God, Brain & Belief.

Blueblades

I just finished reading these two books this week. GOD by Alexander Waugh. This one was an eye - opener, I found it to be different from other books about God. Brain and Belief by John J. McGraw left me feeling depressed. He thorougly investigates the concept of the soul and the brain and mankinds obsession with life, death, and the afterlife. His conclusions are hard to accept.

However, There have only been two books in the many that I have read that have left me depressed Brain & Belief and The Denial of Death. All others have giving me hope that there is life after death.

Have you read these books, what are your thoughts. Also, which books have you read lately that have cheered you up and or made you sad? Thanks for your responses.

Blueblades

nicolaou

Like many others here I've recently finished 'The God Delusion'. I found it to be both uplifting and inspiring although in places Dawkins does show up some nasty and depressing human behaviour so I guess it's a bit of a mixed bag.

I'm currently re-reading Carl Sagans' 'Demon Haunted World'. Now that is a good positive read. Last year, for pure fantasy and good fun I read Phillip Pulmans 'His Dark Materials' trilogy. WOW! It's being made into a movie(s) I believe.

jaguarbass

I don't like books that make me depressed, life does a pretty good job of that, I am always trying to circumvent depression. Dont let em grind you down.

Some books that didn't leave me depressed but at the same time don't address where we will spend eternity, "The Tao of Willie" if your a Willie Nelson fan. "Hells Angels" by Sonny Barger Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon. "The sex LIves of Cannibals adrift in the equatorial Pacific" J. Maarten Troost. Those are all kind of light reading feel good books. Then if you want to conteplate your place in the world with a different twist than the JW's check out the Children of the Matrix, by David Icke. His books are expenseive 20-30$ they may leave you mad upset or confused so you might want to pick it up at the library. But some of his books are on my shelfs.

So tell me what books you recomend to make me feel good. I like a shot of seratonin as often as I can find one.

Terry

Here is what I find depressing. The unwillingness to stray outside one's own comfort zone.

Right.

Here is why this is simply awful.

What are the chances you were born into the best of all possible families?

What are the chances you were only told true things as you grew up and had only the best role models?

What are the chances your neighborhood, school, world view are spot on the pinnicale of humanity?

Very slim, is the answer. If you are honest.

In view of the above....

Your natural comfort zone is tuned (fine-tuned) to what you already know. You aren't likely to want to embrace anything that challenges your beliefs, practices, sense of ethics and view of the universe.

Therefore?

Therefore in avoiding things which challenge you it is guaranteed you'll collide with reality fairly late in life and won't know why.

The sooner you challenge yourself and are willing to "depress" yourself by facing things as they really are--the sooner you have the opportunity to serve your life better by making ADJUSTMENTS.

My smack in the head came with my disfellowshipping. It was a dash of cold water. But, even then--I lingered in the afterglow of my religious programming for decades!

I try to force myself to read things and listen to things I have absolutely NO INTEREST in. Why? So, I can grow intellectually and as a person.

I will deliberately tune the radio to music I can't stand. I watch programs that don't interest me. I take a subject (or person) and read about them this way: I take a book FOR and a book AGAINST and read both.

In other words, only by S--T--R--E--T--C--H--ing myself can I possibly grow outside the very very small world I live in.

You can't stay in a comfort zone like a petunia in a pot of soil and live a full life of opportunity.

You have to let people get up in your face and scream "YOU'RE WRONG" at you. You have to give an accounting for why your dinosaur feet are stuck in the tar.

We only have this one brief life. It is too short and too precious to waste on delusional comfort by basking in the warm glow of utter fantasy and ignorance.

The older I get the more I realize how chock full o' shit I am!

sspo

Combatting Cult Mind Control by Steven Hassan

Almost thru with it.

Making me realize what i was involved in for 30 years fits the description of a Cult.

A good friend of mine that was baptized in 75 left after 2 years after seeing the hypocrisy.

I should have left with him but i thought i was smarter than him and wasted 30 years.

tall penguin

Well said Terry!

As for books I've enjoyed lately:

Don't Believe Everything You Think by Thomas Kida (If you want something to stretch your brain out of its comfort zone, this will help.)

The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho (An adult fairy tale journey with some spiritual lessons.)

A Cook's Tour by Anthony Bourdain (A round the world adventure in culinary delights and freaky-ass foods as well. Good fun.)

tall penguin

Blueblades

Nic. I read those two books also, God Delusion, Demon Haunted World, Thanks for responding.

Jag. The Road Less Traveled and Beyond, M. Scott Peck,M.D. is a feel good book. Life is good, Life is complete, There are no easy answers. In this book we are led to a deeper awareness of how to live rich, fulfilling lives in a world fraught with stress and anxiety.

Terry, I have strayed outside my comfort zone since having left the Watchtower society some four years ago. This after being stuck in my comfort zone for 33 years. It wasn't easy to do. Some time back I posted a topic "Two Camps" I believe you responded to that one, I haven't checked. But, the thought is that there will always be more than one camp, on any given subject in all fields of endeavors.

This is good, it makes us think, I read subjects for and against, what is this person saying and concluding. I myself am not there yet as to fully accepting everything that I read. I do what you do so that I too can learn and stretch as you put it.

As you so honestly noted, the older I get, 62 yrs now, the more I know, the more I know that I don't know. Who of us really knows what the end result of life actually comes to. Is there a God, is there life after death, were we created, did we evolve? I don't know. I do know that there is more than one camp out there that believe that they alone have the answers.

To me it is all hearsay and hand me downs with two exceptions,one personal experience and two, proofs from science.

I hope all is well with your daughter.

Blueblades

Narkissos

I haven't read those books, they sound interesting.

Terry,

What if the quest for "truth" -- or actually the quest for being right -- turned out to be the vainest of all?

Looking back, I can say that I was never a believer in self-inflicted intellectual violence.

I let the beliefs slip off my mind at their own pace.

Some books/authors I postponed reading when they made me uneasy. However I knew I had a sort of "appointment" with them and I eventually came to them when I was ready.

I don't regret that. I am this path.

tall penguin

"self-inflicted intellectual violence"

Yes, it does feel that way sometimes. Beginning to wonder if it's worth holding on to any beliefs at all. Who would we be without beliefs?

tall penguin

fifi40

Hmmmmmmmm.............Terry

Now you know that I am fond of you - that is without debate - you are one of the more challenging posters on this site but i just cant agree with some of the things you said, but I am not going to SCREAM about it..........

Firstly, you say in view of our comfort zone "You arent likely to want to embrace anything that challenges your beliefs, practices, sense of ethics and view of the universe". Is that not a little off kilter in light of the fact that many of us, myself included were born and raised Jehovah's Witnesses and a such were subjected to a rigid set of beliefs that gave great hope and comfort to many. During my years in the Jehovahs Witness I lost my first son aged 2 days, and for a while took great solace in the resurrection hope. This did not stop me challenging those installed beliefs at a later time, questioning so called 'truths' I had been raised on. And I did this without the aid of a computer, apostate literature or hours of reading alternative theories. I did it because despite the comfortable situation I had built myself in life, good friends, my family, a community and a huge crutch to help me through any times of trouble it didnt sit right with me. It wasnt enough if this is my only chance at life.

But if this is our only life then why not spend time enjoying it. None of us are ever going to know all there is to know, none of us can read every book ever written or consider every possible avenue of thought out there. At some point we have to come home, lay our head on the pillow and rest with some contentment. We can never be right all the time, we change every day as does the world around us but on this short journey, surely, we should take our opportunities as they arise and then again sometimes bask in a little comfort and happiness.

Fifi

God, Brain & Belief.

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