Christians are just like the rest of us

[Gob]

A new blonde vicar in her twenties has sent the congregation of a sleepy church soaring since taking to the pulpit.

Reverend Stephanie Nadarajah took up the post at St Mary the Virgin Church in Caterham, Surrey, at the age of just 29 after giving up a job as an NHS boss.



And in the past six months - as word got around about the new 'attractive, blonde curate' - the congregation at the church has rocketed with at least 150 locals turning up every Sunday.

Before her arrival, the congregation swayed between 75 and 100 people, but locals are now singing her praises.

Rev Nadarajah gave up a high-paying job as an NHS manager after graduating in theology at Cambridge University and deciding she fancied giving up 'normal life' to become God's servant.

She said: 'The congregation is thriving.

'We get about 150-plus people every Sunday at our main service, and that's on the increase, which is great.'

She said she still gets some 'shocked looks' when she tells locals she is the new curate, but says that she didn't want to 'attract all the attention'.

She said: 'If people look and say "goodness me, that's not what I expected" and listen to what I say, then that's great.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z1NJvnIaco

[Scooter]

Certainly nothing new. Women often fall over themselves getting to church when there was a handsome new pastor. It will be interesting to see how well she is able to handle it if men throw themselves at her in the same way.

[thestoat]

[dales]

[quote="Scooter"]Certainly nothing new. Women often fall over themselves getting to church when there was a handsome new pastor.[quote]

Some men also?

[Scooter]

I have a friend who is the pastor of a church with a quite mixed straight and gay congregation - he refers to them as "collar chasers".

[Gob]

Bonus points for banging the vicar?

[Sean]

Only if she alerts God very loudly during the act...

[thestoat]

A friend said something recently that really made me think (unusual). A good atheist is better than a good Christian.

Why? Because a good Christian does good things in part because they think their god wants them to and will be angry with them if they don't. A good atheist does good things simply because they are good things.

[Crackpot]

actually good deeds have litlle to do with being saved.

personally I look at how people do their good deeds. (are they looking for praise from those around or do they do them even if no one is looking)

[thestoat]

Surely god is always looking?

[Crackpot]

Of course. Do you think that doing the stuff you're supposed to do makes up for all the shit you weren't supposed to do?

[thestoat]

So, we're back to the statement A good atheist is better than a good Christian.

Why? Because a good Christian does good things in part because they think their god wants them to and will be angry with them if they don't (and, as you say, god is always looking at you). A good atheist does good things simply because they are good things.

[Crackpot]

No, I'm saying that salvation is independant of works. Claiming to be doing good works because God is watching is sort of like saying I know you caught me embezzleng money and sexually harrassing the staff while selling company secrets that one time but look at all those other times I did my work in the exact way you specified!

In short you do good works because that's what you should be doing not because someone is watching.

[thestoat]

In short you do good works because that's what you should be doing not because someone is watching.

Absolutely - no argument there. The problem is that an atheist can do good works with noone watching. A Christian can't, and there is always the possibility that the Christian is only doing them because they believe someone is watching.

[Crackpot]

What I'm saying is even though God is theroretically "watching" the fact that it is being observed nets the actor nothing. It is completely independant of salvation.

I'm not denying there are those who do believe it's getting them something just that that view is dependant on the person or the sect and not a view of Christianity as a whole.

[Lord Jim]

A friend said something recently that really made me think (unusual). A good atheist is better than a good Christian.

Why? Because a good Christian does good things in part because they think their god wants them to and will be angry with them if they don't. A good atheist does good things simply because they are good things.

I'm going to go way out on a limb here Stoat, and guess that the friend who came up with that dichotomy is an atheist....

It seems to me that that construction is somewhat a facile, and a little too pat....

People do "good" things, (atheists and people of Faith) for all sorts of reasons that don't necessarily mean they are doing them "simply because they are good things"....

Ego gratification immediately springs to mind as one motive....

[Sean]

It raises the age old question... Is there any such thing as a truly selfless act?

[oldr_n_wsr]

I help people because of how I feel afterward. While they get the helping hand, I get a good feeling having helped them and I like that feeling. Dont' know if I would help them if I didn't get that good feeling as I always have that feeling after helping.
So I have to admit it is usually a selfish reason.

Damn AA for making me realize how selfish I am.

[Sean]

Exactly oldr. I don't believe that any act is truly 100% selfless. Even Joan of Arc's final sacrifice would have given her a warm feeling...

Sorry... I couldn't help that...

[oldr_n_wsr]