tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post5842530623338225472..comments2024-03-01T10:10:40.165-07:00Comments on Speak the Truth in Love: Evolution and ReligionRandyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16751516602395247675noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-82849699550213885522014-06-30T15:01:09.413-06:002014-06-30T15:01:09.413-06:001. Why? Why is it so obvious slavery is wrong? If ...1. Why? Why is it so obvious slavery is wrong? If you were reforming a savage people would you start with slavery instead of murder or rape? <br /><br />Does the bible really endorse slavery? Jesus explicitly said Moses regulated divorce not because it was OK but because human hearts were to hard to accept marriage as forever. That did not come until Malachi. If God could do that with divorce then why not slavery?<br /><br />2. Why not? The bible explicitly said that God took the act of Joseph's brothers selling him into slavery and used it for good. Is that kind of thing out of bounds for God? Who are you to say?<br /><br />3. He isn't. Not sure why it would be bad if He was. He created animals and humans with different dignity. Both men and women were created in the image of God and have equal dignity. That does not make them the same. Women can't become priests, for example. Equal but different.<br /><br />4. I do think people in the first century knew the difference between a charismatic man and the Son of God. Lots of people had very good teachings back then. Nobody thought Aristotle or Socrates was the Son of God. Jesus would have to do more than just say a few worth while things to make people declare Him divine. <br /><br />What would you expect if Catholicism was true? What would the religious landscape look like? You would expect Catholicism to have an obvious place across the globe and across history. Then you would expect a lot of imitations. If the devil is real there is no way he is not going to create a bunch of fake version of Christ's church. <br /><br />5. We all use reason. It has always been a strength of mine. Yet you have not shown me any reason why God could not use the church as it is. Yes there are corrupt people inside. Still God's word and God's sacraments seem to have survived intact. Why could that not be the way God chose to preserve the gospel delivered by Jesus? <br /><br />"That's all I have to say."<br /><br />Thanks so much for the thoughts. All the best to you. Randyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16751516602395247675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-50893245812595198352014-06-30T11:47:48.304-06:002014-06-30T11:47:48.304-06:001. Racial slavery or otherwise if the bible was f...1. Racial slavery or otherwise if the bible was from god it would never contain anything even resembling an endorsement of slavery. <br />2. I can never believe that god would ever use clearly immoral means to deal with mankind, even if as you say "times were different"<br />3. I can never believe that god is a sexist. <br />4. I cant simply take the fact that people believed in Jesus and followed his teachings as a point that he is the son of god. His teachings were worth while. And maybe he was charismatic. It certainly doesn't mean he is the son of god, and while I would like to believe that I cant help but ask myself why I wouldn't subscribe to teachings of other religions that claim they know the true will of god. If as you pointed out that all religions do have merit and those merits are what makes them ubiquitous throughout culture, then that means the specific differences aren't the points that matter. You cant have the argument both ways. Believe in only my religion, yet all religions are great and that's why you should believe in my religion. <br />5. If god created me then he made me analytical. He made me question things and use my reasoning. My reasoning precludes me from believing any corrupt institutionalized religion that I have seen so far. <br /><br />That's all I have to say.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-72880286126088696092014-06-20T16:12:27.439-06:002014-06-20T16:12:27.439-06:00"The positive that any religion brings to som..."The positive that any religion brings to someone’s life aren’t dependent on the specifics of that one religion"<br /><br />Sure they are. Is it a coincidence that all the recent killing is associated with Islam. Christianity had some issues with violence in the 16th and 17 centuries but it is pretty much over now. It does matter what you believe. The way to fix bad religion is with right religion. <br /><br />"Sure kids make up their minds when they get older, but obviously you can’t deny that upbringing plays a huge role?"<br /><br />Yes upbringing is important. Less so than it used to be. People today are much more aware of other religions and non-religious lifestyles. We need to teach people to ask hard questions of their faith. They need to ask hard questions of atheism to. <br /><br />At the end of the day we want freedom and truth. We want every parent to be free to teach their religion to their children. We want children to be free to decide. Then we want as many people as possible to arrive at the truth. <br /><br />The fact that the discernment process is not optimal does not somehow prove atheism. I was raised Calvinist and converted to Catholicism. So I did not just accept my parents religion. Yet I hope my kids remain Catholic. The fact that their parents are Catholic should not be a reason to reject it. If there is a better view then go there. I don't think there is or I would have done so already. Still, they are free. Randyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16751516602395247675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-11816145729943876932014-06-20T15:59:03.467-06:002014-06-20T15:59:03.467-06:00"Religion is the most divisive force in the w..."Religion is the most divisive force in the world today" <br /><br />Why should we believe that? We can fight over lots of things. Politics, money, sex, etc. <br /><br />"because of it there are people all over the world that want to kill you and me today"<br /><br />Who? I don't know of anyone who wants to kill me. Some seem to want to kill their neighbors and use religious rhetoric to justify it. I am not convinced they would all be peaceful law abiding citizens if we could just make them atheists. <br /><br />"Sure politics matter but the elephant in the room is that people are willing to do it because they are motivated by what they think is the highest ideal. "<br /><br />OK, so they kill for the highest ideal. If you eliminate that then something else becomes the highest ideal. Then they kill for that. That does not seem to be a winning strategy.<br /><br />What you need is for their highest ideal to be inconsistent with killing. That is the scenario that leads to peace. Atheism is not inconsistent with anything, except God. It is certainly not inconsistent with murder, think Nazis communists, etc.<br />Randyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16751516602395247675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-62744616017601622572014-06-20T15:48:20.860-06:002014-06-20T15:48:20.860-06:00Sure, still we need to figure out what to do with ...Sure, still we need to figure out what to do with all these features evolution left us. If evolution is really pointless then the answer does not matter because nothing matters. Yet atheists seem to feel it matters. That somehow atheism is seen as progress. Even if it is true, why does truth matter? If religion is comfortable then isn't that enough? In the atheist worldview that is the best we can do, a little comfort before we die.Randyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16751516602395247675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-54459904094691698292014-06-20T12:50:14.560-06:002014-06-20T12:50:14.560-06:00Of course people feel guilt it’s how they rational...Of course people feel guilt it’s how they rationalize it that is dependent on upbringing. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-43985404190237445422014-06-20T12:49:43.172-06:002014-06-20T12:49:43.172-06:00As far as why get rid of religion? Religion is t...As far as why get rid of religion? Religion is the most divisive force in the world today, and because of it there are people all over the world that want to kill you and me today. Sure politics matter but the elephant in the room is that people are willing to do it because they are motivated by what they think is the highest ideal. Why do they believe this, they have faith, the act of non-thinking. Sure there is some good to the whole thing but it’s not in the closed minded “I’m right your wrong” that it brings. You are right there is a convergence. The common ground is the community it builds, in people feeling like their life has a meaning. The positive that any religion brings to someone’s life aren’t dependent on the specifics of that one religion. And while the outliers are shrinking as you said if the important differences were what really what mattered then all religions wouldn’t have similar success in perpetuating themselves would they ( I am talking mainly about the two most at odds Christianity and Islam)? I guess what I am trying to say is that when you get right down to it most people are actually moderates. People know that the bible was written in a time that is now outdated. They use scripture when they see it applicable in their life. They go to church they enjoy community. All of those things are great. Those are the things shared by religion and those are the reasons it perpetuates. Even still that doesn’t mean there’s any truth to it, the explanation with moths and children perfectly outlined why people cling to it, because they are taught it by their parents!! Are we forgetting that regions that are Christian stay Christian and Muslim stay Muslim. Do you think this is a coincidence? Sure kids make up their minds when they get older, but obviously you can’t deny that upbringing plays a huge role? Think about it this way, take 1000 babies and raise them in Muslim homes, then take 1000 mid 20s Christians and teach them all about Islam. How many from each group do you think would be Muslim when they are 30? Would you be any more likely to believe in Mohammed as you would hob goblins, Zeus, or the Easter bunny? Of course not, and neither would they to your god. Doesn’t that make you wonder? The point is most peoples happiness and their belief structure doesn’t actually depend whether the bible or the Koran is true. It only is for the extremists. And so belief in god isn’t bad its blind faith that perpetuates ancient mores and superstations. It actually slows the progress of society. Just like it did with slavery and women’s rights and how it is right now on homosexuality. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7609203224961032874.post-63382507181956175082014-06-20T12:49:12.482-06:002014-06-20T12:49:12.482-06:00There are many things that humans have as a result...There are many things that humans have as a result of our evolution that are no longer needed. People’s bodies hold on to every calorie that we eat because the body doesn't know when it may eat again. It does this even when people are overweight. Men and women’s desire to procreate is Darwinian, of course even though the church would say that it’s our inner evil. We feel this even when we don’t want to have children, and we have those thoughts even when we may be married or we know its not a decision we want to make. Just because we still have these traits doesn't mean they are still useful. You may not want to be bald but do you still have your wisdom teeth, I bet you don't!!! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com