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#1
11-30-2007, 01:39 PM
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Re: The rise of the fundamentalist right in America
God can do all the threatening, enforcing, judging, and punishing He wants to. We, however, are taught to "judge not, lest ye may be judged." God is the true judge, and He is the only true source of both justification and condemnation. People claiming to speak on His behalf about who He justifies and who He condemns are just clanging cymbals, causing a lot of racket, but not really amounting to much.
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#2
11-30-2007, 05:18 PM
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Re: The rise of the fundamentalist right in America
[ QUOTE ]
God can do all the threatening, enforcing, judging, and punishing He wants to. We, however, are taught to "judge not, lest ye may be judged." God is the true judge, and He is the only true source of both justification and condemnation. People claiming to speak on His behalf about who He justifies and who He condemns are just clanging cymbals, causing a lot of racket, but not really amounting to much. [/ QUOTE ] So I should keep my mouth shut and my thoughts closed in thinking the god you describe is a despot who rules by fear and punishment of those who question his excessively harsh punishment (I consider eternal hell pretty excessive compared to most any crime committed in the blink of a lifetime). -JP
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#3
11-30-2007, 05:24 PM
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Re: The rise of the fundamentalist right in America
Just realized how far off topic my posts have helped to derail this thread, sorry op and sorry all talk involving religion seems to be funneled directly into the same discussions.
-JP
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#6
11-30-2007, 06:13 PM
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Re: The rise of the fundamentalist right in America
[ QUOTE ]
You know there is an SMP forum. Some of you would really like the "atheist sandbox" over there. [/ QUOTE ] I guess this is directed, in a way, towards me. I am agnostic. I believe that making a "this and only this" judgement is extreme when we are talking about religions. I do not fault anyone for believing what they believe. I only expressed my problems with it. They may be hurtful to read, but those are my honest opinions. I believe that the Atheist vs Believer debate is moot at best. I would never tell anyone that they are dead wrong for believing what they believe. It is a choice of every independent human being to believe as they must. I have problems with any extreme thought. As I already expressed, most conclusions end in the center. It does not matter how much you do not like, or disagree with my opinions. They are unlikely to change, as they are not based in logic per se, but based on an emotional charge that we all need to hold on to. How that manifests is for the individual to determine. For some, that is clinging to Fundamentalists and extreme thinking, and for others, that is discounting all things surreal. I like to believe that the world of Escher exists somewhere. The "Animal Farm" bit probably went a little too far, to be honest. I assume you get my gist.
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#7
11-30-2007, 06:23 PM
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Re: The rise of the fundamentalist right in America
The thing is, I think most of us fall so far short on making the most of our reason that a run to belief can be counterproductive. That's like a fish in the ocean wondering looking for water. Feeling good or at least less threatened or frightened is a nice thing, but there are other things we do well to value and probably do with a good bit more of.
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#8
11-30-2007, 05:44 PM
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Re: The rise of the fundamentalist right in America
All,
It looks like we're starting to get onto some subjects where debate on an internet message board is completely unproductive and too often leads to unpleasant arguments. I've been pleasantly surprised with the tone of this thread so far, but by and large, I don't care to deal with questions of the existence of God. I am respectful and tolerant of atheists, and I didn't come into this thread trying to convert anyone, but I consider asking me questions to try and back me into a logical trap not being particularly respectful or tolerant of my beliefs. I'm not going to deal with those questions, but if you want to continue along those lines, there are probably people in SMP who'd enjoy sparring with you. I'll deal with a few more of these questions later, though.
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