In Reply to: Re: preachings of paul posted by porceleindoll on July 07, 2003 at 02:19:40:
We are very similar to each other as human beings but also have an individuality that sets us apart. The commonality unites us and we had groups where the individuals are able to identify with certain things. Those common features in people are what form groups. In the family there was certain cohesiveness because we stayed in the "simplicity of the gospel" as MO explained it to us. We started to depart that commonality as we started to grow up in knowledge of the Gospel. I read somewhere that a wise man said that there are as many religions as there are monks.
This takes place in groups of all types, specially ideology-based such as religious and political groups. They are fascinating as social laboratories because variations of beliefs can be examined in all their shades. Take the family, for example. I bet if we were to look at the composition of FGAs we will find commonalities indicating that we, or the vast majority, had a vulnerable individuality, such as broken families, difficult childhood, need of acceptance, impressionable, susceptibility, etc. Not everybody who was witnessed joined the family even when accepting the message. There had to be a void the family was all too happy to fill in. In my opinion, it was not Jesus but the idea of undertaking a heroic task in a sacred bond with other hero-like figures. That was a powerful enticement for people whose individuality was already weakened.
But even then, I would say that as we matured (specially in God's Word, not the garbage that MO tried to force on us) our wounded individuality developed and gained strength to finally shed off Berg's filth. In that process, common ideas were and are reviewed, common beliefs were and are restructured within our own personalities, preferences and objectives. We started to discover, like "seven-of-nine" (from Star Trek), that we are individuals and not drones. While leaving the family is not a sure way to leave its teachings and cultic practices, it is a good first step.
Going from the specific to a larger scale, the same thing happens with other ideological sets. Believes and ideas get sorted out and assimilated in such a way that they become a rainbow of diverse viewpoints and perspectives that can either complement or contradict each other. Problems arise when one sees his/her viewpoint as more importance than others.
So, that is where I am at in seeing why there are so many shades of beliefs forming religions, cults and sects of all types stemming from the same source. Although this is just my own personal view, I hope it can help you to find your own answer. That is one of the wonderful byproducts of communication.