Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search
Reality is tough to deal with and many have been "taught" since childhood that using religion as rhett o rick Jul 2014 #1
Fortunately, the trend has humanity moving away from that. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #2
Yep libodem Jul 2014 #3
There are also a growing number of people who affiliate with a faith... iandhr Jul 2014 #4
And that group is the one most turned-off by religious activism. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #5
"Clear think(ing)" and religion are not necessarily antithetical. I say this as a Secular Humanist. WinkyDink Jul 2014 #6
Let's say that we could agree on that Curmudgeoness Jul 2014 #7
No but it is often portrayed that way. zeemike Jul 2014 #27
While I tend to agree, when it comes to religious belief, thinking is anything but clear. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #32
Jimmy Carter comes to mind on that account Warpy Jul 2014 #58
actually we should get away from organized religion heaven05 Jul 2014 #8
"disorganized" religion seems just as prone to irrational horsehit as the traditional kind. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #11
no argument from me heaven05 Jul 2014 #18
Praying is so much easier than actually confronting problems rurallib Jul 2014 #9
No we should spend more time confusing children with obsolete bullshit. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #10
Correct. trotsky Jul 2014 #12
I didn't know that before I was instructed by A Person Who Knows Everything. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #16
Well, that may or not be true. trotsky Jul 2014 #17
I can't understand that. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #20
There is very little we can, Warren. trotsky Jul 2014 #22
Well, Arugula Latte Jul 2014 #36
If God knows everything in advance, why did he regret his Great Flood? blkmusclmachine Jul 2014 #13
He works in such mysterious ways, even HE can't figure himself out? closeupready Jul 2014 #26
Also, if god has a plan for everything and has determined everything that will happen, why pray? Arugula Latte Jul 2014 #38
Maybe he realized how much of a dick he was? EvolveOrConvolve Jul 2014 #144
Great article, thanks! NC_Nurse Jul 2014 #14
You're welcome. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #24
Awesome post. byronius Jul 2014 #15
Glad you liked it. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #34
There are many reasons politicians embrace and flaunt religion. obxhead Jul 2014 #19
The church... awoke_in_2003 Jul 2014 #120
As a Christian who follows everything that Jesus taught... LW1977 Jul 2014 #21
You just proved you DON'T follow everything Jesus taught. trotsky Jul 2014 #23
The poster here did not curse people here. zeemike Jul 2014 #31
"You're just as bad Pat Robertson, James Dobsen (sp) and Tony Perkins." trotsky Jul 2014 #40
I don't think in absolutes. zeemike Jul 2014 #46
Neither do I. trotsky Jul 2014 #47
Well I did not see it. zeemike Jul 2014 #50
Oh yes, the "truth" as you see it. trotsky Jul 2014 #51
I love you trotsky. I think you are adorable Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #93
Says the guy who compared gay marriage to marrying a bicycle. Lordquinton Jul 2014 #127
I love you too Lord Q. But I love my bicycle more. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #129
Today on Poe or not... Lordquinton Jul 2014 #141
No no no he gave a big long winded 'splaining about how equating Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #148
Few humans follow MOST of Jesus's teachings, let alone all of them randys1 Jul 2014 #117
I can think of no curse more vile than likening someone to Robertson Orrex Jul 2014 #42
What actual PEOPLE were insulted in this article? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #43
People who believe in God. zeemike Jul 2014 #44
Perhaps I missed it, but where in this article are believers called "idiots"? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #52
I feel like I have to keep repeating myself. zeemike Jul 2014 #75
Where in any response to this OP are believers called idiots? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #78
Let's see, 10, 12, 16, 17, 20, 22, 36. rug Jul 2014 #69
I love you CHippie, but sometimes I wonder... Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #146
somebody didn't get it. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #147
The wording is ambiguous as a lone sentence, though which meaning cleanhippie intends is clear muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #149
Clear as mud, methinks. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #158
No, it can't mean your second option muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #159
Interesting point Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #167
Point is, you took it out of context muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #168
No, I took nothing out of context Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #171
No, you claimed there was a problem with the double negative muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #173
or you have no right "to not be offended". Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #160
Pinch hitting while our hero naps are we Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #150
It most likely means "you have no right to not be offended". Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #153
OMDawkins! Do you also think that is what Stephen Fry is saying? Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #156
At some point it is best to just fade away. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #161
Good, because this is a good discussion. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #163
Fry *was* expressing an opinion on what people say about religious beliefs muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #162
Yes, I saw that and I agree with him. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #166
And how can anyone not cringe and sneer at you? mr blur Jul 2014 #164
You are completely wrong about one thing, mr blur Jul 2014 #54
Well that is completely wrong. zeemike Jul 2014 #72
Oh, do grow up. mr blur Jul 2014 #116
Ouch! Hammer hits nail very nicely. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #79
"I find this thread incredibly offending" - that's your problem. closeupready Jul 2014 #25
+1 cleanhippie Jul 2014 #29
! cleanhippie Jul 2014 #28
Ha! I was just going digging for a good graphic of that quote. n/t trotsky Jul 2014 #30
This message was self-deleted by its author zeemike Jul 2014 #35
Welcome. zeemike Jul 2014 #33
Do you really see this article as "insulting people of faith"? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #37
I was not talking about the article I was talking about the thread. zeemike Jul 2014 #49
So yours is just a response in general, not to anything particular found here in THIS thread? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #53
No my response was to a post complain about the ridicule. zeemike Jul 2014 #73
What ridicule are you talking about? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #77
See post 77...it has a list zeemike Jul 2014 #80
Uhm, thats my last reply to you. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #87
That's what happens when it's thought healthy for children to be unable to tell fantasy from reality muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #128
! cleanhippie Jul 2014 #143
Well,the important thing is that ... muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #45
You're not sitting there having your belief ridiculed by people calling you "weak-minded" muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #48
Well, so what? mr blur Jul 2014 #55
If you're offended for bad reasons, it's probably because you're wrong. MellowDem Jul 2014 #133
Here's a quote from a guy who has deeply offended several hundred million religious people. trotsky Jul 2014 #154
I agree. Now tell that to those who have read the bible and find it offensive. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #172
So you agree with "nobody has the right to not be offended" muriel_volestrangler Jul 2014 #174
Okay, nobody has the right not to be perfect, including me and Rushdie Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #175
Just to let you know Muriel Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #176
Everything that Jesus taught? Mariana Jul 2014 #169
It is fantasy to believe mythology and fiction are real. phil89 Jul 2014 #201
A lot of you believers in the supernatural have little context for how it feels to be the Arugula Latte Jul 2014 #205
Left out is over-population! This attack on birth control Dustlawyer Jul 2014 #39
You make valid and important points. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #41
Another steaming pile of crap posted by the troika. Leontius Jul 2014 #56
Glad you liked it. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #59
Troika? PassingFair Jul 2014 #177
Just so people know we believers can use reason as well. Don't care for this article much. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #57
on everything but your faith edhopper Jul 2014 #60
We are still capable of using reason. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #62
almost everyone is capable. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #66
Yes you are edhopper Jul 2014 #107
My point is faith based decisions use reason as well as prayer. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #112
nah, they figure out what the reasonable position is and then go pray and magically god agrees. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #157
What faith-based approach would solve the myriad real-world problems outlined in the article? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #61
The World council of Churches is divesting in fossil fuel investments. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #63
How is that faith based? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #64
My point is we are not a bunch of idiotsthat we can't use reason. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #65
No one has said that. But when it comes to your faith, you don't use reason. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #67
I never said God told me or the council. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #68
You just stated before that divesting in fossil fuels was a faith-based decision. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #76
What exactly do you think a faith based approach is? hrmjustin Jul 2014 #81
An approach based on faith, not reason. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #82
lol ok. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #83
Lol? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #84
We have a dofferent view of faith based. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #86
Well, thats the problem with "faith", it has no objectivity. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #90
Faith based decisions are based on prayer, accessing a situation, the greater good, and reasoning. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #92
No, faith is not based on reason. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #95
as I said we disagree. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #97
That much is obvious. What is not so obvious is why you disagree. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #99
I gave you what I believe is a faithbased decision is. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #100
"...what I believe is a faithbased decision is" cleanhippie Jul 2014 #103
Says you. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #104
Says reason. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #108
lol. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #109
"Based on prayer....and reasoning"? So which cancels the other out? Can't have both. mr blur Jul 2014 #113
Says you.It works well for me and other believers. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #114
here is what I think justin is saying. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #142
Justin is saying nothing, as usual. mr blur Jul 2014 #155
I am sorry I don't have your way with words sir! hrmjustin Jul 2014 #170
Like taking aspirin and praying for a headache to go away phil89 Jul 2014 #202
He actually caught his own tail. rug Jul 2014 #85
We know, we also know you don't use it for faith, that's the problem. MellowDem Jul 2014 #131
says you. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #140
And you, and the definition of faith MellowDem Jul 2014 #152
I see "feel good" religion has its counterpart in "feel good" atheism. rug Jul 2014 #70
The author is very insulting. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #71
I don't mind that. It's his shallowness. rug Jul 2014 #74
You call it shallow I call it a pile of crap. Leontius Jul 2014 #126
Let's compromise. rug Jul 2014 #130
In what way is he insulting? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #88
Here. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #89
Are you saying that he is wrong or that you just find it personally insulting? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #91
He is wrong and insulting. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #94
In what way is he wrong? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #96
Prayer works imo. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #98
Prove it. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #101
Lol you know I can't. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #102
And that's why we shouldn't rely on faith-based" anything. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #105
You don't have to. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #106
Ahh, but thats not true. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #110
The point of the article is that he eventually wants religion to go away and he likes the trends now hrmjustin Jul 2014 #111
The point was the REASONING behind that view. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #118
says you. Thus we disagree. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #119
We can agree on reality, right? cleanhippie Jul 2014 #121
That things are becoming secular? I am all for the government being secular. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #122
Me either. And the faster it happens, the better for us all. cleanhippie Jul 2014 #123
ok. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #124
Great cleanhippie Jul 2014 #125
Do witch's "spells" work too? PassingFair Jul 2014 #178
Ask a witch. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #179
So you actually believe that you have supernatural powers, through prayer? PassingFair Jul 2014 #180
I never claimed supernatural powers. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #181
You say your "prayer" works. PassingFair Jul 2014 #182
Prayer works when we ask for inner strenght. I don't believe that God decides the ways of this world hrmjustin Jul 2014 #183
Let me get this straight. PassingFair Jul 2014 #184
I do not limit the power of God. Be cause I believe something it does not make it so and the hrmjustin Jul 2014 #185
I'm not asking about the "power of God"...I'm asking about YOUR intercessory power, vis a vis God. PassingFair Jul 2014 #186
Sure I do. God helps me to find it and gives me strength. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #187
Did you lose it, or was it never there? PassingFair Jul 2014 #188
I do put in plug ins but it is to ask for strength for them. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #189
So you DO believe that you have intercessory powers. PassingFair Jul 2014 #190
No I do not. I sais I put in a plug in but I feel that God does not decide the ways of this world. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #191
Okay, now I'm confused again. PassingFair Jul 2014 #192
No I don't think it is supernatural. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #193
OK PassingFair Jul 2014 #194
fair enough. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #195
It's not a difference of ideas. It's an unwillingness to adhere to or agree on the definition cleanhippie Jul 2014 #196
Unless it's the definition of the word "atheist".... PassingFair Jul 2014 #197
I never took a stance on the word atheist. I let atheists define it. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #198
Sorry....guilty of "lumping you in". PassingFair Jul 2014 #199
No problem. it was a big war that I felt I did not know enough to take a side. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #200
Yep! That is where he lost me too. Otherwise, I was fine with it. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #145
It is what it is here. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #165
You don't think that's true? phil89 Jul 2014 #203
We disagree. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #204
Oh good, the comedy's arrived. mr blur Jul 2014 #115
Great! Let's see a pratfall. rug Jul 2014 #132
Your opinion has no reasoning to back it up... MellowDem Jul 2014 #134
Obsevation requires only observation. rug Jul 2014 #135
And good discussion requires reasoning MellowDem Jul 2014 #136
Point me to one. rug Jul 2014 #137
Why? If you wanted one you'd engage in it. MellowDem Jul 2014 #138
Actually, I'm engaging in several even as we speak. rug Jul 2014 #139
It was your choice, still is MellowDem Jul 2014 #151
Latest Discussions»Issue Forums»Religion»A Really Good Thing: Why ...»Reply #97