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Reload this Page What can replace Christianity?
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:16 PM   #61
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Originally posted by lugotorix
Well, look at the world he supposedly created. He's obviously got some competency and self-esteem issues....

lugotorix
Heres a nice question:
What was "god" doing before he created our universe and humanity? Theists either ignore these questions, or make up answers for them.


I got that question from Stephen Hawking's A Brief History In Time.
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:26 PM   #62
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I understand what you're saying. I think I'm saying something different. I'm not talking about the effectiveness of prayer as compared to medicine in curing illness. I'm talking about hope. I'm talking about meaning in life. I'm saying that medical science has done more than can be fathomed through the fantasy of religion. I'm saying for you to stop hoping and finding meaning in life through the fantasy of buddism or christianity. Go and hug a child. That's life. That's happiness.

I've been in the hospital. I've seen my wife and people with my daughter on their prayer list. I had a choice to ease my heart through the false hope of religion. I weighed the possibilities. I chose to find hope and solace in the doctor and hospital. The doctor assured me that she would be ok. That was real. I saw the blood transfusion going into her arm. I saw the dialysis machine cleansing her blood while her kidneys healed. I saw the color return to her skin. I saw the look on the nurses faces when the blood work started to come back with improvements. I saw urine showing up in her catheder. That was real. My wife saw the same thing and attributed it to god and prayer.

I'm saying religion is nothing but a sugar pill and there are lots of cures for life's fears and calamities that provide more hope than the fantasy of religion. Medical science is just one of them. Fantasy can seem very real, but it's not.
And there you go talking about how buddhism is a fantasy. You don't know anything about it, which is painfully obvious, and yet you still call it fantasy.

Let me tell you about fantasy. Fantasy is using your daughter[s] as a crutch in an attempt to convince yourself that your life has happiness and meaning. You yourself implied that without your daughter[s], your life would be meaningless.

My happiness is not dependent on anyone or anything. My happiness will not vanish if I lose my job, lose my girlfriend, or lose my apartment.

Whose fantasy is more durable? Yours or mine?
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:28 PM   #63
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” What can replace Christianity?”
A cute puppy.
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:28 PM   #64
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Try to tell that to my daughter. She would have been dead at two. Ask her if the last three years of her life have been meaningful.
That she is alive doesn't mean her life has meaning.
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:30 PM   #65
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Originally posted by SecularFuture
Heres a nice question:
What was "god" doing before he created our universe and humanity? Theists either ignore these questions, or make up answers for them.


I got that question from Stephen Hawking's A Brief History In Time.
He was... ummm... pleasuring himself. Yes, our universe is actually just a giant wad of.... errr, time for a cigarette. Back in five.
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:30 PM   #66
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That she is alive doesn't mean her life has meaning.
Life only has meaning with people give it meaning. I give my life meaning. Someone could help me give my life meaning. So on - and so forth.
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:31 PM   #67
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A cute puppy.
You misspelled "kitty".
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:31 PM   #68
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He was... ummm... pleasuring himself. Yes, our universe is actually just a giant wad of.... errr, time for a cigarette. Back in five.
Yeah - you need something to cool you down a bit.
But why does it have to be a cancer stick though?!
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:46 PM   #69
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Why must religion and science be mutually exclusive? Why must one or the other have all the answers? Isn't it possible that religion has its purpose, science has its purpose, and that the two are unrelated and can coexist? Why the animosity?
Obviously they aren't mutually exclusive, but they have been at odds historically and still are, not just with science but progress of mankind in general. Neither has all the answers. What is the purpose of religion or science? Neither have a purpose. Do they? People have purpose. If the purpose of people is to find meaning and hope in life they'll find real answers in science and in the people around them. They'll find fantasy in religion.

Let's make them mutually exclusive. Let's throw out all religions in the world. Let's ask religious leaders to renounce religion. Let's get the fundies out of the way of stem cell research. Let's put down Jihad in the Middle East. Let's take all that tithing going on in christian churches and put it to real use. Let's stop building new churches and let's build new schools. Let's take all that leadership, money, and community binding and put it to work on something real. Let's see then which would have more impact on the meaning and hope in people's lives.

That's fantasy of course, but I'm curious what the world would be like without religion. I don't believe it would be anarchy and evil. I don't believe people would live without hope or meaning. I don't know what would replace religion or whether the world would be a better place. None of us ever will so, I guess it's a moot point.
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Old 05-29-2003, 01:51 PM   #70
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Originally posted by SecularFuture
Yeah - you need something to cool you down a bit.
But why does it have to be a cancer stick though?!
Hey, man. I'm not the one yelling "BULLSHIT!" just because I don't agree with someone.

It doesn't have to be a cancer stick, but they taste yummy (I don't smoke american cigs). Mmmm.
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