re: Here Was a Man..............

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as I believe both are/were mentally unstable. 

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And it bears mentioning that both were deeply religious and believed (according to testimony) their children to be possessed by the devil.

But then we have the Heaven's Gate birdbrains that offed themselves to hitch a ride on a comet...faith is a pretty dangerous thing, no matter the context, when not measured by logic and reason...

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On the solstice if you want to dance around the May Pole naked singing your praises to Gaia we promise to leave you alone.

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In the unlikely scenario that an agnostic like me would do something just as queer as celebrating a god playing the role of Jody and impregnating a mortal, I promise not to post about it here. IF I do, feel free to ridicule and troll to your heart's content, as I have opened the door for you by doing so.

Your closet awaits....onward.

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But then we have the Heaven's Gate birdbrains that offed themselves to hitch a ride on a comet...faith is a pretty dangerous thing, no matter the context, when not measured by logic and reason...

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So....your solution is to not have faith in anything? the Heavens Gate bunch were not Christian, nor did they profess to be. Everybody puts their faith in something or somebody. Some in God. Some in the Government. Some in science. Some in education....but everybody has faith of one kind or another. That does not in and of itself make them dangerous.

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And it bears mentioning that both were deeply religious and believed (according to testimony) their children to be possessed by the devil.

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As I said...they were mentally unstable. There are plenty of mentally unstable people that do not identify with any kind of religion that kill others, too. Does that necessarily mean that if you are NOT religious then you are dangerous and might kill people just because you are NOT religious? or that being non-faith based person gives you a higher chance for instability?

Off the subject...your avatar is interesting. is that you and one of your kids? I am an amateur photographer and find the picture interesting. I'd have never thought to compose a picture that way.

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Off the subject...your avatar is interesting. is that you and one of your kids? I am an amateur photographer and find the picture interesting. I'd have never thought to compose a picture that way.

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My only child, Izzy. We took this at a theme park on my Nexus 10's front camera while waiting on a puppet show. She is always crawling on my back like a got damn monkey, begging me to take pictures, so this pose is pretty standard for us, ha ha ha.

She and I are damn near inseparable, and I would sacrifice a million goats to Jeebus if I believed that would keep her from harm. Instead, I rely upon instruction, encouragement, understanding, and love. Seems to have worked so far, but I do own a goat just in case.

I won't mention what I did with my chickens...

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As I said...they were mentally unstable. There are plenty of mentally unstable people that do not identify with any kind of religion that kill others, too. Does that necessarily mean that if you are NOT religious then you are dangerous and might kill people just because you are NOT religious? or that being non-faith based person gives you a higher chance for instability?

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I did not mean to imply that Heaven's Gate was a "Christian" sect. Actually, I was attempting to measure my arguments of irrationality in Christianity with the irrationality that exists elsewhere as well.

As to the ladies...certainly they were mentally unstable. But those examples show what unmeasured faith is capable of leading to, ESPECIALLY in an irrational mind. I personally know MANY Christians who refuse to measure their faith in any form with logic and reason. These people see demons everywhere, and the devil's hand upon everything. There is absolutely no way to talk to them about anything without Jeebus being invoked...how Jeebus blessed GW while the devil possessed Barry Soetro, and other crazy arse shite like that. Let this indoctrination land in the mind of someone with mental instability, and BAM! Someone is dead. The faith gives them permission.

As to my faith....yes, I have faith in many things, but it is a measured faith. I have faith that the sun will set, and that it will rise again, although the possibility does exist that it could explode before it does. I have faith that my daughter will one day grow apart from me, and even though that might not be true, I prepare myself and her constantly for the possibility.

Faith isn't bad, IF the evidence is strongly weighted in favor of having faith. Consider it gambling with the odds in your favor...always be the house...always be the house...

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I did not mean to imply that Heaven's Gate was a "Christian" sect. Actually, I was attempting to measure my arguments of irrationality in Christianity with the irrationality that exists elsewhere as well.

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Not sure i owuld agree about the irrationality of Christianity. Of course, irrationality, quit often, is in the eye of the beholder.

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As to the ladies...certainly they were mentally unstable. But those examples show what unmeasured faith is capable of leading to, ESPECIALLY in an irrational mind.

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Shoot...in an unstable mind anyone is irrational. It doesn't matter whether they are religious or not. In fact, if you dig into it...MOST (not all) people who do violence in the name of Christianity are actually not involved in any kind of religion at all. Not in an active way, anyway. Sick people are sick peple. They might fixate on a Christian image, but that does not mean that Chritianity influenced them to behave in that way at all. In fact, Chrsitianity teaches against that type of expression.

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 "Currently I don't feel there is a god but I'm open to someone proving an existence of one".

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I'm waiting....

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I maintain there is much more wonder in science than in pseudoscience. And in addition, to whatever measure this term has any meaning, science has the additional virtue, and it is not an inconsiderable one, of being true. ~Carl Sagan

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You see, science is the practice of seeking the truth through rational proof, using those tools which make us uniquely human.

Religion is the fallacy of accepting that the truth was discovered long ago, by people with much less experience in and knowledge of the universe in which we live.

You can have your divine revelation. I'll stick with the scientific method. I'm curious...

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I'll take both, thank you. They aren't mutually exclusive.

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um....err......hmmm...

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They aren't mutually exclusive.

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No doubt. I know just as many people as not who are both spiritual and curious. They see science as a way of getting to know their God more intimately, and have no fear of "Babelish" repercussions for doing so.

I can get behind that, and even think it is a more healthy approach because it doesn't ignore that humans are both rational AND emotional creatures. But selling oneself completely over to emotion is dangerous, and that's the indoctrination I hear most coming from churches...