That's a very humbling and gracious comment.
I too, am striving to find the right balance.
THE GLADIATOR
JoinedPosts by THE GLADIATOR
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404
The Issue is Not that God WANTS Us to Suffer...
by AGuest indear ones.
rather, it is our adversary who says we will do anything... anything... to avoid it.
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g. even curse god to his face.
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Don't know how to title this but: Tragedy!!!
by AK - Jeff inhttp://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/09/27/book_details_motives_for_suicide_at_harvard/?page=1.
what he left behind: a 1,905-page suicide noteauthor described nihilistic outlookby david abel, globe staff | september 27, 2010. in the end, no one really knows what led mitchell heisman, an erudite, wry, handsome 35-year-old, to walk into harvard yard on the holiest day in his faith and fire one shot from a silver revolver into his right temple, on the top step of memorial church, where hundreds gathered to observe the jewish day of atonement.. but if the 1,905-page suicide note he left is to be believed a work he spent five years honing and that his family and others received in a posthumous e-mail after his suicide last saturday morning on yom kippur heisman took his life as part of a philosophical exploration he called an experiment in nihilism.. at the end of his note, a dense, scholarly work with 1,433 footnotes, a 20-page bibliography, and more than 1,700 references to god and 200 references to the german philosopher friedrich nietzsche, heisman sums up his experiment:.
every word, every thought, and every emotion come back to one core problem: life is meaningless, he wrote.
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THE GLADIATOR
“Every word, every thought, and every emotion come back to one core problem: life is meaningless,’’
This is a tragic story. I have some sympathy with the late Mitchell Heisman's views. Without belief in an invisible afterlife, human life can seem purposeless. That is not to say it is meaningless.
There is beauty and pleasure to be enjoyed right now. The only existing reality is the present moment. The rest is past or future. If we are enjoying our life, then its meaning is experienced every day.
The problem arises when people find no joy in life. They live in despair and struggle to find any reason to carry on living. They can choose to believe they are storing up brownie points for an afterlife. Or that a better life in an invisible realm is a gift obtained through faith. Then suffering their way through life would seem to have a purpose or an aim. Their faith may even help them to start enjoying life. The question is, without an afterlife, does this life have a purpose?
I personaly subscribe to the Epicurean outlook:
"Epicurus's philosophy combines a physics based on an atomistic materialism with a rational hedonistic ethics that emphasizes moderation of desires and cultivation of friendships. His world-view is an optimistic one that stresses that philosophy can liberate one from fears of death and the supernatural, and can teach us how to find happiness in almost any situation. His practical insights into human psychology, as well as his science-friendly world-view, gives Epicureanism great contemporary significance as well as a venerable role in the intellectual development of Western Civilization."
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THE GLADIATOR
I may give up posting my own comments and just put 'ditto' under Terry's elucidations.
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404
The Issue is Not that God WANTS Us to Suffer...
by AGuest indear ones.
rather, it is our adversary who says we will do anything... anything... to avoid it.
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g. even curse god to his face.
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THE GLADIATOR
AGuest - Shelby - God. The greatest of love and peace to you. You have written more words than Jesus Christ himself.
With every fiber of my being I have a suggestion. Just cut out the middle-man/woman and call yourself God. Then this vast river of understanding, explanation, advice, guidance, divine revelation, peace, holiness, spiritual connection, out of this world pontification and endless out pouring of love, forgiveness, grace, salvation and everlasting threads, would suddenly, in the blink of a invisible spiritual eye, almost make sense.
May the undeserved kindness and mercy of your heavenly Father and God, the Most Holy One of Israel, JAH of Armies, and the love and peace of His Son and Christ, the Holy One of Israel and Holy Spirit, our Lord, JAHESHUA MISCHAJAH... be upon you and your entire household. YOUR servant, brother, and fellow slave of life... to time indefinite.
As always, I bid you peace - a slave of life, always.
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It's all in the grammar...
by Chalam inhi jwners,.
3 no longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of god and of the lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.ok, "the throne of god and of the lamb" is mentioned.
who is coming soon, the lamb or god?
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THE GLADIATOR
If you have 4......you may well be cross-eyed.
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Let's settle this for once and for all...... is atheism a belief, a non-belief or an anti-belief?
by Quillsky inmy opinion is that atheism is not a belief.
it is a belief in no belief..
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THE GLADIATOR
I believe that atheism is a belief in the non-belief of the belief in god or gods.
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404
The Issue is Not that God WANTS Us to Suffer...
by AGuest indear ones.
rather, it is our adversary who says we will do anything... anything... to avoid it.
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g. even curse god to his face.
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THE GLADIATOR
I agree with what you say and people should thrash out their cognitive dissonance in fierce debate, if that is what they need to do. If they can't stand the heat they should get out of the cauldron.
Over the years I have had some major ego contests with the hard players on the forum. Now I tend to look behind peoples rhetoric and ask what need it is they have in their lives that debating their faith with tens of thousands of words, fulfills. Is it just an ego thing? Or is it a way of letting out anger and frustration? This applies to those with and without faith.
I also question what need I have that causes me to spend time clashing with people and trying to change their mind. What do we get out of it? Everyone has their reasons and answers and they are all valid in their subjective way.
Perhaps the world has been too kind to me of late and softened me up. Instead of fighting in the arena, maybe I should just be a spectator. I may give up being a gladiator and become Plato or Aristotle and sit in Caesars box stroking my gods.
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404
The Issue is Not that God WANTS Us to Suffer...
by AGuest indear ones.
rather, it is our adversary who says we will do anything... anything... to avoid it.
a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g. even curse god to his face.
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THE GLADIATOR
cognizant dissident Some good points.
Now I feel less guilty over my negative remarks about all that is biblical and The Christ. I am still not sure the two have anything to do with each other?
I would be more vocal but I have no actual desire to cause anyone to lose their faith. I just burst out now and then because of the inconsistencies and contradictory nonsense spewn out by some word driven minds.
Most of the Christians on this forum are genuine and kind and that presents me with a problem. I enjoy a good battle but don't like to bully people who mean well.
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Those silly MORMANS! They believe that they are going rule their own PLANET!
by sabastious inyou ever remember poking fun about other religions with your jw associates?.
i do.. now that i am out i find it funny and very ironic that i made fun of such "absurd" beliefs.. here is a list of the top of my head that i used to believe:.
1. that 144,000 people will taken from the earth at random and appointed a immortal kings and priests in heaven.
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THE GLADIATOR
I worked with Mormons for many years. By the way, 'Mormon' is a nick name. They like to be called 'members of the church of Christ and of latter day saints.' Some mouthful, hu! They were squeaky clean; no smoking, coffee or alcohol. You also have to give a tenth of your income to their church.
They encouraged education. They organised a social life for the youths within the church and arranged regular dances and outings, so they could find suitable partners. They were kind principled people who treated me very well.
They were tolerant of my views, as I was a JW at the time. I was also single. They told me that very rich young women in salt lake city were looking for English men to marry. If I wanted they could make an introduction and get me set up. The drawback was I would have to get baptized into their set up and move to the USA. No alcohol for the rest of my life, can you imagine!
I was living away from home on my own and the firms boss was like a father to me. They were tolerant people. I was a pioneer at the time and they had no issue with funding my ministery in direct competition with theirs. I lived in East Grinstead Sussex - the 'Mormon' center in the UK. They have their temple there.
My impression was that they were a much better organization to be a part of than the JW shambles. It's a shame their heads are full of Joseph Smith's nonsense. Still, many of us fill our heads with some kind of nonsense and often our bodies with varies poisons in the name of leisure. They are deluded people but live lives that suggest to me that wholesome delusion can be an advantage.
I was tempted to defect to their set up but did not believe a word of their religion. Also, I am not a herd animal and value my independence too much.
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can anyone tell me if these words are in the bible?
by bigmac ini'm hoping to get clarity on a few points, but please, don't think i'm too lazy to do my own research: i do not have a bible in my house.. or the koran.
or the book of mormon.
or a copy of hitchhikers guide to the galaxy (unfortunately ).
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THE GLADIATOR
Many peoples will come and say, "Come, let us go to the meeting, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, and train us in the theocratic ministry school, so that we may walk in his paths." The law will go out from the Watchtower, the word of Jehovah from the kingdom hall.
Isaiah 2:2-4 - The New World Mistranslation of the holy Scriptures