Anyone worried about this?

[Hooked on Fenix]

Poppy, reread Ezekiel 1 and 10. You should do your homework. God is seated on four angels called cheribim that have four heads and four wings. That is not what God looks like. You should look at the Christophanies of the Old Testament, where God as Jesus before he became man appeared. He is often referred to as the Angel of the Lord. Joshua 5:13-15 is an example. No angel of God would have accepted worship like this being did. God showed up to split the Red Sea in half at the Gulf of Aquaba to let the nation of Israel cross, then drowning the largest army on the planet at the time (Egypt) (Exodus 14). People are still finding coral in the shape of Egyptian chariot wheels at the bottom of the Red Sea today. It's illegal to bring up samples though. My Dad visited Jericho on a trip to Israel. He found that all the walls fell down outward. This is significant. In a siege, you would expect the walls to fall in. In an earthquake, you'd expect the walls to fall in all directions. Jericho had a series of walls with water moats filled in between them. To breach the city, you'd have to climb or break through multiple walls and swim between them, at which time the archers took you out. Since the walls fell outward, they bridged the water between them so Israel's army could go in and attack. Again, those people had it coming as God gave them plenty time to turn away from their evil ways before sending Israel in to wipe them out. God also struck people with a plague at Mount Sinai who where building a golden calf to worship Baal. I bet you think that's bad. Let me explain how Baal worship works. You put a child inside the golden idol over a fire. As they are dying, their muffled screams sound like the calf mooing and they burn to death in a child sacrifice. That is why God struck them with a plague (Genesis 32).

You don't recall Jesus calling God his father? Read Luke 2:49, John 2:16, John 14:1-3.

 

[Dr. Jones]

Oh boy. Now we are in trouble. Religion and politics, the two things that we should not be discussing. Let's please cool it, guys. Nothing good is going to come from this. Please, drop it. Immediately. Please.

This is the most sensible post in the last couple of pages.

 

[LuxLuthor]

This is the most sensible post in the last couple of pages.

Agree. Had a whole childhood filled with this literal interpretation nonsense being spewed without any basis in reality.
Glad to be away from religious indoctrination "faith by numbers"--especially from fundamentalist/evangelicals and being able to see things and reason for myself.

 

[jtr1962]

If God comes to me in a dream, a freaking dream, and tells me to take my son to the top of a mountain and kill him, do you think that I would even consider it? Hell no! Maybe I'd take him on a hunting trip, and have a bar-b-que.

I was just LMAO at this thinking of the double meaning. Think what Hannibal Lector would mean by that sentence. I could even picture Anthony Hopkins saying that line, and adding later on "I barbequed my son and ate his liver with fava beans. Slurp, slurp."

 

[jtr1962]

Agree. Had a whole childhood filled with this literal interpretation nonsense being spewed without any basis in reality.
Glad to be away from religious indoctrination "faith by numbers"--especially from fundamentalist/evangelicals and being able to see things and reason for myself.

I'll just add that the day I got kicked out of religious instruction as a child was one of the happiest days of my life. I never believed in a higher being. I got tired of the circular reasoning trying to force this belief down my throat (i.e. God exists because the scriptures say he exists). I got kicked out for asking the wrong kinds of questions, and causing some of the other kids to also question what they were being taught.

My parents didn't much care anyway. In truth, we only went to church on the holidays like Christmas and Easter, if that. I think my mother sent us to religious instruction because her mother was raised by nuns, and very religious. Hey, if people derive comfort or guidance from this stuff, great. But I really think any kind of religion is something which should be discovered and sought after as an adult, NOT rammed down the throats of gullible children.

On another note, here's my interpretation of what's being discussed. I really feel ET was behind religion, up to and including using technology to create "miracles" to get people to believe. Why? The general idea was to unite a self-destructive species with a common set of beliefs which might cause them to abandon their most base instincts. That's why all religions seem to teach basically the same stuff-don't steal, don't kill, be charitable to other people, don't use violence as a first resort, etc. Nothing wrong with that part of it. The issue is when powerful religious leaders get their flock to do all sorts of horrible things in the name of whatever god or gods are worshipped. I'm sure that was an unintended consequence for ET. Has religion been good or bad on balance? I honestly can't answer that question, despite reading about the subject for decades. You see lots of stuff on both sides of the coin. But that's probably true of any other institution created by humans, of which organized religion is one of those institutions.

 

[Toulouse42]

I'll just add that the day I got kicked out of religious instruction as a child was one of the happiest days of my life. I never believed in a higher being. I got tired of the circular reasoning trying to force this belief down my throat (i.e. God exists because the scriptures say he exists). I got kicked out for asking the wrong kinds of questions, and causing some of the other kids to also question what they were being taught.

My parents didn't much care anyway. In truth, we only went to church on the holidays like Christmas and Easter, if that. I think my mother sent us to religious instruction because her mother was raised by nuns, and very religious. Hey, if people derive comfort or guidance from this stuff, great. But I really think any kind of religion is something which should be discovered and sought after as an adult, NOT rammed down the throats of gullible children.

On another note, here's my interpretation of what's being discussed. I really feel ET was behind religion, up to and including using technology to create "miracles" to get people to believe. Why? The general idea was to unite a self-destructive species with a common set of beliefs which might cause them to abandon their most base instincts. That's why all religions seem to teach basically the same stuff-don't steal, don't kill, be charitable to other people, don't use violence as a first resort, etc. Nothing wrong with that part of it. The issue is when powerful religious leaders get their flock to do all sorts of horrible things in the name of whatever god or gods are worshipped. I'm sure that was an unintended consequence for ET. Has religion been good or bad on balance? I honestly can't answer that question, despite reading about the subject for decades. You see lots of stuff on both sides of the coin. But that's probably true of any other institution created by humans, of which organized religion is one of those institutions.

Something similar happened to me. First thing in the morning, we had "Catholic lessons" whilst the other kids got to do other stuff. I was about 7 years old and the priest was telling us that God gave power to the church in his name. So, big mouth here said "where does it say that?" "In this book" was his reply, pointing to the textbook we had been given. I said something smart like "but you printed that book - it could say anything you want". Well that day was the start of a long life thinking for myself. I'm not an atheist but organised religion is indeed the work of Man.

When you understand that some biblical works were simply left out, that is the day you understand that powerful people years ago decided to manipulate our beliefs into what they wanted.

I'm not a big mouth any more but I'm hugely sceptical of people who tell me what to believe. And in my 60's its getting worse!

 

[bykfixer]

I don't want to be near some of you folks in a lightning storm. Sheesh.

All I'll say is all of that stuff going on in the middle east is about religion. Now if you don't understand the culture and the history it won't make sense to the typical American. Some of it began over a bowl of soup. Some began over an inheritance, some began over a dream. Some is out of fear, some out of selfishness, some out of ignorance, some out of greed, some are religious zealots and some just mean @$$ people.

Folks can believe what they want. But over there, they take their religion pretty serious.

 

[Stress_Test]

............................................. Some of it began over a bowl of soup. ...................................

LOL, that's the exact story I was thinking of when the current mess began. And some people say the Bible isn't relevant in modern times; heh, people don't change!

 

[Monocrom]

...heh, people don't change!

If they do, it's usually for the worse.

 

[Stress_Test]

If they do, it's usually for the worse.

Well, I don't think people now vs. then were worse/better. People were already doing some pretty messed up stuff thousands of years ago. However, modern technology has just allowed people to be bad on a larger scale than was possible back then.

(side note to clarify "people don't change"; I don't mean individuals; individual people can certainly change, that's kind of the whole premise of religion. I just mean that human nature in general is pretty much the same whether it was 2000 years ago, or next week)

 

[Poppy]

If they do, it's usually for the worse.

I disagree. I think that most people mellow with age.

 

[idleprocess]

(side note to clarify "people don't change"; I don't mean individuals; individual people can certainly change, that's kind of the whole premise of religion. I just mean that human nature in general is pretty much the same whether it was 2000 years ago, or next week)

In the macro sense the human condition is pretty consistent. Cultures emphasize different parts of it, norms shift things, technology eases some things, but the outer bounds are pretty well established.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

Time will tell.....

 

[SCEMan]

I disagree. I think that most people mellow with age.

I don't think I've mellowed - just get tired easier...

 

[idleprocess]

I don't think I've mellowed - just get tired easier...

The lost of things I get excited about has shrunk. Given that nearly all of it was at best barely within my sphere of influence this is a good thing - focuses me on things more relevant to life.

 

[bigburly912]

I disagree. I think that most people mellow with age.

You ran an autistic guy off a forum he's been a member of for 20 years because you didn't like what he posted. Haha I'll disagree with you for once on that comment poppy.

Straight up virtual water hose get off my lawn stuff right there. 😁

 

[bykfixer]

Or....

Afterall, he did say "most"....not "all" 😉

 

[Stress_Test]

You ran an autistic guy off a forum he's been a member of for 20 years because you didn't like what he posted. Haha I'll disagree with you for once on that comment poppy.

Straight up virtual water hose get off my lawn stuff right there. 😁

Nah, that whole "I'm-so-dumb-and-poor-and-ugly" thing was an act, apparently. One member received a PM that was written normally and not with the "autistic" style he usually employed.

On another note, I sure wish it had not somehow become "trendy" for people to claim they are "autistic" or "neuro-divergent" or whatever the terms are now. People.... taking a 5-minute internet quiz doesn't mean anything. If you think you DO have problems, get your butt to a doctor and find out; claiming you have mental issues when you don't is an insult and disservice to those people who really DO struggle with that stuff.

See that? I can do "GET OFF MY LAWN" as well as anyone!

 

[idleprocess]

One member received a PM that was written normally and not with the "autistic" style he usually employed.

I recall said member appearing in IRC some time back and conversing normally briefly before remembering to step into character.

 

[bigburly912]

Nah, that whole "I'm-so-dumb-and-poor-and-ugly" thing was an act, apparently. One member received a PM that was written normally and not with the "autistic" style he usually employed.

On another note, I sure wish it had not somehow become "trendy" for people to claim they are "autistic" or "neuro-divergent" or whatever the terms are now. People.... taking a 5-minute internet quiz doesn't mean anything. If you think you DO have problems, get your butt to a doctor and find out; claiming you have mental issues when you don't is an insult and disservice to those people who really DO struggle with that stuff.

See that? I can do "GET OFF MY LAWN" as well as anyone!

It was a joke. Poppy laughed. Come get me off your lawn. 😁