what weird things do only jehovah's witnesses do?
A couple points:
Fundamentalists of many persuasions use the "blame it on Satan" bit. Not peculiar to dubbies by any means.
WE Vine actually was a scholar who believed JC died on a stake. The dubs LOVE to quote him on this one.
I can think of a line of reasoning I have only heard in the JW milieu, the old "well, we really shouldn't speculate" line. WTF? You mean I'm not even allowed to think about possibilities? Wow.
Bradley
there are generally two types of arguments against theism whether we are talking about the judeo-christian-islamic god, the god of deism, the hindu pantheon....whatever.
the "rational" arguments include all scientific, logical and historical problems with a supreme and all-loving being and include such fields as evolutionary biology, deconstruction of "holy" texts, archaeology, formal logic, etc.
science in particular has been eliminating the "explanatory" aspect of theism for hundreds of years now -- from copernicus to newton to darwin to einstein -- all, knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or unwillingly, have had a share in shattering faith.
So where does the problem lie? With science or the stupid and lazy majority?
B.
LOL tink.
Now, let me say this. If I have offended you, I'm sorry. No offense was intended. A careful reading of my thread will certainly bear this out. It is because I hate prejudice in all it's forms that I said what I said.
And I stand by that with full conviction.
Bradley
there are generally two types of arguments against theism whether we are talking about the judeo-christian-islamic god, the god of deism, the hindu pantheon....whatever.
the "rational" arguments include all scientific, logical and historical problems with a supreme and all-loving being and include such fields as evolutionary biology, deconstruction of "holy" texts, archaeology, formal logic, etc.
science in particular has been eliminating the "explanatory" aspect of theism for hundreds of years now -- from copernicus to newton to darwin to einstein -- all, knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or unwillingly, have had a share in shattering faith.
LT,
That's the most laughable argument against science I've ever seen! "Since I can't explain how a microwave works, well by wonkers it must be the spirits who make it work!" Come on!
Microwaves -- and the universe -- works for purely naturalistic reasons.
B.
there are generally two types of arguments against theism whether we are talking about the judeo-christian-islamic god, the god of deism, the hindu pantheon....whatever.
the "rational" arguments include all scientific, logical and historical problems with a supreme and all-loving being and include such fields as evolutionary biology, deconstruction of "holy" texts, archaeology, formal logic, etc.
science in particular has been eliminating the "explanatory" aspect of theism for hundreds of years now -- from copernicus to newton to darwin to einstein -- all, knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or unwillingly, have had a share in shattering faith.
Nice to see you back LT! How, though, did anyone "kill" science in the 00's? Science is as strong as ever, mind you, even though most people are totally ignorant of it's findings and methods.
Science and empiricism is simply the most effective strategem developed by humankind for uncovering facts about our universe and ourselves. Religion and mysticism are the least.
Bradley
Anything by Richard Dawkins is a good start. "The Blind Watchmaker" is excellent.
Also: Stephen Jay Gould's writings. Ernst Mayr "What Evolution Is" and Niles Eldridge, "Evolution, and the Myth of Creationism."
All very good.
Bradley
there are generally two types of arguments against theism whether we are talking about the judeo-christian-islamic god, the god of deism, the hindu pantheon....whatever.
the "rational" arguments include all scientific, logical and historical problems with a supreme and all-loving being and include such fields as evolutionary biology, deconstruction of "holy" texts, archaeology, formal logic, etc.
science in particular has been eliminating the "explanatory" aspect of theism for hundreds of years now -- from copernicus to newton to darwin to einstein -- all, knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or unwillingly, have had a share in shattering faith.
Kenneson,
Is the universe any more benevolent without a God?
I never said I was offering some nice "warm fuzzy" view of human existence. Who said the whole of the universe needs to cater to humans complete with a ribbon attached?
Bradley
there are generally two types of arguments against theism whether we are talking about the judeo-christian-islamic god, the god of deism, the hindu pantheon....whatever.
the "rational" arguments include all scientific, logical and historical problems with a supreme and all-loving being and include such fields as evolutionary biology, deconstruction of "holy" texts, archaeology, formal logic, etc.
science in particular has been eliminating the "explanatory" aspect of theism for hundreds of years now -- from copernicus to newton to darwin to einstein -- all, knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or unwillingly, have had a share in shattering faith.
First off, Martin Luther was actually the person who coined the "God is dead" phrase. Nietzsche simply popularized it. And since Nietzsche did not believe in an afterlife saying he is dead is simply a statement of fact the man would approve of.
Edge....notice you've done nothing but the standardized, "wait and see" reason why God allows (and designs, remember parasites) sufferring. Gee, kinda reminds me of another line of reasoning a nasty little cult uses to soothe the cognitive dissonance in it's members. I believe the phrase is, "wait on Jehovah."
Please. Your "answers" are non-answers. Theists, but most especially Christians and Muslims, love to have it both ways. They think of God as being some all-loving, syrupy sweet sky-daddy who answers our prayers and provides for us, but at the same time say that we cannot hold him accountable to human standards. Sorry, you can't "bake your cake and eat it too." Either God is like a nice human father or he is way, way, way beyond that.
And that link? Typical Christian apologetic nonsensical merry-go-round-the-problem but never solve it.
Bradley
there are generally two types of arguments against theism whether we are talking about the judeo-christian-islamic god, the god of deism, the hindu pantheon....whatever.
the "rational" arguments include all scientific, logical and historical problems with a supreme and all-loving being and include such fields as evolutionary biology, deconstruction of "holy" texts, archaeology, formal logic, etc.
science in particular has been eliminating the "explanatory" aspect of theism for hundreds of years now -- from copernicus to newton to darwin to einstein -- all, knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or unwillingly, have had a share in shattering faith.
Double Edge....By YOUR line of reasoning, who created the Creator? And the Creator's Creator? Ad infinitum. Your argument that the "real" God is not like the God I describe is bogus beyond belief. I didn't cite the insane carnage done by Biblegod in the OT or that predicted in the NT. I simply stated the facts: this is how life is, how could anyone with a half a brain allow that.
Tink, azzy, Stacey....my gals! hehe...
Bradley
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tom green, the convicted polygamist in utah, is requesting (through his lawyers of course) that the supreme court overturn his convictions based both on the supreme court ruling on the texas sodomy law and the massachucetts supreme court ruling on gay marriage.. so begins the trip down the slippery slope.
Yerusalim, you dunderhead. You are citing one exceptional case. Most people -- the extreme, vast majority -- will not willingly become polygamous. (the reasons for this are legion) Same for a guy who wishes to marry his daughter. Or his dog.
More emotionaly potent overreactions from Yeru.
Bradley
