Question
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Re: Question
Sammy is just whinning again cause she does not have a life.
Have you counted the illegal immigrants already Sam or the handicapped people that park in YOUR space?
No I can see you are still trying to not discuss anything with anyone
Have you counted the illegal immigrants already Sam or the handicapped people that park in YOUR space?
No I can see you are still trying to not discuss anything with anyone
God has left the building and is staying at Motel 8
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Re: Question
Hi Sam, you said:
Good questions. But I'm not sure if you/we in general have a handle on much of what is "believed". I'll probably ramble a bit, but TRY to follow me ;-)
First, there is no-such-sane person who does not believe. The concern centres on WHAT they believe. To label "believer' or "non-believer" is to begin with a conditioned prejudice... And doesn't change reality, other than psychicly equating to what has been taught...
Second, the poet said it better than any other, "...prayer is the souls sincere desire, uttered or unexpressed..." Hoping I make to the next gas station with the needle on "E"??? I REALLY WANT my loved-one to survive the operation. A universal desire
Third, death by any means is inevitable. Nurturing probably plays THE significant role as to how one responds to the thought &/or the deed. I've seen the gamut of reactions... At 75 I know I'm closer then ever to dying. Death doesn't really bother me. Dying does a bit, cuz I don't know how I'll die--painlessly or??? I do not believe there is a Heaven to long for, nor a Hell to fear...
Sam, I think your question might reveal how ineffectivly YOUR "belief" has prepared YOU for the challenges/realities of life??? Maybe the solution is simply "believe" something else.
Generally speaking, religion not dealing with reality poorly prepares SOME, while other religious folks seem to have little problem dealing well. Which begs the question is it religion, or ones Nature-Nurture that bolsters one through life? Maybe a combination??
We're all different. Don't envy others. Enjoy your self, as you get better self-acquainted.
Good luck, Roger
I'd like to know what the non-believer alternative is when it comes to counting down one's days, or not knowing what comes next with one's health...or even the knowledge that the life you knew is gone, and you have to change everything just to survive. Since only the weak turn to God, faith, and the hopefulness that comes with these things, what do non-believers turn to when time or illness hits them personally?
Good questions. But I'm not sure if you/we in general have a handle on much of what is "believed". I'll probably ramble a bit, but TRY to follow me ;-)
First, there is no-such-sane person who does not believe. The concern centres on WHAT they believe. To label "believer' or "non-believer" is to begin with a conditioned prejudice... And doesn't change reality, other than psychicly equating to what has been taught...
Second, the poet said it better than any other, "...prayer is the souls sincere desire, uttered or unexpressed..." Hoping I make to the next gas station with the needle on "E"??? I REALLY WANT my loved-one to survive the operation. A universal desire
Third, death by any means is inevitable. Nurturing probably plays THE significant role as to how one responds to the thought &/or the deed. I've seen the gamut of reactions... At 75 I know I'm closer then ever to dying. Death doesn't really bother me. Dying does a bit, cuz I don't know how I'll die--painlessly or??? I do not believe there is a Heaven to long for, nor a Hell to fear...
Sam, I think your question might reveal how ineffectivly YOUR "belief" has prepared YOU for the challenges/realities of life??? Maybe the solution is simply "believe" something else.
Generally speaking, religion not dealing with reality poorly prepares SOME, while other religious folks seem to have little problem dealing well. Which begs the question is it religion, or ones Nature-Nurture that bolsters one through life? Maybe a combination??
We're all different. Don't envy others. Enjoy your self, as you get better self-acquainted.
Good luck, Roger
Have you noticed what a beautiful day it is? Some can't...
"God": nick-name for the Universe...
"God": nick-name for the Universe...
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Re: Question
I am not offended because I ended up asking myself what I could learn from the experience because I could not find an answer to the "why". I learned that if the Mormon god was there, he was ignoring me and my suffering. Letting go was liberating. It allowed me to quit asking "why" and just make the most of life. It does seem strange to me that you would never ask "why" though.JustMe wrote:Mad VikingAt the time, I was a believing Mormon. My suffering brought me to the point that I began to ask the Mormon god “why?”.
No offense MV, but that was your mistake. NEVER ask the question why. Ask WHAT can I learn from this (whatever it is that happens to you in life), and go on from there. There are no answers to why in this life. Ask WHAT can I do to improve and increase happiness in my life. It is NOT what happens to you that matters, it is what you do with it that counts. I am being very serious.
EDIT: Why is asking "why"... a mistake?
"Sire, I had no need of that hypothesis" - Laplace
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Re: Question
gramps wrote:JustMe wrote:Mad Viking
No offense MV, but that was your mistake. NEVER ask the question why. Ask WHAT can I learn from this (whatever it is that happens to you in life), and go on from there. There are no answers to why in this life. Ask WHAT can I do to improve and increase happiness in my life. It is NOT what happens to you that matters, it is what you do with it that counts. I am being very serious.
This is nonsense!
How old are you? You give your kids this advice?
Precisely! Never ask the question why? That's the dumbest thing i've ever heard. A little cult-like in my opinion.
WK: "Joseph Smith asserted that the Book of Mormon peoples were the original inhabitants of the americas"
Will Schryver: "No, he didn’t." 3/19/08
Still waiting for Will to back this up...
Will Schryver: "No, he didn’t." 3/19/08
Still waiting for Will to back this up...
Re: Question
SUAS wrote:Sammy is just whinning again cause she does not have a life.
Have you counted the illegal immigrants already Sam or the handicapped people that park in YOUR space?
No I can see you are still trying to not discuss anything with anyone
Did you even bother to READ her OP?
She is hardly whining. She is asking different people how they deal with crisis based on his/her belief system.
I know Sammy personally. She is an extremely strong, capable young lady who is very smart, has been through a lot in her life, and will make an incredible mother.
Your badgering of her not only makes no sense, but is uncalled for, given her current health circumstances.
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Re: Question
marg wrote:Sam Harris wrote: I
I'd appreciate actual answers instead of soliloquies about my stupidity. Marg has already told us know dumb religious people are recently. We know. If you don't mind, if you are a non-believer and are gonna post, can you just answer the question? There is no right or wrong answer. I'm just curious. Thanks.
There is a difference between saying religious people are dumb versus what I said that 'all religious people hold idiotic religious beliefs and hence to some extent are all idiots for holding idiotic beliefs'. An intelligent individual can hold idiotic beliefs. It is absurd to think all beliefs are equally valid, equally rationally and shouldn't be evaluated or criticized. Also acknowledging an individual holds irrational and/or stupid beliefs is not a value judgment on the person's morals, nor is it an expression of like or dislike. And acknowledgment that any particular belief is completely irrational does not necessarily entail that belief will be a hindrance to the believer's life. Beliefs (religious or non) which are completely irrational can work positively on an individual's life and so atheists can and do use faith in a similar manner to what you describe. It is a matter of having a positive attitude.
Part I underlined: People process their experiences in a number of ways and accomodate them in order to construct their understanding of how things and people work, to create reality as they perceive it. Our personal realities are subjective in and of themselves. That you evaluate, perceive and process differently does in no way negate or invalidate the evaluations, perceptions and processes of another human being.
Regarding having a positive attitude: could you explain more clearly what you're thinking about there? I'd like to know.
Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up.
Chinese Proverb
Chinese Proverb
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Re: Question
delete
Last edited by Google Feedfetcher on Fri Sep 26, 2008 12:38 am, edited 1 time in total.
Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up.
Chinese Proverb
Chinese Proverb
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Re: Question
I would just like to say that the Vikings got their asses handed to them in the year 1066 by the English.
You can’t trust adults to tell you the truth.
Scream the lie, whisper the retraction.- The Left
Scream the lie, whisper the retraction.- The Left
Re: Question
Jersey Girl wrote:marg wrote:
It is absurd to think all beliefs are equally valid, equally rationally and shouldn't be evaluated or criticized.
Part I underlined: People process their experiences in a number of ways and accomodate them in order to construct their understanding of how things and people work, to create reality as they perceive it. Our personal realities are subjective in and of themselves. That you evaluate, perceive and process differently does in no way negate or invalidate the evaluations, perceptions and processes of another human being.
When I used the word "valid" I meant in the sense of justified with reasoning, not in the sense of a right to believe what one wishes. There is a difference between the right to believe whatever one wishes as long as it doesn't detrimental impact others versus my point that some beliefs are much better grounded in empirical reality and/or warranted by good reasoning than other beliefs.
Regarding having a positive attitude: could you explain more clearly what you're thinking about there? I'd like to know.
Well give me an example where you think I might have difficulty coping in life due to atheism whereas a theist wouldn't.
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Re: Question
Well give me an example where you think I might have difficulty coping in life due to atheism whereas a theist wouldn't.
marg,
Hey. I'm not making any sort of assertion regarding atheism vs theism and coping. I just wanted clarity on what you were thinking when you wrote about a positive attitude.
You wrote this:
Beliefs (religious or non) which are completely irrational can work positively on an individual's life and so atheists can and do use faith in a similar manner to what you describe. It is a matter of having a positive attitude.
What is a matter of having a positive attitude?
Failure is not falling down but refusing to get up.
Chinese Proverb
Chinese Proverb