I love God and any theological discussion, so I'm anxious to hear others views.
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Originally Posted by Marcus Aurelius
Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.
Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.
Im a southern baptist, been a christian since i was 8, in he interest of all those concerened whats difference between baptist and church of christ, i know a few but not many
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With all due respect, Napoleon IQ
instrumental-less worship( no mention of instruments in New Testament)
women cant lead prayer/singing/teach young adults (verse in one of the Timothy letters on women being quiet in the church)
strictly bible based, baptism emphasized
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marcus Aurelius
Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.
I am a Christian, born and raised in the Protestant church. I currently attend Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington, where the population of Christians is about the same as mainland Communist China.
And you know what? Macs are too hip. Oh, look at me! I do graphic design! I wear women's jeans and hang out in coffee shops! I'm a DJ! Well good for you. My computer is not a fashion statement. It's a computer.
Last edited by Marshillboy; 03-08-2007 at 06:09 PM.
Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.
An apatheist is someone who is not interested in accepting or denying any claims that God, or any other supernatural being, exists - or does not exist. In other words an apatheist is someone who considers the question of the existence of God as neither meaningful nor relevant to human affairs.
Heh, kind of the way I feel.
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Better contraceptives will control population only if people will use them. A nuclear holocaust can be prevented only if the conditions under which nations make war can be changed. The environment will continue to deteriorate until pollution practices are abandoned. We need to make vast changes in human behavior. B.F. Skinner
i'm not sure that that's such a practical view. whether or not one considers the existence of god a meaningful question doesn't change that many, many others do, and they impact your life in a very meaningful way. it seems that regardless of whether or not someone is interested in god's existence they should definitely be interested in whether or not god's existence should play a role in how we should do things, and that means dealing with those who take god's existence to be a very important question. that means, in some relevant way, the question of god's existence is an important one.
i'm not sure that that's such a practical view. whether or not one considers the existence of god a meaningful question doesn't change that many, many others do, and they impact your life in a very meaningful way. it seems that regardless of whether or not someone is interested in god's existence they should definitely be interested in whether or not god's existence should play a role in how we should do things, and that means dealing with those who take god's existence to be a very important question. that means, in some relevant way, the question of god's existence is an important one.
That's not always the case. I, like most people, tend to surround myself with people that are similar to me, and hold similar beliefs.
If I'm indifferent to god's existence, than I'm most certainly indifferent to whether or not god's existence determines how we/I do things. It's entirely possible to not care either way, and still interact with people who do believe in god.
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Better contraceptives will control population only if people will use them. A nuclear holocaust can be prevented only if the conditions under which nations make war can be changed. The environment will continue to deteriorate until pollution practices are abandoned. We need to make vast changes in human behavior. B.F. Skinner
let's say that you're a homosexual and you want to get married: then it matters.
let's say you get pregnant or you get someone pregnant, and the two of you want an abortion: then it matters.
let's say that you have some disease which is likely to be cured if stem cell research was allowed to flourish: then it matters.
let's say researchers believe they have developed a method of cloning human organs, but there is a current ban on doing any such thing because it is tantamount to acting like God, and you will die without getting a new kidney: then it matters.
let's say that you're on death row, and the newly elected governor is a catholic and, hence, opposed to capital punishment: then it matters.
let's say you live in an area ravaged by natural disaster such as new orleans, and christian organizations feel they are commanded by God to help such individuals: then it matters.
the list goes on and on. whether you realize it or not, you are affected daily by the belief in some god. islamic militancy, christian charity, protestant work ethic, all these things and more affect the world we all live in, and they all depend on some belief about god's existence. i'm telling you: it matters.
Yes, I didn't say it doesn't matter, just not to me, but thanks for listing things that religion has tainted and/or ruined.
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Better contraceptives will control population only if people will use them. A nuclear holocaust can be prevented only if the conditions under which nations make war can be changed. The environment will continue to deteriorate until pollution practices are abandoned. We need to make vast changes in human behavior. B.F. Skinner
Yes, I didn't say it doesn't matter, just not to me
but it think it does matter to you whether or not you're aware of it. so neither you nor anyone you knew happened to live in nyc when the world trade center blew up, but you lived here in the u.s. it affected you in a variety of ways of which you must not be aware. so neither you nor anyone you knew lived in the area ravaged by katrina, but something similar could happen where you live.
you live in this world, and a huge number of people base their decisions on what they believe their god wants of them. you are affected. it determines how much you pay for gas, how you are treated at the airport, how you used the internet, whether or not you can be monitored by the government, and literally countless other things.
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thanks for listing things that religion has tainted and/or ruined.
that really wasn't my intent. granted, perhaps i listed more things that may be viewed negatively, but i also listed some things that many would view in a positive light. i live in new orleans. there isn't even a water line on my old house because the water was over the roof the for three months. my whole life got washed away. for all the negative things myself and others might want to attribute to theists, i can tell you that it wasn't the secular humanists who came down in massive force to help clean up my city. there weren't scientists driving down my street when i moved back handing out free food to those of us trying to make the best of an unbelievably bad situation. there weren't any groups of united atheists picking up toxic rubble from the streets. sure, the crusades were terrible, but mother tersa was in service to God as well.
but it think it does matter to you whether or not you're aware of it. so neither you nor anyone you knew happened to live in nyc when the world trade center blew up, but you lived here in the u.s. it affected you in a variety of ways of which you must not be aware. so neither you nor anyone you knew lived in the area ravaged by katrina, but something similar could happen where you live.
you live in this world, and a huge number of people base their decisions on what they believe their god wants of them. you are affected. it determines how much you pay for gas, how you are treated at the airport, how you used the internet, whether or not you can be monitored by the government, and literally countless other things.
Actually, neither I nor anyone that I know personally knew someone in NYC, or Katrina, but I do see your point. I never meant to argue that I, and by extension the world, are not effected by god, whether or not he exists, I think that's pretty obvious.
I guess I was pretty broad when agreeing to the definition a few posts back, but what I mean by 'kinda' was that gods existence doesn't play a part in my life, as per beliefs, morals, etc.
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Better contraceptives will control population only if people will use them. A nuclear holocaust can be prevented only if the conditions under which nations make war can be changed. The environment will continue to deteriorate until pollution practices are abandoned. We need to make vast changes in human behavior. B.F. Skinner
sure, i understand, but i guess that's what i was trying to say by suggesting that being apathetic towards the existence of god seems impractical. it just seems that whether or not someone cares about the existence of any god per se, they should care about it in some way as it affects them in all sorts of ways every day in their life. i've heard several people suggest that they just don't care about such discussions, that none of it has any bearing on what they do, and i guess i just strongly disagree. this just seems to be such an important question that it has to be addressed and discussed. it seems that it does matter in a variety of ways, and while the questions to which i'm referring may not themselves be "does god exist?" they are dependent upon how that question is answered by various people. i just feel like it's something i'm forced to deal with, and it doesn't matter if i think the question of god's existence in terms of god's existence is important, trivial, or just plain silly. i'm stuck in a world of believers, and that means i'm stuck dealing with the issue.
I guess I just refuse to allow myself to be forced into something by others and their beliefs.
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Better contraceptives will control population only if people will use them. A nuclear holocaust can be prevented only if the conditions under which nations make war can be changed. The environment will continue to deteriorate until pollution practices are abandoned. We need to make vast changes in human behavior. B.F. Skinner
what are your religious views?
