| God is fading on 19:37 - May 24 with 3638 views | QPR_Jim |
| God is fading on 19:28 - May 24 by kensalriser |
100 years ago women couldn't vote, homosexuality was against the law and we were slap bang in the middle of slaughtering literally millions of fit young men.
Social behaviour? On the whole I'd prefer to be living in 2016 thanks! |
That's all well and good but do the youth of today say please or thank you as often? |  | |  |
| God is fading on 19:40 - May 24 with 3633 views | kensalriser |
| God is fading on 19:33 - May 24 by essextaxiboy |
If there was no religion and that is the way it would stay I totally agree , but there will always be people who are looking for something to set the rules for them and give them a path to follow .
In the UK Christianity is falling and Islam is rising, one group are apathetic and one is not.
I think that is something to be aware of at least |
I wouldn't worry. At the current rate of attrition muslims will have wiped out most muslims within 100 years. |  |
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| God is fading on 21:01 - May 24 with 3570 views | zicoshoops |
When one person has a delusion, it's called insanity.
When millions of people have a delusion, it's called Religion. |  | | |
| God is fading on 21:02 - May 24 with 3568 views | LythamR |
| God is fading on 18:38 - May 24 by Monkey_Roots |
Nope, that wasn't what I said at all.
I totally agree with you by the way. I don't follow any religion, I was just pointing out that the idea of sinning kept a majority of people living a certain way to a certain standard based on their beliefs. If that was totally absent, i'm wondering if their conscience would be enough to deter people from causing harm and misery to others.
It was a thought, a question — not a statement of fact. |
Its a very interesting thought
Religion has been used as a control on societies, it kept people in check using the carrot and the stick method, primarily so that a community or state could function effectively for the benefit of those in the upper echeleons of a society
At the moment most of the worlds populations living in poverty are uneducated and religious and it certainly suits the top 1% for them to stay that way.
Once the poorest in society stop believing in a heaven and hell there will be bloody murder unless we develop a much fairer balance of wealth distribution in the meantime |  | | |
| God is fading on 21:09 - May 24 with 3561 views | BazzaInTheLoft |
| God is fading on 21:02 - May 24 by LythamR |
Its a very interesting thought
Religion has been used as a control on societies, it kept people in check using the carrot and the stick method, primarily so that a community or state could function effectively for the benefit of those in the upper echeleons of a society
At the moment most of the worlds populations living in poverty are uneducated and religious and it certainly suits the top 1% for them to stay that way.
Once the poorest in society stop believing in a heaven and hell there will be bloody murder unless we develop a much fairer balance of wealth distribution in the meantime |
The world's poorer are becoming more educated, less religious, and having less children than ever before so there's something to cheer. |  | | |
| God is fading on 22:02 - May 24 with 3534 views | QPRDave |
| God is fading on 19:34 - May 24 by izlingtonhoop |
Why do you ask.
To me it's fairly plain that evil acts have been and are perpetrated by humans. But Evil as an entity? No. |
I wondered if you had ever messed with a Ouija board as an example Izlington.
I have spoken to people who have and they have been genuinely terrified.
They have said that they believe there is evil in this world.
So my point was going to be if there is Evil, then surely there must be the opposite, good which is God's team init? |  | | |
| God is fading on 23:19 - May 24 with 3489 views | essextaxiboy |
| God is fading on 22:02 - May 24 by QPRDave |
I wondered if you had ever messed with a Ouija board as an example Izlington.
I have spoken to people who have and they have been genuinely terrified.
They have said that they believe there is evil in this world.
So my point was going to be if there is Evil, then surely there must be the opposite, good which is God's team init? |
What are you on about ?
Ouija boards are to do with spirits , not religion . |  | | |
| God is fading on 23:31 - May 24 with 3478 views | CiderwithRsie |
Speaking as a lapsed Christian, one thing organised religion (Christianity at least) has going for it is that it requires you to spend a little time, theoretically once a week, to have a think about what you are doing with your life, what you would like to do better, things you'd like to cut out. And to be grateful for what you have. And to think about other people who are in the sh*t.
Of course you can do that too as an atheist or agnostic. But most people don't; not on a regular basis, with time set aside for it. Come to that, nor do most of those people who say they don't believe in organised religion but "there must be something out there."
Douglas Adams had the idea of an artificial god for atheists. I quite like that. | | | |
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| God is fading on 23:34 - May 24 with 3474 views | londonscottish |
| God is fading on 19:34 - May 24 by izlingtonhoop |
Why do you ask.
To me it's fairly plain that evil acts have been and are perpetrated by humans. But Evil as an entity? No. |
Don't whatever you do look over your shoulder now. |  |
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| God is fading on 23:36 - May 24 with 3474 views | PunteR |
People have stopped going to church or associate themselves with religion but that doesn't necessarily mean they don't believe in god. |  |
| Occasional providers of half decent House music. |
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| God is fading on 00:41 - May 25 with 3450 views | Boston |
| God is fading on 12:44 - May 24 by TheBlob |
The exception maybe Graham Poll |
Poll Pot. | |
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| God is fading on 00:42 - May 25 with 3450 views | BucksRanger |
I posit the three statements below.
1. God is all powerful.
2. God is all good.
3. Evil exists.
If God is all powerful and all good then evil cannot exist.
If God is all powerful and evil exists then God is not all good.
If God is all good and evil exists then God is not all powerful.
Just the viewpoint of one old atheist. :) |  | | |
| God is fading on 00:57 - May 25 with 3440 views | Boston |
| God is fading on 17:27 - May 24 by SimonJames |
Bulls#!t
More people have died in the name of some perverse interpretation of a religion than any other thing.
Perhaps if people stopped having a p1ss1ing competition as to whose religion is the "right one" and devoted more time to simply behaving in a way that respects everybody's human rights, the world would be a safer and happier place. |
Actually, you are wrong, wrong to the point of nonsense. Take a look at (military) history, demographics and economics, only those with an agenda would ever repeat such poppycock. | |
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| God is fading on 01:35 - May 25 with 3422 views | Pommyhoop |
| God is fading on 00:57 - May 25 by Boston |
Actually, you are wrong, wrong to the point of nonsense. Take a look at (military) history, demographics and economics, only those with an agenda would ever repeat such poppycock. |
I was thinking exactly the same thing.
WW1 closely followed by the Spanish Flu epidemic being one example in modern history. |  |
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| God is fading on 03:23 - May 25 with 3398 views | FredManRave |
| God is fading on 23:36 - May 24 by PunteR |
People have stopped going to church or associate themselves with religion but that doesn't necessarily mean they don't believe in god. |
Amen, Brother. |  |
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| God is fading on 07:30 - May 25 with 2971 views | QPRDave |
| God is fading on 23:19 - May 24 by essextaxiboy |
What are you on about ?
Ouija boards are to do with spirits , not religion . |
I'm on about evil, if you have evil surely you have good.
Have you heard of excorcisms?...Carried out by? | | | |
| God is fading on 08:02 - May 25 with 2940 views | Jeff |
| God is fading on 07:30 - May 25 by QPRDave |
I'm on about evil, if you have evil surely you have good.
Have you heard of excorcisms?...Carried out by? |
'Good' and 'evil' are subjective concepts, and open to reinterpretation and reclassification based on newer and more prevalent societal norms.
Neither require a belief system, nor the presence of a higher power to exist. |  |
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| God is fading on 08:15 - May 25 with 2919 views | Dorse |
| God is fading on 00:42 - May 25 by BucksRanger |
I posit the three statements below.
1. God is all powerful.
2. God is all good.
3. Evil exists.
If God is all powerful and all good then evil cannot exist.
If God is all powerful and evil exists then God is not all good.
If God is all good and evil exists then God is not all powerful.
Just the viewpoint of one old atheist. :) |
Variation on Epicurus but argument has problems. The first is that most people haven't got a firm definition of 'evil'.
Philosophically speaking, 'evil' actually has a very simple definition: evil is anything that results in suffering. It is categorised as 'Natural Evil' (when nature results in suffering, e.g. Gravity causing a meteorite to plummet to earth, striking you firmly in the testicles) and 'Moral Evil' (where human decision-making results in suffering. This can be accidental). There are sub-divisions but effectively they all fall into these categories.
1. If God is omnipotent and omni-benevolent then it has to allow freewill. You get a choice about whether you believe. Likewise, you get a choice about how you behave. To exert will by force or coercion would mean God would not be omni-benevolent.
2. The argument makes the assumption that the existence of one prohibits the existence of the other. To use a facetious example, why would anyone support the Rs when Chelsea have so much more etc? There is no reason to assume that it is a binary position.
The Inconsistent Triad as proposed by Epicurus isn't any more a proof of God's non-existence as Anselm's Ontological argument is positive proof. The key point is whether the argument is persuasive to the individual. For me, not so much. I can see too many gaps on both sides. |  |
| 'What do we want? We don't know! When do we want it? Now!' |
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| God is fading on 08:16 - May 25 with 2918 views | BrianMcCarthy |
It's good news that more people are thinking for themselves, that's all I get out of this.
After that, to each their own. |  |
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| God is fading on 09:09 - May 25 with 2891 views | CiderwithRsie |
| God is fading on 01:35 - May 25 by Pommyhoop |
I was thinking exactly the same thing.
WW1 closely followed by the Spanish Flu epidemic being one example in modern history. |
I would certainly put the nation state as an idea that has caused at least as much suffering as religion. Communism also has to go in the mix.
But once you get beyond a few million deaths it starts to get meaningless in terms of which is the greater evil, much like arguing about whether Chelsea or Man Utd are more loathsome. | | | |
| God is fading on 09:48 - May 25 with 2868 views | hopphoops |
| God is fading on 08:16 - May 25 by BrianMcCarthy |
It's good news that more people are thinking for themselves, that's all I get out of this.
After that, to each their own. |
Amen ( ) to that Bri ...
However I think the UK's one of few countries to have got Big Magic on the run, globally not many people are thinking for themselves yet. And it's unlikely that they are suddenly doing so in Britain either, more likely just following changing norms.
If i got a quid every time someone started a sentence with 'I believe...' when what they really mean is 'I ain't got a scoobey'... |  |
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| God is fading on 10:08 - May 25 with 2846 views | BrianMcCarthy |
| God is fading on 09:48 - May 25 by hopphoops |
Amen () to that Bri ...
However I think the UK's one of few countries to have got Big Magic on the run, globally not many people are thinking for themselves yet. And it's unlikely that they are suddenly doing so in Britain either, more likely just following changing norms.
If i got a quid every time someone started a sentence with 'I believe...' when what they really mean is 'I ain't got a scoobey'... |
Ireland is the same, and I'm pleased about that. Not just because I'm an atheist, either, claiming some sort of victory, I just like people to think for themselves and to be free to think for themselves.
The numbers would drop even further in Ireland if we had a ludicrous amount of cash to buy all the primary schools many of which are historically part-owned by the Catholic Church. Until that happens, many teachers have to pretend to be practicing Catholics and many parents likewise. | |
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| God is fading on 10:36 - May 25 with 2821 views | hopphoops |
| God is fading on 10:08 - May 25 by BrianMcCarthy |
Ireland is the same, and I'm pleased about that. Not just because I'm an atheist, either, claiming some sort of victory, I just like people to think for themselves and to be free to think for themselves.
The numbers would drop even further in Ireland if we had a ludicrous amount of cash to buy all the primary schools many of which are historically part-owned by the Catholic Church. Until that happens, many teachers have to pretend to be practicing Catholics and many parents likewise. |
In Italy 0.8% of income goes to either the State or one of a range of churches, which the taxpayer can choose. Basically everyone gives to the catholic church as they never give anything to the government except under extreme duress. This then goes to pay priests' stipends, making them effectively civil servants... | |
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| God is fading on 10:41 - May 25 with 2810 views | TheBlob |
| God is fading on 21:02 - May 24 by LythamR |
Its a very interesting thought
Religion has been used as a control on societies, it kept people in check using the carrot and the stick method, primarily so that a community or state could function effectively for the benefit of those in the upper echeleons of a society
At the moment most of the worlds populations living in poverty are uneducated and religious and it certainly suits the top 1% for them to stay that way.
Once the poorest in society stop believing in a heaven and hell there will be bloody murder unless we develop a much fairer balance of wealth distribution in the meantime |
There was no religion under communism and yet various states adhering to that persuasion managed to slaughter up to 90m of its own citizens in various purges from the early 20th C onwards.I suppose it's all in attaching a label to which there is no referent.
Funny old world innit. |  |
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| God is fading on 11:22 - May 25 with 2782 views | Juzzie |
Something that doesn't exist cannot fade. |  | | |
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