What is your purpose in starting all these threads, as though you had some quota to meet?
1) Would a good God punish me for asking the hard questions?
It depends on who God actually is and what he/she/it is actually like, eh? As I conceive of the most likely attributes of the creator, no. If my conceptions are seriously off-base, possibly yes. If there is no God, then the question is irrelevant.
What does a "good" God look like? Do I get to define goodness for God? Thinking I get to, or can, is one of the fundamental problems with religion. Perhaps God is "good" in precisely the way Islamic jihadists define him. Perhaps he/she/it is good in some way entirely outside my human frame of reference.
It appears to me you're looking for people to confirm your personal notion that "No, the God of Christianity as I conceive Him to be would not punish me for asking hard questions." The fact you feel the need to start all these threads suggests to me you lack confidence in your own beliefs and they aren't bringing you the peace of mind that deep religious convictions should bring.
2) Why do I believe what I believe?
Because I have conducted a diligent quest for 60+ years that has involved diverse life experiences, extensive observations, extensive studies, extensive reflection and my own intuition.
3) Is this a good reason to believe in this?
A lot better reason, IMO, than 99.9% of other "believers," Christians and atheists alike, can articulate.
4) Is belief, or faith, a good measure for morality?
I'm not sure this is an intelligible question. "Belief" or "faith" as a "measure for morality" - ? Notions of morality flow from almost every belief system, including materialistic atheism. Atheists typically define morality on the basis of philosophical reasoning, together with societal norms and laws - and that's fine. I might actually say it's more rational than basing morality on OT and NT verses, but obviously someone committed to the Bible as the word of God is going to disagree - and that's fine, too.
No one holds notions of morality fundamentality at odds with his or her beliefs about the nature of ultimate reality. This is somewhat like your question about a "good God." What we think is "good" or "moral" inevitably flows from what we believe about the nature of ultimate reality and the meaning and purpose (if any) of the reallity we inhabit.
5) Have I explored other religions to the extent that I explored Christianity?
The core religions yes, at least to a considerable degree. All religions mesh with no more than three or four basic models of ultimate reality, diverse as they may be in their specific doctrines. I think that reaching a conviction about the basic model of ultimate reality is perhaps more important than reaching one about a particular religion.
6) What if you are the one in the wrong religion?
I'm pretty confident all religions are "wrong" in the sense of not capturing the fullness of ultimate reality. We hold the convictions that our experiences, observations, studies and reflections have led us to hold, filtered through what our intuition tells us is likely to be true and what we are constitutionally capable of believing.
7) How would my faith community react to my exploring these questions?
I have no "faith community" and don't give a rat's ass what anyone else thinks. No one "knows" any more about the ultimate nature of reality than I do.
Please copy the question you are responding to in your reply. Thanks.
FYI, I'm not going to respond further in this thread.
