Why do you religious people feel such a strong need...

[Ross PK]

You're right, Ross. I apologize for belabouring it and making a bigger deal out of it. I think I also mixed up some things Lector/Wayne Brady said with some of your comments.

 

Thanks man, no worries.

[worldgonewrong]

to shove your poision down other people's throats?

 

No offense.

 

Why are you compelled to make sweeping generalizations?

 

Not all "religious" people proselytize.

[Ross PK]

Why are you compelled to make sweeping generalizations?

 

Not all "religious" people proselytize.

 

I never said they did.

[Floridaman]

Religion is a smart way to control people. Society needs people put in place. Religion is a great tool for that.

Kind of in line with "religion is the opiate of the people..."

 

Originally stated by someone who had such an authoritative view on and support for freedom, tolerance, open-mindness, personal choice and respect for others....

Those who didn't agree with his "philosophy" he and his disciples enslaved, tortured or murdered.....

Millions died under his dogma.

 

Always a great way to "win friends and influence people" with such irrational posts like the one quoted.

Edited March 30, 2011 by Floridaman

[Buddha]

Not longer after the devastating tsunami which hit the Indian Ocean region on December 26, 2004, I was invited out to a dinner party at the home of two close friends, people whom I had known for years and shared many wonderful moments.

 

I will never forget that before the first bite of food had even passed my lips, one of the friends - a woman who had known me for 30 years - put down her knife and fork and with tears in her eyes, asked me through gritted teeth how I dare to believe in a God who could wreak such wickedness and misery on thousands of innocent souls. "There is no God!" she declared.

 

"My friend," I said to her, "then why are you crying? You cannot be angry at something which by your own admission, is a fantasy."

 

This is the only time belief has been spat at me, with genuine hatred for the experiences I have had of God, experiences which make disbelief... an unrealistic choice for me.

 

Many people preach. It is fear, not religion, which causes it. And I assure you, those who consider themselves atheist are in no way immune to fear.

[d'Arthez]

Originally stated by someone who had such an authoritative view on and support for freedom, tolerance, open-mindness, personal choice and respect for others....

Those who didn't agree with his "philosophy" he and his disciples enslaved, tortured or murdered.....

Millions died under his dogma.

That is kind of blaming Jesus for Hitler. Very sensible. Very tolerant. Very thoughtful.

Always a great way to "win friends and influence people" with such irrational posts like the one quoted.

Always great to see someone confirming his own argument.

[Floridaman]

That is kind of blaming Jesus for Hitler. Very sensible. Very tolerant. Very thoughtful.

 

Always great to see someone confirming his own argument.

Never heard of Lenin and Marx?

"Religion is the opiate of the people..."

 

Those two individuals helped darken a large chunk of the world, closed universities, seized personal property, sent millions into death camps and unleashed their hatred for mankind over continents.

Millions died bec. these murderers couldn't stand the fact that others had differing beliefs.....

 

Yup. They surely were "religious" people...

 

Just bec. academia and other vacant minds espouse the same beliefs on religion as Lenin and Marx, that don't mean nothin', right?

Edited April 8, 2011 by Floridaman

[d'Arthez]

Never heard of Lenin and Marx?

"Religion is the opiate of the people..."

Again, never heard of Jesus and Hitler? Hitler used Christianity to justify some of the misdeeds. Auschwitz anyone? That naturally means all Christians are anti-semites, homosexual killing, cheating women stoning idiots are they? It is even in the Bible, so who are you to argue against your own precursors actions??

 

And we should blame Jesus for the KKK, because the KKK distorted Jesus' teaching? Very sensible. Very thoughtful. BTW, you may want a defence attorney since undoubtedly your forebears were responsible for what is nowadays called genocide. And logically speaking you are guilty of your forebears misdeeds.

 

Since the Bible has been used to justify:

a) antisemitism (still ongoing!)

b) murder of homosexuals (still ongoing!)

c) murder of those with different beliefs (still ongoing!)

d) oppression and gender based abuse of women in particular (still ongoing!)

 

Necessarily means that Jesus was the biggest murderer and misanthrope of them all.

 

Marx never ran a state. Jesus never ran a state. But since we can blame Marx for the distortion of his ideas by others, it is logically just as acceptable to blame Jesus, and the apostles for the distortion of their ideas by others. QED: Jesus was a mass murderer, who could not tolerate any disagreement as evidenced by his followers.

 

Bit over the top? Your intellectual dishonesty is certainly no better.

 

The full quote is, and I'll provide it since you have proven yourself to be too lazy to actually think your argument through:

 

Religion is, indeed, the self-consciousness and self-esteem of man who has either not yet won through to himself, or has already lost himself again. But man is no abstract being squatting outside the world. Man is the world of man—state, society. This state and this society produce religion, which is an inverted consciousness of the world, because they are an inverted world. Religion is the general theory of this world, its encyclopedic 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.

Just think instead of bleating Fox News. It might be worthwhile.

 

People who can't think give atheism and religion a bad name.

Edited April 9, 2011 by d'Arthez

[dreamingoftigers]

People who can't think give atheism and religion a bad name.

 

The yard on both sides on the fence could use a good clean.

[Floridaman]

Just think instead of bleating Fox News. It might be worthwhile.

 

People who can't think give atheism and religion a bad name.

Was only saying how ironic it is some who hate Christianity and all it stands for align themselves more with and quote the so-caled "enlightened" ones who have caused more death and dstruction (world wars that some of my forebears died in) more than any garden-variety Christian or Jew...

 

You know nothing of my TV news viewing habits- and I used to regularly watch MS-DNC over Fox and CNN until I realized their hate-mongers only scream at people and take cheap shots by twisting others' words...

Edited April 9, 2011 by Floridaman
rephrased...

[d'Arthez]

Was only saying how ironic it is some who hate Christianitynd all it stands for align themselves more with and quote the so-caled "enlightened" ones who have caused more death and dstruction (world wars that some of my forebears died in) more than any garden-variety Christian or Jew...

And one sided bashing of atheists is surely an Enlightened contribution to the debate. Oh, but in the name of the Lord / Allah / Krishna, we may be selective with the truth.

 

If you add up the numbers, there is no chance in hell that Marx is responsible for more deaths than Jesus. He had no political power over anyone, just like Jesus had no political or religious power over anyone. Marx did not kill anyone, Jesus did not. One can argue the merits of dying a natural death, versus being crucified, but that seems a bit pedantic, does not it?

 

What their respective followers did, should not be put at Marx / Jesus doors'. Novel idea, I know. Or do you not subscribe to the idea that people are responsible for their own actions?!?

 

You know nothing of my TV news viewing habits- and I used to regularly watch MS-DNC over Fox and CNN until I realized their hate-mongers only scream at people and take cheap shots by twisting others' words...

Yet you have no problem behaving in similar fashion. Deliberately being intellectually dishonest, by implicating Karl Marx for things he has not done. He was dead for about 30 years before World War I broke out. So you changed your viewing habits, but still take cheap shots. That is reasonable. As I showed, with the same level of dishonesty I can blame Jesus for pretty much everything. Reasonable? No. Warranted on the merits of your argument. Yes.

 

BTW, I am not a flaming atheist. Not even close.

Edited April 9, 2011 by d'Arthez

[Floridaman]

And one sided bashing of atheists is surely an Enlightened contribution to the debate. Oh' date=' but in the name of the Lord / Allah / Krishna, we may be [b']selective[/b] with the truth.

 

If you add up the numbers, there is no chance in hell that Marx is responsible for more deaths than Jesus. He had no political power over anyone, just like Jesus had no political or religious power over anyone. Marx did not kill anyone, Jesus did not. One can argue the merits of dying a natural death, versus being crucified, but that seems a bit pedantic, does not it?

 

What their respective followers did, should not be put at Marx / Jesus doors'. Novel idea, I know. Or do you not subscribe to the idea that people are responsible for their own actions?!?

 

 

Yet you have no problem behaving in similar fashion. Deliberately being intellectually dishonest, by implicating Karl Marx for things he has not done. He was dead for about 30 years before World War I broke out. So you changed your viewing habits, but still take cheap shots. That is reasonable. As I showed, with the same level of dishonesty I can blame Jesus for pretty much everything. Reasonable? No. Warranted on the merits of your argument. Yes.

 

BTW, I am not a flaming atheist. Not even close.

Dare say if some celebrity or political leader quoted Hitler, David Duke, Fred Phelps or any other nutcase, they'd be smeared as a racist, homophobe, anti-semite, etc.

Yet it's perfectly okay according to some to quote Marx's philosophy, which was repudiated by wars and people seeking freedom.

[LeaningIntoTheMuse]

Dare say if some celebrity or political leader quoted Hitler, David Duke, Fred Phelps or any other nutcase, they'd be smeared as a racist, homophobe, anti-semite, etc.

Yet it's perfectly okay according to some to quote Marx's philosophy, which was repudiated by wars and people seeking freedom.

 

Are you referring to Mayer's Playboy interview?

 

If so, there was a lot more to that than just quoting. Dude is a sick freak. Talented, but sick.

 

I don't like John Mayer.

[Floridaman]

Are you referring to Mayer's Playboy interview?

 

If so, there was a lot more to that than just quoting. Dude is a sick freak. Talented, but sick.

 

I don't like John Mayer.

No, I wasn't, though I think I heard news about that controversial interview. Can't remember much about that.

And I don't know much about that singer/ musician, so not gonna comment there.

 

Just find it odd someone quotes a founding father of a very dsestructive political philosophy that most in the world consider an anathema and one that led to the deaths of millions -- those kind of people did much more harm to the world than the religion that poster is so scared of...

Edited April 10, 2011 by Floridaman

[DreamerGirl27]

You're in my prayers Ross.

 

No offense.

 

:lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao:

[Velociraptor]

As I showed' date=' with the same level of dishonesty I can blame Jesus for pretty much everything. Reasonable? No. Warranted on the merits of your argument. Yes.[/b']

 

Great post.

 

By his logic if we would add up the deaths caused by Marx and Christianity. Christianity would "win" with ease... And anybody who says otherwise is clearly very uneducated.

[Rayne03]

It actually does say in the bible that people are supposed to spread the word just like Jesus did. Don't hate 'em for it. They're just doing what they think they're supposed to be doing. Just politely decline and go on your way.

 

I haven't read all the replies here, but I do like your's!

 

I found this to be a humorous question....

 

I'm not a "religious" person, but consider myself a spiritual one. Even though it may say this in the bible, I have to agree with OP. I have my beliefs and thoughts and do not appreciate anyone coming to my door wishing to preach to me THEIR beliefs. If I choose, I will go to THEM. Or have someone tell me that because I do not believe as they do that "i'm going to he ll"! At first I would debate these types of people, but it wasn't long before I figured out, there was NO reasoning with them and even though I respect what they choose to believe, they sit their in judgement and cannot respect mine. I would go as far as saying that these people may just be the type to find themselves in some sort of cult, seeming not to think for themselves. May sound a bit extreme I suppose but it seems as though they believe everything they are told and any organization that sits in judgement of others who don't follow what they believe and go as far as to tell you what you what you can and cannot wear, how much YOU MUST give to their organization, and shun those who don't believe as you do (including family members), in my opinion is a cult!

 

Silly, really ..... There's really no other way of looking at it.

[HeartShineGirl]

to shove your poision down other people's throats?

 

No offense.

 

I think some people absorb themselves in their beliefs and when the things they believe in say "This is the one true right way and no other way is godly." they actually have to believe in it fully. And, if they really truly believe they will not allow anyone in their experience of life have any other belief without disagreeing with it or trying to convert them because they need their whole life to be filled with that belief, and anyone who doesn't believe jeopardizes that truth for them. There can (for some) be no doubt.