Religion

PoindexterOglethorpe

(26,730 posts)

26. Okay, so take the Bible out of the equation.

Thu Dec 13, 2018, 11:09 PM

Dec 2018

You still get a lot of people who do terrible things in the name of their god and their religion. So to make blanket statements, as in the OP, that religion is simply a force for good, is simply wrong.

The tools comparison doesn't work, sorry. Even if you pointed out that you don't throw out your hammer and saw just because some people use those things to murder people, which would be a better analogy, tools are themselves neutral and can be used for good or evil. The problem with the defenders of religion is that they just want to brush the evil uses of religion under the rug, as if those are simply aberrations that aren't very important. Au contraire. The consistency with which religion is used to oppress, exclude, enslave, murder, and so on is pretty depressing and is hardly an aberration.

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How to Press the Reset Button on Faith [View all] guillaumeb Dec 2018 OP

and immediately the issues is...whose God? Which god? NRaleighLiberal Dec 2018 #1

That issue is for each believer to decide. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #2

but if each believer has a different solution, doesn't the next step always lead to conflict? NRaleighLiberal Dec 2018 #3

All of human history shows that tribalism is a constant and necessary feature. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #6

++1! gtar100 Dec 2018 #15

Faith is for fools. Red Raider 85 Dec 2018 #4

Calling all people of faith fools? guillaumeb Dec 2018 #7

Everyone is capable of being fooled Major Nikon Dec 2018 #12

Diverting from the point. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #33

Argle Major Nikon Dec 2018 #45

The fool knows in his heart he's right. MineralMan Dec 2018 #14

A wiser man knows that there can be facts that he has not checked, guillaumeb Dec 2018 #34

I see you have missed the point again. MineralMan Dec 2018 #35

Ironic, guillaumeb Dec 2018 #37

Bargle... MineralMan Dec 2018 #49

Much better. eom guillaumeb Dec 2018 #53

"one to act in a beautiful way and to work towards meeting this Lord who sustains His creation." msongs Dec 2018 #5

I think faith is something different than religion. LakeArenal Dec 2018 #8

I understand your point. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #9

Some people affirm their belief in gods by slaughtering innocents. Voltaire2 Dec 2018 #10

Another sermon Major Nikon Dec 2018 #13

Yes, the obvious nonsense argument. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #38

Why is that obvious nonsense? marylandblue Dec 2018 #48

Faith is busting your ass to try to believe in something you know can't possibly be true. 3Hotdogs Dec 2018 #11

If that's what you believe faith is, then it's understandable why you would reject it as real. gtar100 Dec 2018 #18

If your definition of faith in God is so elastic that marylandblue Dec 2018 #19

I would agree with that...if. gtar100 Dec 2018 #22

I'm saying your answer to 3hotdogs is a non sequitur marylandblue Dec 2018 #24

I'm not seeing it that way. Op is about faith and the good it can lead to (in a nutshell) gtar100 Dec 2018 #27

OP is about cognitive belief in a supernatural being that ostensibly marylandblue Dec 2018 #29

Not what was said. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #39

You don't have it right either. marylandblue Dec 2018 #46

I believe I'll have another beer Major Nikon Dec 2018 #70

Indeed! gtar100 Dec 2018 #71

Many people believe in God, but their actions are not beautiful marylandblue Dec 2018 #16

It takes a lot of work to maintain the cognitive dissonance PoindexterOglethorpe Dec 2018 #17

I don't agree that contradiction is a must when it comes to faith. gtar100 Dec 2018 #20

Sure it is. PoindexterOglethorpe Dec 2018 #21

Faith doesn't depend on what the Bible says either. gtar100 Dec 2018 #25

Okay, so take the Bible out of the equation. PoindexterOglethorpe Dec 2018 #26

I'd say that abberation is a product of our time, almost our entire historical timeline. gtar100 Dec 2018 #28

"a tool that can be used to for both good and evil" trotsky Dec 2018 #32

What tool cannot? guillaumeb Dec 2018 #41

That's way too vague of a question to seriously answer. Try being more specific. trotsky Dec 2018 #44

No, the question is legitimate, and the answer is obvious. eom guillaumeb Dec 2018 #52

Why - do you think I'm too stupid to understand it? trotsky Dec 2018 #56

Oh and just so you don't have any weasel room, I'll answer your misleading question. trotsky Dec 2018 #58

An interesting response. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #72

So you agree you were wrong. trotsky Dec 2018 #74

Ahimsa. There's a human concept that cannot be used for evil. MineralMan Dec 2018 #59

Mathematics Major Nikon Dec 2018 #60

Damn, that's quite the list for him to ignore. trotsky Dec 2018 #69

And one can see many people doing terrible things in the name of country. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #40

What I don't do is make blanket statements about how wonderful a force for good PoindexterOglethorpe Dec 2018 #42

Nor do I. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #50

So you agree that your op is bullshit. Voltaire2 Dec 2018 #54

No, you judge it to be so, guillaumeb Dec 2018 #73

This is the Religion Group, Gil. Mariana Dec 2018 #62

There's no profit motive for doing "great good" with religion Major Nikon Dec 2018 #23

"what those people are doing wrong, not faith itself." trotsky Dec 2018 #31

"Faith takes work." - Not true. trotsky Dec 2018 #30

My ending: guillaumeb Dec 2018 #36

"And you have no idea how people of faith arrive at their conclusions." trotsky Dec 2018 #43

So, this reply of yours contradicts your previous reply. guillaumeb Dec 2018 #51

Nope, but nice try. trotsky Dec 2018 #55

Contradiction doesn't mean what you think it means Major Nikon Dec 2018 #63

I'm pretty sure it involves delusion Major Nikon Dec 2018 #64

He's gonna call you something, it's just what he does. trotsky Dec 2018 #65

Or better yet, just a simple "off" button. (nt) NeoGreen Dec 2018 #47

The author made no attempt to "press the reset button on faith", nor tries to explain muriel_volestrangler Dec 2018 #57

Yeah, reset with the original assumption fully intact Major Nikon Dec 2018 #61

I pressed the Reset Button on Faith. MineralMan Dec 2018 #66

Reset (n) probably isn't the right word to describe the author's experience. Mariana Dec 2018 #67

Yes. More of an update of the software, so to speak. MineralMan Dec 2018 #68

Nice. trotsky Dec 2018 #75

Thanks! MineralMan Dec 2018 #76