when read in context karl marx was not directly attacking religion when he wrote those famous words.. .
religious distress is at the same time the expression of real distress and the protest against real distress.
religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of a spiritless situation.
Beksbks: "True, but as soon as a society includes a ruling class, it needs a tool to rule."
Bekie, I did state it in rather abstract terms but I meant to say the same thing you did.
"I believe that religion becomes (not originates from) a projection of the civilization/society in which people live. To the extent that the society is oppressive so will their religions be."
Villabolo
when read in context karl marx was not directly attacking religion when he wrote those famous words.. .
religious distress is at the same time the expression of real distress and the protest against real distress.
religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of a spiritless situation.
The following is an example of what Christianity is all about. It's an early 20 th century song that parodies the idea of ignoring the issues of the present and seeking solace in future dreams.
Long-haired preachers come out every night,
Try to tell you what's wrong and what's right;
But when asked how 'bout something to eat
They will answer with voices so sweet:Chorus:
You will eat, bye and bye,
In that glorious land above the sky;
Work and pray, live on hay,
You'll get pie in the sky when you die.The starvation army they play,
They sing and they clap and they pray
'Till they get all your coin on the drum
Then they'll tell you when you're on the bum:Holy Rollers and jumpers come out,
They holler, they jump and they shout.
Give your money to Jesus they say,
He will cure all diseases today.
If you fight hard for children and wife
Try to get something good in this life
You're a sinner and bad man, they tell,
When you die you will sure go to hell.Workingmen of all countries, unite,
Side by side we for freedom will fight;
When the world and its wealth we have gained
To the grafters we'll sing this refrain:You will eat, bye and bye,
When you've learned how to cook and to fry.
Chop some wood, 'twill do you good,
And you'll eat in the sweet bye and bye.
Villabolo
when read in context karl marx was not directly attacking religion when he wrote those famous words.. .
religious distress is at the same time the expression of real distress and the protest against real distress.
religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of a spiritless situation.
Thank you, cofty, on posting that expose about Mother Theresa. It just goes to show us that most of what we know about the world around us are fabricated myths.
I haven't read Marx but I think I know what he meant when he said that religion was the opium of the masses. He meant that religion was what allowed the masses to be deadened to the injustices of the oppressor class.
I agree with that as far as Christianity and some other religions are concerned. People were simply told that they should not look to this world for their reward but should wait for their "pie in the sky when they die".
My disagreement is with the usage of the term religion in the general sense. I believe that religion becomes (not originates from) a projection of the civilization/society in which people live. To the extent that the society is oppressive so will their religions be.
Religion in general, though comes from a completely different place in the psyche of humanity.
Prehistoric cave paintings were religious in nature. They worshipped what they ate. In oppressive civilizations you worship what eats you, if you catch my drift. In the case of Christianity, it deadens you to the pain of being 'eaten'. Christianity is indeed an anaesthetic.
The religious impulse is simply a way to organize the world in the mind of the believer so that things make sense. That doesn't necessarily mean that the religion is rational but that the psyche, ego or whatever you call it, needs a framework of ideas to give the world meaning. It is basically a narrative, a story of stories, that we learn and recite to ourselves, whenever something perplexing needs explanation.
In it's original, uncorrupted form it's simply a way of making sense of life and the world.
Villabolo
disproving the date 1914 as a significant year in bible prophecy is of great importance to some (e.g.
carl o. jonsson).
along with the meticulous details of bible and secular chronology, broadening one's horizons when assessing exactly what this date represents when compared against the 6000 years of human history likewise has merit.
Spade, you've met your match
Villabolo
http://www.watchtower21.org/2011/02/will-humanity-bring-about-new-world.html.
will humanity bring about a new world order through government?.
the cia in the new world order: intelligence challenges through 2015. remarks by john c. gannon chairman, national intelligence council to the smithsonian associates "campus on the mall" .
Vidiot:
"Villabolo, I know that the third pic is legit (I saw it once before in a Ripley's Believe it or Not thing), but the first one is a photoshop job, right?"
To be honest, Vidiot, I don't have a clue.
Villabolo
i do.. when i tell people that i was a witness, nobody can believe it!
i enjoy telling them why i left the religion, the harm they cause, and the benefits of being out of it.. do you express yourself in this way too or is it only me?.
I'm not ashamed to admit it but I have to be careful who I talk to about it.
Villabolo
http://www.watchtower21.org/2011/02/will-humanity-bring-about-new-world.html.
will humanity bring about a new world order through government?.
the cia in the new world order: intelligence challenges through 2015. remarks by john c. gannon chairman, national intelligence council to the smithsonian associates "campus on the mall" .
Larsinger: "The Bible is being fulfilled right before our eyes!"
Villabolo
disproving the date 1914 as a significant year in bible prophecy is of great importance to some (e.g.
carl o. jonsson).
along with the meticulous details of bible and secular chronology, broadening one's horizons when assessing exactly what this date represents when compared against the 6000 years of human history likewise has merit.
It's all so simple
Villabolo
disproving the date 1914 as a significant year in bible prophecy is of great importance to some (e.g.
carl o. jonsson).
along with the meticulous details of bible and secular chronology, broadening one's horizons when assessing exactly what this date represents when compared against the 6000 years of human history likewise has merit.
Larsinger:
"Once we come up to the plate and actually correct the timeline, all those references will suddenly be obsolete and outdated."
It reminds me of Charles Russell who, in mockery of the Adventists (from which he inherited his chronological psychosis), said that he had a superior method of calculating dates.
"Maybe no one wants to really be considered obsolete and so they suppress any chronology diversions..."
Maybe it's Chronologism itself that is obsolete.
Villabolo
i was recently doing some keyword research with google's keyword tool.
it gives you information about how many people search for certain things on google, the world's largest search provider.
it's very useful for people who build websites.
"What do you think of these figures compared to the the billions of hours spent knocking on doors?" I agree with MrFreeze, nobody gives a damn. And it's good that they waste their time with such a relatively inefficient strategy. I say "relative" because they have managed to increase their numbers, since the time that I stopped being a JW, 30 years ago. Villabolo
