[digi]

That's a load of crap. The reality is that religion is a force that helps the cause of morality in a society. How many Christian people kill*, steal, rape, or are on drugs or in prison?

*Please don't bring up the inquisition of the middle ages. Those people were abusing religion for power and were not following Christian principals at all.

Your post is the bigest load of crap I've seen so far...you must have forgotten the smiley...no-one can be that brainwashed, bigoted or hypocritical...while calling themselves an xtian...can they?

 

[Hydrogen]

the·o·ry (thē'ə-rē, thîr'ē) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. the·o·ries
A set of statements or principles devised to explain a group of facts or phenomena, especially one that has been repeatedly tested or is widely accepted and can be used to make predictions about natural phenomena.

My belief is a set of statements. Check.
It (to me) describes a group of facts or phenomena. Check.

Negative. Your belief is just a belief and not a theory. Rather than resorting to the dictionary actually prove the existence of god. How about location to start with.

 

[Hydrogen]

No, there is no burden of proof necessary. That's what, IMO, drives science and analytical minded folks mad, in that Faith doesn't require proof. To someone of Faith, evidence of God is everywhere, even in the evils of the world. However, if you asked them to prove it in a scientific or analytical method, they'd likely say they can't, they just believe.

To the scientists this position must seem like insanity. How can they believe in something that they can't prove.

If there is no burden of proof necessary, then faith fails to serve as an explanation. Period.

To suggest that evidence of god is everywhere - without even attempting to address what god is - results in silliness. Why not pixie dust? Pixie dust is everywhere, even in the evils of the world. I don't have to prove anything, I just have to say it. My faith exceeds science and your belief in god. Pixie dust rules. If you don't believe you don't know. Poor you.

Like I mentioned earlier, this resorting to "faith" is exactly the quality the generates a belief that "believers" can represent or speak for a god. From that point springs the sense of moral superiority. In the end, it is people really wanting to play god. What other reason is there for claiming knowledge about something that can't be examined, measured or verified in any way?

 

[Hydrogen]

Prometheus, feel free to quote any homophobic quote from the Bible, but remember that it wasn't spoken from the mouth of Christ. It was written by Paul, a mere man with his own political agenda, many years after Christ had died.

So the bible contains lies and misrepresentations?

Surprise, surprise.


So the whole Jesus story stands on very shaky ground.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

that's a load of crap. The reality is that spinal cord injury is a force that helps the cause of morality in a society. How many paralyzed people kill*, steal, rape, or are on drugs or in prison?

*please don't bring up those criminals that use wheelchairs to pretend they're unfit to go to jail . Those people were abusing wheelchairs for power and were not following crippled principals at all.

lol!

 

[Transportfan]

first of all, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_true_scotsman

secondly, i don't have the stats in front of me right now but i remember that a big chunk of the US prison population is composed of christians. in fact, christians commit horrible crimes just about at the same rate as anyone else, if not, slightly more IIRC.

They must have been prisoners who have converted while in prison via prison ministries, because I'm sure the stats go by prisoners who were asked what religion they are, not were.

 

[Hydrogen]

That's a load of crap. The reality is that religion is a force that helps the cause of morality in a society. How many Christian people kill*, steal, rape, or are on drugs or in prison?

*Please don't bring up the inquisition of the middle ages. Those people were abusing religion for power and were not following Christian principals at all.

How many Christian people kill, steal, rape use drugs or or in prison?

Plenty.

Add to that, Christians have run empires, started wars, participated in mass murders, ethnic cleansing, promulgations of racism and other such fun stuff. These acts are not exclusive to professed Christians, but Christians are most definitely included in such fun and games over time.

I will bring up the Middles Ages. Christians most definitely did run the Inquisition. Your beliefs do not give you the right to exclude those who don't fit into your rewriting of history.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

Negative. Your belief is just a belief and not a theory. Rather than resorting to the dictionary actually prove the existence of god. How about location to start with.

it's like he's on the dashboard of the whole world.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

They must have been prisoners who have converted while in prison via prison ministries, because I'm sure the stats go by prisoners who were asked what religion they are, not were.

how do you not know that all the current atheists in jail that previously committed crimes, committed those crimes while they were christians and later lost their beliefs in jail via psychotherapy? maybe they were asked if they are christians and not if they were christians when they committed those crimes.

do you see how you can apply that logic to anything?

and may i add:

The reality is that santa claus is a force that helps the cause of morality in a society. How many people that believe in santa claus kill*, steal, rape, or are on drugs or in prison? maybe we should teach sleigh theory in schools, make it one nation under santa, have people swear on christmas presents and have "belief in santa claus" based schools that have elves that teach the good word of the north pole. also, we can make snow sacred and make road salt use punishable by death.

society will be great then.

 

[Mot]

They must have been prisoners who have converted while in prison via prison ministries, because I'm sure the stats go by prisoners who were asked what religion they are, not were.

"They must have been..." is not a very convicing argument. 80% of Americans are Christian. With those kinds of numbers you would think they wouldn't have third world infant death mortality rates and such high crime rates including murder. 2,000,000 americans are in prison, they aren't all atheists. In fact Atheists have a very low incarceration rate.

1997 Federal Bureau of Prisons Statistics
1997, Federal Bureau of Prisons, 0.21% of inmates were atheist[7]
The Federal Bureau of Prisons does have statistics on religious affiliations of inmates. The following are total number of inmates per religion category:[8]

Denise Golumbaski, Research Analyst, Federal Bureau of Prisons, compiled from up-to-the-day figures on March 5th, 1997


Catholic 29267 39.164%
Protestant 26162 35.008%
Muslim 5435 7.273%
American Indian 2408 3.222%
Nation 1734 2.320%
Rasta 1485 1.987%
Jewish 1325 1.773%
Church of Christ 1303 1.744%
Pentecostal 1093 1.463%
Moorish 1066 1.426%
Buddhist 882 1.180%
Jehovah Witness 665 0.890%
Adventist 621 0.831%
Orthodox 375 0.502%
Mormon 298 0.399%
Scientology 190 0.254%
Atheist 156 0.209%
Hindu 119 0.159%
Santeria 117 0.157%
Sikh 14 0.019%
Bahai 9 0.012%
Krishna 7 0.009%

The fact is you don't need Christianity to be a moral person, but if Christianity is what is stopping a guy from being a Ted Bundy, then I say have at it.

 

[urbanboom]

you can say this about any verse in the bible. your problem is that you choose to believe what is true in the bible based on if you agree with it. well, if you think people added the gay bashing in the bible out of a personal agenda, what's to say all that stuff about heaven, hell, the resurrection, miracles, walking on water, the divinity of jesus, virgin birth, spirits, demons, etc.. wasn't all added in as part of a personal/political agenda???

Im sure much of it was. But that still doesn't take from its message of self betterment and the betterment of man kind as a whole.

 

[Transportfan]

I will bring up the Middles Ages. Christians most definitely did run the Inquisition. Your beliefs do not give you the right to exclude those who don't fit into your rewriting of history.

No they didn't. Just because a corrupted establishment church did something heinous in the name of Christianity, does not mean they were real Christians. That Inquisition stuff is the typical argument Christian-bashers use--and it's not a valid one. The Inquisition was akin to police brutality--a wrong committed in the name of something good, but in reality violating what it's supposed to be representing due to a lust for power.

I hope that clarifies things, but I somehow doubt it will.

 

[urbanboom]

So the bible contains lies and misrepresentations?

Surprise, surprise.


So the whole Jesus story stands on very shaky ground.

The Book of Acts to Revelation is on shaky ground.
However, this "Jesus story" isn't on shaky ground. The Gospel, AKA the Jesus story, (the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) is a chronicle of the Life and teachings of Jesus Christ. This is the part that actually is said to have come from the word of God, rather than other men. Those athiests here who claim to have read the Gospel would be hard-pressed find the part that would make the world a worse place, rather than a better one.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

Im sure much of it was. But that still doesn't take from its message of self betterment and the betterment of man kind as a whole.

ya but the bad stuff really messes up the whole thing. usually when i pick a cherry and i find a worm inside, i throw away the whole cherry. it disgusts me. of course there are those that take the worm out and eat the good part and that's fine too.

but the bible isn't the only source of self betterment just like cherries aren't the only source of nutrition. and lets not give a bowl of worm infested cherries to your kids and tell them that they are all good and the only source of nutrition.

get what i'm saying?

 

[Mot]

No they didn't. Just because a corrupted establishment church did something heinous in the name of Christianity, does not mean they were real Christians. That Inquisition stuff is the typical argument Christian-bashers use--and it's not a valid one. The Inquisition was akin to police brutality--a wrong committed in the name of something good, but in reality violating what it's supposed to be representing due to a lust for power.

I hope that clarifies things, but I somehow doubt it will.

The problem being what you identify as a "real Christian" differs from others. There no way to tell who is and who is not.