Quote:
Originally Posted by Skiy
We are a Christian nation, get over it. In a democracy, majority rules. America's majority practices Christianity by far or any other religious choice.
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So because the majority of the country practices Christianity, we non-Christians should have to deal with Christian dogma being legislated into law and affecting our lives? Interesting logic. The majority of this country is also female (51%), so I guess you should cut off your penis and testicles and "get over it"!
Unless you are already a woman, in which case, "you rule"!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skiy
Oh, and after attending a funeral last week (Christian), I can't imagine what it's like to attend an atheist funeral. What a bleak and spiritless event that must be.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Skiy
My intention was the singling out of atheism, not specifying Christianity in the funeral situation because I'm more convinced on a theist view that a belief in a higher spirit is what matters most. A traditional Native American funeral would be just as comforting.
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So just as long as there is a fantastical, non-realistic (and by this I don't mean "non-plausible" [as "realistic" is commonly equated with "plausible"] - as I'm sure an afterlife is plausible to many - but I mean that it has no basis in reality) element to funeral, it would be comforting to you? Say that Jack dies, and at his funeral someone just says "Jack was a bastard, and now he will rot in Hell with Satan for eternity"... that would be just as comforting? It does involve a theist view with a "higher spirit". Can't a funeral where loved ones show up and celebrate the life (reality) of the deceased and empathize/commiserate about his/her passing (reality) be just as comforting?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skiy
Agnostics I can understand, but atheism just seems like a joy destroying quest with an agenda to undermine one of the primary components of this societies culture especially when attempts are made to completely remove it from public life.
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"Agnostics I can understand, but
Christianity just seems like a joy destroying quest with an agenda to undermine one of the primary components of this societies culture especially when attempts are made to completely remove it from public life."
Besides the fact that, as you mentioned above, the majority of our country are Christians (but we do have laws, and logic, that tell us that just because a majority believe one thing, the minority does not have to believe this as well), my above statement makes just as much sense as the same one you made about atheism. Now, I don't really agree with either statement, but the reasoning used for the former can be applied to the latter. We take "components of this societies culture" to mean the freedom to believe in what you want (your case - Christianity; mine - atheism). And we take "attempts to completely remove it from public life" as the opposition to making laws (applicable to all citizens, of course) regulating the beliefs of one religion or another. We know that is doesn't mean the complete abolition of religion - what you make it sound like in your statement. Just like I would hope that you wouldn't try to completely remove my right to "practice" atheism from public life.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skiy
Agnostics I can understand, but atheism...
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Again, the statement, "Agnostics I can understand, but
Christians", works just as well from the other side...
In reality, we are all agnostic. As we've concluded over these thousands of posts, you cannot prove either the existence or non-existence of God or gods or the Flying Spaghetti Monster. So none of us "know" for sure. Yes, we "believe" or "think" or "feel"... but we don't really know. We just lean one way or the other, and some people to further extremes. I lean toward the atheist side based on everything that I have learned, read, heard, experienced, reasoned, discussed, contemplated, discovered and thought over my 32 years on this earth (including 18 years raised as a Christian). It just makes more sense to me...