Religion

[cowmuflage]

Wa Royi that qoute was not from me lol.

[Royi]

Wa Royi that qoute was not from me lol.

*fixed*

[Tulune]

FYI, you can be agnostic atheist or agnostic theist. So having it as a seperate option is not the best way to do a poll.

That being said, I am mostly ignostic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignosticism

[Royi]

FYI, you can be agnostic atheist or agnostic theist. So having it as a seperate option is not the best way to do a poll.

That being said, I am mostly ignostic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignosticism

omg, i never knew that existed! I would vote that category in a heartbeat. remember, Pugs can't do taxes (look at earlier post)

[rubybeam]

I haven't been keeping up with the read lately sorry D:, so I have a question: what would you call someone who belives in paranormal phenomoen and the bible I know theres many people like that and I know it might not be 100% christain so could someone tell me?

[GormanGhaste]

I am mostly ignostic.

ooo, I was unaware of that term. And I think how you define god is definitely going to affect how you answer the question. My short answer is that I'm an atheist, because most people seem to have an anthropomorphic concept of god that I don't believe in. But my long answer would be that I'm a pantheist, which doesn't mean all of the gods, but rather all IS god, in other words, the universe itself is divine.

Although here's another word I discovered today: I am also an apatheist!

[Torleth]

Atheist and proud of it. My opinion of religion isn't a very nice one at all.

Pretty much this, I strongly believe the world would be a better place without religion

[Anyia]

Believing in something higher can be a real pillar of support when your life turns bad, and can give you something to hang onto until you get through the bad patch. There are days when I wish I had that back, but for me it's not really an option unless I want to reforge a key part of who I am (which I don't, because it took me long enough to get reasonably comfortable with who I am now). Anyway, my point is, religion can have good aspects, and in my humble opinion it's foolish to reject the whole concept of religion as bad/harmful/etc. Organised religion on the other hand is where things tend to go off the rails if you ask me, and something positive is turned into something negative for the gratification of a select few (not to mention the emergence of the whole "us vs them" think).

[cowmuflage]

It allso can have its very very bad aspects allso. Not just organised religion either. Basicly everything has its bad side and stuff :S

[Anyia]

True. Without darkness there cannot be light. *has flashback to the only good part of the Constantine movie*

[cowmuflage]

Oh god that movie was bad :S Still don't get why they made him a yank lol.

[Turgus]

Sure there may be some consolation in believing in a deity.
That there is a higher power looking out for everyone and everything.
But to me, it is a false consolation.

When I think about faith I keep getting the image of Linus walking around with his blanket from Charlie Brown.
While it may provide some measure of comfort, the reality of the what the blanket actually does for him is really quite lacking.

To me the true measure of a man (or woman) is the ability to set aside what we wish to be so, or hope to be so, and to see what truly is and accept it regardless of how it makes us feel.
(Do you want the red pill? or the blue pill?)

Only by looking at the blanket, by truly examining our beliefs in a way we have never allowed ourselves before, seeing what the belief is, and what it is not, will one come to any real understanding of reality, and our place in it.

Some can do this early in life (Christopher Hitchens), some hold onto these beliefs until later in life (Me), and some never let them go. (My Mother)
(Does one stay inside of the Matrix? or risk it all to see what is outside of it?)

I was a Christian for a while (15+ years that actually count) but when I finally examined the voracity of my beliefs I found that it did not hold up under scrutiny.
It was difficult at the time giving up my security blanket.

But truly, I am better off for it.
Now that I have given it up, I do not miss my security blanket... not one bit.

And truly I wonder how I held onto it for so long.


Thats my 2 cents on the matter, take it how you will.

[GormanGhaste]

the voracity of my beliefs

a simple typo, I know you meant veracity, but it made me smile to think of ravenous beliefs And there is truth there, as well. The dogma of organized religion does 'consume' our natural spirituality.

[Galahandra]

Well, I'm a little conflicted with mine...I like to believe in God/Jesus, celebrate/take part in Easter, Lent, Christmas, but I believe in Evolution, and not really a fan of the thought that I'm going to hell because I'm gay

[Mozag]

and not really a fan of the thought that I'm going to hell because I'm gay

Don't even get me started on the "Jesus loves everyone equally! Except you, you, you and, oh, you, you and might as well throw you lot in as well." -subject!

To keep on topic: I voted Atheist.

I've often wanted to be religious in some way or another, since I love the idea of having something to turn to during the bad times. Being like a child again, and just handing your life and responsibility to something greater than you.

And then the next moment I realise what a weak-minded way of thinking that is, and how I see religion as the "opium of the people" indeed, though I certainly don't agree with most anything else Masters Marx and Engels wrote.

But above all, my very nature rebels against the idea of there being some higher design. If there is a Heaven and a Christian God, then whoops, I suppose I'll be meeting a lot of you South of there.

[Araela]

I'm a Christian, have been since I was about 16-years-old. My dad started taking my siblings and I to church for a year when I was twelve, so that we would have the experience, and the deal was after a year, we could choose whether or not we wanted to go. My mom is agnostic - she believes there is something bigger out there but is not really sure what it is. My siblings are both athiest, my dad and I are both Christian.

Despite this, I am a HUGE fan of Star Trek, and I truly believe it is ignorant to believe that we are the only humanoid species in the universe. I also do not believe that the belief I just mentioned goes against the Bible's teaching.

I am not one of those people that will force my religion on others, so please don't worry about that when conversing with me. I was hesitant to even respond to this thread just because of what a delicate issue Religion can be. As many of you know, I am also a student teacher and religion is definitely something that we try to embrace of all types in the public schools. I would say on a day to day basis, I probably encounter students and other faculty of anywhere from 15-20 different cultures, and with that, various religions. I am glad to know that we have a plethora of beliefs on the Petopian community too!

[Turgus]

The quote by Karl Marx is one of the most misused quotes out there.
Here is more of the passage so one can see what Karl Marx was trying to get across.

"... Religion is the general theory of this world, its encyclopaedic compendium, its logic in popular form, its spiritual point d'honneur, its enthusiasm, its moral sanction, its solemn complement, and its universal basis of consolation and justification. It is the fantastic realization of the human essence since the human essence has not acquired any true reality. The struggle against religion is, therefore, indirectly the struggle against that world whose spiritual aroma is religion.

Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.

The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions. The criticism of religion is, therefore, in embryo, the criticism of that vale of tears of which religion is the halo.

Criticism has plucked the imaginary flowers on the chain not in order that man shall continue to bear that chain without fantasy or consolation, but so that he shall throw off the chain and pluck the living flower. The criticism of religion disillusions man, so that he will think, act, and fashion his reality like a man who has discarded his illusions and regained his senses, so that he will move around himself as his own true Sun. . ."

Taken from http://www.age-of-the-sage.org but you can find it elsewhere including http://en.wikipedia.org


As you can see, he wasn't saying that religion being the opium of the people was good, but in-fact it was something that was bad.
One has to give up their illusions if they are to truly appreciate and enjoy this life.

The one life we know we get.

Everything else is pure speculation.

[Mozag]

The quote by Karl Marx is one of the most misused quotes out there.
Here is more of the passage so one can see what Karl Marx was trying to get across.

As you can see, he wasn't saying that religion being the opium of the people was good, but in-fact it was something that was bad.

Thanks for the lesson there. Maybe you'll read my post over again, and see that I used the line to imply the negative aspects of religion. So, in fact, I did not misuse the quote at all.

Are there seriously people out there who think that the quote means religion is good?

[Royi]

and not really a fan of the thought that I'm going to hell because I'm gay

sorry this made me laugh. Its not the "word of God" that put those words in there to discriminate. It was just part of the underlying White Male Power structure that dominates the Bible.

Plus it never actually says Gay=Bad. If you've ever heard of John Fugelsang, he's got some really good points about different contradictions that make no sense yet politicians and theologans continually use them as their backbone for stupid arguments

[Turgus]

Mozag, sorry I didn't get what you were trying to express from that part of your post.
(the opium of the people part)

And truthfully, I hear that quote used out of context (all the time) to "prove" that even Karl Marx knew religion was "good" and had "value."

So my bad.