Posts by Qcmbr

46

Crazy Religions

by Qcmbr in

i was reading a good article regarding the relative 'craziness' of faiths (blog) and they mentioned a lot about mormons.

in short they talked about the socially accepted craziness (as opposed to actual mental illness) of mainstream , culturally accepted faiths v those that are relatively new.

we see scientology as more crazy than catholicism if we fall into the trap of judging without consideration but when examined all religions have very crazy elements.

I agree with the idea that religions can be viewed as crazy but when stepping back we can see that lots of religions have equally unfounded and bizarre behaviours. In addition to this I agree with the article's author that crazy behaviour is also seen in wider society such as in clothing.

As for discipleship I think you are being deliberately naive which leaves you either in the camp of being slightly devious or if you genuinely think posting an article is enough to denote discipleship then you aren't as on the ball as I give you credit for. I do think your support of AG which has moved beyond simple sympathy now to the stage where you are getting divine messages of support for her and of which you need to testify as a witness does place you into a disciple relationship. This is only a bad thing if you don't want to be her disciple.

46

Crazy Religions

by Qcmbr in

i was reading a good article regarding the relative 'craziness' of faiths (blog) and they mentioned a lot about mormons.

in short they talked about the socially accepted craziness (as opposed to actual mental illness) of mainstream , culturally accepted faiths v those that are relatively new.

we see scientology as more crazy than catholicism if we fall into the trap of judging without consideration but when examined all religions have very crazy elements.

Qcmbr

I agree that dangerous religions are a different question , a religion like early Mormonism and the Heavens Gate group are extremely dangerous ( Mormonism almost tipped into full scale totalitarian hell) whereas some seem far more benign. The underlying justifications and regular practice is just as 'crazy' even if not harmful ( Mormon knickers never killed anything more serious than the odd romantic evening.) I find believing in a supernatural voices just as bonkers as sacrifing a pigeon to divine the future etc.

46

Crazy Religions

by Qcmbr in

i was reading a good article regarding the relative 'craziness' of faiths (blog) and they mentioned a lot about mormons.

in short they talked about the socially accepted craziness (as opposed to actual mental illness) of mainstream , culturally accepted faiths v those that are relatively new.

we see scientology as more crazy than catholicism if we fall into the trap of judging without consideration but when examined all religions have very crazy elements.

Qcmbr

Did you read the article?

46

Crazy Religions

by Qcmbr in

i was reading a good article regarding the relative 'craziness' of faiths (blog) and they mentioned a lot about mormons.

in short they talked about the socially accepted craziness (as opposed to actual mental illness) of mainstream , culturally accepted faiths v those that are relatively new.

we see scientology as more crazy than catholicism if we fall into the trap of judging without consideration but when examined all religions have very crazy elements.

Qcmbr

I was reading a good article regarding the relative 'craziness' of faiths (Blog) and they mentioned a lot about Mormons. In short they talked about the socially accepted craziness (as opposed to actual mental illness) of mainstream , culturally accepted faiths V those that are relatively new. We see Scientology as more crazy than Catholicism IF we fall into the trap of judging without consideration but when examined all religions have very crazy elements. Mormons have weird underwear but Catholics cannibalise magic bread to flesh wafers. JWs don't take blood but Hindus bathe in a sh*t filled, dirty river. The author makes the very valid point that our craziness extends well beyond religious observance and the example of clothing is pointed to where we see Victorian's tight, health endangering , organ damaging corsets as crazy but then encourage today's women to wear high heels which damage their feet. I found it quite a good reminder that craziness is all around us and we quite often engage in it without much thought, plus all religions and faiths are fundamentally equally crazy.

Amen.

25

Didn't Jesus symbolically give a blood transfusion for all of mankind?

by yadda yadda 2 in

jesus poured out his life blood, his soul, on behalf of mankind.

the wine taken at the memorial of christ's death represents this life, given as a sacrifice to atone for adamic sins.

jesus said that unless you eat of his flesh and drink of his blood, you have no life in yourself.

Qcmbr

There is no need to twist this into some contorted pseudo magical world of faith and spirit. Its generally only JWs and ex JWs who even see blood transfusion as an issue. It's not unless you have a rare blood type or have a cummunicable blood disease.

The concept of a blood sacrifice for sin is abhorrent and mature, grown up people should understand that the very concept is vile and immoral. There is no glory in the pretend concept of arbitrary sin being paid for by the real blood sacrifice of anyone. The myth of Christ is nothing to do with blood transfusions or magical kingdoms, it is simply a way for people to control other people and to soothe their conscious minds regarding the inevitability of death and the fear of pain.

I ache when I see otherwise sensible people give themselves so completely to a crazy delusion that they are incapable of seeing why what they say is bonkers and then allow their baser selves free reign via their delusion. I don't want to shun you but my god demands it.

57

MIT Survey on science, religion and origins

by Pterist in

interesting read and graph:.

*****i'd been warned.

a friend cautioned me that if we went ahead and posted our mit survey on science, religion and origins, i'd get inundated with hate-mail from religious fundamentalists who believe our universe to be less than 10,000 years old.

Qcmbr

Faith requires primacy over all other forms of knowledge. When formed it normally reflects the current scientific knowledge ( tec this is why you can delude yourself that you are in agreement with current science, you simply lifted current knowledge, mixed it with current morality and then added in the magic) but faith has no logical route to update itself without makong its former self look foolish. We have Catholics who were once at the forefront of science now having to recant young earth thinking in favour of current factual knowledge. The modern day mystic is on love with higgs bosuns and quantum effects and are scrabbling to say that of course thats what was true all along. Faith filled believers are darwinian to the core throwing untold millions of former beliefs under the cart wheel while boldly claiming that this time theyve got it right. Lock the faithful in a room with their god and their real knowledge ceases.

Roll on the day when faith is recognised as the intellectual millstone it is.

153

If there is a God why didn't he sign our DNA

by scotoma in

jw
friends

todays scientists can and do insert their trademark into dna.. why couldn't jehovah anticipate scientists learning this technique and stumbling across a strand that says "human by yhwh"?.

that would have answered a lot of questions.. he could have even included a model number human2.0.

Qcmbr

AG if it helps your understanding replace the name Joseph Smith in my above comments.

Returning to the OP I think we could reasonably suspect that any advanced being who could have influenced mankind , Im thinking alien rather than god, could have left a calling card to he discovered when we reached a certain level of technological advance. DNA would be the perfect place to do it as well.

153

If there is a God why didn't he sign our DNA

by scotoma in

jw
friends

todays scientists can and do insert their trademark into dna.. why couldn't jehovah anticipate scientists learning this technique and stumbling across a strand that says "human by yhwh"?.

that would have answered a lot of questions.. he could have even included a model number human2.0.

Qcmbr

Oddly enough he does dance to your tune though AG. All gods always have a knack of rising to meet the needs of their spokespeople but no more, speak with the intellect of their prophets but no greater and reveal knowledge somehow limited by the imagination of the mystic. These gods speak as grandiosely as the personal egos of the mediums dare and all fall utterly silent once the 'servant' passes on. No one will talk of your dragons and leprous Christs when you leave and your particular brand of divinity oddly stops existing at the moment you do. Thus it has been with every god no matter how many temples, pyramids or slaves groaned under the whip to build monuments to them there were. Your god would not be recognised by any Christian group save the one you gather now and mercifully none of them are yet seeing dragons.

Tec - this is the pride I talk about. Faith allows a person to demand an absolute stonewall. My way or the highway. Any doubt or admission of making a faith mistake is a disaster to the ego that supports the delusion. Admitting a theological failing is the thread that unravels the whole so it cannot be allowed. Just as a flaw in a mathematical theory will break it so does any failure in a reported divine world. This is where pride comes in and one reason why these conversations are tense, no ground can be admitted by the faithful. In the battle if ideas the faith position, found devoid of material evidence, will twist and turn avoiding fatal blows with, 'that's not my god' or 'you just don't understand' and will retreat with the never fulfilled threat that one day the non faithful will 'see' to their fear and trembling. Mormons do it, JWs do it and all brands of Abrahamic religions do it. The battle was unwinable the moment some human imagined a magical being in the heavens and worshipped fire or a tree and yet the hordes of the faithful are still arguing for ghosts and ghouls but this time it's winged gargoyles and blood sacrificing super humans, the sophistication grows but the underlying reality is the same.

153

If there is a God why didn't he sign our DNA

by scotoma in

jw
friends

todays scientists can and do insert their trademark into dna.. why couldn't jehovah anticipate scientists learning this technique and stumbling across a strand that says "human by yhwh"?.

that would have answered a lot of questions.. he could have even included a model number human2.0.

Qcmbr

Well, you can't really speak to someone who will not hear or see or exercise faith in you, can you?

Tec - do you seriously own this?

When I talk of enslavement I of course mean of the mind. Since there are no biblical gods of course. I have yet to see a believer who is not enslaved by their faith, my former self included. Faith, by it's nature demands primacy over logic, facts, reason, doubt or reality. Everything , up to and including human life, is demanded by faith, the belief in a magic world just out of sight and reach of the real world. Believing scientists are hamstrung by the need to present information that upholds their faith and to try to downplay other information that is not. Apologists are forced to trawl documentation looking for scraps that prove a point while often deviously ignoring context and other plainer readings. Above all these brief examples however, one rises most forceably to the surface, pride. Faith gives the believer unearned surety, untested certainty, unlearned knowledge and with these faux perceptions they seek to entrance and captivate all who will listen to their web of myths and magic. Credulous people will follow preachers and will give them honour. Slavery is the drumbeat of faith.

A real god wouldn't play these games.

153

If there is a God why didn't he sign our DNA

by scotoma in

jw
friends

todays scientists can and do insert their trademark into dna.. why couldn't jehovah anticipate scientists learning this technique and stumbling across a strand that says "human by yhwh"?.

that would have answered a lot of questions.. he could have even included a model number human2.0.

Qcmbr

What's interesting is how we chose to communicate with possible alien species. We engraved cosmological information, scientific knowledge about atoms, anatomy and shared cultural items like music. At no stage did we demand worship, give a set of commandments, pretend to be the source of emotions or thoughts , we didn't threaten, call names, tell spooky stories or anything else.

Intelligent life talks science it doesn't talk faith.