Aspergers? Now all is revealed! However, I find it deeply insulting that you consider religion to be the equivalent of a disease. 
At least he’s honest, unlike so many of the snivelers who say the same shit but try to couch it in tolerant bullshit platitudes.
Absolutely he is.
And you are showing why the whole idea is so stupid. Exactly what wouldn’t be “proof” of divine providence ?
A sad case; he could have accomplished even more without religion and alchemy holding him back.
Considering how you were going on about Catholicism a while back, I don’t believe you. You strike me as a fundamentally dishonest person, as believers tend to be. It comes from a disrespect for facts and objective reality, I expect.
Yes, but sometimes the truth is insulting. Being religious IS stupid. It’s not my fault that so many people hang so much of their identity on something that’s completely silly.
According to you. I, on the other hand, put it up there with racism or greed as one of the world’s great evils. Not even close to harmless.
And when I start torturing people, you’ll have a point about an “Atheist Inquisition” . Until then, it’s just another example of how atheists are held to much, much higher standards.
Christianity has historically made many mistakes, but I must disagree and claim that the core of Christianity is about love; it’s about agape, the selfless giving of another to ensure the flourising of the recipient, that feeling of diminishment that brings about the rise of the target, the ego that dies which flourishes anew, the phoenix that rises from the ashes… I realize Christianity is full of failure, but it’s not about hate. It’s not about your viewpoint. Maybe your ideas are right, and maybe Christians are delusional, diseased, malignant walking tumors on this asshole of a world, but
In his defense you actually *are *pretty stupid.
In addition to what John Mace said, I think saying that there are “several states where it has become an issue” is a little misleading, conjuring up images of a statewide push and the whole state roiling in controversy, or else expecting to be affected by it. While certainly true in some cases, like Kansas, I don’t recall that being true in ALL cases (or even the majority), which to me means it’s STILL not the widespread problem with a deathgrip on the nation’s throats that you believe.
Oh, yes it is. It’s all about how the world is horrible, how we are all evil, about how our real lives don’t matter but only it’s imaginary afterlife, about how everyone who disagrees is a monster who will be tortured forever by the Christians “loving” god, about how anything that brings pleasure or happiness is evil, and so forth. Christians say it’s about love, but it’s just empty words. Christianity is really about hate, the hatred of everything and everyone, including oneself.
It’s hatred with a happy face sticker on it.
You’re right.
“For God so hated the world that he sacrificed his only Son, the self-hating Jesus.”
That’s why Jesus killed himself. He hated himself and the fact that he was chosen to represent a religion that kills souls in the name of hate.
Interesting, I hadn’t thought of it that way. You may be on to something here.
It would be hard to start a religion without claiming divine inspiration. The most recent religions like Scientology and Mormonism were clearly the products of shysters and con men. It would not surprise to find that most religions are products of crazies. But the farther away you get from the start date ,the better you can paint the originators. Flawed people seeing visions are locked up or given strong medicines nowadays.
Except for the afterlife part, that pretty much sums up most of what your posts in GD sound like.
No, he was just a fraud or a loon executed by the Romans.
As for the theology you are alluding to, it’s some of the stupidest stuff I’ve ever heard. Frankly, your attempt to mock me makes more sense than the standard Christian claim. As many people have pointed out, God didn’t have to sacrifice anyone or anything; claiming it was malice makes more sense.
I find that blasphemous. God sacrificed Himself to Himself to change rules He Himself made, and to say otherwise is heretical nonsense!
Right back atcha.
I see, so Newtonian physics and calculus aren’t good enough for you eh?
It’s funny how you are so chuffed with your own ability to understand things that you are convinced that people talking about something you can’t understand means that they are lying. You clearly don’t comprehend the historical context of Christianity, like at all.
You are one of the most dogmatic people on the boards, you’re just too stupid to realize it. You’re what is known as a ‘classical idiot’.
I understand it just fine. You just have the habit of indulging in the common religious trick of pretending that something obviously stupid or dishonest is deep and incomprehensible. And I wasn’t convinced that “people” were lying; I was convinced that YOU were lying. And especially in your thinly veiled atheists-are-all-monsters thread, a lot of people obviously felt that way, despite how they had to dance around avoiding pointing out the obvious because of the rules.
“mswas’s personal prejudices” and “the historical context of Christianity” aren’t the same thing.
No, I’m just right. I point out the obvious, and offend people by not pretending that it’s not obvious. You are religious, which makes you a fool; the more religious you are, the more of a fool you are. And you seem quite religious, and therefore quite foolish.
When you come up with some evidence - real evidence, not something goofy like “divine providence” - I’ll grant that your position is at least arguable. Until then, it’s just stupid. No different than insisting that the Tooth Fairy or Darth Vader are real. Beliefs worthy only of mockery, not respect, no matter how many people insist they are.
Der Trihs Well then I am glad we have a relationship based on mutual disrespect, because after lekatt, I think you’re the dumbest person on the forum. I’ll be honest with you, I don’t take you very seriously in any context. I consider you to be the village idiot and respond accordingly. The fun of getting into it with you, particularly in the Pit is to make you look as much like the religious zealots that you hate as humanly possible.
In other words, no you don’t have any evidence that’ll put your beliefs on any higher plane than Santa Claus. So, you’ll pretend I’m an idiot, rather than actually try to back up your beliefs with, well, anything beyond the assertion they must be true, and must be respected. You’ll do everything you can to avoid defending your beliefs, because they are indefensible. And you obviously know this to be true, or you’d at least try.
Santa Claus was invented by Coca Cola. The fact that you think that it’s even reasonable to respond to such idiocy shows why you’re not worth arguing with. You think that mentioning marketing tools such as Santa Claus in religious discussion is a real and valid argument. You’re simply not playing on the same field. You think it’s all about ‘prove the existance of God.’, and that’s what the debate is about. It’s not about that, but you’re just too daft to know that. If you want me to start comparing it to the GEICO Gecko next, that’d be the same level of discussion.
Your arguments are not worthy of a response, you keep the debate at the kindergarten level. I will never discuss the value of religious experience next to the existance of pop culture icons that were invented after the advent of television. I’m sorry, I’m just not going to entertain such debates.
Tell you what, if you can read the Bhagavad Gita, and give a reasonable literary analysis of it. I’ll revise my opinion on your intellectual level, until you can do that, you’re not worth anything more than frivolous entertainment in religious discussions. The Bhagavad Gita is a quick read, you could do the whole thing in about 5 hours max.
And what do you think Jesus is ? A marketing tool. Not that Santa Claus was actually invented by Coca Cola.
That is what it’s about. If you can’t provide evidence that God exists ( much less proof ), then he’s just one of thousands or millions of mutually contradictory myths. I wouldn’t respect someone who insisted in the reality of Athena or Marduk, either. You simply don’t WANT anyone to ask for evidence, because you have none; you just want everyone to take your particular bit of mythology seriously without proof. In other words, you want special treatment.
In other words, you know you are wrong, know you can’t win, and are pulling your “You are unworthy to debate me !” defense again.
And you fail to give a reason why God deserves more respect than “pop culture” icons, or why their age matters.
Why bother ? It’s a religious document, and therefore worthless. That’s 5 hours I wouldn’t get back. And I don’t think you’d change your opinion of me anyway, no matter what you say; you are a liar. Give me facts, not myths; I don’t care in the slightest what it says unless it has facts to back it up.
And why that and not any other random collection of myths ?
Well you’ve just gone too far, my friend. DT is definitely not the village idiot. The village idiot is someone you can tell jokes to and have fun with. DT isn’t about fun at all. I think he could have fun if he lightened up a little bit.
Oh, and further harming mswas’s argument (not that I don’t understand frustration with Der Trihs) is that Coca Cola most certainly did NOT invent Santa Claus.