Who thinks religion has out lived it's purpose?

[Zhukov]

Those who are unable to recognize evil are incapable of confronting it.

 

[MJDuncan1982]

Those who are unable to recognize evil are incable of confronting it.

I agree with that statement...if evil exists. I believe it doesn't. That sounds like some type of Platonic form.

 

[Bonnie]

The point of this debat is like any othr debat. to open your mind or open my mind.

I think that this is part of the problem.
extreamisim, party affiliation, this religion vs that religion. Putting things in simple context like good and evil, this way or that way.

I agree to your statement above about corrupt thinking.

Maybe it’s not the concept of the good that religion is trying to achieve for humanity is the problem. But these people who use it as a justification for wrong.
So would you say that these corrupt thinkers are exploiting religion, using it as a weapon on weak minds? This sounds like the question of which came first the chicken or the egg.

Is it the religion that corrupted the mind or would they have been going about there lives, doing just fine if they have never heard of the call to Jihad.

In order to answer your question Knight, I am going to have to do the unthinkable to most" Open Minded" people, and that is make a judgment about something.
And I will............The Islamist faith or I should say the extremeists who have hijacked the religion are taking advantage of some weak minds YES! I don not advocate throwing the Baby out with the bathwater....Religion itself is not the problem, it is those who corrupt all religions that are the problem. Christianity itself teaches peace, family, integrity, honesty.........shall I go on? The fact that some have corrupted the church does not mean Christianity itself is corrupt...........So for me the Chicken came first.

I don't know that you are given to any amount of persuasion, although I don't know you so I can't say, but based on your comments you were not looking for an open debate, but rather to polarize board members in showing their teeth, and to maybe convince others to see your point of view, maybe just to show off how "open minded" and superior you are as oppposed to rest of us brainwashed religious dolts.

My apologies if Im incorrect about that assumption.

 

[White knight]

Actualy they have Isolated a gene that causes some people to have an evil mindset. Hitler had it, Walt Disney had it and and Sir Evil has it hence the name. jk

A Jewish man whose life was affected by the holocaust, tried to developed a test to determine if people were evil or not.
This test is still used today by Government, law enforcement and some private employers

 

[White knight]

I don't know that you are given to any amount of persuasion, although I don't know you so I can't say, but based on your comments you were not looking for an open debate, but rather to polarize board members in showing their teeth, and to maybe convince others to see your point of view, maybe just to show off how "open minded" and superior you are as oppposed to rest of us brainwashed religious dolts.

My apologies if Im incorrect about that assumption.

The same can be said of many of the people who post here.

I could place a post in here that would really drop a bomb on all of you. It may support your point of view or it may not. I guess it would be how you precive it. What do you think should I post it or not?

I will have to get back to you to continue this debate, I'm getting hungray now.

If we are diffrent, talking is a good thing right?

 

[Bonnie]

The same can be said of many of the people who post here.

I could place a post in here that would really drop a bomb on all of you. It may support your point of view or it may not. I guess it would be how you precive it. What do you think should I post it or not?

I will have to get back to you to continue this debate, I'm getting hungray now.

If we are diffrent, talking is a good thing right?

True talking and debate are good things, no dispute there, im simply stating that I do not think you started this thread with an any intention of being persuaded to any degree by what opposing opinions might come your way. Im probably incorrect about that as Im not in your head.
Regarding the bombshell, that is entirely up to you whether you post it or not, Im neutral on that, any decision on it's content are soley up to the board moderators.

 

[Avatar4321]

Evil does not Exist, it is a simple and easy lable to define misguided behavior. Their are no Evil doers, just lost children.

This is the major flaw in the left. they refuse to acknowledge there is evil in the world. Hence they dont understand how to check and balance that evil to protect freedom. Which is why the left's utopia is impossible.

 

[Avatar4321]

Those who are unable to recognize evil are incable of confronting it.

Hence the problem with John Kerry. He didnt notice it when we faced the Soviets and he doesnt see it now that we face the terrorists. we have to defeat the terrorists. we cant be satisfied with them being a nuisance.

 

[wade]

I agree. All one needs to do is to look how our society has changed.

LOL - but mostly, it is the faithful that have made our society the way it is. Thus far, even in the USA, there are more followers of religion than not, by a huge margin. So if this is your argument, it's self defeating.

 

[wade]

Consider, if you will, the position of this atheist.

We are far from the point where 'religion', as a concept, has outlived it's purpose, that purpose being to describe and, in so doing, help create a moral society where human beings can live their lives in peace. Since that purpose will always (hopefully) be an end towards which humanity strives religion will be useful until a more effective alternative is found or formulated. Popular liberal secularism, the most common contemporary alternative to religion, is neither moral nor beneficial to humanity. Quite the contrary in fact. As a consequence religion has not outlived it's purpose.

More specifically, not all individual sects of all extant religions seek the same ends. For example, the Islamofascist movement threatens the continued progress, even the continued existence, of the human race. Tolerant western Christendom is presently the only force that seeks to block the Islamofascist movement. In that regard, for that specific religion, Christianity as a religion has not outlived it's purpose.

Only if you consider Christianity to be the part of Western society that is standing up to Islamofacism. It is not, this is a foolish statement. It is Western Democracy that is standing up to Islamofascism - religion has nothing to do with it.

You make the statement that popular secularism is not moral - what do you base this upon? The proper statement is that popular secularism does not follow all of your religious moral dicatates. Hardly the same thing - but I can understand that thinking comming from a self-proclaimed fascist...

 

[wade]

This is the major flaw in the left. they refuse to acknowledge there is evil in the world. Hence they dont understand how to check and balance that evil to protect freedom. Which is why the left's utopia is impossible.

And the flaw of the right is that they define anything that they do not agree with as being evil - which effectively makes them evil........

Evil is just another word for the pursuit of self interest at the expense of others. It varies only in degree.

 

[wade]

Hence the problem with John Kerry. He didnt notice it when we faced the Soviets and he doesnt see it now that we face the terrorists. we have to defeat the terrorists. we cant be satisfied with them being a nuisance.

Reagan gambled and won - great move given 20/20 hindsight.

But what if he'd have gambled and lost? What if the Soviets had determined that they could not wait for the USA to outpace them in military technology and had, instead of invading Afghanistan, invaded Europe, and taken us into WWIII? The Soviet Military wanted to take this path - what if they'd been given the okay?

 

[Bonnie]

LOL - but mostly, it is the faithful that have made our society the way it is. Thus far, even in the USA, there are more followers of religion than not, by a huge margin. So if this is your argument, it's self defeating.

Actually that statement is flawed..........Back in the 50's before the 60's revolution, If it feels good do it, many more people were faithfull to religious beliefs...........Hence there was more integrity, honesty, hard work, morality, less abortions, less murder, less drugs....... less divorce, less infidelity,and on and on. True Religion can't take all the credit for that, some was just do to societal evolution at that point, but a lot was due to religion.

Your looking at this from front to back rather than back to front. It was so called enlightened progressive revolution that said "God is dead" society, that has led us to where we are today.

 

[MJDuncan1982]

..."God is dead" society, that has led us to where we are today.

"God is Dead" is a few hundred years old and taken way out of its original context.

And I think where we are today is quite nice

 

[phadras]

Might as well ask if water has outlived it's usefullness...

 

[Bonnie]

And the flaw of the right is that they define anything that they do not agree with as being evil - which effectively makes them evil........

Evil is just another word for the pursuit of self interest at the expense of others. It varies only in degree.

And because someone has moral principals, that makes them evil??????? What stuff are you smoking???

 

[Bonnie]

"God is Dead" is a few hundred years old and taken way out of its original context.

And I think where we are today is quite nice

Hoe do you take something like that out of context??? :rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao: It is what it is, And exactly where are we today that is quite nice????? :scratch: :scratch:

 

[MJDuncan1982]

Hoe do you take something like that out of context??? :rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao: It is what it is, And exactly where are we today that is quite nice????? :scratch: :scratch:

Nietzsche used the phrase to mean that the slave/master dichotomy has begun to erode in human culture. God represents the ultimate "master" and if he is rejected the "slaves" (us) can truly begin to be free.

Many believe this leads to nihilism but that is not what Nietzsche intended. He wanted us to get rid of the constraints on humanity caused by Christianity so we could fashion a new moral code truer to our nature.

Nietzsche has been misinterpreted largely. He wanted mankind to have a blank slate regarding the rules of our lives BUT also new rules. Many people stopped after the first part - after acknowledging God is Dead a.k.a. there are no objective moral principles.

As to things being nice - in the grand scheme of thing (history) freedom, prosperity and knowledge are at an all time high. I'm quite pleased with the way we have progressed.

 

[Avatar4321]

And the flaw of the right is that they define anything that they do not agree with as being evil - which effectively makes them evil........

Evil is just another word for the pursuit of self interest at the expense of others. It varies only in degree.

You agree with Hitler? You agree with Stalin and Mao?...oh wait forgot you're a commie. you agree with Saddam? we have plenty of examples of evil in the world. they are not just mentally challenged. they are evil. As ive said the flaw of the left is to deny their is evil in the world which is why communism will never work because evil men will always abuse it.

 

[Avatar4321]

Nietzsche used the phrase to mean that the slave/master dichotomy has begun to erode in human culture. God represents the ultimate "master" and if he is rejected the "slaves" (us) can truly begin to be free.

Many believe this leads to nihilism but that is not what Nietzsche intended. He wanted us to get rid of the constraints on humanity caused by Christianity so we could fashion a new moral code truer to our nature.

Nietzsche has been misinterpreted largely. He wanted mankind to have a blank slate regarding the rules of our lives BUT also new rules. Many people stopped after the first part - after acknowledging God is Dead a.k.a. there are no objective moral principles.

As to things being nice - in the grand scheme of thing (history) freedom, prosperity and knowledge are at an all time high. I'm quite pleased with the way we have progressed.

Nietzche may have been smart but he was also insane. Hence why i try not to base my life off anything he has said.