Comments on: My experience on the mountain

By: Tim Malone

Tim Malone — Sat, 29 May 2010 23:02:29 +0000

I should have written this reply much earlier – and I apologise for not responding directly to the many comments I’ve received on this post – both here, on Facebook, and by e-mail.

Thank you for your comments, and I especially appreciate those from the ‘non-Christian’ world – all of who have responded in love and appreciation for what was termed a ‘considered view’. Thanks too to those Christians who appreciated what I wrote.

I got negative responses from some Christians, who believed I shouldn’t have been questioning anything that was happening up there on the mountain. While it is disappointing that some Christians believe God doesn’t want us to ask questions, I can only make a parallel from that to the responses of the Pharisees to Jesus when he was caught doing such things as eating with sinners.

To those Christians who have trouble with these views – I encourage you to look closely at the life of Jesus (not just in the words in your Bible, but in the commentary by people who have explored the culture of the time as well). Jesus told the truth about sin, but he met with the people where their lives and culture were at. He didn’t come in with his own way of doing things and stand there looking like an idiot. He was kind and compassionate, would have been a great friend to have, and taught all he knew to people who wanted to listen. The people who hated him were those who believed in man-made religious tradition – without caring about the state of their hearts (eg. Mark 3:1-6).

By: michelle

michelle — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:54:32 +0000

A a pagan it is nice to see that after the years I have known you, that you had a very positive experience. It is very true when stated that “…some pagans know more about the bible than some Christaians” because the unfortunate case is that we have been put in this position of defending ourselves again Christians like this “Danny”. I cannot believe that the intolerance that this Danny espouses is what God would have wanted for his followers.. and Christians like you help to stop that, create tolerance, and work toward a more unified spiritual world.

By: Canberra guy

Canberra guy — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 11:35:47 +0000

Nice post Tim. I do agree with what you say, I think its a shame when I see Christians wasting their efforts or perhaps having negative affect. Of course they probably would argue that they are being faithful to their God and the opinion of others is not so important of something.

By: Rob

Rob — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 01:46:38 +0000

A sensible post. I’m glad you haven’t condemned your fellow Christians though.
As a Christian, I would have felt more at home at the pub than flag waving and horn blowing.
Relationship building is far more important than event holding. The people looking on would have indeed thought ‘what a pack of fruitloops’.
I agree with the Brian Medway post about it. Biblical precedence is important. Biblical knowledge is important. Read the bible people. If you believe it is the power of God, give it some time.
I read the prophesies section on ‘Catch the Fire Ministries’ website. Visions of Danny sailing a boat in rough waters…please. It could well be from God, but I just can’t take it seriously.

By: Mike Crowther

Mike Crowther — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:47:11 +0000

Hi Tim. Refreshing to read your take on this event. I could’nt make it up the mountain (I had to work combating real physical evil that afternoon) though I wanted to. My particular issue with the Dannys of this world is that they are happy to load bullets and have their (often damaged) flock fire them. They throw around words like ‘warfare’ and other emotive terms, then step back and disavow any responsibility when some doctor at a womens health center gets shot, or some gay kid gets beaten up.
But what really annoyed me was his peddling tales of ‘blood on an alter’. After reading his account of it, his information comes from someone who told him something that someone else had said etc etc. Reading the comments of his followers, this Chinese whisper then translated to people having ‘dreams and visions’ of children being abused and babies killed for Satan etc. Danny says absolutely nothing to reign these people in or quote the ‘false witness’ commandment. He has a vested political interest in hysteria.

Tim I have spent most of my adult life dealing with criminl child abusers. I have met one (1) pagan offender. On the other hand, I have lost count of the number of christian clergy (of various branches) that I have locked up. The talkers of this world spread misinformation and it just makes it harder for the actual do-ers.
(Eg those who fight bushfires rather than use them)

ps: Congrats on your marriage. A peace filled life to you both!

By: Stephen Collins

Stephen Collins — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 06:44:38 +0000

Tim, nice to see an enlightened, considered and tolerant view of faith! It’s a deep contrast to the likes of Danny Nalliah and his ilk.

While, as an avowed atheist I find it incredibly difficult to understand how or why anyone can believe in a greater power of any sort – it seems incredibly strange to me – I certainly feel it’s very much a personal choice.

As you’ve observed, from the outside, overt displays of the things that go along with faith of a certain kind – loud opinion giving (which comes across as pushy and blinded), speaking in tongues (which simply comes across as incredibly fake and unbelievable), and a spectrum of hate and closed-mindedness against those whose beliefs and behaviors are different from yours (not Tim’s, but whoever “you” are) whether they be gay, straight, pagan, atheist, agnostic, a drinker, someone who works in the sex industry, or simply someone who just isn’t like you (again, where that “you” is whomever) – are certainly not conducive to making friends and building understanding.

Believe what you will, so long as you are happy and you make no attempt to impose your beliefs on me nor anyone else. As for peddling hate against minorities, which Nalliah and his do, especially the GLBTQ communities and those for whom choices about life and pregnancy aren’t yours (that particular “you” again) are nothing more than the basis of a society that is founded on segregation and difference rather than inclusion. Hardly the building blocks you’d expect and all-loving greater power to be expecting from the faithful.

Nalliah and his flock, they are deluded at best and giving enlightened people of faith a very bad name. We need to hear more of what you have to say, Tim.

By: Samuel Gordon-Stewart

Samuel Gordon-Stewart — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 05:36:59 +0000

I was expecting to see Danny Nalliah’s take on the whole thing on his blog by now…but it’s not there. I can only conclude that it’s hard work spinning that disgraceful fiasco to his advantage.

By: Lynn

Lynn — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 05:29:35 +0000

“…Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, for the light makes everything visible..”

Ephesians 5:10-14

By: Tim Malone

Tim Malone — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 05:07:24 +0000

Edited the post slightly to clarify what I said in my last paragraph. As Christians we are going to be different, and what I was meaning to say was to not let being a Christian make you unaware of what’s going on in the world around you.

Thanks Cynthia for pointing that out.

Btw, the notion of being different from the world generally comes from Romans 12:2. I think this verse is often taken out of context and Christians read it as ‘Don’t do drugs, don’t swear, don’t get drunk’ etc., or even ‘Don’t hang out with non-Christians because you might fall into sin’. That’s not it at all. It means so much more than that – if you put it into the cultural context, Paul’s words exploded into Roman culture telling them that there was meaning to life, that they didn’t need to conform any longer to the normal way they had looked at their individual lives in the world but rather than they could now consider God’s loving plan for mankind. A very different meaning. I might blog about that sometime.

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