Posts by Caedes

754

Theists, why does God allow suffering..

by The Quiet One in

..specifically, the suffering of animals.

you can talk about free will/sin/people choosing to not listen to god etc to explain human suffering being allowed.. but how can you love a god that allows animals, that haven't sinned or chosen to not have anything to do with god, to have their short lives ended in often long, drawn out, painful ways.

i could list stories i've read that would probably make you feel ill, but i'm not looking to shock anyone or start an emotional debate.

Caedes

so callednatural disasters (my emphasis)

What exactly makes a natural disaster 'so called'

Unfortunately you are glossing over the fact that not all natural disasters are of the same scale. There are earthquakes all the time, but not all of them result in untold misery and suffering. It's the same with every other natural phenomenon.

The other problem is that natural disasters have nothing whatsoever to do with free will.

It seems your argument boils down to god likes to do do a lot of killing to remind everyone how much he loves them.

194

Atheism is a Belief System

by seekchristonly in

is atheism a belief system.

after all the atheist believes there is no god .so if that's the case then an atheist if a person of faith.

they have faith in the fact there is no god.

Caedes

FHN,

That is not the only position to take, No theist has provided any empirical evidence to support a belief in gods therefore I reject that belief. In exactly the same way that I see no evidence for santa claus, the tooth fairy or trolls. As I said earlier in this thread you are merely trying to equate your faith in unsubstantiated claims with my skepticism for that belief. They are not the same and never will be. Its almost as if you are ashamed of your faith.

56

How important do you believe education and knowledge is?

by new hope and happiness in

how educated are you?

and how great is your vocabularly ect ....?.

do you think ir right to judge people by how intelligent/ educated they are and how much vocabulary they use???.

Caedes

I think we have quite a few uneducated people on this forum who are arrogant, conceited and believe that their wild guesses are somehow equivalent to years of education, serious study and learning. They have a tendancy to go on at length on topics which they not only know nothing about and more importantly are unwilling to learn about.

Conversely, if you asked most educated people they could probably give you a long list of things they know nothing about.

54

IS Science Absolute Truth

by seekchristonly in

if we have faith in science and scientific claims about the universe, origins of life etc.

is that absolute truth.

if so then if they declare that god exists with evidence then do all those who believe in science then believe in god or a creator.

Caedes

James brown,

Science is the absolute truth until it is not.

Science bled George washington to death with the absolute truth that was not.

First Pluto was a planet, then it was not a planet, Now that it has 5 moons and an atmosphere

it is either a planet or about

to be a plaent again. (sic)

So you chose to ignore every sensible post saying that science never claims to have absolute truth?

That wooshing noise was the sound of the point sailing far far above your head.

54

IS Science Absolute Truth

by seekchristonly in

if we have faith in science and scientific claims about the universe, origins of life etc.

is that absolute truth.

if so then if they declare that god exists with evidence then do all those who believe in science then believe in god or a creator.

Caedes

SCO,

You dont seem to be enagaging in any actual conversation. What would it take for you to think you may be wrong on the answers to the questions you raise?

23

What would be a scientific description/explanation of what God is?

by EndofMysteries in

based upon descriptions in the bible and what is known scientifically so far, what would god actually be?

lightning comes out of the throne.

no man may see and live.

Caedes

There is no scientific description of the 'supernatural' by definition science cannot descibe or explain something beyond nature.

194

Atheism is a Belief System

by seekchristonly in

is atheism a belief system.

after all the atheist believes there is no god .so if that's the case then an atheist if a person of faith.

they have faith in the fact there is no god.

Caedes

I reject belief in god because nobody has provided empirical proof of their deity. Until someone provides empirical proof my atheism is not a belief system, it is not a religion, it is not a faith. Believers and theists can make all the claims they like to try and somehow equate their faith in unsubstantiated claims to my skepticism but ultimately they are simply wrong. Every atheist that has contributed to this thread has effectively said the same thing.

There is a simple reason why this is so, if you could provide hard empirical evidence for the existance of your deity then I would gladly and publicly announce that I was wrong.

70

How old were you when you left the Watchtower - SURVEY

by usualusername in

jw
friends

i believe that the older you are the harder it is to leave the watchtower.. .

i am attempting to get a list of ages people learnt the "truth" and what age they left.. .

uun.

Caedes

Born-in, never baptised, never believed, kicked out at 17 because I kept on asking too many awkward questions.

62

End shunning or lose tax free status

by kneehighmiah in

jw
friends

which would the watchtower choose if it came down to this in the united states or europe?

losing tax free status would mean losing millions of dollars.

ending shunning means people would leave by the boatloads.

Caedes

What many here don't like is suffering a consequence for behavior. As i read these posts, the issue for many isn't that they believe contrary doctrine or reject on moral grounds Watchtower practice. The Watchtower religion is a morally high expectation sect. You chose a contrary course and hate the consequences. But no one is obilgated to associate with you. Some of us need to stop whining.

Some of us need to stop jumping to conclusions, a lot of people were born-in and had little choice in their baptism due to age or excessive pressure to conform. Certainly not every person who has been shunned is in that position due to their conduct, there are lots of stories on this forum alone of people who left for reasons other than because they didn't wish to follow "behaviour standards"

Old goat, you should get off your high horse and stop defending such a hypocritical organisation. As has been pointed out the reason for shunning is because it is a cult and they cant afford to have memebers being exposed to the perfectly normal lives that the majority of so called apostates live.

149

If you reject the existence of the soul then you are an Animist?

by Seraphim23 in

jw
friends

the classic debate between those who believe that consciousness is merely the result of the operation of the brain, and those who believe that it is apart from the brain, like the idea of a soul or the classic dualistic distinction between mind and body, is a well-known one.. however the thought has occurred that when people try to convince me that the soul cannot be real; soul in the sense of consciousness being a separate thing to the operation of the brain, then really the materialistic non spiritual view is in fact a rehash of animism, strange as that might sound.. animism is the idea that soul, spirit, consciousness, or whatever it might be called, exists in plants, animals, things, objects, places or basically in everything and anything in the material world.

the view of some is that very primitive cultures had this wide category of spiritual belief, which eventually evolved into the all the religions, faiths and spiritualties of today.

some of the faiths of modern times are not defined as animistic because these draw a distinction between soul and body or in modern parlance, consciousness and brain.. so in very ancient times, at the dawn of human spiritual belief, the sun, for example, rising and setting was seen not so much as being caused by the proverbial spaghetti monster but as being the proverbial spaghetti monster.

Caedes

Animism is the idea that soul, spirit, consciousness, or whatever it might be called, exists in plants, animals, things, objects, places or basically in everything and anything in the material world.

consciousness is merely the result of the operation of the brain

I would say the second statement is more or less my position, the first statement does not fit because it glosses over the requirement of having a brain.

That requirement is fundamental to any rational idea of consciousness.