ever since 911 and the subsequent attacks in bali, madrid, and london it seems that everyone feels they have a licence to criticise islam (they do).
fundamentalist and many mainstream christians deride the backwardness of a religion that creates suicide bombers and 'honour' killers.
of course, it was only a small group of hardcore islamist extremists that carried out these attacks but the whole community has been tarred by them, and perhaps in some sense it is only right that the majority of 'reasonable' and peaceful muslims do accept the part they play in providing the soil for these people to grow in.
Nicalaou
Not true quietlyleaving. For example, whatever gave rise to our need for a vermiform appendix is clearly no longer with us and we are now left with a vestigial and redundant organ which may eventually disappear - I think. Whales certainly do not need the legs their ancestors once had and evolution has properly made those skeletal limbs shrink to almost nothing. ( 'c' are the Whales hind leg bones!)
good point nicalaou
but will we still be human?
ever since 911 and the subsequent attacks in bali, madrid, and london it seems that everyone feels they have a licence to criticise islam (they do).
fundamentalist and many mainstream christians deride the backwardness of a religion that creates suicide bombers and 'honour' killers.
of course, it was only a small group of hardcore islamist extremists that carried out these attacks but the whole community has been tarred by them, and perhaps in some sense it is only right that the majority of 'reasonable' and peaceful muslims do accept the part they play in providing the soil for these people to grow in.
nvr
Is there "something" we are connected to?
I like the thought of us all being connected.
Is there a way of knowing, a way of experiencing it, in the absence of religion
I would like to think so but maybe we would call it religion - actually scientific philosophy sounds better.
ever since 911 and the subsequent attacks in bali, madrid, and london it seems that everyone feels they have a licence to criticise islam (they do).
fundamentalist and many mainstream christians deride the backwardness of a religion that creates suicide bombers and 'honour' killers.
of course, it was only a small group of hardcore islamist extremists that carried out these attacks but the whole community has been tarred by them, and perhaps in some sense it is only right that the majority of 'reasonable' and peaceful muslims do accept the part they play in providing the soil for these people to grow in.
NVR
Knowledge now replaces superstition and ignorance.
I'm kinda seeing superstition and ignorance being informed/modified by knowledge in the past and today - an ongoing process. Can't see one replacing the other but am open to debate.
i would like a simple step by step explanation that refutes the disfellowshipping policy as practiced by jehovah's witnesses.. obviously, i don't agree with the policy but i have had trouble making my explanations clear and straightforward.. any help would be appreciated..
From a social perspective
In my area there are just so many disfellowshpped ones and almost every JW family seems to have at least one disfellowshpped member.
Time is making disfellowshpping obsolete - its working against them - soon there will be just as many out than in
So from that point of view its a very shortsighted arrangement.
ever since 911 and the subsequent attacks in bali, madrid, and london it seems that everyone feels they have a licence to criticise islam (they do).
fundamentalist and many mainstream christians deride the backwardness of a religion that creates suicide bombers and 'honour' killers.
of course, it was only a small group of hardcore islamist extremists that carried out these attacks but the whole community has been tarred by them, and perhaps in some sense it is only right that the majority of 'reasonable' and peaceful muslims do accept the part they play in providing the soil for these people to grow in.
If atheism tells us that religion/god is manmade then we have to recognise that it is a product of us i.e. humanity and also is a part of us. So we are really speaking about ourselves when we say stuff like 'religion poisins everything' etc.
Whatever it is about ourselves that gave rise to religion and god will still be with us even if we get rid of religion/god.
And who knows perhaps we humans would not be here today without religion. I don't think we would.to religion.
welcome livelife!.
i guess your nick says it all, huh?.
looking forward to your enthusaism and life-affirming style..
Hi Auldsoul/livelife
good to have you back
the thread re: education at the tacoma convention inspired this.
my sister called me this morning, she had the convention in tacoma last weekend.
she said she tried not to listen as much as possible, but the comment that got her steamed was this:.
"The holy spirit is holy, so if you're not holy, the holy spirit will not approach you. You have no hope of having Jah's spirit if you're not truly holy in thought, word, and deed."
TJ here's what they really intended to say
"The holy spirit is holy, but as we are not holy, the holy spirit will not approach us. We have no hope of having Jah's spirit because we're not truly holy in thought, word, and deed."
I find it easier to be more flexible with going in and out of opening and closing my mind since leaving
you are the product of a wondrous living universe!.
.
I agree with you Nvr, and it is great to be here.
me too - I'm glad to be here celebrating with you people.
just curious, how many of you have to hide the fact that you post here from family?
i'm especially thinking of those with spouses who are in, while they themselves either never were, faded, dfed/daed, etc but if you are a child hiding it from parents, that applies too.
if you are posting secretly, how secretive do you have to be?
I'm like goinggoinggone
Husband is an active JW but knows I come on here. Perhaps one day he'll join me.
quietlyleaving
