Are you an Atheist/Believer?

[thailiketoo]

You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me. I don't know anyone amongst the religious people that i know who subscribe to God being an old white fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel. Like the Muslims, most of the religious people I know subscribe to the view that any graven image will not do God justice

SC

Would you agree that my conception of God is just as valid and logical and reasonable as yours? If not why?

I don't think I would comment on the validity, logic or reason of another's conception of God.

You already did when you wrote, "You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me"

[StreetCowboy]

You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me. I don't know anyone amongst the religious people that i know who subscribe to God being an old white fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel. Like the Muslims, most of the religious people I know subscribe to the view that any graven image will not do God justice

SC

Would you agree that my conception of God is just as valid and logical and reasonable as yours? If not why?

I don't think I would comment on the validity, logic or reason of another's conception of God.

You already did when you wrote, "You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me"

I think the 'you' in the reply below relates to Cashpower, but nevertheless....

You disbelieve in whichever conception of God you choose. That's not my business. But don't call my friends fools because of the character of the God in which you choose not to believe.

SC

[sirineou]

If some one engages in foolish activities one might be considered foolish.

Calling such man a fool is also foolish and anyone doing that better be prepared to include him self under such title.

.

That's just PC bullshit. Sometimes it is more beneficial to call a spade a bloody spade. Thousands of years of history demonstrate that it is almost pointless trying to instil common sense or reasoning into the brainwashed masses who continue to assert their belief in a jazzed up version of the tooth fairy.

Personal attacks are counterproductive, and disrespectfull

[thailiketoo]

You already did when you wrote, "You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me"

I think the 'you' in the reply below relates to Cashpower, but nevertheless....

You disbelieve in whichever conception of God you choose. That's not my business. But don't call my friends fools because of the character of the God in which you choose not to believe.

SC

I think you implied people who thought God, " an old white fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel." were not as religiously correct or at least not worthy of your friendship as people who thought of God as not a graven image.

I don't think graven image is a real good word either.

In other words you conveyed the thought that people that were worthy of your friendship did not think of God an old fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel.

I think the comparison of your friends and others is obvious.

I don't think you meant to tell us about your prejudices but you did.

[notmyself]

Calm down people!

[thailiketoo]

If some one engages in foolish activities one might be considered foolish.

Calling such man a fool is also foolish and anyone doing that better be prepared to include him self under such title.

.

That's just PC bullshit. Sometimes it is more beneficial to call a spade a bloody spade. Thousands of years of history demonstrate that it is almost pointless trying to instil common sense or reasoning into the brainwashed masses who continue to assert their belief in a jazzed up version of the tooth fairy.

Personal attacks are counterproductive, and disrespectfull

I agree with you and would add this one (I didn't write it)

cashpower, please do me a favor and don't express agreement with anything I say, no matter how obviously true.

I don't think I could stand the shame of being associated with the persona you've constructed here.

[cashpower]

Personal attacks are counterproductive, and disrespectfull

It's not personal. I include the full spectra of religious whackjobs in my assessment/s. The nuts who suppress women and smother them from head to foot in hideous and ridiculous 'garments'. The enablers of pedophile priests. The hypocrites who belch fire and brimstone while using donations to procure hookers. All are welcome to bathe in my righteous scorn.

[StreetCowboy]

You already did when you wrote, "You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me"

I think the 'you' in the reply below relates to Cashpower, but nevertheless....

You disbelieve in whichever conception of God you choose. That's not my business. But don't call my friends fools because of the character of the God in which you choose not to believe.

SC

I think you implied people who thought God, " an old white fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel." were not as religiously correct or at least not worthy of your friendship as people who thought of God as not a graven image.

I don't think graven image is a real good word either.

In other words you conveyed the thought that people that were worthy of your friendship did not think of God an old fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel.

I think the comparison of your friends and others is obvious.

I don't think you meant to tell us about your prejudices but you did.

Infer whatever you choose.

I've never heard anyone put forward the suggestion that God is as portrayed in traditional renaissance and medieval art.

SC

[cashpower]

Infer whatever you choose.

I've never heard anyone put forward the suggestion that God is as portrayed in traditional renaissance and medieval art.

SC

yes, because the face of god is everchanging to try to stay one step ahead of science. well mostly. apparently there are still a large number of nutters who believe the earth is 5000 years old. or 10,000. Or some ridiculous number depending on which comic book is being referred to.

[The Deerhunter]

I'm a long-term atheist married to a devout Buddhist. We respect each other's views but I guess neither of us give up completely on the idea of converting the other but is mostly low key stuff. Sorry, but when ya dead that's it. Learn to live with it. (yes, pun intended.)

[sirineou]

Infer whatever you choose.

I've never heard anyone put forward the suggestion that God is as portrayed in traditional renaissance and medieval art.

SC

yes, because the face of god is everchanging to try to stay one step ahead of science. well mostly. apparently there are still a large number of nutters who believe the earth is 5000 years old. or 10,000. Or some ridiculous number depending on which comic book is being referred to.

Now that's more like it

What did the previous personal attack accomplish?

​It accomplishes nothing other than derail and diminish your position

There are two major rules in debating

A) never ask a question of which you don't already know the answer

once you made your point, shut up, anything you say after that can only hurt you.

Please dont get me wrong, I am no paragon of debating,or most anything else. I also often forget my own advice

Anyway , glad we are back on track

So now let's go and kick some Christian ass

God of the Gaps

resides in that which we don't know,

As soon as our knowledge increases , he must find an other Gap in our understanding in which to hide in

Unfortunately for God. as these Gaps get smaller and smaller, so must he

eventually he will get so small we will barely be able to hear his tiny squeaky little voice

Editing typos

Edited January 19, 2014 by sirineou

[Dimpys Dad]

Civility and self-respect will always prevail, even though the interim may be unpleasant. I didn't take offense at a poster's remarks and wish them no ill will. I wish it was reciprocal. Such things should not shake one's resolve to arrive at the truth and sensible comments are always welcome. It doesn't shake my beliefs and faith to be challenged on them.

Well, good people, another day is done and I bid you all a good night and....God bless. See you again, same bat-channel, same bat-station.

[sirineou]

Civility and self-respect will always prevail, even though the interim may be unpleasant. I didn't take offense at a poster's remarks and wish them no ill will. I wish it was reciprocal. Such things should not shake one's resolve to arrive at the truth and sensible comments are always welcome. It doesn't shake my beliefs and faith to be challenged on them.

Well, good people, another day is done and I bid you all a good night and....God bless. See you again, same bat-channel, same bat-station.

My friend

Aside from the fact that I disagree with you on this issue

I am sure you are a very nice man, and would have no problem being your friend or share a beer with you

Good night , sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite

[bundoi]

Why do those people believe in things for which there is no evidence?

[notmyself]

Why do those people believe in things for which there is no evidence?

Would it not be better to phrase it as something like why do some people believe in things when there is no logically valid reason for them to do so?

In an evolutionary sense we need this when we are children. The glow of a fire can be alluring and mesmerising so when our parents tell us not to put our hand in it we believe them....or when our parents tell us not to go to such and such a place because there are wild animals which could eat them, they believe it. The ones who did not would be less likely to pass on their gene which will over time filter out those who do not listen to their parents. This is natural selection rather than selective breeding which we see in dogs for perhaps their appearance, horses for their speed or stamina and even pigs for their ability to gain weight or taste of their meat.

There is no doubt that simply believing what you are told by parents and or trusted elders is of benefit but what if the information being fed to the child is untrue or just the personally held belief (for no valid reason) of the parent/ elder. etc? What then? This is the 'I believe it on faith but know it to be true' issue which has been brought up a couple of times on the thread. Just in itself there is a fatal flaw because if you know something to be true then why would you need faith to believe it? It's a meaningless statement and the impressionable clay like mind of a child should not be subjected to it.

Edited January 19, 2014 by notmyself

[bundoi]

To be sure ;-) you are talking abut the (in)doctrinal aspects....

as for the (quint)essential aspects...

it's revealed by some old geezer going up a mountain, or some virgin getting parthenogenIcally pregnant, or by a person hearing voices in a cave... so much for the 3 abrahamic versions which most farangs blv in one way or another....

that is when their spiteful spiritual leaders aren't advocating genocide, head-chopping, clitorectomy, penis-chopping etc,

Edited January 19, 2014 by bundoi

[bundoi]

You apparently disbelieve in a different God from me. I don't know anyone amongst the religious people that i know who subscribe to God being an old white fellow with a grey beard and a bath towel. Like the Muslims, most of the religious people I know subscribe to the view that any graven image will not do God justice

SC

Would you agree that my conception of God is just as valid and logical and reasonable as yours? If not why?

I don't think I would comment on the validity, logic or reason of another's conception of God.

Some people believe in the mind-bogglingly medically inept view proposed by alcoholics anonymous.

[wym]

Your ego has misled you. I was agreeing with another poster.

No, I was just sympathizing with them.

And no, I've never posted any gory details of my exploits, realize they wouldn't be of interest to anyone.

As far as "exploitation" goes I would very much enjoy a conversation on that topic, starting with an attempt at defining that term with other, more rational and sincere posters, but of course that's for another thread.

[RandomSand]

Wow seems like this thread will never die.

Looks like we're all found eternal life

[wym]

Open-minded inquiries directed at increasing one's understanding are much more productive and entertaining than close-minded diatribes by people fixated on trying to convince others of a position they're already certain about.

[crazyguyinthailand]

I believe in God and Jesus. but I cant really say that I am a Christian. cuz I hardly follow anything. Its hard to know there is a God but not have been able to follow. In Thailand it should be easier than back home to be a believer. you see it everywhere they all believe in something. If you haven't seen it yet and want to. time to take a look outside the tourist box. Lad Phrao, the area where I moved to now in Bangkok. Got many churches, I haven't visited any yet. If somebody ask me why do you come to church are you a Christian?I will answer: No I'm not but I want to be that's why I'm here

[notmyself]

Open-minded inquiries directed at increasing one's understanding are much more productive and entertaining than close-minded diatribes by people fixated on trying to convince others of a position they're already certain about.

Should someone be open minded about the stork theory of reproduction and if not, why?

[RandomSand]

Open-minded inquiries directed at increasing one's understanding are much more productive and entertaining than close-minded diatribes by people fixated on trying to convince others of a position they're already certain about.

Should someone be open minded about the stork theory of reproduction and if not, why?

We know that we're not from aquatic birds, don't we.

But how can you know that your consciousness isn't from a supernatural origin ?

*edit spelling

Edited January 19, 2014 by RandomSand

[notmyself]

Open-minded inquiries directed at increasing one's understanding are much more productive and entertaining than close-minded diatribes by people fixated on trying to convince others of a position they're already certain about.

Should someone be open minded about the stork theory of reproduction and if not, why?

We know that we're not from aquatic birds, don't we.

But how can you know that your consciousness isn't from a supernatural origin ?

What method have we used to 'know' we are not from aquatic birds? Not the field which would be biology but the method, what method.

[wym]

Open-minded inquiries directed at increasing one's understanding are much more productive and entertaining than close-minded diatribes by people fixated on trying to convince others of a position they're already certain about.

Should someone be open minded about the stork theory of reproduction and if not, why?

Of course, that happens to be a topic domain where the current state of science has made some reasonable progress.

Any scientist who thought that we currently know everything worth knowing on that topic is unlikely to learn anything new, that critical trait is fundamental to the scientific method.

Edited January 19, 2014 by wym

[drx13]

01-01 What Is Religion.mp3

01-02 What Is Religion.mp3

Something for everyone on this topc

I have an audiobook "Philosophy of Religion" a series of lectures.

It can be sent by gmail (google Drive), 178 files 250 Mbytes in total

I uploaded it all about 30 minutes.

If you would like please PM me

[RandomSand]

What method have we used to 'know' we are not from aquatic birds? Not the field which would be biology but the method, what method.

Our method would be biology else we'd be debating the causality of it all day, no ?

Perhaps you'd be so kind in explaining how we can know ?

[notmyself]

What method have we used to 'know' we are not from aquatic birds? Not the field which would be biology but the method, what method.

Our method would be biology else we'd be debating the causality of it all day, no ?

Perhaps you'd be so kind in explaining how we can know ?

No, biology is a field of knowledge and not the method used to gain knowledge in the field. Do biologists just guess or?

[RandomSand]

What method have we used to 'know' we are not from aquatic birds? Not the field which would be biology but the method, what method.

Our method would be biology else we'd be debating the causality of it all day, no ?

Perhaps you'd be so kind in explaining how we can know ?

No, biology is a field of knowledge and not the method used to gain knowledge in the field. Do biologists just guess or?

I guess they do. Do you disagree ?

[notmyself]

No, biology is a field of knowledge and not the method used to gain knowledge in the field. Do biologists just guess or?

I guess they do. Do you disagree ?

No, biology is a field of knowledge and not the method used to gain knowledge in the field.

So you 'guess' that they just guess?