God hates...

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sigh... no not if they sneeze. meaning if they piss me off because of what I am. instead of going off on them just piss them off even more

Hon Mr. U knows what ya meant :P

"Of course they have value...but who is to determine what pragmatism and benevolence consist of? And will two people ALWAYS make the same determination...much less an entire populace?"Of course not, and that's the point. Isn't the same fallacy of subjective determination true of religious dogma? There is nothing in the human mind to make it more objective when comprehending tenants of religion than when it is comprehending it's own self accountability. Both are entirely and equally subject to human understanding and human inability to understand. What else would explain the profusion of religious sects all praying to, supposedly, the same god with many of those sects violently hating one another.>>>"What is goodness, and who determines what it is for us all? Are you more qualified than I to determine what is good and what is not?"No one and no one religion is qualified to make that determination it must be done by the self and for the self. Beyond the self its merely a judgement based on cultural beliefs and understandings and will vary form person to person and understanding to understanding. Malevolence and benevolence are determined in two separate places, those are in the society that one belongs to and in ones self as a product of that society. There is no single set of acceptable morals the world over though many moral codes share many of the same ethical beliefs. No dogma or set of beliefs is any more valid than the next, though some may be more socially acceptable in a global society.>>>"Vagueness is certainly an issue...but again, what constitutes an outside source being "wrong"? Who makes that determination?"Once again the individual will make that determination and once again the determination is subject to differing human interpretations and those difference are only broadened by societal and culture prejudices, moraes, thought processes and ultimately comprehensions.>>>"The major problem I see with a determination by consensus is that it tends to set the value of such a moral compass at a mediocre level...one that wouldn't require much effort to "live up to" (or "live down to") by most folks."On that note, as a matter of personal conviction, I completely agree.

Quote:now I just say "God bless you" lol people hate that. Yeah, some people do hate that. I, on the other hand, love it!

''No one and no one religion is qualified to make that determination it must be done by the self and for the self.''The determination of what goodness is, I agree, must be undertaken by oneself, however, is religion not there to guide us in this?

this topic was last responded to in May.. please dont bring back old threads. especially religion ones. we got enough of them here now. lol you can change your date settings in your preferences.

this topic was last responded to in May.. **2007 **!!!

Sorry! I just registered on this site and had a question! Don't worry, I won't bring any others back...I'll just read them!

not a problem =)

heheheI forgot about this one, thanks for reminding me

Jesus directed his followers to spread the "good news" -- the gospel" -- far and wide. I've never had a Muslim, Jew, Hindu, or Jain knock on my door as proselytize. It's only been Chrisitians. A lot of Christians, doing missionary work. Christian missionaries don't just proselytize in their neighborhoods. They also visit "less developed" parts of the world and try to convince people to accept their beliefs rather then indigenous ones.

People who are motivated by their religious beliefs are not easy to dissuade. The people who think they're doing things to you for your own good, who think they have moral authority, aren't easily stopped. That is true of the Christian Crusaders who slaughtered so many people in the Middle East, the Catholics who directed the Spanish Inqusition, the Musliims who fly airplanes into buildings and blow themselves up, and the various suicide cults. Does anyone have any issue with the polygamist groups?

thor brought up the idea of the "moral compass", and bobalious pointed out that you have a big problem if something is found wrong with the laws. (Was it really every okay to kill people in the most terrible ways for arbitrary infractions of religious wars, as was described in the Old Testament?) The majority of people in Western Europe are not religious, yet their society has not collapsed. In fact they have far less violent crime than the very Christian U.S. does. It's not as if the atheists are committing all the crimes, if you see the level of religious devotion in prisons.

A moral compass that for instance directs me to legally discriminate against homosexuals doesn't work for me. It's absurd and arbitrary.

It is very ironic that some American Christians have a persecution complex. Christians constitute the great majority of the population. Christians are the vast majority of the population.

Originally Posted By: George Bush (senior)

Sherman: Surely you recognize the equal citizenship and patriotism of Americans who are atheists?

Bush: No, I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God.
Bush never took that back, as far as I know. He certainly did not during his campaign for the presidency (which he won). Then, and now, it was acceptable to trash non-believers.

Originally Posted By: MSNBC

WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain said in an interview published Saturday that he would prefer a Christian president over someone of a different faith, calling it "an important part of our qualifications to lead."
McCain later reversed himself and said that there should be no religious test for the presidency. But the fact is that a non-believer would not have a chance in hell of being elected in the U.S.

The Constitution stands between the citizenry and a religious dictatorship. Without the First AMendment, all bets would be off.

As it is, how easy do you think it is to be a non-believer (or just a non-Christian) in the U.S. military?

Originally Posted By: JapanFan14oh believe me I know. and I've learned not to be so attitudish with them anymore by saying things like "I'm gonna kill you!" or "I'll chop off your balls and hang it on my wall". bad habit. now I just say "God bless you" lol people hate that. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but I've never heard anybody complain about being told "God bless you". Never ever. It wouldn't bother me. You live in a strange place indeed.It would be interesting to think about the origins of the custom. Do you know why people say it, at least in our culture? (You'd think it would be more appropriate for the sneezer to excuse himself, as you might do if you coughed or passed gas.)How would you feel if a Satan worshiper said "Satan bless you!" to you when you sneezed?

LOL! HCl...the "acid man".

we established that her post wasn't about sneezing. However, there used to be a belief that a big old sneeze could displace your soul for a moment so a well timed "god bless" would keep any demons from sneaking in it's place.
Gesundheit roughly translates into "good health". A more appropriate wish if you are less conserned with imortal souls and more concerned with your friend catching a cold.

Evangelism is an important part of the christian faith and the desire to "save" people is in ernest. Unfortunatly, it has on occasion gone way to far as you mentioned. As with the islamic terrorists, it's always the worst of a society that shines the brightest for the rest of us to see. Just one of those sad little things.

Quote:You live in a strange place indeed.You're telling me lol.