I read a few of the posts, and concluded that it might be easier to persuade a brick wall than to talk with that group.
FWIW, it’s a site dedicated to a series of books by Tim LaHaye which follows the lives of some people who are ‘left behind’ after the Rapture occurs.
For anyone unfamiliar with that bit of eschatology: conventional history, according to Biblical literalists, is supposed to end with a seven-year period called the Tribulation, during which all hell breaks loose on earth. (See the Book of Revelation for details.)
At some point before things get too bad, Jesus is supposed to descend from the clouds, and the Christian faithful, alive and deceased, are supposed to be whisked up into the air to meet him in the sky, and be taken bodily up into heaven. (1 Thess. 4:13-17 is the main reference on this, along with 1 Cor. 15:51-52.)
Everyone else has to suffer through the worst of the Tribulation until God saves the world from utter destruction. LaHaye’s books are set in that hypothetical stretch of time.
BTW, Tim LaHaye is married to Beverly LaHaye, founder of Concerned Women for America, a Christian right organization that was pretty influential back in the 1980s. I’m sure it’s still around, but I haven’t heard much out of them lately.
Anyhow, the denizens of this site are a bunch of people who think these books are great, so that’s what you’re getting into if you go there. My advice: don’t bother.
I just checked out the first one. Actually a couple people taking the evolution track there, although one of them complained about how his messages had mysteriously disappeared before…
Satan, what the hell brought you to that board? And did you sign on with the same name?
Per RTFirefly:BTW, Tim LaHaye is married to Beverly LaHaye, founder of Concerned Women for America, a Christian right organization that was pretty influential back in the 1980s. I’m sure it’s still around, but I haven’t heard much out of them lately.
They sponsor a daily national radio program “Beverly LaHaye Today”, originating from Arlington, VA. Local WDTF-570 “We’re Dedicated To Family” in Raleigh, NC carries it, amongst others,
First, unless you clarify some, I’m going to disagree.
Second, even if somebody does, for whatever reason, choose to be ignorant, that doesn’t mean they have to parade the ignorance for all to see and revel in said ignorance.
But David, the people on that message board weren’t “parading their ignorance” in front og you; you chose to go there even though you knew what you would see. It’s not like they came here and tried to convince us. (Jedi667, ARG, etc.)
John, the reason I knew about the site was because a poster under the name of Kat2 came here, made a comment about how she believed in creationism, when someone called her on it, she logged on with another name to say, “I’m her friend and I agree with her.” I know this for a fact because I have e-mailed the person in question and she admitted it.
In any event, that person who did come here quickly left in a huff saying people here were rude to her. Four minutes later, the other identity again agreed.
The threads you can look at for verification to this is an “aphids born pregnant” thread that Kat2 started in Comments on Cecil’s Columns, and at the end of the “You’re not a good CVhristian…” thread I started under Great Debates.
One of the posts by this genius started, “Thanks for starting this thread, Satan. With a name like that, we know where you’re going.”
They were parading their ignorance on a public message board – for all to see. They weren’t coming here to convince us, but they were trying to convince others.
I guess I just don’t see where you’re going with this.
Wow, I found that really sad. But it doesn’t prove anything about Christians one way or another. Some Christians are brilliant some are idiots, the same with Atheists as well. I think Richard Dawkins is absolutely brilliant and absolutely wrong, there ya have it.
That which a man had rather were true he more readily believes.
Yeah, but Dawkins is willing to take his ideas, publish them, and slug it out on fair terms with people who disagree with him.
The Christian right has consistently put winning over honest debate. The tactics of the creation ‘researchers’ of the Institute for Creation Research have been documented in detail on www.talkorigins.org : they continue to use inaccurate information in their barnstorming tours after having been repeatedly corrected by scientists.
People for the American Way ( www.pfaw.org ; see especially http://www.pfaw.org/issues/right/rep_vavoters.shtml ) has documented the multileveled distortions of the Christian Coalition voter guides, which go well beyond the obvious ‘hide our attacks until the last minute, when it’s too late to rebut them, and any criticism will be lost amidst the coverage of election results’ strategy (documented by PFAW as deliberate, BTW), and includes such stuff as asking candidates dozens of questions about an issue, but publishing only the ones that will make the Coalition’s favored candidates look like angels, and their opponents look like devils.
The leaders of the Christian right say one thing for mass media consumption, then say another when they know they’re out of view, preaching to the faithful. To the extent that evangelical Christians fail to be upset by this, they’re all complicit.
Oh, here’s a good one: http://www.pfaw.org/news/press//show.cgi?article=942113870 – here, Pat Robertson encourages his followers to violate the law, and post the Ten Commandments in schools, no matter what the Constitution and the Supreme Court say.
I’d be surprised if Robertson has never cited Paul on obeying the laws of the government, because every evangelical preacher uses that line - as long as the illegal stuff is drugs, sex acts, and whatnot. But the moment their ox is being gored, Paul’s admonition somehow doesn’t apply.
Yes, let’s see here. We have on the one hand Phaedrus, who likes to repeat how wrong everybody is but never actually show it. And we have Dawkins, who publishes books and articles explaining everything he can and who knows what he’s talking about.
