Atheism

Originally posted by kerazeesickoI mean how does it hurt if it brings peace to those that need an outside source for comfort. I am not sure what I believe, but in the end who cares.

While belief in God by itself does not necessarily cause harm, one need only consult a history book, or the daily newspaper, to see example after example of extreme harm caused by, and in the name of, religion.

reply to post by humphreysjim


This is true of every invention of mankind...

Religion is not a special case... there is both ill and well found in every invention of mankind...

Originally posted by HunkaHunka
reply to post by humphreysjim

 

This is true of every invention of mankind...

Religion is not a special case... there is both ill and well found in every invention of mankind...

Yes, but religion is quite a spectacular case. The world would be better off without it. Belief in God, sure, if you have to, religion and fighting based on interpretation of his messages, no thanks.

reply to post by HunkaHunka


...I did no such thing. Thanks for addressing that idea, but I do not support it. My post was about how there is no such thing as 'common sense' and that the concept of intuition is entirely useless, especially in scientific discourse.

...and the rest is an ad hominem...a really long one.

So you didn't bother to address my positions and then you discussed me for a while.

reply to post by HunkaHunka


I'm sorry, but what specific good has religion caused that couldn't have been performed without it?

I am very confused by this accusation, as you yourself are going on a fanatical rant.

But I will say this, as much fun as it is discussing (notice the word discussing not arguing, debating etc.) I must admit it proves difficult to shake off beliefs that people have held dear since childhood, which is your average christian, and it is indeed hard to get passed the stubborn and often self-righteous behaviorof the average athiest, so the point i believe of posting religious rants is not to provoke responses, but to simply inform people of the diffrent options and thought processes.

Hope this is of use to someone.

Originally posted by MGSPhantom
self-righteous behavior of the average Atheist . . .

Usually this means - making a statement.

Not a belief.

reply to post by Annee


I am confused by this. I am quite slow and can not put 2 and 2 together with this reply, i mean no disrespect, i am simply asking what exactly you mean.

reply to post by madnessinmysoul


Rather than make a mountain out of a mole-hill, for the sake of being brief, I will simply state you do not understand the original meanings *common sense* and *metaphysics*.

Lets break down *common sense* to *common* and *sense*. Something that can be sensed and/or accepted by most people. If the catholic church insists that the world is flat, then most people will say "the world is flat".

Metaphysics down to *meta* and *physics*. The first word translated from greek to english means *after* and physics is a branch of science that deals with measurements(quantification and qualification) of the natural world. The two words put together mean AFTER PHYSICS! I guess it could be part of philosophy(friend of knowledge) but to me it seems a more accurate classification would be elite physics.

Unless you understand the original meanings then cutting through the bull# is an excercise in futility. What do disclosure and congress mean? First word means *disc* + *lo* + *sure*= flying saucer! Congress means *con* + *gress* = the opposite of progress!

Now go ahead and get drunk again, but in the long run you might consider becoming a mason. What do you think of masonry my stubborn athiest "friend"???

Originally posted by EarthCitizen07
reply to post by madnessinmysoul

 

Rather than make a mountain out of a mole-hill, for the sake of being brief, I will simply state you do not understand the original meanings *common sense* and *metaphysics*.

Just curious - - but why would an Atheist have any interest in metaphysics.

Common sense - logic - facts. That is basically the foundation of non-god believers.

What do God believers base their thought on?

reply to post by humphreysjim


Um religion can not and does not do anything. It's a concept, or more precise a grouping of them. Nothing more nothing less. I mean, do you blame the concept of guns for murder? Or the people that pull the trigger? Time to stop scapegoating a concept and look to where the blame truly goes, the people who did those things. Not whatever excuse they used.

reply to post by Annee


In your opinion what is the definition of god? What is the definition of a diety?

What is the difference between spiritualism and religion? Define each!

Common sense is what most people sense to be the truth, which may or may not have a basis in fact and/or logic. Logic is the problem solving process used to seperate facts from fiction.

If we cannot agree on "basic" definitions then our discussion is based on conjecture, but why would one assume only non-god believers have access to logic/facts/truth? Science cannot explain something that is either beyond the scope of our current scientific understanding or science done covertly miles underground in some DUMB.

It is quite illogical/stupid to assume all humans have all the answers and do not need help!

reply to post by EarthCitizen07


Ah, I love it when people try to explain philosophical concepts to me that I spent a marathon 20 hours studying as well as took a year long 60 hour course on, and that's just specifically on metaphysics.

Hell, I'm also an English teacher, so it's more amusing when someone tries to explain English words to me.

Originally posted by EarthCitizen07
reply to post by madnessinmysoul

 

Rather than make a mountain out of a mole-hill, for the sake of being brief, I will simply state you do not understand the original meanings *common sense* and *metaphysics*.

No, you really are the one who doesn't.

Lets break down *common sense* to *common* and *sense*. Something that can be sensed and/or accepted by most people. If the catholic church insists that the world is flat, then most people will say "the world is flat".

...so things accepted by fact as people. Even though common sense tends to be defined as 'intuitive'

Metaphysics down to *meta* and *physics*. The first word translated from greek to english means *after* and physics is a branch of science that deals with measurements(quantification and qualification) of the natural world.

Actually, this an interesting thing. The word physics comes from Aristotle as he described the initial philosophers, commonly referred to as the pre-Socratics, as physikos (I'm sure that's a horrible Romanization, but I'm trying to convey pronunciation), which roughly translates to physicists or those who try to understand the physical world. Aristotle referred to his work as something that would come after physics, something you did indeed get right...but it wasn't 'after' so much as 'beyond'. It was the study of the underlying principles, something that would end up really being the realm of modern physics.

But they just didn't have the tools we had back then.

The two words put together mean AFTER PHYSICS! I guess it could be part of philosophy(friend of knowledge)

...love of wisdom. I'm sorry, but it's the first thing anyone learns in a philosophy class.

but to me it seems a more accurate classification would be elite physics.

To you..well, you're wrong. Metaphysics has universally referred to the philosophical practice of understanding the framework of the physical world, though the advent of modern science started to largely push this to the side. There has never been an 'elite physics' referred to as metaphysics, elite physics is what we find in peer reviewed scientific literature.

Unless you understand the original meanings then cutting through the *expletive deleted* is an excercise in futility. What do disclosure and congress mean? First word means *disc* + *lo* + *sure*= flying saucer! Congress means *con* + *gress* = the opposite of progress!

...um...so...ignorance or jokes? I'm not quite sure.

Now go ahead and get drunk again, but in the long run you might consider becoming a mason. What do you think of masonry my stubborn athiest "friend"???

I didn't get drunk, I contemplated it. Trust me, if I were drunk the post would have been longer and far more visceral. As for masons...eh, the ones I know are alright.

reply to post by Annee


No, bad atheist. No common sense!

Oh, I'm sorry, I'm just trying to make the believers feel comfortable by creating a patriarchy that smashes any dissenting opinion.

In a more serious tone:
I'd suggest you replace 'common sense' with 'critical thinking' in the future, because critical thinking is a far more awesome concept.

reply to post by Annee


Look up the word metaphysics please. It means more than Wicca shops and "god(s)". And believers? Everyone's a believer in something, be it in god(s), modern cosmology, physics or flying winnebagos. The problem arises when people get attached to their beliefs and try to call it something else.

reply to post by Watcher-In-The-Shadows


Religion isn't a concept, it's a label used to describe a set of organizations and practices. It's a group. Religion can do things, as it's a collective. If some people are molested by clergy, it could be said that religion results in people being molested.

Originally posted by EarthCitizen07
reply to post by Annee

 

In your opinion what is the definition of god? What is the definition of a diety?

I am an Atheist - - who believes all is energy.

That everything is energy - - a creation from energy.

Originally posted by Watcher-In-The-Shadows
reply to post by Annee

 

Look up the word metaphysics please. It means more than Wicca shops and "god(s)". And believers? Everyone's a believer in something, be it in god(s), modern cosmology, physics or flying winnebagos. The problem arises when people get attached to their beliefs and try to call it something else.

I was raised in the Religious Science church - - you know the teachings? Science of Mind.

My mom was one of the original members of Norman Vincent Peale's - - Power of Positive Thinking church.

I knew of metaphysics before it had a name.

reply to post by madnessinmysoul


It certainly is a set of concepts. Completely incapable of independent action it "makes" no one do anything. And here I thought you didn't believe in magic.

Simple fact, "My god wants you dead." is a pitiful excuse AMONGST MANY used by people doing what they were most likely going to do anyway. I mean, if I started say killing in the name of, let's say, hotdogs. Are you really going to be as ridiculous as to say hotdogs cause people to kill?

reply to post by Annee


Ah, so you were born in Ancient Greece then? I believe that was the time the concept was brought about...