Opinion

clum clum · January 02, 2015, 01:01:02 AM

Opinion on Religion

🍁 Aria 🔮 · January 02, 2015, 01:14:11 AM

Rationalize your existence however you want, but don't use it as an excuse to be a hateful person. It's why I hate organized religion. It's not that it's a scapegoat, nearly anything can be a scapegoat; it's just such an easy thing to use, and it twists people into extremists like I've seen in nothing else.

Verbatim · January 02, 2015, 01:16:37 AM

It's a joke. I mean, it's such a boring, fruitless discussion now, that I'm reduced to one-word descriptions.

DAS B00T x2 · January 02, 2015, 01:16:41 AM

Simply put: it's a coping mechanism and compass for those who need that kind of external purpose or direction. It's not something I personally bother myself with.

However, some little bit of my heart wishes that if any one religion is right, it's Germanic paganism.

🍁 Aria 🔮 · January 02, 2015, 01:26:43 AM

Quote from: DAS B00T x2 on January 02, 2015, 01:16:41 AM

Simply put: it's a coping mechanism and compass for those who need that kind of external purpose or direction. It's not something I personally bother myself with.

However, some little bit of my heart wishes that if any one religion is right, it's Germanic paganism.

Any of the Nordic/Germanic religions would be pretty astounding.

clum clum · January 02, 2015, 01:27:10 AM

I'm completely neutral to religion. I'll just see what happens when I reach the end of the line. I know there's a chance it's all lies, stirred up from thousands of years worth of tall tales, but I'm hoping there's something. I don't like the thought of a vast, cold, dark, empty universe with no real purpose.

EDIT: Yeah, I'm hoping that Germanic or Norse Paganism is the real ones.

🍁 Aria 🔮 · January 02, 2015, 01:32:40 AM

Quote from: Numb Digger on January 02, 2015, 01:27:10 AM

I'm completely neutral to religion. I'll just see what happens when I reach the end of the line. I know there's a chance it's all lies, stirred up from thousands of years worth of tall tales, but I'm hoping there's something. I don't like the thought of a vast, cold, dark, empty universe with no real purpose.

EDIT: Yeah, I'm hoping that Germanic or Norse Paganism is the real ones.

Pascal's Wager comes to mind. Live as if God exists, because if he does, you get to relax in paradise; if he doesn't, you lived a life of altruism and joy. The only downside is if you're a buffoon that treats a book written thousands of years ago that has suffered from numerous, rough translations as total fact, and you end up dying as a hateful and anxiety stricken nut.

Verbatim · January 02, 2015, 01:33:46 AM

Quote from: Numb Digger on January 02, 2015, 01:27:10 AM

I don't like the thought of a vast, cold, dark, empty universe with no real purpose.

I do.

clum clum · January 02, 2015, 01:33:54 AM

Quote from: Prime Meridia on January 02, 2015, 01:32:40 AM

Quote from: Numb Digger on January 02, 2015, 01:27:10 AM
I'm completely neutral to religion. I'll just see what happens when I reach the end of the line. I know there's a chance it's all lies, stirred up from thousands of years worth of tall tales, but I'm hoping there's something. I don't like the thought of a vast, cold, dark, empty universe with no real purpose.

EDIT: Yeah, I'm hoping that Germanic or Norse Paganism is the real ones.
Pascal's Wager comes to mind. Live as if God exists, because if he does, you get to relax in paradise; if he doesn't, you lived a life of altruism and joy. The only downside is if you're a buffoon that treats a book written thousands of years ago that has suffered from numerous, rough translations as total fact, and you end up dying as a hateful and anxiety stricken nut.

Both have downsides and upsides. I find it impossible to pick a side, really.

clum clum · January 02, 2015, 01:35:15 AM

Quote from: Verbatim on January 02, 2015, 01:33:46 AM

Quote from: Numb Digger on January 02, 2015, 01:27:10 AM
I don't like the thought of a vast, cold, dark, empty universe with no real purpose.
I do.

I mean, it's fascinating with some heavy physics involved and things like string theory, but without that, it's not a nice thought.

🍁 Aria 🔮 · January 02, 2015, 01:38:43 AM

Quote from: Verbatim on January 02, 2015, 01:33:46 AM

Quote from: Numb Digger on January 02, 2015, 01:27:10 AM
I don't like the thought of a vast, cold, dark, empty universe with no real purpose.
I do.

Pursuing a meaningful being in an uncaring existence? To live in a universe of chaos and create a culture with a single, unanimous thought that stands starkly contrasted and defiantly against it? That's pretty damn poetic, sounds like a motivator to me.

Verbatim · January 02, 2015, 01:42:22 AM

Quote from: Prime Meridia on January 02, 2015, 01:32:40 AM

Pascal's Wager comes to mind. Live as if God exists, because if he does, you get to relax in paradise; if he doesn't, you lived a life of altruism and joy. The only downside is if you're a buffoon that treats a book written thousands of years ago that has suffered from numerous, rough translations as total fact, and you end up dying as a hateful and anxiety stricken nut.

I think there's a lot more downsides than that. Namely... which god(s) are you choosing to have this sort of superficial, almost fake belief in? And even if you guess right, is that god gonna be impressed with the notion that all you did was say you believe in him, just so you can get a free ride to paradise? I don't think so.

See, I appreciate attempts at middle-ground stuff like this, but they almost never work out. There are just some things that I would never compromise.

Mad Max · January 02, 2015, 01:43:51 AM

Largely useless.

Verbatim · January 02, 2015, 01:47:14 AM

I think I'll just retract this post, because I can't stop piling shit on top of it. This isn't about my entire life philosophy.

Turkey · January 02, 2015, 01:47:38 AM

I think the sentiments relegating it to being a coping mechanism or list of instructions for the weak-minded are unbelievably shallow. Religion is integral to understanding humanity and our culture, psychology, science, and past. I think it's embarrassingly arrogant to disregard the cultural and moral knowledge of our species since before written language, and claim to know better. It's a very sophomoric statement, and it's no surprise to see the younger of the users espouse it, but a little disheartening to see it from the older members.

Dustin · January 02, 2015, 02:05:40 AM

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Verbatim · January 02, 2015, 02:44:45 AM

Quote from: Numb Digger on January 02, 2015, 01:35:15 AM

I mean, it's fascinating with some heavy physics involved and things like string theory, but without that, it's not a nice thought.

Well, I'm just saying, a cold dark and empty universe is a universe that is devoid of responsibilities, liabilities, and other things that need to be taken care of. That can only be a good thing.

Cindy · January 02, 2015, 02:49:33 AM

I'm somewhere between an atheist and an agnostic

So, eh

Don't be a cunt, there you go. Believe whatever you like, just don't be a cunt.

Flee · January 02, 2015, 04:07:21 AM

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Lemy the Lizerd · January 02, 2015, 04:26:51 AM

It's only something man devised to manipulate his fellows. It's nothing more than a tool for control.

I advocate an end to it. All of the religions worth even a shred of respect are non-prosletyzing and will die off on their own, eventually. Christianity is on the decline as traditionally Christian nations become more advanced.

That leaves the problem of Islam. It has the most fanatical adherents of any religion and it promotes violence. This religion is a threat to our advancement as a species, and it is on the rise. You can't deconvert them or be reasonable because, short of Turkey, every Islamic country is a shithole where people are still living in the dark ages, and education is almost nonexistent.
I consider the best way to stop the spread of Islam to be reproductive. We have to outbreed adherents of Islam. By "we", I mean, of course, people who believe women aren't property.

It occurs to me now that I am probably the most anti-theist person on this forum.

Lemy the Lizerd · January 02, 2015, 04:43:20 AM

Quote from: Auld Lang Turkey on January 02, 2015, 01:47:38 AM

I think the sentiments relegating it to being a coping mechanism or list of instructions for the weak-minded are unbelievably shallow.

Mad.

Quote

Religion is integral to understanding humanity and our culture, psychology, science, and past.

This is true. That doesn't mean it's not a coping mechanism or a tool for social manipulation, though.

Quote

I think it's embarrassingly arrogant to disregard the cultural and moral knowledge

This implies any of these religions are based on actual knowledge and not on fantastical claims.

Quote

of our species since before written language, and claim to know better.

Of course I know better than some ancient who still lives in a mud hut. That's how progress works. What, do you think Juba the mesopotamian farmer had even a basic understanding of physics or biology?People were getting death threats for suggesting a heliocentric view of the milky way mere centuries ago. We've come a long fucking way, and it's pretty idiotic to disregard that in favor of some romanticized "wisdom of the ancients" bullshit.

Quote

It's a very sophomoric statement, and it's no surprise to see the younger of the users espouse it, but a little disheartening to see it from the older members.

a bloo bloo

Mordo · January 02, 2015, 05:24:44 AM

For the most part a largely antiquated, fallacious lens to look through in life, but that's not to say that it's NEVER been beneficially impactful. Religion lay the basis for early scientific inquiry, even if it wasn't 100% scientifically accurate.

Before enough fedoras are tipped to alter the axial tilt of the Earth, I must clarify that I do not take religion with an ounce of credibility. I'm just recognising where credit is due.

DAS B00T x2 · January 02, 2015, 06:54:54 AM

Quote from: Lemy the Lizerd on January 02, 2015, 04:26:51 AM

.

It occurs to me now that I am probably the most anti-theist person on this forum.

I dunno man, Cheat's actually pretty anti-theist.

DAS B00T x2 · January 02, 2015, 06:57:31 AM

Quote from: Auld Lang Turkey on January 02, 2015, 01:47:38 AM

I think the sentiments relegating it to being a coping mechanism or list of instructions for the weak-minded are unbelievably shallow. Religion is integral to understanding humanity and our culture, psychology, science, and past. I think it's embarrassingly arrogant to disregard the cultural and moral knowledge of our species since before written language, and claim to know better. It's a very sophomoric statement, and it's no surprise to see the younger of the users espouse it, but a little disheartening to see it from the older members.

But Turkey, look at how early religions were made. They were a way to explain things that couldn't be explained, many of them scary things, like volcanoes and shit.

Super Irish · January 02, 2015, 08:02:38 AM

I see them as a guidebook for people who can't decide how to live for themselves, what's good and what's bad, that sorta thing.

Unfortunately these guidebooks for a moral compass are waaay out of date and often misinterpreted for some nefarious purpose or to make some cause seem backed by a holy entity so that it gains more support.

Of course this doesn't go for all religions, but many of the big ones.(Buddhism is a general guide to being kind, so it seems pretty hard to get a crusade going off any of their teachings)

Mega Sceptile · January 02, 2015, 09:15:45 AM

I believe most religious texts are mechanisms for their age to both explain the unexplained, and teach their children of the most basic morals of their time, and our modern interpretations of them focus further on the latter rather than the former, as a majority of the things they explain can now be properly explained through scientific method and thousands of trials.

Ásgeirr · January 02, 2015, 09:48:08 AM

Its silly to me.

PSU · January 02, 2015, 10:01:34 AM

Edgy thread 2015

clum clum · January 02, 2015, 10:09:42 AM

Quote from: PSU on January 02, 2015, 10:01:34 AM

Edgy thread 2015

I'm completely neutral to the topic of religion, but I don't really see how not believing in religion makes you edgy. It's only if you are an ass about it, like le lol le neckbeards le leddit.

Verbatim · January 02, 2015, 10:13:21 AM

I don't see how anything makes you "edgy". It seems to be used to describe anything that's remotely negative.