Do you suffer from RELIGIOUS HYPOCHONDRIA???

by Terry 57 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  wherehasmyhairgone

  First off Terry I agree with you 100%, secondly what i am about to say is a comment about myself not a comment about you or anyone else.

  When i was a JW there was a saying that you should lock up the new JW for the first 18 months as they are bubbling. I think the same could be said about me when I first came to realise how hard religion and belief falls down if you put its claims to the test. I say how much damage was being done to people in general. The so-called benefit of religion are null.

  That being said, when i stated to confront those who challenge why i believed that why my retort to them which was like pulling the rug out from underneath them was never met with open arms. There are so many way to approach this subject, by showing the damaging effects of religion, the paradox of God or gods, the evil within the OT. But when you pull something that has support people most of their lives , i dont think their is a way to gently hint to them, As much as I wince sometimes at the likes of Dawkins and hitchings, at least they cause debate, they almost force people to confront and prove the reason for their belief, which they are never able to do.

  Arrogance is when you you believe something to which their is no evidence and criticizing someone for saying you are wrong. Maybe somewhere in future some evidence will surface to suggest a god, but until then, should be be accomadting for those that believe? well i guess the believers who think we should should ask themselves this question:

  How much time would i give someone on this board who believed that fairies exist, or better yet believed they are the messiah, whatever your reply, bear in mind the evidence for either of these things is no less than that of a god existing.

  Anyone that think Terry position is arrogant, please take time to read the following books

  Death by black holes & Origins byNeil degrasse Tyson

  god is not great by Christopher Hitchings

  The bible.

  If after reading those you still think of a single Christian god, come back and tell me .please.

  Religion is an illusion of a social crutch, but anyone knows that saocial link is a false one, any ex-jw knows friendship only extends while you agree with them.

  Sorry for the verbal diarrhea

  Steve
• 

  Anti-Christ

  Until science can answer the big question "what happens after death" it is a theory in progress. History has proven that early theories aren't well accepted by the masses, regardless of how hard you bludgeon the potential converts over the head.
  
  The question that will be lobbed at you from the other side of the fence is, "if there is no God, what is the purpose of life?"

  Science is the study of the physical world, life after death is outside of the physical world so I believe that science could never answer that question and for the purpose of life, I believe each person is responsible for answering that for them self and find a purpose that fits them instead of a powerful money making religion telling them what they should believe in.
• 

  startingover

  What a great thread to start the day with. Obviously some toes got stepped on, but the voices of reason were there immediately.

  I hadn't thought about the "bubbly new JW's" and locking them up for a while. That really does describe how I was when I figured out I had been scammed. It's now clear why I got the reaction I got when I tried the pull the rug.
• 

  wherehasmyhairgone

  life after death is outside of the physical world

  Says who?, this is a religious statement, which is unprovable in any means, as we live in a material universe. Science can actually answer this question easily, there is NO evidence for life after death, nothing has been observed or recording showing anything leaves the body at death.

  If one wanted to maintain this statement then you have to also consider that on death, the person is re-born into a another body, or insect, that the persons so-called spirit turns into marshmallows.

  Also i would suggest that even non-direct evidence could be made available to use in our material universe, why has no one ever come back from the dead to talk to us? and tell us what is like. simplest answer is their is no life after death, or to put it another way, life after death is about as likely as marshmallows being made from the spirits of dead people.

  I think science can and does aanswer the purpose of life.

  regards

  steve
• 

  Who are you?

  Healthy people don't go to a doctor. If they do they are hypochondriacs. Hypochondriacs spend their time and money on imagined illnesses. They seek out physicians who will take their money and treat them even though there is no ailment to be cured!

  There are plenty of unbalanced individuals that refuse to go and see a doctor, because they believe that they are healthy and that they essentially know more than the doctor. These individuals may feel that they have all the answers and lead an extraordinarily balanced life, when to the outside world, they appear just the opposite.
• 

  Twitch

  When people jump at the chance to feel insulted FIRST before even considering whether something has merit it is usually because a cherished belief has been punctured and EMOTION wins the race over rational consideration.

  What I'm saying is really simple.

  If somebody convinces you there is something wrong with you and says they can fix it--it puts them in a nice position to milk you of resources.

  Look at the cosmetic industry. Make-up is sold by the billions of dollars because consumers are taught they are ugly without it and have to "make-up" for their deficiencies.

  So, instead of wincing at my "arrogance" why not demonstrate how I'm wrong by setting forth a well-reasoned argument?

  Is it just easier to call somebody a name and then dismiss them?

  Isn't that more like what JW's do?

  JW's won't debate ideas anymore. They shut their minds, call names and slink off to the Kingdom Hall.

  This is a Discussion Board. It is for Discussion and not dismissal and ad hominem.

  Actually, I agree with much of what you say in your argument so it doesn't have anything to do with my beliefs being challenged and emotions taking over.

  I see an atheist trying to convince the theists that something is wrong with them and this is why, etc. Of course, you have nothing to gain by it so I guess that makes it ok. Seems like it's more your trip than theirs though.

  I wear cologne coz I like it and some women might like that I do; I don't feel like I need it or that I'm less of a person for not wearing it. I hazard a guess that there are plenty of women who wear makeup and don't think they're ugly without it. As for mass marketing, how do you suppose a cosmetics company should advertise their products then?

  Yea, my comment was somewhat inflammatory. No worse than calling ppl who are happy with what they believe deluded which is the underlying sense I get from these kind of threads. Those that aren't happy with it will likely agree with you. And if your efforts help them, kudos to you for it. But it seems like preaching to the converted.

  I dismiss you, you dismiss religionists/theists, etc. Or perhaps I'm wrong there. Perhaps you would accept and respect the beliefs of others even if you don't agree with it or if they can't prove the validity of it. What does it matter really? Personally, I don't care what your beliefs are or what you think of mine and I don't have to justify them to you or anyone. But it is a discussion board of a "religious" nature and I made the comment without an argument, at the risk of being unpopular and getting intellectually pummelled into the ground, lol. So pummel away.

  I realize my comment was derogatory towards you so I will apologize for that. It is a passionate subject to be sure. We all have our own journeys to make. Peace isn't measured by how you get along with people who agree with you but by how you treat those that don't, no?
• 

  Mum

  All of us have our insecurities, prejudices, unfilled needs and other problems. If someone comes along and claims to have a solution, sometimes we fall for it.

  It seems to me that many who post here think religion is the big evil. As far as I'm concerned, human nature being what it is, some charlatan will come along and prey on those with problems in any case. If they don't do it in the name of religion, it will be politics, pseudo science or medicine or something else.

  Regards,

  SandraC
• 

  Terry

  Twitch:

  I dismiss you, you dismiss religionists/theists, etc. Or perhaps I'm wrong there. Perhaps you would accept and respect the beliefs of others even if you don't agree with it or if they can't prove the validity of it. What does it matter really? Personally, I don't care what your beliefs are or what you think of mine and I don't have to justify them to you or anyone. But it is a discussion board of a "religious" nature and I made the comment without an argument, at the risk of being unpopular and getting intellectually pummelled into the ground, lol. So pummel away.

  I realize my comment was derogatory towards you so I will apologize for that. It is a passionate subject to be sure. We all have our own journeys to make. Peace isn't measured by how you get along with people who agree with you but by how you treat those that don't, no?

  No harm; no foul, Twitch.

  You sound reasonable to me.

  I hardly ever actually take offense to what people say here because the most dearly cherished beliefs are the most valued and when one's values are threatened the anger is "instinctive".

  I would not bother to post here if I didn't get letters, e-mails, IM's, etc. practically every day for the last three years by truly tormented people looking for somebody to talk to and identifying me (because of my posts) as a rational source of dialogue.

  Mostly, the people who contact me are troubled because they've seen the paint chip and peel off their beliefs and smell a rat where a God use to be.

  I appear here to ask prodding questions mostly for one reason: I would want somebody to shake me up were I a part of a religious system that stifled my mind (as I once was) and especially if they would reason with me.

  I'm a sounding board; not a guru.

  I make no claims to special insight or high falutin' mystical sources of wisdom.

  I am NOT an Atheist. I'm agnostic because I don't KNOW if there is a God.

  I think it would be lovely to be convinced there is. That would be a mighty comfort.

  But, it is dishonest for me to transform hope or wishes into an "I know because I believe".

  There is only one thing I hate now in dealing with the beliefs of others and that is intellectual dishonesty.

  What is Intellectual Dishonesty?

  The unwillingness to be wrong if the facts/evidence/proof/logic/reasoning don't go your way.

  Plain and simple. Straight up.
• 

  Scully

  I'm sick and tired of religion.

  Does that count?
• 

  Warlock

  I'm sick and tired of religion.

  So am I.

  I am also sick of people telling me what I should, or shouldn't believe.

  Warlock