Since we've gotten told to stop talking generally about religion twice in the Homosexuality and Religion thread and were told that, if we want to talk generally about religion, we need to make a new thread, I have made a new thread.
Full disclosure: I am an agnostic atheist and anti-theist, but I'm very interested in theology and religion.
Mod Edit: All right, there are a couple of ground rules here:
- This is not a thread for mindless bashing of religion or of atheism/agnosticism etc. All view points are welcome here. Let's have a civil debate.
- Religion is a volatile subject. Please don't post here if you can't manage a civil discussion with viewpoints you disagree with. There will be no tolerance for people who can't keep the tone light hearted.
- There is no one true answer for this thread. Don't try to force out opposing voices.
edited 9th Feb '14 1:01:31 PM by Madrugada
United Earth
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
No need to go that far. Heck, no need to go that far either.
Don't want to leave but cannot pretend
Just read up on a book of black magic by an Icelandic Catholic bishop called Rauðskinna. It can teach you enough magic that you can control Satan.
MYTHOLOGY IS FUCKING AWESOME!
Trans rights are human rights. TV Tropes is not a place for bigotry, cruelty, or dickishness, no matter who or their position.
Grr... <3
That would be impressive.
*is sceptical*
Don't want to leave but cannot pretend
What? It's a myth, it's more then likely not true. But the idea behind it is cool.
There's always that o'l St. Cyprian and his wacky magic hijinks.
"All you Fascists bound to lose."
United Earth
edited 17th Nov '16 4:01:12 PM by TheHandle
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
Who Am I?
More like the whole point of developing closer to God id to change as a person. If it doesnt take you out of your comfort zone, you arnt doing it right.
Icelandic folktales and legends are fascinating.
"We learn from history that we do not learn from history."
vicarious
Probably would agree with that De Marquis. Certainly learned that from others.
the problem with a personal relationship with god is that eventually God just become what one wants him to be, to the point it create a confort zone.
It's a bird.
Like if say, your deity of choice just so happens to almost always share your values and opinions, constantly encourages your actions, and justifies your assumptions and prejudices?
Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.
Grr... <3
It is almost like you are saying. An adaptive diety, who conforms to your every need.
Who Am I?
Exactly. Those are all warning signs any competant spiritual counselor should be able to recognize.
"We learn from history that we do not learn from history."
It's a bird.
On the other hand, trusting a "God" who keeps saying stuff you disagree with can be even worse, imo. I would recommend judging all the ideas in your head on their own merits, regardless of where you believe they came from.
Still a great "screw depression" song even after seven years.
I've certainly met people who felt that God was compelling them to do things that made them uncomfortable or otherwise didn't want to do. So it's not necessarily an echo-chamber.
On the morality and scariness of Yahweh, I would argue his goodness is actually kind of scary. An apathetic deity would just leave humanity alone.
Personally, I tend to lean towards divine command theory. Goodness is harmony with God-anything else is secondary. Concepts like love and compasion are not in and of themselves valuable, but rather are valuable because they are God-harmonious. Ergo, God Is Good because good is God. One cannot be virtuous and disobey him-even a Nay-Theist (or outright satanist) who has virtue is more or less a Rule-Abiding Rebel who plays right into his hands.
edited 19th Nov '16 8:21:45 AM by Protagonist506
"Any campaign world where an orc samurai can leap off a landcruiser to fight a herd of Bulbasaurs will always have my vote of confidence"
Presumably because they're a huge God fan and think he's awesome and they want to be like him.
@Corvidae: you could ask anyone that. But to be good is arguably an end in itself. Some other reasons I can think of right now:
-A world of virtuous people would be more desirable to live in. It's only logical to act like you wish others would.
-Self-betterment: I believe that one should seek to better themselves physically, mentally, and spiritually. God is the path to "self-perfection". It is only rational to follow him. A life of virtue is a better life.
-Immortality: heaven will be cool.
-God provides existential purpose to the universe.
-The dark side has cookies, but those cookies have raisins. Yuck!
"Any campaign world where an orc samurai can leap off a landcruiser to fight a herd of Bulbasaurs will always have my vote of confidence"
United Earth
-God provides existential purpose to the universe.
What is his existential purpose?
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
Grr... <3
Well, I've already said what I think about divine command theory.
I don't feel it is possible for anyone to create purpose. I don't mean subjective purpose. I mean capital P Purpose. Since God is a person, he is in the same boat.
This is a problem for morality as well. I don't understand how people can think morality can be decided. That is against the fundamental nature of morality. This is why humans cannot create morality. Because that would be deciding it. But, God is also a person.
edited 19th Nov '16 11:18:39 AM by war877
To give things purpose and value, of course!
(I'm joking, but that actually does make a certain amount of sense...)
"Any campaign world where an orc samurai can leap off a landcruiser to fight a herd of Bulbasaurs will always have my vote of confidence"
Thread theme:
Since we're on the subject, what does perfection actually entail for a living being?
I mean surely it's an entirely subjective trait.
Depends on the context. Buddhism has enlightened beings such as Bodhisattvas being "perfect" largely due to achieving specific traits. In this way it would be a state defined by traits, not a trait in itself. There's an entire genre of literature just for perfecting your view of the world
(in a Buddhist context).
edited 19th Nov '16 2:52:32 PM by TerminusEst
Si Vis Pacem, Para Perkele
United Earth
A sort of "Is the omnipotent creator of reality actually benevolent, or do i just tell myself that so I can sleep at night" type thing?
It certainly kept some people up at night.