Signs is one of favorite movies. But you are right, the religous symbolism was there.
the bizarre things religious people say and believe
by Hortensia 29 Replies latest jw experiences
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never a jw
Cofty,
Quite easy, theism is accepted by billions, from the most powerful, such as presidents, to the poorest and weakest. Superstition is rejected by most of those billions. And yet they are the same thing. It's semantics.
This thread reminded of my Mom, a catholic who firmly believes that God saved her from an aggressive multiple myeloma. She is still alive and well after the first diagnosis 13 years ago. About a year ago, my sister's in law's mother, a JW, died of breast cancer after only a year of being diagnosed. Plenty of prayers were issued by multiple people in both cases. Should we surmise that God listens to Catholic's prayers and not the JW's? Should we ignore that my mom's diagnose was more timely, her medical care far better --and expensive-- and her oncologist one of the best in the area. I suppose those things don't matter to religious people. It didn't seem to be a major factor according to my Mom.
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adamah
PON, you've gotta wonder about a guy like Tim Tebow: he's got to have gobs of lucrative corporate prospects just waiting for him after the football career is wrapped up, from Xian CEOs who want to have him on their boards, etc. You've got to wonder if these public figure Xians aren't just milking the $$, and are crazy like foxes.
BTW, don't forget about Job, who gets placed in the "God allows humans to be tested" column.
Bottom line is, though, there is no contradiction in the Bible that is BIG ENOUGH such that a devout believer wouldn't be able to find a loop-hole. There could be an OT verse saying "The Sun is hot" and an NT verse saying "The Sun is cold", and a believer would rationalize the contradiction away with, "well, the Sun IS hot compared to the surface temperature on Earth, AND the Sun IS cold compared to a star that's going supernova! See, the problem is you're just not reading it in the proper context."
Cofty said-
If anybody can explain how theism is different from superstition I would love to hear it.
It's just like how miracles are different from magic: they just ARE different, so just get over it already, m'kay?
My contribution to the "bizarre things believers say" is when you tell a believer you are an atheist (which is usually right after they ask what church you go to) and then they say, "WELL! You just don't WANT God to exist so you can sin, and you think you won't have to be accountable to Him!"
That statement reveals spades about THEIR motives for believing in God, since they put the statement in terms of our WANTS, as if God's existence (a 'yes or no' binary question) hinges one whit on what any of us WANT!
The Moon exists or it doesn't exist: the mass of rocks up there doesn't care if WE WANT it to exist or not, it just EXISTS! It's not like we can 'will' the Moon into or out of existence via our magical powers of thought, or that God will miraculously appear if only enough people actually BELIEVE in Him.
In fact, I'd LOVE for a God to exist and WANT a relationship with Him if He existed, and I'd be the biggest believer ever, IF I had a whit of evidence to indicate God existed (and there wasn't TONS of evidence pointing to non-existence). In fact, it SUCKS not having that 'safety net' of telling myself that all evil-doers will be held accountable for their sins in the end, rights will be wronged, etc. That's a great fantasy, but it's not reality. The loss of faith is a tough transition for many, since it represents a loss of a comforting security blanket. But 'it is what it is'.....
Adamah
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Hortensia
well said!
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punkofnice
adamah - I had to google Tim Tebow as I've not heard of him..........I don't even keep up with U.K. footballers......
I saw this in WIKI and it made me chuckle
Tebow said. "Regardless of what happens, I still honor my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, because at the end of the day, that's what's important, win or lose. ... We need to get back to one nation under God, and be role models for kids,"
Some role model!
I do have to say that Sir Cliff is minted and a xtian too.....but I'll let him off!
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BackseatDevil
[quote]I do have to say that Sir Cliff is minted and a xtian too.....but I'll let him off![/quote]
There is not a single part of this sentence I understood, but for some reason when I read it I laughed so hard.
But I'm weird like that.
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rebel8
Once when I was poor teenaged pioneer, my car insurance bill was due and I did not have enough money to pay it. I was going to have to give up pioneering because either I couldn't afford the car or I'd have to work to afford the car.
The week before I was to take the car off the road, I found a huge gold chain in a parking lot. I left a note at the store's customer service desk saying if anyone contacted them about lost jewelry should call me with a description within 4 days. One of my fellow pioneers was rejoicing with us all--jehoopla had provided for me! Yay!
Then she said I should sell it to her husband because he has a business selling used jewelry. She knew exactly how much my bill was and that just happened to be how much the jewelry was worth! Such a coincidence could only come from jehoopla. This was destined to be an experience in an assembly, undoubtedly!
So I sold it to her husband, paid my bill and went on to pioneer another day. (I was actually wishing I didn't get rescued....)
The following week, the woman gloated to our fs group, mocking me for being so gullible. Husband had sold the piece for twice as much as he paid me.
I asked her if she felt this was the xian, honest thing to do to a fellow sister, and she laughed.
She was one of the pillars of the kingkongregation for decades before and after that.
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Hortensia
rebel8 -- that is a sickening story. What a betrayal.
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Oubliette
I found a huge gold chain in a parking lot.
Wouldn't the "right" thing to do be to try and return it to the owner? That's what she SHOULD have encouraged you to do. Oh, and either give or loan you enough money to pay your car insurance.
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BackseatDevil
@Oubliette
That's one of the probelms with a religion with continually changing doctorines - things make sense only from the point of view of where they are currently standing at the time of occurence. If one is in need and finds a gold chain, then it is a blessing from Jehovah. If one is content, and finds a gold chain, then the thing to do is to find the rightful owner. But there is a switch mechanism that bounces between the two completely dependant on how one feels it could be interpreted.
It is again duplicated with the fellow pioneer who suggested it be sold to her husband. Same thing. Had she (hypothetical presumption here) not possibly be in financial crisis herself or having some issue with something she couldn't afford, she would have suggested @Rebel8 try to find the rightful owner. Otherwise, dollar signs popped in her eyes and encouragement went in the opposite direction.
There is no consistancy regarding human existence when it comes to the overtly religious. No one consistantly thinks "let's find the rightful owner" 100% of the time unless they free themselves from the ever-roving want of proof of blessings and maledictions.