Is American society becoming more secular ?

Discussion in 'Science & Society' started by arauca, Dec 6, 2013.

  1. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    It's Christmas shopping, everyone knows that.
     
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  3. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    If it were knowledge, it wouldn't require faith.
     
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  5. Fraggle Rocker Staff Member

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    Better nones than nuns.

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    But the question in the O.P. is about atheism. The majority of these churchless people are simply unaffiliated, not atheists. A lot of people believe in God and the rest of the religious bullshit; but simply don't feel the need to go to church.

    What a bizarre sentence. Whatever made you write that? Once again, you appear to know absolutely nothing about the people you share this planet with. Marxism is absolutely not about materialism. The leaders of the communist countries were very careful to make sure that their industries could not produce the cornucopia of consumer goods that are available in the capitalist countries.

    And let me remind you one more time, since your memory appears to be failing: Communism is an offshoot of Christianity. Marx was a Christian and his slogan, "To each according to his needs, from each according to his ability," is an elaboration of a line in the Book of Acts. Only a person who believes in fairy tales (like the Bible) could possibly believe that civilization can survive if what a man takes from it need not correlate in any way with what he gives back.

    This guy is a total idiot. Thanksgiving is, and always was, a secular holiday. It was originally set as the last Thursday in November, but during the Great Depression, President Roosevelt changed it to the fourth Friday. There were five Fridays in November in that year, and he did this specifically to give people more time for Christmas shopping, hoping to help the weak economy recover.

    Thanksgiving has been all about shopping since before I was born.

    Atheism is indeed on the rise, but slowly. The majority of these churchless Americans are simply people who don't want to go to church, but still believe in all the fairy tales of religion, including the blatant oxymoron, "life after death." It's a wonder that the children of religious people are capable of rational thought at all, when they are taught crap like this. I guess this is why, in America, rational thought is not common.

    More oxymorons. Do you guys lie awake nights thinking up this preposterous bullshit?

    Still, it's important to understand the difference between rational and irrational faith. I must have posted this twenty times on SciForums, but it still hasn't sunk in for a lot of people.

    My dog has been unfailingly loyal, kind and affectionate to me for eight years. Therefore it is rational for me to believe that he will continue to be so. Of course I could be wrong, but the probability is at least 99% that I'm right. This is rational faith, based on evidence.

    The faith of the religionists, on the other hand, has absolutely zero evidence to support it. They decide what they wish to be true, and then proclaim that it is true. This is irrational faith, based on nothing except hope, and some legends that have been passed down from the Bronze Age, when nobody knew how the universe worked.

    Religion is an artifact of the Stone Age. It teaches its adherents that they are just a little bit better than everybody else, because they have the truth and the other people don't. This attitude obviously fosters hostility between tribes.

    Of course this was healthy in the Stone Age. With no agriculture and no good way to store food (even ceramics hadn't been invented yet), there was no food surplus. So during a lean year there wasn't enough food to go around, and tribes were forced to regard each other as hated and feared competitors for scarce resources. This was a matter of sheer survival. Being taught to hate the other people made it easier to attack and kill them, so your own tribe would survive.

    Today we have an incredible food surplus. The only reason people are starving in some places is that their leaders are despots who don't care about them, and who steal the shipments of food from the governments, churches and charities in the rich nations, sell it on the black market, and use the money for their own pleasure.

    There is no reason for tribes (which are now nations, and even transnational hegemonies like the EU) to hate each other anymore. There's enough food to make the entire population obese. Yet they still hate each other and fight wars.

    The reason? Religion. We will never know peace until this horrible, Stone Age anachronism dies out.

    The next time some idiot starts proselytizing religion to you, remember that he is the reason so many people are dying. Treat him accordingly. He is the enemy of civilization.
     
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  7. Peregrine Registered Member

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    Beliefs, not religion.

    And peace is impossible.
     
  8. Seattle Valued Senior Member

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    For something that is supposed to make one happy (religion) it certainly seems to do the opposite. The most dissatisfied people seem to be those who are religious.

    What does shopping have to do with religion? I'm sure most of those "Black Friday" shoppers are religious.

    If it was possible to get banned for starting the most totally useless threads there would be a clear winner.
     
  9. kx000 Valued Senior Member

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    Why is peace impossible?
     
  10. (Q) Encephaloid Martini Valued Senior Member

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    Because religions exist.
     
  11. kx000 Valued Senior Member

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    Religion can dedicate itself to anything.
     
  12. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    Faith, not belief or religion. I don't think religion is necessarily primitive, and not everything primitive is unsophisticated.
     
  13. arauca Banned Banned

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    Yes they had faith to to destroy and someone convinced them to do the wrong thing . To my understanding that Islam prohibits suicide but, yet some lieder s twist their scriptures for their convinced. Again the religious lieder s are dangerous for the masses.
     
  14. Peregrine Registered Member

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    Peace is impossible because there is a balance to all things (more or less - im not trying to get all taoist here...)

    There is a spectrum: War ------------- Peace

    There can also not only be war because no one would exist to grow food, etc

    It is precisely the reason that we have a democratically elected representative republic in America WITH term limits. People cannot agree on the most basic of things, analogous to war.

    Duh
     
  15. Peregrine Registered Member

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    Disagree. (I still cannot post links, but...)

    Websters:
    "
    :strong belief or trust in someone or something

    : belief in the existence of God : strong religious feelings or beliefs

    : a system of religious beliefs"

    Typically faith is associated with religion. I submit that IDEAS and BELIEFS will be the future of revolt/wars. That is if fiat debt is considered 'real' or rather that people believe fiat debt is a justification for war. Otherwise, wars of necessity will ALWAYS continue obviously.

    I am not talking about 'systems of belief.' However, I guess one could argue that nationalism and belief in a particular politcal system is a modern analogy for religion

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  16. (Q) Encephaloid Martini Valued Senior Member

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    But, religions only dedicates themselves to dividing people, causing conflict between them and not much else.
     
  17. wellwisher Banned Banned

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    I thought liberalism divided people. It divides into rich and poor, have and have nots, male and female, straight and gay, atheist and religious, the 99% versus the 1%, etc. In my observations, all are welcome in Christianity regardless of these things.
     
  18. (Q) Encephaloid Martini Valued Senior Member

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    Obviously, you have no idea what liberalism is all about. Read up on it first.
     
  19. (Q) Encephaloid Martini Valued Senior Member

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    What does that have to do with anything? Christianity is but one religion amongst many, and if you don't belong to it, you are evil and not worth the garbage coming out of their hypocritical mouths.
     
  20. arauca Banned Banned

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    By faith Isabel of Spain borrowed money to send Columbus on a way to fin India , By faith Columbus have take three boat and sailed into the open sea to future America , We that believe in God by faith there is a life for a soul after death.
    You that are sure because of your knowledge have newer explored the unknown route Had to travel across the cape of good hope to India . Because of your great knowledge the English did not believe there is a land west of them until some Italian Jew Juan Cabotto got some money from other Jews and the blessing of English king landed in Nufenland .

    I can tell you people with faith have discovered and developed thousand of things . Many time hinders to develop and to discover things .
    Therefore Since Atheists know so much they become a tit on a bull for progress. How about if pal.
     
  21. billvon Valued Senior Member

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    And just because you think you have "faith muscles" doesn't mean your faith is any more valid than anyone else's.
     
  22. Username Registered Senior Member

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    Secularism doesn't entail Atheism JSYK. The two are not related in any way shape or form.

    For the most part Americans don't have any problems with atheist or any other religion as long as it doesn't discriminate against others. It is a misnomer to think otherwise. America first, religion or lack thereof second.
     
  23. spidergoat pubic diorama Valued Senior Member

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    Bullshit. Columbus was driven by lust for gold. Explorers of all kinds are drawn to the unknown, they don't have to pretend to know there is something out there until they find it. But it's a sure bet there is likely to be things to find, since acknowledgement that the world is full of unknown things doesn't require faith.
     

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