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 Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 11:12 am
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 1:34 pm
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 8:34 pm
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boopsie63 I thank every who has responded to this post. I promise next time to post something not so .... uncomfortable (for some). I needed to meet other people who thinks like me and I really needed to open myself up to world. I had one bad encounter on Gaia with someone who asked me to prove there was a God. This tore my soul appart. I beleive and that enough for me. I'm hurt if someone makes fun of my God. I will never make fun of someones beliefs.But, please let me have mine.
I think the thing to remember here is, regardless of what you believe or what you dont believe: So long as one side does not push their belief-system on the other, and not question the why or why not, and only remember to have a peaceful level of respect, people can be peaceful amongst each other without discussing religion at all.
Boopsie, I really dont think this topic was as uncomfortable for some... In fact, this is the most intelligent conversation I have ever witnessed. In my opinion, everyone held theirselves well. Truthfully speaking... everyone... and I mean EVERYONE, will hear something that will offend them... it doesnt necessarily mean it will be a personal attack against you (figuratively, not necessarily you personally Boopsie)... To air out your differences without attacking is something today's world of religions and politicians could really learn from. Many are so easily swayed to get into a verbal fight, that its rediculous.
There are many people who refuse to live under a book that basically is another person's interpretation of what their God/Goddess tried to preach or to live by.
Im going to be very honest, and the bottom line here that I want everyone to understand is this:
I refuse to have any sort of religion in my life. I do not believe in living by a book that contradicts itself, regardless of what religion it is. I do not believe in being told how to live my life... Sex only when you are married and ONLY if you want to have children. You cant tell me that "God is all forgiving", and then in another reading, it says "Eye for an Eye"...
Religion in our family created more turmoil than any good. I am the eldest of 36 grandchildren... the majority were raised Catholic. Most of the girls were pregnant out of wedlock by loser jerks who were allowed to sleep in their beds under the age of 17 under their parents' roof. When word got out they were all pregnant... you want to see some serious hell fly?
Im not saying all of Catholic girls do this, but Ive seen how strict religious families (my own families) end up with more turmoil than those with no religion whatsoever. Look at Governor Palin and her daughter that is 5 months pregnant? A self-admitted strict Christian home, and their daughter is knocked up. Sorry, but there is alot more going on in that story than anyone is willing to disclose.
Anyways... Im atheist, but, I would never cast judgement, doubt, nor would I ever question anyone the 'why' of their religious choice.
What I do expect from everyone, and that includes religious fanatics to the gentile, to the die hard politicians and the new interns of a campaign...
Do NOT ever push your views, or tell me 'its not the Christian way", "Catholics dont do that", tell me how to live my life under religion, and how to raise my children under religion. It has happened to me, and let me just say, I have no problem throwing it back.. because they have chosen to disrespect me by pushing a very personal subject on me.
Three years in a row, Mormons came knocking on my door Christmas morning at 7am. CHRISTMAS MORNING!??!?!? Now, mind you, they dont celebrate Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries.. nothing. They tell me this, while standing in front of my door in their Sunday-best Church clothes trying to persuade me in to their 'ways'.
I was so angered by this disturbance because, the building I live in clearly has a sign that states "NO SOLICITORS OR RELIGIOUS FOLLOWERS ALLOWED, POLICE WILL BE NOTIFIED, PER ORDER OF THE LANDLORD". I looked at the woman and asked her when she graduated from school.. .because her reading skills sucked and that her kind does not belong knocking on doors of people who are still in bed preaching a religion that is by far, the worst of its kind.... I told her that if she had children, she would be spending it at home, still in her pajamas, making hot chocolate, helping her husband to cook together a nice holiday breakfast and enjoying the holidays, but OOPS, you dont believe in that. Youre gonna grab me out of bed.
I had said to her that her ignorance of not reading the sign is no excuse, and secondly, that if she didnt leave, I would call the police for trespassing. She tried giving me reading material, and I told her "If I take that, then I am teaching my daughter it is ok to accept things from strangers, so clearly, you have no common sense"... I did though grab a business card from her and let her know that I was going to call their main congregation and warn them that I was calling the police and that Im tired of having their 'kind' push their religion on my family. It is rude, inconsiderate and unwanted. Whomever I talked with didnt argue, but asked that I didnt call the police. I had said to him, if your people dont leave my neighborhood, I will still call the police.
Their people did bother other neighbors, and let me tell you, there was LOUD yelling and screaming... pushing religion at 7am is not a good thing.
Thankfully I dont use that as tackling fuel. But, when a person tells me 'you should do things the Christian way", or what ever religion they throw at me.. I find that rude and repulsive and completely unwarranted.
I dont hate people for being religious.. I hate religious people who think they are mightier than thou, better than thou and think you are just as evil as the devil for not having religion in my life.
If I were so religious, I would not be able to do my health-care related job with an unbiased mind.
Common respect for everyone is common sense. No judgement, no questions, and no pushing it...
Sorry for being on a soap box... |
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 8:50 pm
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 8:58 pm
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It is truley amazing at the level of maturity maintained in this topic, I am truley and honestly impressed. As such I wil disclose some of my belief system, (unfortunatly, I find it hard to explain fully so i'll try to keep it as short as possible).
I come from a religious family and a religiously diverse one (my maternal grandparents were catholic, my parents are christian, my paternal grandparents were pagan, my sister is wiccan, and my aunt on my mother's side is atheist, and i've dabbled in them all, except for catholisim. So needless to say, no one usually dare talk about religion at family gatherings). Any way, on top of that I am in a science field of study (Biotechnology to be exact). Long story short, I believe something is out there, and BEING in a science field has only fed that belief, as I have to admit that while studying DNA, it's a miracle that little strand of sugar and protein which makes us..us, stays intact considering all threats against it. (And I don't believe in random coinedences, despite data sheet probabilities)
As for what is out there; well more like what it is, I have my theories, but their too complex to explain here. (Would have to put it into a 10 page report literally).
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 10:41 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 12:43 am
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 12:09 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 6:21 pm
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honestly i had my doubts whether or not he truly did exist so i ask him "if ur real, if everything u have shown me is true show me dont let me doubt u anymore" sure enough two weeks later i got a response but it wasnt what i expected, i joined a kult but the whole time i was there, everything i did was for him not for the kult and i would ask myself how long must i stay there and every time the same answer, three months i asked like three times the last time he answered through another person, that person was talking about something but i wasnt paying attention but as soon as i finished asking myself if i really have to stay for three months that person said yes, i dont know what he was talking about but he answered me ha crazy and so i continued to experience things like that during my time there then one day something happens were they get mad at me and i leave to a friends house i explain to my friend what was going on and he ends up helping me, he himself had a life changing experience, so we end up picking up my clothes and i leave from there, so we get back to his house and i remember something, so i check the calendar and sure enough it was exactly three months from the time i joined to the time i left, after that my faith in God will always remain true and i believe in everything because God is everything and he is everywhere, i have notice that everyone speaks to God but not everyone realises it because when he speaks to u he uses ur own voice because who better for him to sound like than urself, he even told u u r a part of him and he is a part of u, he is the good and the bad, he is the ying and the yang, he is everything and at the same time he is nothing, he is very difficult to understand but once u understand u realize he is the most simplistic being to ever create himself.
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:26 pm
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Kamui_kusinagi It is truley amazing at the level of maturity maintained in this topic, I am truley and honestly impressed. As such I wil disclose some of my belief system, (unfortunatly, I find it hard to explain fully so i'll try to keep it as short as possible). I come from a religious family and a religiously diverse one (my maternal grandparents were catholic, my parents are christian, my paternal grandparents were pagan, my sister is wiccan, and my aunt on my mother's side is atheist, and i've dabbled in them all, except for catholisim. So needless to say, no one usually dare talk about religion at family gatherings). Any way, on top of that I am in a science field of study (Biotechnology to be exact). Long story short, I believe something is out there, and BEING in a science field has only fed that belief, as I have to admit that while studying DNA, it's a miracle that little strand of sugar and protein which makes us..us, stays intact considering all threats against it. (And I don't believe in random coincidences, despite data sheet probabilities) As for what is out there; well more like what it is, I have my theories, but their too complex to explain here. (Would have to put it into a 10 page report literally).
thats crazy... BI-O-TECHNOLOGY ha (as in crazy ko) i also feel that the science that makes us, and everything around us, was no coincidence, oh and if u do come around to making a ten page report on ur theories, i wouldnt mind reading it xd 3nodding |
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Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 2:23 pm
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Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 2:54 pm
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Posted: Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:49 pm
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Shenyu Quote: I do believe in God, but I think the characteristic of a BELIEF is that it cannot be proven and does not have to be. Therefore I do not judge people by believing of not believing. I am married to an atheist, but he follows the teachings of Jesus. As long as he does, I think he cannot be a bad person at all. In university a teacher said: "It does not matter if you are baptized or not. If you live the way Jesus did, there is the church" I also believe in God and Jesus. *Roman Catholic here* I'm actually more devout than I used to be. I grew up with a lot of misunderstandings about my faith because things weren't properly explained to me. But after I started looking for knowledge beyond the pulpit and my schooling, I began to find truth in it and now I'm basically stuck. I'm shocked at how much I was getting wrong or didn't know and I'm still no expert on the subject. *needs moar Catechism* I now believe the Bible was meant to be taken in its historical context and not literally. It's an anthology of stories, poems, songs, proverbs, laws, letters, legends and oral tradition that finally got written down. All inspired by God but not written by Him. My beliefs also give me the freedom to accept facts proven by science. Science gives me a better appreciation for God's handiwork. But the real reason I quoted you is that I'm going to be married to an Agnostic in a few months (former Episcopalian). And not a day goes by where I don't feel grateful for him. It's been perfectly fine for us but I don't recommend interfaith relationships to anybody. It can be very VERY painful. You need a lot of patience and understanding. Both sides need to be open-minded to the other's opinion. That includes trying to understand why the other side seems so closed-minded at times. It's not as simple as "Why can't you be open-minded to my opinion?". Sometimes it's really you needing to be more open-minded to theirs. For Agnostics/Atheists who successfully date devout theists, you have my admiration. You need to handle being #2 to an entity you're not sure even exists. That's really difficult. A lot of people (understandably) can't do it and I've seen relationship end badly because of it. Likewise, a theist needs to understand that while your SO may totally be cool with you believing in what you do, this person does think that you are putting your faith in something who's existence is questionable at best. They may NEVER see the world the same way you do...ever. It takes a lot of patience and understanding from both people. But if you break up because of religion, I think of it more as a lucky save than a tragedy. You just saved yourself from a lot of future pain. |
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Posted: Sat Sep 06, 2008 10:31 pm
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Reply
