What denomination or sect are you?

Let me be clear, I know you are a member of the one and only perfect and true belief.

For you.

As we all are.
I don't believe in such an extreme relativity of truth. Individual investigation of the truth does have a subjective element to it but there are objective standards as well. I don't believe that truth is just whatever feels good to you. There are many facets to truth, many ways to approach truth, but in the end all these facets of truth are part of one truth.
 
So you are a politician?
No, I am a Baha'i that sees truth in many religions. Teachings by the Buddha differ in some ways from teachings of Christ but they are facets of one truth. Of course for something like reincarnation and resurrection if you take their literal meanings they are incompatible. There is also the issue in teachers of founders of religion of faithful transmission of what they said. Individual people can also be flat out wrong in their beliefs. But sometimes different angles to look at truth are just different ways to get to the same truth.
 
I'm aware of the Bahai version of unity I'm beliefs, and believe you believe it.

Just as I am aware the majority and leadership each of the religions under your umbrella see you as stretching and contorting their scripture and beliefs to fit your paradigm.

Its cool,.they think the same of me.
 
I'm aware of the Bahai version of unity I'm beliefs, and believe you believe it.

Just as I am aware the majority and leadership each of the religions under your umbrella see you as stretching and contorting their scripture and beliefs to fit your paradigm.

Organised religion wants to put us all in "a box".
What is your sect? What is your creed? etc.

I understand what @Truthseeker9 refers to.
There is a common denominator .. particularly amongst Abrahamiic creeds.
The journey of life has its twists & turns. To ignore all possible "truths" apart from
"what we are comfortable with" does not lead to spiritual enlightenment.
 
To ignore all possible "truths" apart from
"what we are comfortable with" does not lead to spiritual enlightenment.
Most religions teach that to 'have God' a person needs to let go of 'the world.' A choice between God and mammon?

It is the essence of sacrifice: I give something to God. I take valuable ox from my herd and slaughter it and then burn it to ash. I give it up?

Freedom from desire leads to inner peace.

It's the problem with prosperity preaching, imo?
 
It is the essence of sacrifice: I give something to God. I take valuable ox from my herd and slaughter it and then burn it to ash. I give it up?
All the while they are God's children that are starving.

It is also the biggest joke in prosperity religions, they tithe their preachers into multi- millionaires flying around in private jets and having fleets of rolls-royce's well all around there are God's children that are starving
 
Most religions teach that to 'have God' a person needs to let go of 'the world.' A choice between God and mammon?

It is the essence of sacrifice: I give something to God. I take valuable ox from my herd and slaughter it and then burn it to ash..

The Qur'an (God, the Most High), CERTAINLY teaches us that we shouldn't concentrate on
"the life of this world"
That is, we should remember Him, so as to ward off evil, including our own desires.

I'm not so sure about "burning to ash" .. Almighty God has no need of burnt ash. Poor people most certainly have a need of food. It is our duty (collectively) to see that nobody goes without.
 
The Qur'an (God, the Most High), CERTAINLY teaches us that we shouldn't concentrate on
"the life of this world"
That is, we should remember Him, so as to ward off evil, including our own desires.

I'm not so sure about "burning to ash" .. Almighty God has no need of burnt ash. Poor people most certainly have a need of food. It is our duty (collectively) to see that nobody goes without.
That wasn't the issue. God has to come first. Sacrifice isn't essentially about charity, for which there is at least an emotional reward. It is about giving to God alone. Although God obviously gas no need of it.

Charity is a separate issue, coming under 'love thy neighbour' but second to 'love God first'.
 
Whatever you do to the least...
Ok. So if I decide to fast for seven days, to give it to God, I can put the meals money in an envelope and give it to the Salvation Army, if you like? Fine. It is the fasting, not the envelope that is the focus.

If I decide to be celibate -- for a month say -- to give it to God? Who benefits from that?

Do you reject the principle of sacrifice? Because I believe sacrifice is probably the most central tenet of all religions?

Most people don't sacrifice for charity. They just peel a couple off the top of the wad. Sacrifice and charity are two different things, imo.
 
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In Islam the meat of a scrificed animal is distributed and eaten.
 
In Islam the meat of a scrificed animal is distributed and eaten.
Ok, I accept that. I'm not saying it shouldn't go to the poor. But that is not the main purpose, or else the animal could just be slaughtered in the ordinary way like any other animal for food.

So then in your opinion where is the line between sacrifice and charity?
 
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Of course, I believe it always was supplied the religious leaders and/or the poor.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocaust_(sacrifice)

"A holocaust
is a religious animal sacrifice that is completely consumed by fire. The word derives from the Ancient Greekholokaustos (ὁλόκαυστος from ὅλος "whole" and καυστός "burnt", with rough breathing), which is used solely for one of the major forms of sacrifice ..."

"Holokautein (ὁλοκαυτεῖν) is one of the two chief verbs of Greek sacrifice, in which the victim is utterly destroyed and burnt up, as opposed to thúesthai (θύεσθαι), to share a meal with the god and one's fellow worshippers, commensal sacrifice ..."

"When the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek, as the Septuagint, the translators used the Greek term to translate the "burnt offering" in Ancient Israel.[3][4]

A "burnt offering" (Hebrew: עלה‎, `olah – from the verb "to cause to ascend," hence "burn") is a type of Biblical sacrifice, specifically an animal sacrifice in which the entire sacrifice is completely burnt, consumed totally by fire.

The term "burnt offering" derives from the Septuagint translation, itself deriving from the Biblical phrase "an offering made by fire", which occurs in the description (Leviticus 1) of the offering.[5]

This form of sacrifice, in which no meat was left over for anyone, was seen as the greatest form of sacrifice[5] and was the form of sacrifice permitted by Judaism to be given at the Temple by Jews and non-Jews ..."
 
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..This form of sacrifice, in which no meat was left over for anyone, was seen as the greatest form of sacrifice[5] and was the form of sacrifice permitted by Judaism to be given at the Temple by Jews and non-Jews ..."

Did Jesus, peace be with him, approve of "burnt offerings" ?
Did he take part?
 
Did Jesus, peace be with him, approve of "burnt offerings" ?
Did he take part?
No because he came to do away with blood sacrifice: where the original meaning of sacrifice -- of giving something valuable to God -- had become corrupted to meaning blood on the altar. He sacrificed himself to end blood sacrifice, amongst other mysteries, imo.

EDIT
But he was nevertheless a practicing Jew.
 
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Ok, I accept that. I'm not saying it shouldn't go to the poor. But that is not the main purpose, or else the animal could just be slaughtered in the ordinary way like any other animal for food.

So then in your opinion where is the line between sacrifice and charity?

That's a difficult line for me to draw and I'm not sure there is a line. Seems to me that all forms of charity involve sacrifice in some sense.

When it comes to prescribed ritual sacrifice, charity comes into it with the act of giving meat to the poor.

Maybe its a question of - is an act primarily sacrifice or primarily charity ???
______________________________________________

Here are some sayings about charity from Prophet Muhammad (saww)

Abu Dharr reported that the Prophet Muhammad said:

“Charity is prescribed for each descendant of Adam every day the sun rises.”


He was then asked:

“From what do we give charity every day?”

The Prophet answered:

“The doors of goodness are many…enjoining good, forbidding evil, removing harm from the road, listening to the deaf, leading the blind, guiding one to the object of his need, hurrying with the strength of one’s legs to one in sorrow who is asking for help, and supporting the feeble with the strength of one’s arms -all of these are charity prescribed for you.”

The Prophet (saww) was also reported to have said:

“Your smile for your brother is charity.”
(At-Tirmidhi)
 
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