Here's the translation of the ROT13 coded post; Splotchy made me do it!
Doin' what I'm told
I'm kinda wiggin' about a post at Pharyngula today. I'm not a religious person, nor do I really believe in God, but I don't believe that everyone who does believe in God is stupid. But he kinda does. Still, read the post not for that, but for the link to a new poll that shows that more people believe in the literal existence of a hell and the devil than believe in natural selection. This country is going down the fucking tubes in an intelligently designed basket.
I've been discussing this post a bit offline with the lovely and intelligent FranIAm, a person who proves that not all people of faith are morons or a-holes. I don't doubt that some people's version of religion has only served to mask their corruption and true inner evil, and I also agree that it's sad when more people believe in hell and the little red-tailed, horned guy who supposedly lives there than believe in Darwin's theory of natural selection. That's just scary. But to condemn all religion and all religious people is going too far.
Just sayin'.
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13 comments:
Religion is a funny thing, it seems that each country, and each nationality has some type of religious belief.
Man seems to know nothing about the Universe and must enlist earlier beliefs that some higher power created and runs things.
Most must agree that at some point the nature of man spurs from what he seems to be or even what he is made of.
To dismiss his religion is to dismiss his being and to deny his belief is to deny his process.
He is and will always be a part of what he is and that comes down to what created him or formed him.
To say that is stupid is within itself stupid.
Random changes are not complicated, it's part of man growing and God allowing him to grow. But at some point man has outgrown God and put himself as the creator by inductive reason and mans thought as self as God.
Now if he could live forever and never die, would prove his point, but as man dies he finds out at that point how he allowed his mind to out weight his behind.
There are plenty of good smart people out there who have a variety of beliefs, religious and not.
I think religious people in general get a bad rap because of the loud intolerant ones.
I am not worthy of the kind words you have for me, but I am grateful for our on-going conversations on this and other topics.
It is the actual exchange of ideas that matters... Isn't it?
I think it all comes down to being open-minded or closed-minded. When one's religion closes one's mind to the fullness of the universe--it's just not good, IMHO.
Thanks for your comments, Let's Talk, Sorghum Crow, and FranYouAre. And thanks for the open exchange of ideas, Fran!
I most surely unquestionably obviously of course believe in the devil.
His name is Dick Cheney.
Ooh, snap. Take that Dick. Betcha regret consolidating all that power in your hands now, huh.
Religion is a funny thing. I have zero belief in the stuff, but like EVERY thing affiliated with humans since we first starting having complex thoughts, both good and bad have come from it. For every bit of intolerance, I can listen to Bach's Mass in B Minor. I'm not sure that music would've been created by an atheist in the 1700s. Now? Certainly.
I just think I'd rather see all that energy used to fix the problems on the planet, because the non-loon religious types want the same thing us atheists do. The only difference is they go to mass, synagogue, mosque, blot, gathering, whatever, and we don't. Religion for them is 100% personal.
Too true, Randal--especially the part about Cheney Satan!
I never thought about the religious nature of the great classical works--I think you're right, that without that backdrop of the church, they might not have been created. Interesting.
I don't know. The church and lesser cardinals suppressed ALOT of work. Some paintings, like the Birth of Venus survived only because they were hidden away on the fear of torture and death to their owners. (There is a novelization of this which is also called "The Birth of Venus".)
Though I do not believe in any description I've yet heard of what 'god' is, I have always liked the comment made to me by a fellow catholic (when I was one): 'man has never stopped devising ways to limit the scope of God'. And he was talking about the dogma.
Which is the bad part of religion. And I think of Beethoven's 9th. That's about as undogmatic a religious statement as one can make, the Ode to Joy, the brotherhood of all humanity.
As long as one uses their powers for good, instead of evil, what they do on Sundays or epic heroes birthdays or solstices and equinoxes, who cares. :)
Hell inside or outside - same difference. Same for heaven.
True, Jess. I think there's a difference between religious "leaders" vs. just plain old churchgoers/believers. Many religious leaders have been corrupt a-holes who stole, murdered, tortured, etc with the best of 'em. But many have been inspirational figures who've brought many into a life of faith.
All great comments, everyone--thanks!
I wouldn't call myself religious. spiritual, yeah, I guess.
my philosophy boils down to: my karma ran over your dogma. [no I didn't make that up -- wish I had. :) ]
I've noticed one thing--
most hard scientists are atheists except for one group-- the astronomers and the quantum physicists. seems the bigger and smaller things are and the harder they are to explain, the more people fall back on something bigger than us to explain em.
btw--an afterthought--
hi, dguzman--
I met you at the debate at Mary Ellen's today.
Welcome, two crows! I remember your great comments during the dem debate yesterday. Interesting about the scientists--very interesting.
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