soft+gentle

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Posts by soft+gentle

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  66

  scientific method and truth ...

  by soft+gentle in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what is the relationship between the two?.

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  soft+gentle

  the sense I am getting is that there is no clear cut relationship between the scientific method and truth as such. In other words we cannot say that we get truth fullstop from applying the scientific method. Indeed it is like comparing apples and oranges - thank you NC.

  BTW I am not saying this to criticise science or the scientific method and no St George of England my topic was not stimulated by the recent KM. But if jws/xjws want to discuss it on this thread please do so.

  What I am trying to get to grips with is the aleatoric nature of scientific endeavour in its relationship to truth. To me, all of you seem to be saying this?

  I think SBF brings this out most of all, and once again this is not a criticism of science. But please remember I am no scientist - my background is the arts with a big dose of religion but I still want to understand where the scientific method fits in my worldview. Saying this because if you search aleatoric wiki will take you to an arts and music definition of aleatoric. sorry my browser won't let me link it in.
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  66

  scientific method and truth ...

  by soft+gentle in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what is the relationship between the two?.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  what is the relationship between the two?
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

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  soft+gentle

  jeffro

  ( my apologies for not replying sooner - I was trying to put my thoughts into words but failing becasue of irrationality)

  what you are suggesting is true retroactively, imo, and applies to what has been rendered rational. During the intial discovery stages there is much irrationality and this irrationality can last for decades while hypothesis are subjected to inquiry. Druing this working/discovery phase even the language used to nominate what is going to be a new breakthrough in the future is often irrational. think of Galileo and the new (at the time irrational) terms he invented to give shape to his intuitions of truth.
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  14

  Policy

  by The Quiet One in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  http://thirdwitness.com/childabuse/default.html.

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  soft+gentle

  sounds like thirdwitness is (perhaps unintentionally) emphasizing that the WT does have duty of care. will those letters go against them in the conti case?
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

  1. 
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  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  thanks apostatethunder - nice name
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  rather be in hades thanks for your summation of the two extreme positions and then the mixtures in between and your conclusion that religion and spirituality are not mutually exclusive.

  somewhere can we also bring Christopher Hitchens' views into the mix?
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  Jeffro

  I really welcome your contributions here - and this is partly because you push me to try and think about what it is about what you are saying that causes me a level of anxiety and impetus to come back and question what you are saying (bit of a mouthful - sorry)

  To me what your posts on what is rational imply safety (and not taking risks). In other words rational is to be safe and irrational is to be unsafe - so there is safe, unrisky knowledge (leading to safe tried and tested actions that result in a good life) and there is unsafe knowledge leading to untried and untested actions resulting in irrational thoughts and actions).

  alltimeJeff and Fernando - thank you. I really like what you both (but in different ways) have implied by your thoughts on spirituality and it is very similar to what I am begining to see. To me the expression live and let live and an awakened condition together with multiverse ideas expresses the idea of freedom together with the actions taken by free people and particularly when these actions are animated by what other freeing people have said and done. So I guess this would provide a place for art, poetry, philosophy, politics and such provided that they stimulate not just inspiration, awe and wonder but also something risky and seemingly irrational, something untried and untested?
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  I don't know a better word either OODAD and this is basically what I am struggling with at the moment. When believers describe spirituality they seem to be talking about something more than inspiration, awe and wonder. I think when atheists use the terms awe wonder and inspiration they might mean a whole lot more than is describable and the impact upon a person of what is left undescribed may be akin to what believers say about their form of spirituality?

  I also want to do some of more research into the brain G spot that etude mentioned and linked to but have not had the time.

  ST thanks for your comments - connected is a good word
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  etude, thanks for the link - I enjoyed it very much and will try and come back to it later today.
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  68

  spirituality and religion - what are the differences?

  by soft+gentle in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  trying to understand the differences.

  started this topic on the xjwsforchrist forum as well and would like to ask jwn posters the same question.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  soft+gentle

  Cofty

  spirituality (even aspects of what we today we refer to as religion) as lightness has a long history. In fact in ancient times sprituality was associated with wine the God of wine being Dionysus. This connects with Christopher Hitchens conception of spirituality as being what gives pleasure. But of course Dionysus had a very dark destructive side too and this sort of ambiguity is expressed in mystical rituals etc.

  In answer to your question imo an individual who expresses loathing for supernatural things can be very spiritual in the context of Christopher Hitchen's ideas on spirituality.

  edit: I agree that spirituality has a lot of baggage associated with it and it is often difficult to make an accurate inquiry into it. So I guess that it has to be the responsibilty of each individual to decide for themselves what counts and what doesn't.