[QUOTE]
Quote Originally Posted by Sherree View Post
In a secular community, as long as the core standards are agreed upon, minor differences shouldn't be the cause of divisions.

Same with the religious community. As long as the standard of salvation is agreed upon, minor differences with doctrinal issues shouldn't cause divisions, but it does. Look at all of the different denominations. Even in denominations there are divisions.
Fair enough. Yet even arriving at agreement on a comprehensive biblical definition of salvation about which all can agree is a major challenge. Even more so in regard to what types of issues might nullify salvation, if any. Whew, it's a loaded set of issues just addressing the one topic.

Even though we have friends in many different denominations, there have been some who walked away from us over differing doctrinal views, but our views on salvation were the same. They were the ones to take issue, because we didn't agree staunchly with their views.
Been there and have the t-shirt. That kind of rigidity usually only results in a rise of cultish leaders, factious religiosity, and ultimately disintegration of a following. It's strength is only as great as a leaders ability to convince and intimidate, or nurture as the case may be. And its legacy is only as long as its followers ability to either sustain that environment or modify the teachings to a more sustainable form, which is what we see in most of our Christian institutions named after or formed after big name leaders. It's sad that those movements' martyrs become marketing tools for the institution rather than examples in their own right.

But on the opposite end of that spectrum exists the possibility of going too far in accepting too liberal of a perspective. Yet, where do the most adequate boundaries begin and end? Imo, it is fruit and conduct more than doctrine and tradition. I've spent a life time hearing preachers tell people that they can be the best people possible, but without XYZ it is all for nothing. That mantra is like a broken record. Yet seldom do any teach, that one can have XYZ, but without fruit, it is also all for nothing. In the fear of preaching dead works, moral teaching is avoided. Yet, many others take a middle road, and teach that having the spirit is the answer, and right intent, to the expense of understanding or fruit. Why can we find no balance? I wish I could say 'why can't we find balance anymore', but, the more I studied, the more I realized that I can't point at any time when there was a good balance. Eventually, then, I had to take my focus off of what was missing in the church, and go find that balance on my own. This, I suspect, is what most of the seperated and isolated believers around here have done as well. Yet, those individualized pursuits have taken as many paths as there are people pursuing them. The diversity here on the Tree is a perfect case in point. Yet, historically, here on the Tree, we have gone the way that the rest of this cultural phenomenon has gone. Attacking one another rather than celebrating the diversity. In my personal perspective, in a discombobulated type of community as has emerged resultant of the nature of the times, added measures of leniency must be taken, focusing more on character than doctrines and traditions, while neither shunning those. But doing such creates a necessity to lay aside certain eschatological fears, such as the morphing of a one world religion, etc. Otherwise, we are going to be just little pockets and islands of people, all thinking we are the one true set of believers. Or realize we are part of a sea of sects, all vying to be the chosen. That doesn't seem like a great approach to me. In fact, to me it seems like with this kind of division and little attempt to find unity, a false teacher/leader that can bring it all together in his own right, with his strength of arguement and influence, will emerge. And outside of unity among people, the many will fall for that....just like they fell for all these movements and institutions that have brought on all this division.

Jews and anyone not Anglo-Saxon originating from Satan and Eve having sex is one such doctrine.
And it doesn't stop there as we all well know. Every person or movement that will not assess its own character with the same measures that it assesses others will fall into a mode of baseless hatred sooner or later.