...and during my childhood...
When personality development occurs. Religious or not.
...and during my childhood...
When personality development occurs. Religious or not.
Interesting point, and I agree.
Our core personalities are formed early in childhood in part, by influences from family, peers, experiences.
What do you make of two children who were born in an abusive household, one goes on to lead a healthy, 'moral' life as an adult...and the other leads a life of crime?
Finally, is there a little bit of moral relativism in us all?
I used cocaine and B. F. Skinnered my morality.
One of reasons I read here is for the laughs. This remined me of one.... Some people who drink and smoke live long lives and some who abstain die much earlier. ...
I had to ask myself…why do Fundamentalists believe the Bible to be literal, and Catholics don’t? And when you start asking yourself such questions, the answers are often disconcerting.
I haven’t laughed anything off. In fact, it makes me sad to know what the Catholic Church (doesn’t) stand for.
No Christian in good faith can support evolution.
That's how I see it.
That's called hypocrisy, and Christianity is perched firmly on the leading edge of it, always being forced to dance around reality without actually accepting it.
Well, to a religious person, his/her sense of reality stems largely from his/her faith/religion.
that is what faith and religion are all about--giving one's life ''over to God'', and not 'the world.')
So, while the Catholic Church may appear to be growing in acceptance of 'reality,' it can only do so by betraying (to a degree), for lack of a better word, its own faith teachings, and at the same time, playing with its own definition of reality (ie: evolution) as to not appear like it's betraying its faith teachings. Talk about hypocrisy.![]()
That is indeed the delusion and the denial of reality. Indoctrination is a very powerful tool.
No faith and religion are all about indoctrination and the capacity to accept beliefs over facts and evidence.
Exactly. The Catholic Church is forced to having to accept reality, whether it likes it or not. Just look at the things the new Pope is saying these days, things that would have had him lynched by a mob a few hundred years ago.
While I agree that is way most (99%?) acquire their faith it is not the only possible way. Especially in an earlier era, civil authorizes needed some priesthood to help with keeping civil order. The priest could make most believe that if they were "bad" the gods would know and punish them even if the society's "police" could be tricked.do you feel that the only way people adhere to a particular religion is through indoctrination?
While I agree that is way most (99%?) acquire their faith it is not the only possible way. Especially in an earlier era, civil authorizes needed some priesthood to help with keeping civil order. The priest could make most believe that if they were "bad" the gods would know and punish them even if the society's "police" could be tricked.
There is still some of this benefit at work today, certainty in rational* agnostic and perhaps even in atheists as man is not entirely rational. Thus, some may at least support the religionist authorizes as they see social good in it. Unfortunately they also see the evil done in the name of god and that normally dominates; However, the current Pope, gives me some hope - he sacked a German Bishop for using 43 million dollars on his residence and the new office complex. Next thing you know, some churches may begin melting down all their gold candle sticks, etc. and feeding the hungry with the proceeds and set up simple production factories to make jobs, or public heath clinics, etc..
Those golden candle stick could and should be replace with wooden ones, paint them gold if not honest about the change. If that were to happen, hell, even I might be come an "Easter and Xmas" Catholic and put a few coins in the collection plate!
*Pascal's wager is a valid argument for being "good" even if you are not sure there is a punishing God.
And they pick the wrong times to be genuine. It's been suggested that the reason Americans are not afraid of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is that these bacteria came into existence by the mechanism of evolution. Since they don't believe in evolution, it would be heresy for them to support spending tax money to solve a problem that was caused by a phenomenon which they are certain does not exist.That's called hypocrisy, and Christianity is perched firmly on the leading edge of it, always being forced to dance around reality without actually accepting it.
Indeed. A relic of the Stone Age, religion reinforces our atavistic tribal instinct:Pascal's Wager assumes that only good comes from acting as if God exists. Living one's life as if there is a supernatural being has negative implications as well.
Pascal's Wager assumes that only good comes from acting as if God exists. Living one's life as if there is a supernatural being has negative implications as well.
Pascal's Wager assumes that only good comes from acting as if God exists. Living one's life as if there is a supernatural being has negative implications as well.