To all the other atheists/agnostics out there

by robhic 29 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  the_classicist

  Based on doctrine formulated by nomadic goat-hearders

  Cattle hearders!
• 

  peacefulpete

  I recently went to a 50th wedding anniversary in which the groom and bride renewed their vows in a church ceremony. Never once in the very conservative service did either person get credit for the enduring relationship. Rather the minister repeatedly asserted that the success of the marriage was because of the Lord's blessing it. It seemed sad to me to not give these two selfless people a little credit and praise.
• 

  Apathy

  For a few years, I was very argumentative about how religion was all bull.
  Now, I've got a new religion, and am quite happy with it. I'm an apathetic agnostic. I don't know, and I don't care. As long as I'm a good person, any God who's out there isn't going to mind much, and there's really no point in my mind to worrying about it. Religion doesn't bother me either, as long as it doesn't interefere with my life.
  Yeah. But seeing as how I'm still living with my mom.. religion is doing ass-loads of interefering. -pokes the Kingdom Hall-
• 

  FlyingHighNow

  They are the Saints afterall.
• 

  hmike

  I recently went to a 50th wedding anniversary in which the groom and bride renewed their vows in a church ceremony. Never once in the very conservative service did either person get credit for the enduring relationship. Rather the minister repeatedly asserted that the success of the marriage was because of the Lord's blessing it. It seemed sad to me to not give these two selfless people a little credit and praise.

  Well, I'm not there yet--only about half way--but I don't mind giving God the credit for my enduring (even prospering) marriage. If it was all up to me, I know where it would be.

  We insisted on making Him a big part of the wedding ceremony. My wife nixed the traditional wedding march in favor of a contemporary version of "On Christ, the Solid Rock, I stand."
• 

  robhic

  Tetrapod sez:

  that's hilarious! you know, i don't mean to sound rude, but you probably have a high percentage of blatantly religious folk down there in new orleans. jesus or voodoo or whatever. you probably see it a lot in your daily life, and that sucks. it would make my head spin too.

  Absolutely! The RC church has a very strong hold on this entire town if not state. Hell, we're the only state in the US where the counties are called "parishes" instead. And our football team are the "Saints." (Seems the deities would see to it that a team with some theo-sounding name connection wouldn't suck so bad!)

  Yep, jesus is alive and well in the New Orleans area and his works are everywhere.

  ... it's the ability to absolve one of responsibility, and get the problem fixed via random probability. this pisses me off sometimes, because we are supposed to be civilised, and yet we still pray for guidance, or more often, when we are in a tight spot. it irritates me because if some of us apes can "get it", then what the hell is the matter with the rest of them?

  And the fact that a technologically advanced civilization resorts to calling upon a mythological entity devised thousands of years ago seems so ironic. "Gee, I hope jesus/god will help me figure the answers on my calculus test." Calculus? He or his followers probably weren't capable of even rudimentary arithmetic! Better find a "math god" to help.

  And do you think the submariners a few years ago on the Kurst got screwed because techno-challenged god couldn't figure out what everyone was talking about?

  "Huh, what's this submarine thingie these mortals are talking about?"?

  They were doomed from the start.
• 

  sonnyboy

  I find things that I once thought normal to be utterly ridiculous. I glance at those Sunday morning religious shows from time to time and can't believe what I'm hearing. Even if God WERE real, why would anyone want to love it?

  I really get annoyed when I hear intelligent people talking about God without even questioning his existence.
• 

  robhic

  Even if God WERE real, why would anyone want to love it?

  I really get annoyed when I hear intelligent people talking about God without even questioning his existence.

  I think that a lot of religious belief is because most people are raised from childhood being told by folks you respect (parents, family, teachers) that religion/god of some sort is the real deal. And they only do it because they were told by the previous generation the same things. It's a cycle. People generally don't bother to question it (or at least for a long time) and it continues.

  As far as "love" goes, I agree 100%. You have to know someone to love them. It's not a petty thing. And from reading the bible, the only knowledge (a least to me) that one gets is that god -- creator of everyone and everything -- is a violent, petty, mysoginistic, ego-driven flip-floppper who favors Jews over all others and can't be trusted. Why would I love (or even like!) this person?

  Robert
• 

  sonnyboy

  And from reading the bible, the only knowledge (a least to me) that one gets is that god -- creator of everyone and everything -- is a violent, petty, mysoginistic, ego-driven flip-floppper who favors Jews over all others and can't be trusted. Why would I love (or even like!) this person?

  Exactly. It seems that bible thumpers don't even stop and consider the horrendous acts that their god has supposedly performed. These things are simple Bible stories to them, and since they've been conditioned to believe that God is so belevolent and perfect they don't even question whether these acts are morally right or wrong. I'm still stuck on the alleged killing of the first born of Egypt. The Witnesses preach this like it was a just punishment for Pharaoh...the slaughter of innocent children.

  What nice terrorist tactics their god employs. He makes Saddam look like a pussy cat.
• 

  mtbatoon

  The wife likes the odd home makeover show and none more than Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Being external to the culture I watch in fascination as the home owner attributes all the work done on their home to god totally disregarding the 500+ workmen, designers, film crew and production team. If it happened over here the presenter would slowly edge away from the lucky recipient making sure not to turn their back on them.