically.

Do you believe that the god of the Hebrews as written in scripture would have no requirements of man today other than to not be wicked?
Is there no necessity for righteousness also?

Of course i'm speaking hypothetically. You are not, however, able to separate yourself from the absurdity of your beliefs. The Hebrews get their own god? Is that the same god who is putatively omnipotent and omniscient? In a cosmos as vast as we now know we inhabit, why would the creator of all establish a special relationship with a bunch of bronze age hillbillies? Why would such a being give a rat's ass where you stick your pecker, or what you eat on a certain day of the week? What kind of sadistic bitch is your god to create man, and then condemn him for doing what comes naturally? You people never think these things through. You're all too buried in the silly fairy tales from whence your faith derives, and seem incapable of seeing a larger view.

As for "righteousness," i was quoting Charles Stuart. I have no idea what his views on "righteousness" were, and don't care.

I use the term "God of the Hebrews" only to acknowledge that the god people believe in today are one and the same. It is an insight into his character.

A god with no standards would be as useful as a king with no laws.

Governments today have laws that inhibit certain things that we would deem enjoyable do they not? That is because what is enjoyable is not always good for us or society as a whole.
Keeping that in mind, Gods kingdom is supposed to be the means by which he is to restore the earth and his purpose. What good is a man to a kingdom if he does not wish to be under its guidance. How do you maintain that kingdom if most of inhabitants are not inclined to obey the laws of its ruler?
If you want to apply for citizenship for specific country, do you not think you would have run into difficulties if you have a record of offenses that show you would not be interested in adhering to the laws of that land?
If God deems that adultery for instance would harm the peace of his intended society, then surely it is counterproductive to allow those that would continue to adulterate a visa.
If Armageddon is a day of judgement, it can be likened to a visa application decision day.

Righteousness is conforming to what is good by Gods standards rather than mans. You can be unrighteous without being wicked. According to scripture God seeks righteousness in man, not just a rejection of wickedness.

Absurd as you may opine, I have a bigger picture, it is merely different to yours.

Scriptural references available on request.

There are about seven billion people on this planet--and yet you apparently cannot see how arrogant it is to describe the god you want to believe in as the god people believe in today. Your god's standards entail punishing people for being what he created them to be. You really can't see the idiocy in your position?

That's why people like you disgust me. You're deluded by fairy tales that you believe because you want to, and not because there's any good reason to believe them, and then you expect to be taken seriously when you babble about what your god hates. Your god is an idiotic cartoon character.

An interesting deduction which you are welcome to, I even respect the reasons that you have for disagreeing with me.

You assume we are as God created us to be, I disagree. I believe we are a product of nurture. By the same standard, is it not then wrong for man to punish man for reacting to our base instincts?

Out of respect, and considering our respective position on the matter, further discussion seems unnecessary, wouldn't you agree?

There's actually a Quran verse/s that instruct people on which foot should step first after using the toilet. It absolutely defies logic.

Nah mate the "study" myth is just a satanic notion spread by "spiritual snobs" to make people think the Bible is big and complicated, so heed Paul's warning-
"I'm worried lest you be led astray from the simplicity of Christ" (2 Cor 11:3)
Below are the core principles that are all anybody needs to know, and if this doesn't help them, nothing will..


Jesus said- "Love one another, feed the hungry, house the homeless, clothe the destitute, tend the sick, visit the prisoners, look after the poor" (Mark 12:30, John 13:34, Matt 25: 37-40)
Jesus said - "The work God requires is to believe in the one he has sent" (John 6:28 )

I just spat my coffee out.
Brilliant. Best paraphrase yet. Mick the bible is both big AND complicated. Perhaps your lack of interest in study is why you have such a cuckoo god story. What does John 17: 3 read again?

Oh, i agree completely that you are so dedicated to your delusions that it would waste my time and yours to continue.

GET ON HERE THIS INSTANT for putting words in my mouth that I never said!! You just broke the 9th Commandment (false witness) so you'd better have your excuses ready for God when you meet him..

Ha ha! So was I misunderstanding you?

So how much study should I do before it becomes Satanic?

If you're not able to take these simple core principles on board, countless hours of Bible study aren't going to help you a bit-

Jesus said- "Love one another, feed the hungry, house the homeless, clothe the destitute, tend the sick, visit the prisoners, look after the poor" (Mark 12:30, John 13:34, Matt 25: 37-40)
Jesus said - "The work God requires is to believe in the one he has sent" (John 6:28 )

Even Paul had to warn people against getting bogged down with useless "study"-
Paul said - "I'm worried lest you be led astray from the simplicity of Christ" (2 Cor 11:3)
"..stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer or to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. Such things promote controversial speculations rather than advancing God’s work" (1 Tim 1:3/4)

And Jesus had to tell the snooty priests to get their noses out of their heavyweight volumes-
Jesus said "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." (John 5:39/40)

And when people asked him to-
“Increase our faith!” He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you" (Luke 17 5/6)
indicating that lots of study isn't going to help you increase that faith.

Of course it's fine to read as much of the Bible as much as you want for pleasure, not because you think you have to relentlessly study it!
A tired mind is easy meat for Satan to move in, that's why many high school and university students commit suicide because of over-studying their various subjects.
I knew a young guy named Paul back in Leicester, he had mild schizophrenia so he took to intensely reading and studying the whole bible in an attempt to cure himself. We warned him but he carried on and made himself worse and ended up in Leicester General Hospital's psychiatric wing.