Is reincarnaion real for Christians?

[LindzeeTheLost]

I come from a Christian home, so I have some level of speculation on this, but I'm just curious, can a Christian believe in reincarnation?

I always had the impression that when a Christian dies, he/she goes to Heaven/Paradise...and the opposite for heathens.

However, I've found a few passages that make me question that. Certain ones like in Exodus where God says "visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me," and hearing that "father" and "son" in that passage was being used as a metaphore for past lives...Also things such as Nichodemus with Jesus, asking about being born again...Always thought that just meant being a Christian.

So tell me, is it real? And if so, my deity being Yah-Heh-Vah (Jewish/Christian God) how does it work for those who may have been either saved or unsaved?


Any input is much appreciated

[iamthat]

There are many arguments that reincarnation was originally a part of Christian teachings. Eventually reincarnation was declared anathema at the Council of Constantinople in 553. Bear in mind this was over 500 years after Jesus supposedly died.

The reason for declaring reincarnation anathema was because the doctrine of reincarnation removes the need for the priesthood as the intermediary between the ordinary person and God. If we only have one lifetime to seek salvation then we depend on the priest and the Church. It is all about power and control.

Other Bible passages which may support reincarnation include the Gospel of John 9:1–12: Jesus saw a man who had been blind since birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus replied: Neither this man nor his parents sinned ... but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

If the man might have been born blind because he sinned, then when did this sin take place? It could only be before his current birth.

There are other references which may be open to dispute. We have to remember that the Bible is translations of translations, and I have no idea what the original texts actually said.

Peace

[iamthat]

Originally Posted by LindzeeTheLost

I always had the impression that when a Christian dies, he/she goes to Heaven/Paradise...and the opposite for heathens.

I struggled with this when I was growing up. It always seemed so unfair.

Why would a loving God create a system where the Christian minority went to Heaven while the "heathen" majority went to eternal damnation?

Even in a so-called Christian country, someone born into a family of God-fearing Christians would have an advantage over someone born into a family of atheists.

And why would one person have a life of wealth and privilege while another person has a life of hardship and struggle?

Discovering the doctrine of karma and reincarnation was a huge relief. Suddenly everything became fair, and everyone gets precisely what they deserve.

Peace

[Miss Hepburn]

Other threads here that bring this up-
https://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1646052&postcount=22
and
https://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/s...nation+Bi ble
and
https://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/s...ch ristianity
and
https://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/s...ch ristianity
and
https://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/s...ch ristianity
and
https://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/s...ch ristianity


This is what you get when you use Search above. :)
And I agree with all that iamthat has said.

[Traveler]

Reincarnation happens to everyone regardless of religious beliefs.

[Busby]

Originally Posted by Traveler

Reincarnation happens to everyone regardless of religious beliefs.

I agree: Reincarnation (whatever it may be) has absolutely nothing to do with religion.

[ajay00]

Hi Lindzee,

You might find this article by Ken Wilbur insightful.

https://integrallife.com/death-rebirth-and-meditation/

Some type of reincarnation doctrine is found in virtually every mystical religious tradition the world over. Even Christianity accepted it until around the fourth century CE, when, for largely political reasons, it was made anathema. Many Christian mystics today now accept the idea. As the Christian theologian John Hick pointed out in his important work Death and Eternal Life, the consensus of the world religions, including Christianity, is that some sort of reincarnation occurs.

[Traveler]

Edgar Cayce, the sleeping prophet, was Christian and believed in reincarnation.

[LindzeeTheLost]

Thank you all! I appreciate it...this is something I will further study :)

[kris]

Reincarnation has nothing to do with religion.