there's absolutely nothing wrong with the concept of it being an expression, and like i said, if it is taken literally then the verse is talking about gathering God's people from four different places (each of which is a corner), though clearly the intended meaning is 'from all over the earth'. it's a huge stretch to take that expression literally, no matter what the context. please open your mind to this.

this argument is stupid. it all started with Tiles saying the Catholics had to admit the bible was wrong about something which it turns out the bible doesn't say. you can't argue in favour of the bible's vagueness: if the bible appears vague about the shape of the earth it's because it doesn't matter. the bible is clear on things that do matter.

i'm not a Christian just because of my parents. i'm a Christian because God answers my prayers. i'm a Christian because being a Christian if there's no God is far better than being an atheist if the Christian God is real. i'm a Christian because i see lots of wisdom in God's Word, and my life is good as a direct result of its application to my life.

i'm a Christian because no one has anything to gain by fooling me into believing it, except that i'm a better and happier person. forget the Catholic church -- a distortion of Christianity that makes the 'godly' rich at the expense of lay-people -- and consider biblical Christianity, and no one gets any material gain from making others Christians.

your view of religion as a method of control has to stop when it gets to true Christianity, otherwise you're being closed-minded.

julz