(December 30, 2018 at 5:07 am)vulcanlogician Wrote: And plenty of insulation from the nonsense that Christians enact here in the States.

That's what I said of myself in my intro thread. I'm aware that there's a lot of nonsense I can avoid. I'm lucky that way. 

Look at it this way: 99% of most things are terrible. My real focus is on art and literature, and I am an extreme snob about those things. Since Lucian Freud and Balthus died, I don't think there are any really good painters left alive. And for fiction, no one is really first rate since Proust. 

But that doesn't mean that I want to say "painting is stupid" or "novels are all dumb." There is more than enough for us to work on from past ages. It's the same with Christian thinking. I disagree when people lump it all together and imply that just because the preacher down the street is an idiot that therefore Christianity is idiotic. Much Christian writing is brilliant -- a challenge to anyone who reads it. I am glad that you, at least, recognize that. 

Secondly, I don't think we on this forum have any influence at all on the quality of the world. If we think we're working to protect America from idiots, whether they're Christian or anything else, by posting here, we're flattering ourselves. We affect almost nothing. Ourselves, if we're lucky. So razzing the OP here about his "imaginary friend" is a waste of time. It won't make him a better person, it won't protect any innocent children. Some people actually want to write things just to make other people feel bad. And in my opinion, anyone who writes things just to make someone else feel bad is a bad person. 

As for Buber, I and Thou is where it all starts. Are you into Christian existentialism at all? Kierkegaard, etc.? Buber is Jewish but will be familiar to you if you're into that.

(December 30, 2018 at 1:06 am)ResoluteBaptist Wrote: I find the church in my life indispensable.

I grew up in the same church..around  the same people, the same happy and joyful families.

The same families are there..and the boys and girls I grew up with now have a few little  boys and girls of their own.

Every sunday we congregate for fellowship, and faith. We have an identity. We are Christians.

We'll listen to Pastor Phillip get up on the altar and preach the word of God.

After service we will all go out and socialize. The men (that includes me and the fellas) will go to one corner and talk about sports, guns, whiskey, cigars politics (we all love the Trumpeter!). Obviously none of it fit talk for ladies.

The ladies..are a real show. Dressed in their sunday best, they go to another corner and talk about..oh  I don't know.... fashion, flowers, their children, their men...you know..typical girl talk

Then the boys and girls will be outside..the boys playing tag and touch football, and the girls skip a rope and ( he loves me.. he loves me not). Why just last Sunday I saw little Billy Turner get down one knee to Elizabeth Wilksley. He had a bouquet of dandelions, daffodils and wild honeysuckle as a gift to her. Two little charmers who don't know what trouble can come of love  .

See the thing is..there is a lot of life, love and growth in a faith community. How do you atheists have it?

Now I don't wanna tar all ungodly folk with the same brush but I've done a bit of online research and seen all the manner of trouble non believers can get into.

The male atheists Ive heard tend to drink up a storm and get in fights, acting like drunkards and fools. The young atheist women...well lets just say they aren't the kind of girl any man would want to take home to meet his mother.

I think the reason for atheist sadness/bummy behavior is that they can't cope with life without God. If life is sad..or life gets you down and you don't have God...seems the only solution for folks is to drink, smoke, despair or masturbate to pornography the whole live long day.

Please enlighten me.

Thanks y'all.

M toooo drink rite n tot !type q good respawns
Lso fururuaucioudly mahdturvating sooo i only GoT THE one han.

Buht yer rong.!! Imma fight ya oer that mann!

(December 30, 2018 at 1:06 am)ResoluteBaptist Wrote: I find the church in my life indispensable.

I grew up in the same church..around  the same people, the same happy and joyful families.

The same families are there..and the boys and girls I grew up with now have a few little  boys and girls of their own.

Every sunday we congregate for fellowship, and faith. We have an identity. We are Christians.

We'll listen to Pastor Phillip get up on the altar and preach the word of God.

After service we will all go out and socialize. The men (that includes me and the fellas) will go to one corner and talk about sports, guns, whiskey, cigars politics (we all love the Trumpeter!). Obviously none of it fit talk for ladies.

The ladies..are a real show. Dressed in their sunday best, they go to another corner and talk about..oh  I don't know.... fashion, flowers, their children, their men...you know..typical girl talk

Then the boys and girls will be outside..the boys playing tag and touch football, and the girls skip a rope and ( he loves me.. he loves me not). Why just last Sunday I saw little Billy Turner get down one knee to Elizabeth Wilksley. He had a bouquet of dandelions, daffodils and wild honeysuckle as a gift to her. Two little charmers who don't know what trouble can come of love  .

See the thing is..there is a lot of life, love and growth in a faith community. How do you atheists have it?

Now I don't wanna tar all ungodly folk with the same brush but I've done a bit of online research and seen all the manner of trouble non believers can get into.

The male atheists Ive heard tend to drink up a storm and get in fights, acting like drunkards and fools. The young atheist women...well lets just say they aren't the kind of girl any man would want to take home to meet his mother.

I think the reason for atheist sadness/bummy behavior is that they can't cope with life without God. If life is sad..or life gets you down and you don't have God...seems the only solution for folks is to drink, smoke, despair or masturbate to pornography the whole live long day.

Please enlighten me.

Thanks y'all.

My assumption is that you're just trolling us, since your post is full of lies.  I'm surprised some of my fellow atheists took it seriously enough to give it the benefit of the doubt.

(December 30, 2018 at 6:19 am)Belaqua Wrote: Secondly, I don't think we on this forum have any influence at all on the quality of the world. If we think we're working to protect America from idiots, whether they're Christian or anything else, by posting here, we're flattering ourselves.

From one high-minded idealist to another, I think people on the forum (for the most part) are just here to read other people's posts and respond with posts of there own. They're just hanging out and posting stuff (which is really what a forum is supposed to facilitate). Sure, there are a plethora of other motivations to be found. (Some people are motivated to change the world for the better. Others want to get knee-deep in shit and start slinging.) But for the most part, people come here to hang out and have interesting discussions. It's kinda like bullshitting about guns and whiskey only with different subject matter and without the accompanying claim that it's all in service to the creator of the universe.

Quote:As for Buber, I and Thou is where it all starts. Are you into Christian existentialism at all? Kierkegaard, etc.? Buber is Jewish but will be familiar to you if you're into that.

Put any well-crafted, challenging work of philosophy in front of me and I'll get nourishment from it. I love philosophy. I like the Greeks (especially Plato), and I have an enormous soft spot for 19th Century American philosophy. Other than that, I enjoy the entire buffet. Spinoza and Nietzsche are on my favorites list. What about you? I know you like Plato, but who else do you dig?

I've not completed a work by Kierkegaard but I have absorbed many of his ideas from secondary sources. I find his thinking interesting. I know very little about Buber, which is why I'd like to read one of his works. (He was a critic of Gandhi's passive resistance, I believe, which is more than enough reason for me to explore his thinking--since I'm such a fan of it.)

---

(December 30, 2018 at 7:25 am)Thoreauvian Wrote: My assumption is that you're just trolling us, since your post is full of lies.  I'm surprised some of my fellow atheists took it seriously enough to give it the benefit of the doubt.

Damn. You may be right. Fucking Poe's law! I'm such a sucker for that shit.

Quote:I find the church in my life indispensable.

That's sad 

Quote:I grew up in the same church..around  the same people, the same happy and joyful families.

That's very sad 

Quote:The same families are there..and the boys and girls I grew up with now have a few little  boys and girls of their own.  

See above 

Quote:Every sunday we congregate for fellowship, and faith. We have an identity. We are Christians.

You are tragic 

Quote:We'll listen to Pastor Phillip get up on the altar and preach the word of God.

Very tragic 

Quote:After service we will all go out and socialize. The men (that includes me and the fellas) will go to one corner and talk about sports, guns, whiskey, cigars politics (we all love the Trumpeter!). Obviously none of it fit talk for ladies.

Very tragic 

Quote:The ladies..are a real show. Dressed in their sunday best, they go to another corner and talk about..oh  I don't know.... fashion, flowers, their children, their men...you know..typical girl talk

Few care

Quote:Then the boys and girls will be outside..the boys playing tag and touch football, and the girls skip a rope and ( he loves me.. he loves me not). Why just last Sunday I saw little Billy Turner get down one knee to Elizabeth Wilksley. He had a bouquet of dandelions, daffodils and wild honeysuckle as a gift to her. Two little charmers who don't know what trouble can come of love  .

Does this have a point 

Quote:See the thing is..there is a lot of life, love and growth in a faith community. How do you atheists have it?

I don't even understand the question 

Quote:Now I don't wanna tar all ungodly folk with the same brush but I've done a bit of online research and seen all the manner of trouble non believers can get into.

I could say the same of theists 

Quote:The male atheists Ive heard tend to drink up a storm and get in fights, acting like drunkards and fools.

Are you sure that's research or propaganda you use to reinforce your beliefs 

Quote:The young atheist women...well lets just say they aren't the kind of girl any man would want to take home to meet his mother.

Are you sure that's research or propaganda you use to reinforce your beliefs 

Quote:I think the reason for atheist sadness/bummy behavior is that they can't cope with life without God.

A heap of baseless assertion 

Quote:If life is sad..or life gets you down and you don't have God...seems the only solution for folks is to drink, smoke, despair or masturbate to pornography the whole live long day.

A heap of baseless assertion 

Quote:Please enlighten me.

That would require more time then you have

I spend my time watching court trials, dressing sis up like a ham and trying to make friends with Boo Radley. 



Given the chance I'm gonna kick Dill's ass. He's a pompous little cunt.

(December 30, 2018 at 1:06 am)ResoluteBaptist Wrote: The male atheists Ive heard tend to drink up a storm and get in fights, acting like drunkards and fools. The young atheist women...well lets just say they aren't the kind of girl any man would want to take home to meet his mother.

I think the reason for atheist sadness/bummy behavior is that they can't cope with life without God. If life is sad..or life gets you down and you don't have God...seems the only solution for folks is to drink, smoke, despair or masturbate to pornography the whole live long day.

Please enlighten me.

Thanks y'all.

You obviously live inside of a religious bubble where you and yours paint the outside world as you see fit. So it would take much more than a post or a topic to teach you something.

I mean for starters do you think that a prominent atheists like Richard Dawkins or Rob Reiner fit your description of atheists?

Maybe you could start by reading some autobiographies by people who happen to be atheist like Richard Feynman "Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman" or/and by Isaac Asimov "I Asimov" and/ or by Dawkins and/ or Oliver Sacks...

@ ResoluteBaptist:

You're a rather sad, bigoted and pathetic individual. You don't really know any atheists, do you?

(December 30, 2018 at 1:06 am)ResoluteBaptist Wrote: I find the church in my life indispensable.

I grew up in the same church..around  the same people, the same happy and joyful families.

The same families are there..and the boys and girls I grew up with now have a few little  boys and girls of their own.

Every sunday we congregate for fellowship, and faith. We have an identity. We are Christians.

We'll listen to Pastor Phillip get up on the altar and preach the word of God.

After service we will all go out and socialize. The men (that includes me and the fellas) will go to one corner and talk about sports, guns, whiskey, cigars politics (we all love the Trumpeter!). Obviously none of it fit talk for ladies.

The ladies..are a real show. Dressed in their sunday best, they go to another corner and talk about..oh  I don't know.... fashion, flowers, their children, their men...you know..typical girl talk

Then the boys and girls will be outside..the boys playing tag and touch football, and the girls skip a rope and ( he loves me.. he loves me not). Why just last Sunday I saw little Billy Turner get down one knee to Elizabeth Wilksley. He had a bouquet of dandelions, daffodils and wild honeysuckle as a gift to her. Two little charmers who don't know what trouble can come of love  .

See the thing is..there is a lot of life, love and growth in a faith community. How do you atheists have it?

Now I don't wanna tar all ungodly folk with the same brush but I've done a bit of online research and seen all the manner of trouble non believers can get into.

The male atheists Ive heard tend to drink up a storm and get in fights, acting like drunkards and fools. The young atheist women...well lets just say they aren't the kind of girl any man would want to take home to meet his mother.

I think the reason for atheist sadness/bummy behavior is that they can't cope with life without God. If life is sad..or life gets you down and you don't have God...seems the only solution for folks is to drink, smoke, despair or masturbate to pornography the whole live long day.

Please enlighten me.

Thanks y'all.

How's the traffic in billy goats these days?

Boru