Other What's your religion?

JayTee said:
What I do take issue with, however, is anti-intellectualism and the notion that science is somehow "wrong." Science isn't a belief or a philosophy, it's a set of tools, methods and processes that we use to test and verify or disprove something. It's more akin to a magnifying glass than a series of edicts that must be adhered to.
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The thing is is that some people want science to be the ultimate answer to everything.

Michael Polanyi, a professor of physical chemistry and social studies, stated in his book, Meaning, that if science ever takes the role of being the ultimate source of meaning to our lives, it will lead to chaos. Religion is the one that gives meaning to our lives. NOT science.

Think about it for a moment... For the greater good of mankind, we have to pass on good genes so our children will be superior. If we follow such a belief, then it makes logical sense to annihilate and castrate inferior men with in-born disabilities so mankind will be better off in the future. Such thinking, however, is terrifying.

But you are very correct by saying that science isn't a belief or a philosophy. And it SHOULDN'T be a belief or a philosophy. Because if it does, humankind will be royally screwed...
 
JayTee said:
While I can certainly agree with, and indeed will often advocate, listening to alternate viewpoints, one needs to consider if it is worth the time to do so when the person in question has been consistently shown to be wrong.

Like, while I might humor someone about it, I"m not about to take someone seriously if they claim to have a powerpoint detailing how salt water is drinkable.

For the record, despite being an atheist leaning agnostic, I honestly have no problem with most religions. What god a person chooses to believe in isn't my business and I'm perfectly happy with letting someone believe in what makes them happy.

What I do take issue with, however, is anti-intellectualism and the notion that science is somehow "wrong." Science isn't a belief or a philosophy, it's a set of tools, methods and processes that we use to test and verify or disprove something. It's more akin to a magnifying glass than a series of edicts that must be adhered to.

I hope I didn't come off as too aggressive in my previous posts, as it wasn't my intent to start a fight. My intention was to try head off the notion that I outlined above. I was probably more aggressive than I could have been, though, and I recognize that.
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Scientists tested it and you can live off saltwater if you're in a survival situation and if you start drinking it early enough. So maybe you should pay attention to their powerpoint. It's because your body can filter out the salt early on, but when you're really dehydrated, it can't dilute enough to make it beneficial, so... yeah. Of course, if all you drank was saltwater, you would eventually die, because it would eventually overcome your body's system.

And I have no problems with your beliefs, either! What I do have a problem with is the fact that I summed up a speaker's points and you decided that everything he said on the subject was incorrect and deceptive without actually reading his argument, or listening to his talk. Now, I'm not saying I have access to the powerpoint or anything, cuz I don't. But at the same time you called him "either a liar or hugely ignorant" without actually looking at what he had to say. That's not only bad science, but bad logic and bad debating.
 
Zombocalypse said:
The thing is is that some people want science to be the ultimate answer to everything.
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I can see why they'd think that, although it's somewhat inaccurate. Science is a tool to help us find the answer, not an answer in and of itself.

Zombocalypse said:
Michael Polanyi, a professor of physical chemistry and social studies, stated in his book, Meaning, that if science ever takes the role of being the ultimate source of meaning to our lives, it will lead to chaos. Religion is the one that gives meaning to our lives. NOT science.
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This sentiment makes little sense to me. I have little to no religion in my life, yet I find meaning in my life constantly. I enjoy meaningful conversations with my friends, produce meaningful results at my work and am fulfilled emotionally when being with my family. I know I am not the only one who feels this way, as millions, if not billions of other atheists find meaning in their lives, so I can't see why a person would claim religion is the only think that gives meaning to a persons' life.

Zombocalypse said:
Think about it for a moment... For the greater good of mankind, we have to pass on good genes so our children will be superior. If we follow such a belief, then it makes logical sense to annihilate and castrate inferior men with in-born disabilities so mankind will be better off in the future. Such thinking, however, is terrifying.

But you are very correct by saying that science isn't a belief or a philosophy. And it SHOULDN'T be a belief or a philosophy. Because if it does, humankind will be royally screwed...
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That's actually a horrific line of thinking and I am actually shocked to be hearing it . As someone who advocates science, killing someone who was simply born disabled is fundamentally wrong to me. We have developed sophisticated medicine, highly technical surgeries, and therapeutic procedures that will allow us to help these people lead better lives. Killing them is wasteful of all the potential good they could do, and serves no purpose. I would even go so far as to say it's morally bankrupt to just give up on someone simply for being born in an unfortunate circumstance.


Sano Sauro said:
Scientists tested it and you can live off saltwater if you're in a survival situation and if you start drinking it early enough. So maybe you should pay attention to their powerpoint. It's because your body can filter out the salt early on, but when you're really dehydrated, it can't dilute enough to make it beneficial, so... yeah. Of course, if all you drank was saltwater, you would eventually die, because it would eventually overcome your body's system.
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I intended to have raw seawater be the source, but I suppose I wasn't clear enough for the intended analogy. A better one would be "eating nuclear waste is healthy for you" or "punching a tiger in the face makes it like you." These are things that are demonstrably wrong, and no powerpoint in the world will make it otherwise. While a person should always be willing to consider alternate viewpoints, sometimes they can be too silly to take seriously.

Sano Sauro said:
And I have no problems with your beliefs, either! What I do have a problem with is the fact that I summed up a speaker's points and you decided that everything he said on the subject was incorrect and deceptive without actually reading his argument, or listening to his talk. Now, I'm not saying I have access to the powerpoint or anything, cuz I don't. But at the same time you called him "either a liar or hugely ignorant" without actually looking at what he had to say. That's not only bad science, but bad logic and bad debating.
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Well, as much as I will continue to advocate listening to alternate viewpoints, again I will stress the point of making sure you aren't listening to nonsense. For better or worse, reproductive evolution has been consistently confirmed and tested. That said, there is a principle that "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence", so if this gentleman (lady?) has some newfound discovery that will radically revolutionize our view on reproductive evolution, then I heavily encourage him to bring it to a scientific panel so it can be tested and verified. At it's core, science is a tool to help us better understand reality, and something that had been proven to further increases our understanding of reality is to be welcomed.

Hopefully this post wasn't too disjoined. I try to avoid breaking up posts where I can, but you guys there a lot of points at me (which isn't a bad thing, mind you) and I wanted to make sure I addressed them with equal respect and clarity.
 
Nah, I was totally joking. I got your analogy. No problem.
But now you know you can drink saltwater! :grinningteeth:

And again I will stress the point that you can't deem something nonsense without listening to it.
Let me give you an example.
"Pssh. That's nonsense. There's not more than four elements! It's been scientifically proven for thousands of years! I don't even need to listen to you to know that you're crazy!"
And actually, if memory serves, he said he hadn't seen any scientific papers on the subject he was covering on the evolutionary side of things (not like he wasn't looking; it's his job.). So he may have been looking at a different angle than what you were referring to. I'll try to find the speaker and get you his e-mail so you can talk to him.
 
Oh, well, now I just feel silly about the whole analogy thing. You jerk. :xFtongue:

As for your four elements thing, the nice thing about since is that it's more or less self-correcting. At the time, the ancient Greeks had no better tools to test and measure the world other than their eyes and hands. Given how everything is either a solid, liquid gas or a form of energy, it's not unreasonable for them to draw the conclusion that everything is made of one of the four "classic" elements. Thankfully we have better tools now, and are able to draw much more accurate answers!

If you find the speaker, you can just send me his name so I can do a google search. It may be possible that there was a breakdown in communication somewhere, but based on what you've said so far, the guy seems to be, well, talking nonsense. If he has facts and evidence to back up his claim, then I'll take it more seriously. I'd hardly be an advocate for science if I ignored the proof.
 
I'm agnostic. I was raised Lutheran when I was younger, but I had too many doubts about religion. I stopped going to church. I'm not ruling out the existence of a higher being that we can consider 'Good', but I'll stick with Science until it proves me wrong.

Also, I don't hate anybody for being a specific religion. Just follow the word of just about every religion: don't be an asshole.
 
To be honest, I've never been one to label myself as anything. I've never even looked into all the possibilities revolving which religion would suit me best.
At the heart of it, I believe that my actions have consequences so I try to be a kind, caring person, but I mean I swear like a trooper and I'm not exactly innocent.
To me, it doesn't really matter in the end - the gods may exist but if theyre not directly affecting the way I live, then I'm gonna live it the way I choose to :3
But I'm always fascinated to hear other people's beliefs, it's always nice to see someone being passionate about it (to an extent of course. I've had death threats for saying less before from radical believers). To each their own I say!
 
PanOtterPus said:
To me, it doesn't really matter in the end - the gods may exist but if theyre not directly affecting the way I live, then I'm gonna live it the way I choose to :3
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In contrast, I believe that God is directly influencing the course of our lives.

I like being a Christian for the fact that I can pray for whatever the hell I want. lol. There's real power in prayer. I urge all non-Christians in here to give it a go. Don't ask for anything silly, like a million dollars or anything like that. Ask for something reasonable...
 
i'm an atheist

atheism isn't a religion in and of itself

but some atheists take it so seriously that they have ironically turned it into a "religion" in some ways, but it's mostly just people who need to feed their massive superiority complexes over religious folk
 
Well, I was born jewish, so no matter what I'll be considered jewish for the rest of my life. But, I like to think I'm an agnostic leaning theist, specifically paganism and pantheism :o
 
Tardy Grade said:
I'm a very realistic Buddhist.
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I've always been interested in Asiatic and Oriental religions, specifically Buddhism and Confucianism. I think if I wasn't a Christian I would be a Confucian, although Confucianism isn't a religion persay.
 
I actually try not to classify any religion to me. I don't really like having people judge me on it.

~ Jayda x
 
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