Are Forum Members ever guilty of stirring up strife?

[Omegaman 3.0]

I think sometimes, yes, what do you think? Some threads by nature or their topics, invite debate, I am not speaking about that. I am speaking about times, where a thread starts out with a topic, that one would not suspect would lead to debate. I am not even talking about debate, as though it has no place, it can be a way to learn and to teach, to those who have the personality and self control to have those intellectual exchanges with out escalating it to a state of little mini-fights.

You have seen them, no doubt, recognized by the fact, that the tend to cease speaking to the topic, and begin to increasingly devolve to two or more persons, focusing on the perceived faults of other poster. Sometimes, they are just about criticising one's ability to use logic. Sometimes they might state that the other person is wrong, rather that saying "my opinion is different"! In some cases, they go so far as to accuse other of being heretics, or unsaved.

If there are two possible answers to a question, a person might have a 50/50 chance of getting it right. I would bet, that over 90% of people, do not consider that they could be the one who is wrong, and when that possibility is suggested, they respond in anger, more often than thoughtful self examination.

I at times, am amazed at how certain people are, that they have it right. Occasionally, a person thinks that they are the only one that has it right. What are the odds of that being true? If a persons think that they are the only one that is right, I wonder, truthfully, if there is something wrong with with such a person, a true mental condition!

Well, I did not mean to say this much, not mention all of these thoughts. I was just intending to ask, if you think that there are certain persons, who habitually argue with others, as though that is their mission and calling in life, do we have these here at Worthy (no names please)?

Would the passages and verses on the page at this link, apply to any of these people, do you think?

[MorningGlory]

4 hours ago, Omegaman 3.0 said:

I think sometimes, yes, what do you think? Some threads by nature or their topics, invite debate, I am not speaking about that. I am speaking about times, where a thread starts out with a topic, that one would not suspect would lead to debate. I am not even talking about debate, as though it has no place, it can be a way to learn and to teach, to those who have the personality and self control to have those intellectual exchanges with out escalating it to a state of little mini-fights.

You have seen them, no doubt, recognized by the fact, that the tend to cease speaking to the topic, and begin to increasingly devolve to two or more persons, focusing on the perceived faults of other poster. Sometimes, they are just about criticising one's ability to use logic. Sometimes they might state that the other person is wrong, rather that saying "my opinion is different"! In some cases, they go so far as to accuse other of being heretics, or unsaved.

If there are two possible answers to a question, a person might have a 50/50 chance of getting it right. I would bet, that over 90% of people, do not consider that they could be the one who is wrong, and when that possibility is suggested, they respond in anger, more often than thoughtful self examination.

I at times, am amazed at how certain people are, that they have it right. Occasionally, a person thinks that they are the only one that has it right. What are the odds of that being true? If a persons think that they are the only one that is right, I wonder, truthfully, if there is something wrong with with such a person, a true mental condition!

Well, I did not mean to say this much, not mention all of these thoughts. I was just intending to ask, if you think that there are certain persons, who habitually argue with others, as though that is their mission and calling in life, do we have these here at Worthy (no names please)?

Would the passages and verses on the page at this link, apply to any of these people, do you think?

I believe that some come here with an agenda; to prove they have the answer, that no one else knows what they know, or a desire to put down and intimidate others' (note that 'pot stirrers' almost always remain in one section of this site because they've no interest in fellowship.)  I have been guilty of causing trouble myself, at times, and it was almost always because I was convinced I was right.  And, also, some simply can't interact with other people without getting into an argument here or in their daily lives. That one I simply don't understand.

[missmuffet]

4 hours ago, Omegaman 3.0 said:

I think sometimes, yes, what do you think? Some threads by nature or their topics, invite debate, I am not speaking about that. I am speaking about times, where a thread starts out with a topic, that one would not suspect would lead to debate. I am not even talking about debate, as though it has no place, it can be a way to learn and to teach, to those who have the personality and self control to have those intellectual exchanges with out escalating it to a state of little mini-fights.

You have seen them, no doubt, recognized by the fact, that the tend to cease speaking to the topic, and begin to increasingly devolve to two or more persons, focusing on the perceived faults of other poster. Sometimes, they are just about criticising one's ability to use logic. Sometimes they might state that the other person is wrong, rather that saying "my opinion is different"! In some cases, they go so far as to accuse other of being heretics, or unsaved.

If there are two possible answers to a question, a person might have a 50/50 chance of getting it right. I would bet, that over 90% of people, do not consider that they could be the one who is wrong, and when that possibility is suggested, they respond in anger, more often than thoughtful self examination.

I at times, am amazed at how certain people are, that they have it right. Occasionally, a person thinks that they are the only one that has it right. What are the odds of that being true? If a persons think that they are the only one that is right, I wonder, truthfully, if there is something wrong with with such a person, a true mental condition!

Well, I did not mean to say this much, not mention all of these thoughts. I was just intending to ask, if you think that there are certain persons, who habitually argue with others, as though that is their mission and calling in life, do we have these here at Worthy (no names please)?

Would the passages and verses on the page at this link, apply to any of these people, do you think?

Do you mean an internet troll?   I am all for a healthy Christian debate. We have to know that their will be many opinions. People can not get upset if they want their opinion to be the only right opinion. Attacking others is just not acceptable. No obvious false teachings should be allowed.

[Willa]

I tend to state whatever God puts into my head and not stay and squabble.  It is the right of everyone to voice an opinion.  But I have my weaknesses.  Opinions that are not based on the 66 books of Scripture are completely off the wall as far as I am concerned.  So the Bible is right.  How we interpret the Bible is something else.  Some people can read a verse and not even read it correctly, as in which adjectives modify what noun, or that the action of the verb applies to the noun and not to an adjective..  No one can make them see that is not what the verse is talking about.  Oh, well, unless the Holy Spirit enlighten them, there is no use continuing the conversation.

Quite often more than one interpretation is correct.  We see things from different perspectives.  Some see a things from God's perspective and others from man's.  Others see things differently because they are in another culture, or because they have a different function in the Body of Christ.  We are all different and we need to embrace and appreciate the differences.  The thumb can't tell the eye "I have no need of you," or the thumb won't know where to poke.

[missmuffet]

I think that a member needs to come forward and express that a post is false teaching. And explain why with Scripture. Surely God does not want us to stumble and fall.

I have recently observed a thread where a person verbally attacked a Worthy member. I think that post should immediately be deleted. There is no place on a Christian message board for that kind of behavior.

[Omegaman 3.0]

30 minutes ago, bopeep1909 said:

I think that a member needs to come forward and express that a post is false teaching. And explain why with Scripture. Surely God does not want us to stumble and fall.

I have recently observed a thread where a person verbally attacked a Worthy member. I think that post should immediately be deleted. There is no place on a Christian message board for that kind of behavior.

I agree that false doctrine needs to be addresses for what it is, and I think, that typically that happens. It is also true though, that there are those who think that their opinon or interpretation of scripture, is as authoritative as scripture itself. I am not aware of a way, to get some people to understand, that their opinions may not be inspired.

Regarding threads where people verbally attack others, I and other admins, frequently delete such  posts, and sometimes entire threads. I personally saw one thread deleted, well not deleted but hidden actualy, becuase in three or four pages of posts, about half were just attacks and accusation, personal things that were ignoring the topic of the thread. It was a shame, because there were a lot on there that were very insightful responses, even if they did not come to the same conclusions or viewpoint.

I have been trying to pull the weeds in that thread, from time to time, as I get the time and inclination, with a eye toward restoring it. If I ever finish that task, I will likely retore the thread, because I think there was some great information in it, it would be a good resource. However, if I restore it to view, I will probably lock it, because it think it will just rapidly degrade into what it had become before.

If the software here was different, and I had my way, I would have a system, where those who are the problem would find their ability to post, rationed. If a person had, for example, only 10 posts per week that they could make, or a limited number of words etc, perhaps they would be more thoughtful, and use their post quota more wisely.

False doctrine is of course an issue. When someone posts something that is not complient with the terms of service, those posts are often deleted, especially if the person is trying to promote a false view, or convince those without knowledge and discernment to change their view. This is a difficult task for the staff here. We desire to allow people to have and express their thoughts and opinions, but we also want to have this be a place of truth. When and whether to censor, is sometimes something we wrestle with, and which ever way we go, there are always some, who will not like it. Some think we are too restrictive, others think we are nowhere near restrictive enough.

I kind of went off topic here, but thanks for your reply Bopeep!

[Esther4:14]

Yes, I do think that forum members are guilty of stirring up strife.  I remember when I was still new here, I even had posted on a subject, which is like whatever.  There are my words made temporarily permanent on a revolving cycle of threads on a Christian message board.  There I am, and then I go about my real life.  

However, someone was apparently very upset by this and began harassing me through the entire thread even when I decided to stop responding to them.  They still continued quoting my posts and demanding response even finishing with the words that they apparently, "knew" people like me or knew my kind of person.   

And, that really stuck with me over the year, that this person seemed to think they know me based on something I included into a discussion.  How do you know me based on a handful of words that I have posted on a Christian message board.  You can't see my face.  You don't even know what color hair I have.  You don't know that I have probably given at least a hundred bed baths before.  That I have two kids.  That I have given up many things over the past 8 years to pay for their Christian school education.  You don't know that my mom has been dead since I was 16.  You don't really know a thing about me.  I could really go on and on because most of the time something that I have to say does not define the person that I am.  

This is something that will cause me to feel impatient with others around here as well, this impression that they seem to think they know the person they are talking to from one discussion.  I really don't like when people forget that people are still people who do dishes, and laundry, and regular things we all do.  

There is really a whole lot more about me that no ones here when I am just using a simple keyboard to express myself.  

I get impatient with things like this in my real life too, when people think they have the right make comments that border more on gossip then objective criticism as well.  

Things like this often bother me at work.  People I work with complain about other people I work with, and I just don't really see why most of the time.  That is just a different person and that is the way  they do their job.  We can't just always replace people because we believe they are not doing everything we expect them to do.  

I used to float to different departments and this is a complaint for most of the people I work with because it is hard to be out of their comfort zone, and they will complain about how no one helps them in a different unit, and I know this isn't true because all I did was float and I always could find at least one person who is willing to help.  So, I think it just makes people feel better to complain sometimes.  

With the exception of a troll, I think most of the strife that is created on a Christian message board would be resolved if people would take the time to think of people beyond the post.  Maybe even consider that not everyone is going to be an award winning writer, and sometimes may be trying to say something more than their sentences reflect.  

I think it would even help sometimes if people really considered this card that it is okay to call out false teaching.  Maybe we should all take a minute to reflect on whether or not we are really qualified to call out what is false in every case we think we are?  

Most of the time I don't think people are trying to present "false" teachings.  They are more like unfinished teachings.  It is a primary reason I like using a message board to begin with.  I feel like I can be a little unfinished and it won't be held against me in 10 or 20 years.  To me, the message board is like a treadmill.  It is a spiritual exercise.  I think people take it way too seriously and this also creates strife.  

 

[Omegaman 3.0]

54 minutes ago, algots said:

My answer is absolutely. I am one of them.

Any squabble requires more than one person.  Anyone who brings in a different perspective to a commonly held mindset will be considered the cause of the hostilities, since that person will be the common denominator.  And they may be.

However, another possibility is that hostilities may come from those of like mind who take turns in resistance to the new, (non-common) world view, even though the focus of the group will, also, be on that same person, or belief system.

So, is the person the one causing the problems, or is the resistance to what is being introduced causing it? Naturally, they will all say the one is. Naturally, the one will say they are.. Not one will take total responsibility, because not one is totally responsible.

I have taken responsibility for my part, but mine is just a part. I acknowledge there is enough guilt to go around, yet, no one else seems to want to own up to their guilt.

I appreciate that you recognize that you are part of the problem, I admit, that I am also.

I think that no one is at fault, the fault has what I would call, contributory negligence. You are right, it takes more that one to squabble. I recall from my hippie days, a poster or bumper sticker, that I think is that philosophically, asked an interesting question, even if simplistic and naieve:

"What if the gave a war, and nobody came?"

In sure is true, that one person does not fight, it takes 2 or more. Sometimes though, all it might take, is for someone to step up, and be the bigger person, and not participate, that the problem could disperse. I do not think that disagreement, and expressing it, is the problem, I think that prolonging and escalating it is.

Perhaps, the verse about turning the other cheek applies, or one about controlling the tongue.

In ay case, thanks for your reply AlgotS

[missmuffet]

12 minutes ago, Omegaman 3.0 said:

I agree that false doctrine needs to be addresses for what it is, and I think, that typically that happens. It is also true though, that there are those who think that their opinon or interpretation of scripture, is as authoritative as scripture itself. I am not aware of a way, to get some people to understand, that their opinions may not be inspired.

Regarding threads where people verbally attack others, I and other admins, frequently delete such  posts, and sometimes entire threads. I personally saw one thread deleted, well not deleted but hidden actualy, becuase in three or four pages of posts, about half were just attacks and accusation, personal things that were ignoring the topic of the thread. It was a shame, because there were a lot on there that were very insightful responses, even if they did not come to the same conclusions or viewpoint.

I have been trying to pull the weeds in that thread, from time to time, as I get the time and inclination, with a eye toward restoring it. If I ever finish that task, I will likely retore the thread, because I think there was some great information in it, it would be a good resource. However, if I restore it to view, I will probably lock it, because it think it will just rapidly degrade into what it had become before.

If the software here was different, and I had my way, I would have a system, where those who are the problem would find their ability to post, rationed. If a person had, for example, only 10 posts per week that they could make, or a limited number of words etc, perhaps they would be more thoughtful, and use their post quota more wisely.

False doctrine is of course an issue. When someone posts something that is not complient with the terms of service, those posts are often deleted, especially if the person is trying to promote a false view, or convince those without knowledge and discernment to change their view. This is a difficult task for the staff here. We desire to allow people to have and express their thoughts and opinions, but we also want to have this be a place of truth. When and whether to censor, is sometimes something we wrestle with, and which ever way we go, there are always some, who will not like it. Some think we are too restrictive, others think we are nowhere near restrictive enough.

I kind of went off topic here, but thanks for your reply Bopeep!

1. Yes, there are those who think that their false interpretation is the truth. I think that the only way to deal with that issue is to present the true literal interpretation. I do not think that a person needs to argue with that person. They will eventually be held responsible for what they believe. Let god handle that.

2. As to some threads that have good information in them but they have many weeds in them that holds for many things on the internet. I have found some great information but it was littered with foul language because people thing that is cute and funny and it makes what they say more important. Just the way of our world.

3. Thank you for your service on Worthy Omega and all the servers. You are dedicated and I appreciate what you do on a voluntary basis.

[Omegaman 3.0]

4 minutes ago, bopeep1909 said:

Thank you for your service on Worthy Omega and all the servers. You are dedicated and I appreciate what you do on a voluntary basis.

Thank you so much for that bopeep!