tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post5172833698172565416..comments2024-01-31T07:38:40.980-06:00Comments on The Whore of All the Earth: The Persistence of ReligionLeahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08129509609170344883noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-81812704932653473482011-04-13T13:27:46.106-05:002011-04-13T13:27:46.106-05:00Hi Leah, First let me start by saying that since I...Hi Leah, <br>First let me start by saying that since I'm a Christian, I come from a Christian worldveiw. I can not speak of religions I do not know...<br><br>That said, I have to completely disagree with this statement: <br><br>The only way to escape the illusion is to ask quesitons and check the logical consistency of the religions claims - something that basically all religions actively discourage their inherents from doing.<br><br><br>Never mind that in the Christian faith, a certain amount of doubt is considered good and important. Never mind that Christians are encouraged to read the bible, and come to their own realization of God and relationship with him. And never mind that TONS of people over the years have asked quesions, have checked out the logical consistency and still, have come to the conclusion that God is NOT a delusion for them...<br><br><br>I also think you'd be surprised to learn that in today's Christian church (non-fundamental) less people are telling their children that it's no questions asked and every week, I field hundred's of questions from kids, and have never once said "Because God Said So." <br><br>Read God Delusion last week, by the way - as well as one by Sagan and Senger(?)...fascinating stuff. I was most intrigued by one that cited the inconsistency of the Bible without checking to make sure that the particular section of the Bible they cited as inconsistent was cited correctly. Hm.Andreahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16070540909786755467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-18530765902448046672010-09-03T11:25:57.549-05:002010-09-03T11:25:57.549-05:00Carla, I would agree with that. I'm seeing mor...Carla, I would agree with that. I'm seeing more value lately in the ritual and meaning derived from religion.Leahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08129509609170344883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-80122596097579834772010-09-02T23:58:33.976-05:002010-09-02T23:58:33.976-05:00I would say that, more than just fear of death, pe...I would say that, more than just fear of death, people like ritual and a perspective of reality that helps them make sense of and bring meaning to all the milestones in life - birth, death, puberty, marriage/love, etc.Carla Schmidt Hollowayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12947846629735463824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-64388750371614143792009-12-22T21:46:45.574-06:002009-12-22T21:46:45.574-06:00@ Leah - I'm not sure specifically to what And...@ Leah - I'm not sure specifically to what Andrea is referring but in the book I wrote (LOL) to you in response to 'The God Delusion' I commented on both of the examples that Dawkins gave about inconsistencies in the Bible. The two examples were where Mary and Joseph lived at the time of Jesus' birth and the other was in reference to the geneology of Jesus. I believe I logically explained how he was wrong in both instances. For the sake of limited characters available on comments I won't regurgititate everything I wrote. However, if you need me to further expound on this I shall.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-82929300615869384302009-12-18T14:24:14.459-06:002009-12-18T14:24:14.459-06:00@Andrea, can you be more specific about the mis-ci...@Andrea, can you be more specific about the mis-cited Bible inconsistency, or do we have to just take your word for it?<br /><br />I agree with John. Why reward people for believing without evidence? It goes back to Mike's post about <a href="http://whoreofalltheearth.blogspot.com/2009/12/think-about-it-thursday-faith.html" rel="nofollow">the supposed virtue of blind faith.</a> Why leave room for doubt?Leahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08129509609170344883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-12882764289358980572009-12-18T14:05:28.227-06:002009-12-18T14:05:28.227-06:00I'm still a bit confused. You have to believe ...I'm still a bit confused. You have to believe there is a god in the first place to believe that you are blessed by this god for believing in him. If you're wrong it's a perpetuating lie. If you're right I still don't understand why this god would care whether or not someone would believe in him or why it would be so important that they believe without evidence.<br /><br />Say someone in Japan read a story about me. He wouldn't know if I truly existed or if it was just fiction. Either way I wouldn't care and if I did, well, with a small amount of effort I could present plenty of evidence to support my existence.<br /><br />PS I agree that seeing is not believing. Seeing is knowing.Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01406568414941043616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-37507789800866930562009-12-16T13:02:39.765-06:002009-12-16T13:02:39.765-06:00Actually, in John 20:26 (doubting Thomas) the mora...Actually, in John 20:26 (doubting Thomas) the moral of the story is not stop doubting and believe, the message is to have faith - seeing is not believing, believeing is seeing. <br /><br />Read John 20: 29 - Because you have seen me, you believe, blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed. Basically, it's giving some credence to those who have faith without needing a mountain of "evidence." As today's most recent post says - there is nothing wrong with appropriate faith... and sometimes doutbting is what builds faith. <br /><br />So why is a little doubt considered good?<br /><br /> Because when we doubt, we ASK questions. We SEEK out answers and we FIND. Some may find that they don't believe, but for others they find faith.Andreahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16070540909786755467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-1482849910054063232009-12-16T11:52:00.007-06:002009-12-16T11:52:00.007-06:00Can you point out a place in the Bible where doubt...Can you point out a place in the Bible where doubt is ever considered good or important? In fact I seem to remember the story of "Doubting" Thomas (John 20:24-29) saying just the opposite. Where Thomas—who demanded evidence before he'd believe the outrageous claim that zombie Jesus was walking around showing people his stigmata—is shown as an example of what not to do. "Don't doubt; believe!" seems to be the moral of the story.Mike Elliotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13182360977278780548noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-81324806335660885132009-12-15T22:29:33.939-06:002009-12-15T22:29:33.939-06:00Hi Leah,
First let me start by saying that since ...Hi Leah, <br />First let me start by saying that since I'm a Christian, I come from a Christian worldveiw. I can not speak of religions I do not know...<br /><br />That said, I have to completely disagree with this statement: <br /><br />The only way to escape the illusion is to ask quesitons and check the logical consistency of the religions claims - something that basically all religions actively discourage their inherents from doing.<br /><br /><br />Never mind that in the Christian faith, a certain amount of doubt is considered good and important. Never mind that Christians are encouraged to read the bible, and come to their own realization of God and relationship with him. And never mind that TONS of people over the years have asked quesions, have checked out the logical consistency and still, have come to the conclusion that God is NOT a delusion for them...<br /><br /><br />I also think you'd be surprised to learn that in today's Christian church (non-fundamental) less people are telling their children that it's no questions asked and every week, I field hundred's of questions from kids, and have never once said "Because God Said So." <br /><br />Read God Delusion last week, by the way - as well as one by Sagan and Senger(?)...fascinating stuff. I was most intrigued by one that cited the inconsistency of the Bible without checking to make sure that the particular section of the Bible they cited as inconsistent was cited correctly. Hm.Andreahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16070540909786755467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-88290479929060400022009-12-14T23:18:04.967-06:002009-12-14T23:18:04.967-06:00Hi Leah,
Your comment here just got me thinking o...Hi Leah,<br /><br />Your comment here just got me thinking of a diagram I saw a little while ago:<br /><br />http:// splendidelles.worpress.com /2207/11/ science-vs-faith.png<br /><br />Ta.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8840695227917041221.post-89086161519204913052009-12-13T19:27:52.899-06:002009-12-13T19:27:52.899-06:00I remember a few months after watching The Journey...I remember a few months after watching The Journey of Man, talking to a Mormon and mentioning that they'd found that all of humanity can be traced back to one male ancestor. She immediately latched onto that one facet of the study as confirmation of her preconceived belief. Never mind that this man lived in Africa about 50,000 years ago, not Missouri about 6000 years ago. Talk about picking and choosing.Leahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08129509609170344883noreply@blogger.com