Ok, you've triggered me into rant mode so here it comes and if you don't like then blame my for it because, like my faith in Jesus, I'd be DEAD without it. Believe a thing without evidence? Who the HELL do you think became explorers? Everyone, EVERYONE, told them not go further for "there be monsters" beyond those limits or other such bullshit. They called that bluff and said "Well let's just see for ourselves!" The answer was that the world was not flat, that there were things beyond the absolute limits of human vision and that those things were pretty damn awesome (imagine fixing a fried rice dish for a Roman Emperor, or making a Cheeseburger with all the fixin's for a Han Emperor. Trade is the result of that exchange my friend I guaran-fucking-tee it because Ethnicity ain't shit in the face of that TRUE cultural enrichment).
Reason has its place and, believe you me, I practically WORSHIP reason given my decision to take Philosophy as both my major in college and as the thing I'd most identify as my "class" as it were. BUT! If you asked me to discard the concept of "faith" I'd spit in your face. Faith is what carries you through the darkest parts of your life. There is a poem about how a man observed that, despite Jesus standing before him, the darkest parts of his life contained only a single set of footprints. He thought the Savior had abandoned him during those greatest of trials when he felt he was absolutely forsaken by all. The response of Jesus was perfect, "It was during those times that I carried you". Think on that dude, think on that. Reason has its place, but those with faith will succeed where those who worship reason alone will invariably fail.
Just saying, perhaps "faith" confers an evolutionary benefit to those who have it. There must be a reason the most successful civilizations have a "faith" backing them up so to speak. Explain that coincidence will ya?
If you have faith that something is true, you have no motivation to explore. Thomas in the bible doubted the resurrection of Jesus, and was criticized for it, while those who believe without evidence were blessed. That is sheer idiocy: Christians have still not been able to show any evidence that Christ is alive, nevermind that he rose from the dead.
I've heard that footprint story before. I thought it was idiotic, because a person would know full well when they have made footprints or not: the most logical explanation is that Jesus was not there and that he is a liar.
I said before that faith makes you engage in unqualified risks and stops you from asking questions. It is perfectly possible that this behaviour may inadvertently give you less of a disadvantage compared to other societies or species, or at least does not result in an absolutely fatal outcome. However, the truth is clear that less superstitious societies are happier, healthier, wealthier and more peaceful than more superstitious societies.
It's noteworthy that it says to take what you need and not what you want. I would take patience. My life is on a good trajectory, but I wish I had the fruits of all my labors NOW. And that makes me do counterproductive things like doubt whether I am currently working on the right things and think about changing them and sometimes go through with it, which just sets me on a new trajectory, the results of which I have to wait even longer for since I just started it.
My life is also currently just pretty dope, but I always think the future will be better for one reason or another. I'm working on enjoying things as they are.
I could also use more patience for certain people in my life kukuku
If you're going to equate faith in the Christian God with that of being a "superstitious" people than you but play into my view that atheists are a bunch of bitter, hateful, and soulless postmodernists who just can't grasp at the psychological benefits of believing in a higher power. Pro Science my ass you heretics!!!
Seriously, visit a Catholic church. They don't check very hard (sadly) so you could easily trick a priest into giving you the sacrament of communion so long as you don't try to pull that shit during a Tridentine Mass where your lack of knowledge of Latin would betray you as an outsider really fucking quick. Point being, try out Christ. He's not as evil as you've been led to believe by the prince of Lies...
Patience is what I need the most.
Healing would be lovely, but I'm hoping will come eventually, I just gotta be patient, heh.
Peace would probably be my 3rd option. But is more of a want, and seems like an extension of patience. As for World Peace, most people don't want to consider what changes we'd have to make to achieve that.
Regarding the discussion on Faith, even as a child, to me, Faith seemed more like fervent Hope, coupled with Confidence. As in Confidence that one's Hope is true or will come about. I would prefer Knowledge over Faith, any day. At least with Knowledge I would know I wasn't deluding myself...though many people take their delusions as proof of their Knowledge, which takes me back into Doubt. IMO, Doubt can be a really good thing, even if it can often get in one's way. Doubt plus Hope leads to exploring & experimenting, which leads to Knowledge. And so the cycle continues, evolving one's understanding rather than being complacent in Faith.
Edited to add: I just learned that Faith as defined also includes Loyalty.
Last edited by anndelise; 08-31-2017 at 01:47 PM.
IEE 649 sx/sp cp
Religious faith is superstition.
I think you are limiting the power of nature.
I find the Christ of the bible to have preached one of the most evil ideologies to have ever existed. Torturing people for eternity in the fire of hell for refusing to follow him is clearly evil to me.
If you want more of a dissertation on hellfire, read the Qu'ran and Hadiths. Also, here's a little heads up for those who think Muslims worship the same god:
Unlike in Christianity, where the dead will be judged by Christ at the end of the world, sinners according to Islam will go to hell directly after they die.
Also unlike in Christianity, Islam teaches that we are all born Muslims. Thus all those who do not believe have already "sinned in their hearts" against Allah.
...And yet we find that pretty much every ideology that ever made any significant impact on the modern world basically did just that. The most biting irony, for me, is that the one ideology that outright rejects the concept of "religion" is also the most blood soaked ideology by a very long shot especially given how shortly it has been on the stage of history all things considered!!! Socialism/Communism folks, the crusades, jihads, and holocausts ain't got shit on those fucking commies who torched the Christian God with a glee not even the most ardent of Spanish Inquisitors could muster upon discovering a heretic in some Podunk village.
If the death toll is in total worse for the "older" ideologies/religions then I say give the newer one's some time. I mean, it's hard to compete against ideologies millennia old if only given but a mere century or two to one up them. Just putting that out there. Put the numbers through a time axis and you'll see that the "godless" ideologies pile on the innocent bodies far faster than the godly ones could even dream of. Food for thought...
I do mean that by the way. Try out a Christian non-Mega church. I especially recommend a Catholic one as, well, subconsciously they will tend to agree with me as that is where I go every Sunday no matter what. Deep down, they know the post Vatican II mass is a sham, that there was something more "Catholic" to it in our past. Something that truly could be exported all around the world, something that truly could bring all of humanity together. As I said, back in the day you could pluck a priest from one diocese and plant him in another and NOBODY would skip a beat. The "Mass" was truly universal, whether you lived in Tokyo or Berlin or even some forsaken wasteland. If you were Catholic, and you ran into a priest, you'd be able to communicate.
Ah, but I ramble on. Point is, give Jesus a try. He truly is the only way we can stop the coming race wars that no rational person with an IQ north of 100 desires...
Both Judeo-Christianity and Islam seem to think that their gods created people the way they are (e.g. like flawed pots in the hands of a potter, or via sealing the hearts of individuals so that they believe or disbelieve).
At least with Christianity, it acknowledges itself as a sect of Judaism: Islam attempts to act as though it is the the true and original faith, with Judaism and Christianity being corruption. Of course there is zero evidence of this.
Actual, the 20th century was the most peaceful century in history per capita in terms of the number of people dying in wars or being murdered. Communism in all its incarnations was essentially the state religion, with the state and/or its leader being treated as some superhuman entity that could not be questioned. Stalin actually had to discourage the cult that developed around him, and if you note in North Korea, their leaders are very much given titles that you'd expect of gods, not mortals.
Being opposed to superstition in public life does not make you a murderer of religious people.
All of the others come from strength, so that is the obvious answer.
CETERUM AUTEM CENSEO WASHINGTON D.C. ESSE DELENDAM
Interpreting it as being what I want and need both, I'd be tempted to choose freedom, but I would give that up for love.
I agree with the off topic posts be moved but the doctrine of EVERY Christian is a priest is something that was true in the earliest days only. When the faith was just starting out growth and expansion mattered more than doctrinal discipline and consistency (if you ever wondered why so many "pagan" practices became par for the course wonder no longer). You can see a modern day equivalent in the "Chabad" Jewish movement. Discipline later, growth now, convert em' all ASAP *then* sort it all out. Call me an anti-Semite all you want but I actually see them Chabad types as doing it right. Grow the movement first and foremost, *then* discipline it once it becomes an actually viable socioeconomic force that nobody can really put down forcefully without very bad optics happening. Perception>Reality folks.
I choose peace. If I just have peace of mind, I know I can endure any possible difficulty in life.
LII-Ne with strong EII tendencies, 6w7-9w1-3w4 so/sp/sx, INxP