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 Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 11:27am On Jun 02, 2018 |
IT'S NOT FAIR--STOP MOCKING US! A theist recently complained that I mock religious views. She said, "You're entitled to your beliefs but I find it strange that if you don't want people mocking yours that you spent so much time mocking other people." Here is my reply: I would be delighted if you would mock my beliefs. Have a ball! We need more fun in the world. People taking their beliefs too seriously leads to much tragedy and sadness. Just one thing though--make sure you know what I believe before you start mocking. I rarely talk about my beliefs and not believing in a god is not a belief (the clue is in the words--not believing). So I'll give you one of my beliefs to start you off. I believe electric, self-driving cars will become ubiquitous over the next 25 years or so. They will make our roads safer, reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and spawn whole new industries (as well as shaking up old ones). Now, I'll sit back and await your mockery. Problem is, this belief is just not as funny as believing a Jewish Rabbi who died 2,000 years ago will soon come back to life. Or believing there's an invisible man who wants all men to cut off their foreskins and watches everyone take a shit. 7 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:26am On Jun 01, 2018 |
WHAT ATHEISTS KNOW THAT BELIEVERS DON'T If you are a lifelong god-believer, be aware that atheists know some things you don't know. In fact, they know a lot of things you don't know. They know what it is like to: - not believe in God. - not believe in Satan (or angels, demons or witches). - not believe they are being watched 24/7. - not ever worry about what happens after they die. - not to be forced to make excuses for an Iron Age god with Iron Age morals. - never be compelled to rely on faith to believe things that are otherwise ridiculous. - never feel guilty for doing harmless things that are outlawed by an out-of-date god. - feel no need to reject, avoid or hate certain people because God said we should. - take full responsibility for their actions without blaming Satan or demons. Let's not forget one more thing. Most atheists I know were once deeply religious, so they also know how it feels to be like you. And they know which they prefer. 7 Likes |
| Sports › Re: "The Super Eagles Thread: The Road To AFCON 2027, 2028 And 2030 World Cup by joseph1013: 3:40pm On May 27, 2018 |
Joebie:  The thing with this kind of news is that it cannot catch up to the excitement that the fake news generated. 2 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 3:03pm On May 27, 2018 |
ATHEISTS BELIEVE IN NOTHING! Why do religious people so often think atheists believe in nothing and stand for nothing? They could not be more wrong. I stand for believing only things that are true. I stand for equal rights, equal opportunities and non-discrimination on grounds of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, age, disability and more. I believe in treating my fellow humans with respect and preserving their dignity. I like to help people where I reasonably can and I dislike harming people. I even try hard to avoid inconveniencing people--so you won't find me playing loud music that disturbs my neighbours or pushing to the front of queues. But you will see me stopping in my car to let other cars pass when traffic is heavy. I believe it is important to be tolerant of differences in lifestyles, dress codes and so on, so long as no-one is being harmed. I believe we should take care of the planet and pass it on to our children in the best possible and sustainable condition. Rather than dominion over animals as the Bible teaches, I believe we have a duty of care for animals. I stand for rational enquiry and an evidence-based approach to medicine, education and government policy-making--in fact for everything. I could go on... Rather than standing for nothing, I may stand for more than most religious people. All atheists are different but, I think many of them share my values. I wish more religious people did. 10 Likes 2 Shares |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 6:57am On May 25, 2018 |
ONLY ONE REASON PEOPLE BELIEVE IN GOD How many reasons are there why people believe in God? Actually, only one. People believe because someone told them God is real. That's it. Everything else is saving face. 3 Likes 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:17am On May 24, 2018 |
CHRISTIANS, HOW MANY GODS ARE THERE? Psalm 82 is an enigma for Christians. It describes God admonishing a council of gods. Yes, a COUNCIL of GODS! Most Christians believe there is only one god, albeit morphed into a three-headed monster, but the Bible says differently. The Bible refers to over 40 gods by name. Examples are Asherah, Baal and Moloch. God reiterates several times that people should reject other gods and worship only him--it is even the very first of God's Ten Commandments. In the early parts of the Old Testament God sometimes uses the collective pronoun "we", is this a figure of speech or is he referring to himself and the other gods? The Hebrews were heavily influenced by the Canaanite pantheon of gods, indeed some scholars argue Yahweh was modeled on the Canaanite god El, so it would not be surprising to find they accepted the existence of many gods. Here's the psalm so you can make up your own mind. 1 God stands among the divine council; He renders judgment among the gods. 2 “How long will you all judge unjustly and accept partiality of the wicked? Selah 3 Defend the poor and fatherless; vindicate the afflicted and needy. 4 Grant escape to the abused and the destitute, pluck them out of the hand of the false. 5 “They have neither knowledge nor understanding; they walk in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are shaken.” 6 I have said, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you, 7 but you all shall die like men, and fall like a man, O princes.” 8 Arise, O God, judge the earth, for You shall inherit all nations. 1 Like |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:44am On May 23, 2018 |
From Quora: What's a popular belief you'll never understand? . Answer by John Ottenhoff: Religion. I just don’t get. I tried. I read about many religions, their mythology, and their beliefs. I attended many different kind of churches. I discussed theology with religious scholars. I requested to examine the scientific evidence. No matter what I did, I was disappointed to find there was not one logical reason that points to any religion being more true than any other religion. That is to say, at their core, their credibility is all equally zero. I understand meeting people and singing songs with them can be a fun social activity. I understand people have warm family memories centered around the church and it’s activities. I understand people are inspired and uplifted by the stories when facing dark times in their lives. It’s the belief in the supernatural that mystifies me. Here we have otherwise normal, intelligent, reasonable people, that without any evidence, in defiance of the laws of physics, and contrary to reason, will believe in incredible flights of fancy involving supernatural beings and acts of magic. They believe that supernatural creatures are watching them and doing things for them. They have rituals where they implore the beings to act on their behalf. They have to do strange things or not do ordinary things to appease the beings. These same people will scoff at stories of Bigfoot, readily dismiss Zeus and his crew as primitive explanation for natural phenomena, know Santa Claus only exists as an idea, enjoy fairy tales as just stories for children, see religions from other cultures as bizarre and silly, and insist their religion is obvious and self-evident. To me, it only makes sense as a kind of Stockholm Syndrome. It’s like all those warm feelings and good memories they have are being held hostage by the religion. It seems as if religious people feel they have to accept all these fantastic invisible characters and miracles as real or they lose all those other things associated with it—community, family, memories, camaraderie, comfort and so on. I never felt that way myself. It is a complete mystery to me how to explain it any other way. Every religion I have seen just seems like a collection of quaint little rituals that should not be taken literally. Like seeing if the groundhog sees his shadow. Imagine finding out there are people who really believe that and make huge buildings, fight over nuances in lore, and spend the majority of their lives venerating Punxsutawney Phil. It feels like that. 6 Likes 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:01am On May 23, 2018 |
ISAAC NEWTON WAS A CHRISTIAN Isaac Newton was one of the greatest scientists in history. He is best known for his mathematical description of gravity and its application to our solar system. This work fundamentally changed our view of the universe and laid the theoretical foundations for space travel a couple of hundred years after his death. Newton's long list of achievements include seminal work on optics, classical mechanics and the invention of calculus. And he completed much of his fundamental thinking on these topics before he turned 25! Newton's brilliance is not lost on Christians--they regularly turn up to remind me that Newton was a Christian. They ask, if Newton thought Christianity was true, who are you to doubt it? Ignoring the appeal to authority fallacy, I'm not sure these Christians have really thought this through...Newton was so brilliant that he developed his most enduring scientific ideas in a few years but he spent most of his life working on two other projects. He was convinced God had hidden codes in the Bible that would reveal important truths to mankind and he was determined to find them. He also spent a huge amount of time on alchemy--attempting to turn base metals into gold. Despite Newton's brilliance, he was unsuccessful with either project. This makes Newton a two-edged sword for Christians. This extraordinary genius failed to find any deep truths in Christianity and he laboured for years on a chemistry project that was doomed to fail. If Newton illustrates anything for Christians, it's how difficult it is to find any deep truths in Christianity! 3 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:18pm On May 21, 2018 |
ATHEISTS, TAKE OFF YOUR BLINDERS! Stupid atheists. They deny the existence of God in the face of overwhelming evidence. How could tides come in and go out without God? Do you really think billions of tonnes of water could just "decide" to move a few dozen metres daily and in a perfect rhythm all on its own? What about earthquakes? Do buildings have a meeting and agree to start shaking at an exact time? No, these things require INTELLIGENCE and there is only one intelligence with the power to make such things happen--Guru Maharaji himself of course! __________ PS: If you think this argument is ridiculous, it is. But it is identical in form to the most common argument offered by god-believers--creation of the universe and human beings required intelligence, therefore an intelligent god must exist (whichever god you happen to believe in). The difference is we have now have natural explanations for earthquakes and tides but we have yet to explain the origins of the universe and abiogenesis. 1 Like 1 Share |
| Sports › Re: "The Super Eagles Thread: The Road To AFCON 2027, 2028 And 2030 World Cup by joseph1013: 10:49am On May 18, 2018 |
Icon4s:We were clinical. One would think that with a 3 nil scoreline we outclassed them, but that's not true. They pressed us, and having someone like Rufai really gave confidence to the defenders. I love that we took our chances. Great throwback. 2 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:12am On May 18, 2018*. Modified: 8:14pm On May 21, 2018 |
RIDICULOUSNESS OF HINDUISM Religions seem to thrive on the most ridiculous beliefs. Christians and Muslims believe in life after death. With zero evidence that this is true and plenty of evidence that brain death is final and permanent, this can be fairly counted as ridiculous. But don't forget Hindus. Those who believe in reincarnation go one step further, they believe in life before birth! Damn. 1 Like 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 6:24pm On May 17, 2018 |
YOU AND REALITY If you hold beliefs about reality based on chance (your family and where you were born) remember there are INFINITELY more ways to be wrong about reality than there are to be right. And that makes chance a HOPELESSLY unreliable guide. Fortunately, there are MUCH better ways than chance to distinguish truth from fantasy. But they won't help you at all--until you decide to use them. |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 12:11pm On May 16, 2018 |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 12:11pm On May 16, 2018 |
WHAT DO THESE PEOPLE HAVE IN COMMON? Noah Job Isaac Jacob Joshua Samuel David Solomon Isaiah Pat Robertson Harold Camping Ken Ham Ray Comfort ANSWER: They have claimed God has spoken to them directly. Think about it. 1 Like |
| Sports › Re: "The Super Eagles Thread: The Road To AFCON 2027, 2028 And 2030 World Cup by joseph1013: 9:08am On May 15, 2018 |
TheSuperNerd: I'm well. Crazy schedule this year. But I'm always following proceedings. |
| Sports › Re: "The Super Eagles Thread: The Road To AFCON 2027, 2028 And 2030 World Cup by joseph1013: 8:32pm On May 14, 2018 |
TheSuperNerd:I feel very bad for Onyekuru. |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:43pm On Apr 30, 2018 |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:42pm On Apr 30, 2018 |
2 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:41pm On Apr 30, 2018 |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:41pm On Apr 30, 2018 |
1 Like |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:34pm On Apr 30, 2018 |
The Top Five Misconceptions About Evolution https://www.sciencealert.com/images/tumblr_n0awyfqTad1r7866ao5_1280.jpg |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 5:17pm On Apr 29, 2018 |
Nwobodo Chukwuemeka I think it says a lot about Christian psychology that a large number are upset rather than relieved by (what has now been confirmed as fake news) that the Pope said that there's no Hell. Like the integrity of their religion depends on the illusion of punishment for those who do not adhere to its tenets. How else will they scare you into conformity without the allusions of torment in hell? I worry that there's a literal schadenfreude at the thought that an "unbeliever" is going to burn for eternity simply because he doesn't conform to the same set of tales they do. "Let me speak some words so that it appears that I'm trying to save him. If I don't succeed and he burns forever, at least I tried." But ask yourself. What kind of person would be content sitting in comfort while someone they loved, a mother, father, child etc was in constant pain. How many can bear the thought on Earth? A child with terminal cancer for 2 years? A parent's slow and painful degradation due to old age. The Hell in Christian literature is eternal though. Why does it not bother these people then? How do the Jews even keep their followers in Judaism without the concept of hell? And if Judaism is Christianity's precursor religion, does that mean that somewhere in between the religions, someone was like "man, if you want this thing to sell, you've gotta make people afraid. Tell them they'll burn forever if they don't believe you"... Cos if it was, it's a killer campaign... Literally! 4 Likes 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 10:37am On Apr 28, 2018 |
IF GOD WAS REAL, ATHEISTS WOULD NEED APOLOGISTS If God was real, we wouldn't need apologists to explain why it is so difficult to find God or why a loving God planned so much pain and suffering for us. We wouldn't need apologists to explain why different people see God so differently and scripture would not need hermeneutics to make sense. If God was real, it would be SO OBVIOUS that biologists would need apologists to explain why all the evidence points to creation; atheists would need apologists to explain why the godly enjoy long lives and abundant benefits whilst non-believers get nothing. Atheists would need apologists to explain how we have learned so much about the universe from a book written thousands of years ago. But it is not like that. All the evidence falsifies creation. Human apologists are needed to defend almighty God because he cannot defend himself and scripture looks exactly what it is--the musings of superstitious Iron Age folk. If you believe in God, nothing makes sense without invoking magic. If you don't believe, everything makes sense and no magic is required. You need magic to believe lies but not to find reality. 2 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 12:55pm On Apr 27, 2018 |
IF GOD WAS REAL... If God was real, could answer prayers and cared about human well-being, nothing would be impossible. There would be no incurable illnesses and congenital defects would be reversible. Amputees could be restored. Droughts and famines, earthquake, tornadoes, tsunamis and volcanoes could be stopped before anyone died. Locust swarms could be diverted from vital crops. Defective airplanes could crash-land without harming people and African football teams would win every world cup. If God answered prayers, even death itself would be reversible. In fact, none of these things happen. So God is not real, or can't answer prayers or doesn't wish to. But the Bible promises he WILL answer prayers and assures us that he has incalculable LOVE for us. So that only leaves one option, God is not real--he's just a character in a story. 6 Likes 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:09am On Apr 26, 2018 |
HUMAN SACRIFICE Human and animal sacrifice were once common features of religious ceremonies and were widespread around the globe. Human sacrificial offering has almost entirely died out during the past three thousand years (although ceremonial slaughter of animals is still practised by some religions). One religion, though not calling for human sacrifice, continues to glorify it to this day. That religion is Christianity. |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 8:25am On Apr 24, 2018 |
WHY MUSLIMS, WHY? When Muslims emigrate from an Islamic country of birth, why do they choose to go to a country that will constantly offend them? Why go to a country that allows women to dress as they please, or protects the rights of gay people by law, or allows alcohol and pork to be sold everywhere? Why go to countries where the people laugh at religions but love dogs and keep them as treasured pets? Why go to countries where hitting your wife or forcing her to have sex are criminal offences and where women are given the same rights as men? There are many Islamic countries a Muslim family could emigrate to where they would feel comfortable with the culture. But very, very few Muslims choose Islamic countries. Why? PS Obviously, here I am thinking about Muslims who freely chose to emigrate--not to refugees who relocate under duress. 5 Likes 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 3:22pm On Apr 22, 2018 |
GOD DID THIS AND GOD DID THAT Billions of people believe in God because they believe God did something. That something may have been as extraordinary as creating the universe from nothing; as complex as creating humans; as caring as healing a sick child, or as helpful as finding a parking space in a crowded lot. But did these people SEE God do these things? Did God explain HOW he did what he did? Were there any witnesses? Did God leave any evidence that unequivocally tied him to these acts? Of course, the answer to all these questions is always the same. It is always NO. There is never anything at all that links God to the event. Even if you prayed for something to happen and it happened, that does not mean God made it happen-- there are always other possible explanations. Even if you can't think of an explanation, there may be an explanation that you are unaware of. So when you think God did something, you have only an hypothesis, and no sensible person believes an hypothesis until it is shown to be true. But that hypothesis has never, ever been shown to be true, which is why I don't believe God did anything at all. And neither should you. 4 Likes 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 2:45pm On Apr 22, 2018 |
ramonchang:First of all, the earth is 4.5 billions years old. That, my friend, is a very long time ago. That is enough time for new species to be created. Just yesterday, I read that the diving for food has led the Bajau to evolve special characteristics, according to researchers. I am of the school of thought that life is complex and we've not learnt all that can be learnt about, but I also think that for now, evolution has provided us with enough evidence to strongly consider. 1 Like |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 5:48pm On Apr 15, 2018 |
STRANGER THAN WE CAN YET IMAGINE If we assume for a moment that there is only one universe and the universe is everything that exists, there are two possibilities; either 1) everything has always existed or 2) everything came to exist from nothing. Both options are extraordinary and hard to believe. How could everything never begin to exist? I have no clue. How could nothing exist and become everything? I have no clue. People sometimes say the Big Bang means the universe began to exist but that is not necessarily true. It is only true that the universe, as we understand it today, began to exist. What existed prior to the start of the Big Bang science cannot yet tell us. So we cannot be sure the Big Bang was a creation event--it might have been only a transformation event. But, perhaps there is a third option. Perhaps the universe does not exist and never has. Perhaps the universe is not really particles and forces but is information. Think of it as equations. If we have nothing, we could equally say we have -100% and +100% and we still have nothing. If we are part of the positive 100% it would appear that things exist but everything we perceive; particles, mass, motion and so on could just be an interpretation of complex equations. This idea is bizarre but think about artificial intelligence. Soon our cars will be driven by computers. These computers receive electrical inputs and convert them into equations and the equations represent roads, vehicles, pedestrians, velocities and so on. The only thing that exists inside these computers is information, yet it is capable of creating a world so real, you will trust it with your life. Maybe the entire universe, works in a similar way? A handful of physicists, such as Seth Lloyd at MIT, are taking the idea seriously, so maybe in five or ten years we'll know if it has any merit. In the meantime, my advice is to keep your mind open. The nature of reality and the origins of the universe will not just be strange, they will likely be stranger than we can yet imagine. 1 Like |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:10am On Apr 13, 2018 |
GOD AND LOVE You have known Jesus for years, felt his closeness and love, asked for advice and received it, asked for favours and received them, and you truly felt he was the only person in the world you could completely depend upon. Perhaps there have been times when you have loved Jesus more than you love yourself. After all that, it must be very hard when you realise all those feelings were only feelings--nothing more. Your brain gave you what you wanted and, if you had been born in Mumbai, your brain would have given you the very same feelings but focused on a different hero, perhaps Vishnu or another god or goddess. In this human love affair with gods, gods are not the constants, our deceptive and needy brains are the constants. Gods change with time and place. Human brains remain the same. 2 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:05am On Apr 13, 2018 |
ramonchang:Well...virgins are boring. You want to enjoy mind-blowing s3x from your arrival at Jannah Firdaus. I would say your best bet at fun is Jahannam (Hell in Arabic). The best of the best people will be there, from all works of life. If it's s3x you want, you will have it unhindered. And there won't be STDs. What can be more fun? |
| Christianity Etc › Re: My Thoughts And Questions About Religion by joseph1013(op): 7:22am On Apr 09, 2018 |
HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR EVIDENCE? When the experts say the universe as we know it had a beginning, theists happily agree and say, "Science proves there must be god to start everything!" When experts say life evolved gradually over several billion years, theists angrily disagree and say, "It's a conspiracy", "There is no evidence" or "My granddaddy was no ape." The funny thing is, there is pretty good evidence for the Big Bang event but there is much, much more evidence for evolution. So how do theists like their evidence? They like it when it supports their delusions. But not when it doesn't. 3 Likes |
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