Defining religion

This post is in response to Oli's post 159 in the Swinging: Right or wrong? thread in the Ethics, Morality and Justice forum.

Alright, I had tried to avoid bringing this thread over here as I admit I've been leery of entering in this forum, but I feel that I have to, as the off topicness of the thread where it's in has gone on too long. So here we go...

I contend that they contribute to the development of this individual's inner life. Opinions on the matter may vary

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.

I guess. I also think that influences such as one's parents, friends, lovers and children can certainly shape the path of one's life.

I've heard scientists say that a type of bubble, moving near (or at?) the speed of light, could destroy this part (or any part) of space before we even knew what hit us. I don't know the likelihood of such an event, however. So perhaps the idea that the sun will rise tomorrow is, in a way, a belief after all. There are many things that we believe, or have theories for. This doesn't mean that all beliefs are correct, only that many people believe them.

Whether you believe it or assume it, your belief/assumption may be erroneous.

I don't think it's duplicity. I simply think it's using language that people are comfortable with. You must remember how I define religion when saying that I have one as well. And like I said, I would only claim to have one in the company of people who believe themselves to be religious -and- that I get along with; if I didn't, I think that I would simply say that I'm not religious and be done with it.

You mean most people would call it a fact instead of a belief. In this particular case, I would agree that it is a fact. There are other beliefs that only masquerade as facts, however. What happened on 9/11, for instance.

When it comes to religion and people who claim to be religious, I find that there are times when it's good to define religion in certain ways. I'm sure there are some things you believe in, with varying levels of belief, such as what will happen in the future; a working hypotheses if you will. I like to use the term 'believe' for a range of things, but generally for things I hold to be true to a lesser or greater degree and that may not be believed by all of the audience I'm speaking with.

 

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Hmm, okay what's an "inner life"?

You guess?
It was an either/ or question.
Does your music teacher contribute to your "inner life" or your musical skills?

How does the possibility, or not, of a bubble moving C imply my assumption is a belief?

Hmm, remember a comment I made much earlier about human thinking/ speech.
The unvoiced addendum: subject to change?

Comme ci, comme ca...

11th of the 9th.
So don't believe: investigate.
Or ignore.

You're sure.
I'm not.

If hold something to be true it's because I have overwhelming evidence to support it and little to none to contradict it.
Should my audience "believe" otherwise then that indicates they've either skipped part of their education (in the all-round sense) or are privy to brand massive doses of new information that I haven't accessed yet.

 

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I define it as things that affect my inner workings, such as my behaviour and attitudes. My core, if you will.

I can't answer it that way, because I'm not sure how you're defining 'thespian wise'. If you're saying that I worship certain musicians as Gods, then no, I don't. If you're asking if they have affected my inner workings or core, I would say that yes, they have.

My music teachers weren't so impressive, but I can't say the same for many musicians I have heard.

A belief is something that may be mistaken, right? That's what I meant.

Fine. I would argue that such feelings that are subject to change can be called beliefs. If you don't like the term, I suppose you can go for the longer 'working hypothesis', but surely you realize that not everyone wants to use more syllables when they can use less?

Translated from french, that means 'more or less' (more or less

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). What are you trying to convey here?

Some people blindly believe the official story; they would probably say that the official story is comprised of facts. Others investigate and are still unsure as to what happened and continue to find out more. Still others investigate and have come to have different beliefs as to what happened on that day then the mainstream view but are still investigating to find out more and to perhaps persuade others of their views/beliefs. Others don't care what the truth is (more or less your ignore). I think the movie Zeitgeist was exemplary in its showing how people are prone to believing all sorts of nonsense, concerning religion, 9/11 and their view that banks are benign creatures; although the part about benign creatures is fading in today's climate of bank bailouts at taxpayers' expense.

Fine. Call them 'working hypothesis' if you dislike the term 'belief' so much.

Sounds good. I suppose I could say "I hold the proposition that 9/11 was an inside job to be true", but it's shorter to simply say "I believe 9/11 was an inside job".

 

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In other words: just being you.
Why add another term with a nebulous meaning?

In the sense that an acting teacher teaches you acting skills...

Gods?
No, you brought up music/ acting teachers as examples affecting "inner lives".
I contend that acting/ music teachers affect acting/ musical skills.
As opposed to "inner life".

Nolo contendere, and beside the point.
The bubble (real or not) has no bearing on the sun (or my lack of belief that it will rise tomorrow)

Everything is subject to change, neh?
We cannot state with certainty that things will always remain as they are.
A working hypothesis is not a belief - a belief holds something to be true regardless of evidence.
A working hypothesis says "it worked last time, I'll do X on the assumption that it will still work but if it doesn't I'll alter my approach"

It's a colloquialism: "this way/ that way", maybe. You don't call your practice "duplicity", I see it that way. Tomahto/ tomayto? :shrug:

Alternatively: some people blindly believe it's a conspiracy.
What are the facts?
(That's rhetorical, by the way. I have no interest in "9/11", it was just a larger event than those the UK has been going through for decades and just happened to occur in a country that [apparently] enjoys its hysteria).

No, a working hypothesis is NOT a belief.

 

More 9/11 nonsense disguised as a religion thread. There are plenty 9/11 threads to post in at the Pseudoscience subforum. This one is closed/flushed if anyone has questions/concerns, PM me.