(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote:

(September 9, 2026 at 7:17 am)emjay Wrote: Yes, as I've said elsewhere, it angers me very much how parasite-like in nature Christianity is, in that it parasitically redirects praise, both received and given, away from the people involved, and only onto 'God'... eg giving praise only to God for what people do, ie thanking only God for saving someone's life, when it was doctors, science, and medicine that did OR on the flip side of the same coin, never taking praise for their (Christian's) own achievements, in what must be a very self-esteem lowering way, by thanking only God for everything they achieve, in a state of willing or learned helplessness. I know some Christians who regularly do both flip sides of this coin, and I feel very sorry for them, and wish they could free themselves from this parasite-like delusion, that only God is responsible for everything, including everyone else's and their own actions and decisions... which in itself makes no sense in a world where God is supposed/claimed to have given free will to everybody, and therefore cannot be held responsible for their decisions and actions, but that's a separate issue. My main anger is with the first issue.

I'll give you part of your argument: if a Christian thanks only God after doctors have worked to save someone's life, while giving those doctors no recognition for their skill, effort and decisions, I can understand your criticism.
But you've made a much bigger claim than that. You've gone from “I know Christians who behave this way” to claiming Christianity itself takes praise away from humans and redirects it to God.
And your doctor example cuts both ways.
Doctors deserve credit when their skill and decisions contribute to saving someone's life. But doctors also make mistakes. Operations go wrong. Treatments fail. Patients sometimes survive despite medical errors or terrible odds, just as patients sometimes die despite doctors doing everything correctly.
So simply saying, “It was the doctors, science and medicine that saved them” can be just as simplistic as the position you're criticizing.
As a Christian, if someone survives despite an operation going badly, I can thank God for their survival without pretending the doctors did nothing. Likewise, when an operation goes perfectly, I can praise the surgeon's skill while still thanking God.
Your argument therefore depends on something you haven't established: that giving God credit necessarily takes deserved credit away from human beings.
Why must it be one or the other?
Before jumping to “parasites,” damaged self-esteem and learned helplessness, establish the foundation first:
Why can't human effort receive its proper credit while God also receives thanks?

(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote:

(September 9, 2026 at 7:17 am)emjay Wrote: Yes, as I've said elsewhere, it angers me very much how parasite-like in nature Christianity is, in that it parasitically redirects praise, both received and given, away from the people involved, and only onto 'God'... eg giving praise only to God for what people do, ie thanking only God for saving someone's life, when it was doctors, science, and medicine that did OR on the flip side of the same coin, never taking praise for their (Christian's) own achievements, in what must be a very self-esteem lowering way, by thanking only God for everything they achieve, in a state of willing or learned helplessness. I know some Christians who regularly do both flip sides of this coin, and I feel very sorry for them, and wish they could free themselves from this parasite-like delusion, that only God is responsible for everything, including everyone else's and their own actions and decisions... which in itself makes no sense in a world where God is supposed/claimed to have given free will to everybody, and therefore cannot be held responsible for their decisions and actions, but that's a separate issue. My main anger is with the first issue.

I'll give you part of your argument: if a Christian thanks only God after doctors have worked to save someone's life, while giving those doctors no recognition for their skill, effort and decisions, I can understand your criticism.
But you've made a much bigger claim than that. You've gone from “I know Christians who behave this way” to claiming Christianity itself takes praise away from humans and redirects it to God.
And your doctor example cuts both ways.
Doctors deserve credit when their skill and decisions contribute to saving someone's life. But doctors also make mistakes. Operations go wrong. Treatments fail. Patients sometimes survive despite medical errors or terrible odds, just as patients sometimes die despite doctors doing everything correctly.
So simply saying, “It was the doctors, science and medicine that saved them” can be just as simplistic as the position you're criticizing.
As a Christian, if someone survives despite an operation going badly, I can thank God for their survival without pretending the doctors did nothing. Likewise, when an operation goes perfectly, I can praise the surgeon's skill while still thanking God.
Your argument therefore depends on something you haven't established: that giving God credit necessarily takes deserved credit away from human beings.
Why must it be one or the other?
Before jumping to “parasites,” damaged self-esteem and learned helplessness, establish the foundation first:
Why can't human effort receive its proper credit while God also receives thanks?

(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote: Why can't human effort receive its proper credit while God also receives thanks?

(Yesterday at 7:59 am)Silas Vane Wrote:

(September 9, 2026 at 4:27 am)Twiggy Wrote: The toxic negative aspects of Christianity rarely talked about, even by atheists:

1. You cannot do life on your own strength

2. You do not own yourself or your own body, you are property of god

It is beyond me, how a system that teaches this, is seen as "good" by so many people.

You’ve listed two Christian teachings, but you haven’t actually shown why either one is toxic.

Let’s start with #1: why is “you cannot do life entirely on your own strength” inherently harmful?

Make the argument. What exactly makes dependence on God toxic?

(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote: Doctors deserve credit when their skill and decisions contribute to saving someone's life. But doctors also make mistakes. Operations go wrong. Treatments fail. Patients sometimes survive despite medical errors or terrible odds, just as patients sometimes die despite doctors doing everything correctly.
So simply saying, “It was the doctors, science and medicine that saved them” can be just as simplistic as the position you're criticizing.

(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote: As a Christian, if someone survives despite an operation going badly, I can thank God for their survival without pretending the doctors did nothing.

(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote: Likewise, when an operation goes perfectly, I can praise the surgeon's skill while still thanking God.

(Yesterday at 8:39 am)Silas Vane Wrote: Why can't human effort receive its proper credit while God also receives thanks?

(Yesterday at 9:15 am)Ahriman Wrote: I've noticed white Christian families always seem to own a golf cart, for some reason...I was crossing the road the other day and the fucking Golf Cart Mafia almost ran me over.

(Yesterday at 12:13 pm)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote:

(Yesterday at 9:15 am)Ahriman Wrote: I've noticed white Christian families always seem to own a golf cart, for some reason...I was crossing the road the other day and the fucking Golf Cart Mafia almost ran me over.

How do you know they were Christians? Were the golf carts adorned with little crucifixes or something?

Boru