*Rubs his temples gently*

(January 27, 2015 at 1:07 pm)Esquilax Wrote: And paying the priests. Don't forget paying the priests, religion is a genius plan to do that too. One might say it's kinda the main thing, is paying the priests, which is much easier to get people to do when you pay lip service to a bunch of things that make them feel good.

Do you really believe that Christianity evolved and continues because of the money? My friends in Africa running a home for disabled children will not be happy you discovered their long game.

---

(January 27, 2015 at 1:56 pm)Xeno Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 1:55 pm)SteveII Wrote: An honest question. Do you think the ancient Egyptians (a random example) were irrational [at the time] to believe in their gods? Generally speaking, do Egyptians today believe in the same gods? Why do you think that Christianity did not follow this common progression?

Yes, no, Roman Empire.

So you are saying that all of humanity believed and behaved irrationally up until when? How does it feel to be one of the relatively few rational humans ever to exist?

(January 27, 2015 at 2:01 pm)SteveII Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 1:07 pm)Esquilax Wrote: And paying the priests. Don't forget paying the priests, religion is a genius plan to do that too. One might say it's kinda the main thing, is paying the priests, which is much easier to get people to do when you pay lip service to a bunch of things that make them feel good.

Do you really believe that Christianity evolved and continues because of the money? My friends in Africa running a home for disabled children will not be happy you discovered their long game.

Money and power, coupled with ignorance. It's a more complex scenario than the simplistic, one note answer you want me to give, but I do find it conspicuous that so much of the christian literature values tithing and confers so much authority to the priesthood and power structure of the religion.

As to your friends in Africa, that's not even a real response: finding isolated examples of the contra-positive, in the modern day, does not prove that the entirety of christianity from the beginning was a charitable enterprise alone. Maybe try toning down the manipulative language and actually think, for a bit? Because if you can really look at the obscene wealth of the Vatican, the huge salaries that successful preachers pull directly out of the pockets of their congregation, and the merchandising spree that is christian apologetics, and say that there isn't a hugely profitable market in your religion, then you're too far gone to talk to.

Oh, and saying those examples aren't true christians is.... another assertion, not an argument.

(January 27, 2015 at 2:01 pm)SteveII Wrote: So you are saying that all of humanity believed and behaved irrationally up until when? How does it feel to be one of the relatively few rational humans ever to exist?

Feels pretty good!

(January 27, 2015 at 2:29 pm)IATIA Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 2:01 pm)SteveII Wrote: So you are saying that all of humanity believed and behaved irrationally up until when? How does it feel to be one of the relatively few rational humans ever to exist?

Feels pretty good!

Yup. All fuzzy inside.

(January 27, 2015 at 12:38 pm)robvalue Wrote: There are even different sizes of infinities. There are countable, such as the integers, and uncountable infinities like the real numbers. Uncountable ones are "bigger".

It's used all the time as a concept in mathematics. And it works. It doesn't mean we have to go count out infinite stones for our abacus.

I seem to remember the terms Aleph-null, Aleph-1, ad nauseum? Think it was in a book called White Light by Rudy Rucker?

(January 27, 2015 at 1:56 pm)Xeno Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 1:55 pm)SteveII Wrote: An honest question. Do you think the ancient Egyptians (a random example) were irrational [at the time] to believe in their gods? Generally speaking, do Egyptians today believe in the same gods? Why do you think that Christianity did not follow this common progression?

Yes, no, Roman Empire.

So you are saying that if it weren't for the Roman Empire, Christianity would have died out? That is an interesting analysis since it persecuted the church for the first 300 years.

(January 27, 2015 at 2:32 pm)SteveII Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 1:56 pm)Xeno Wrote: Yes, no, Roman Empire.

So you are saying that if it weren't for the Roman Empire, Christianity would have died out? That is an interesting analysis since it persecuted the church for the first 300 years.

And then it was made the official religion and spread all over the Empire.

(January 27, 2015 at 2:32 pm)SteveII Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 1:56 pm)Xeno Wrote: Yes, no, Roman Empire.

So you are saying that if it weren't for the Roman Empire, Christianity would have died out? That is an interesting analysis since it persecuted the church for the first 300 years.

Um, no, all that "throwing the christians to the lions" shit was mostly made up, stories of brave christians not breaking their faith under torture that were adopted as part of the religious cultural consciousness of the time, but were fictional no less. You can read all about it here, but something tells me you won't.

(January 27, 2015 at 2:28 pm)Esquilax Wrote:

(January 27, 2015 at 2:01 pm)SteveII Wrote: Do you really believe that Christianity evolved and continues because of the money? My friends in Africa running a home for disabled children will not be happy you discovered their long game.

Money and power, coupled with ignorance. It's a more complex scenario than the simplistic, one note answer you want me to give, but I do find it conspicuous that so much of the christian literature values tithing and confers so much authority to the priesthood and power structure of the religion.

As to your friends in Africa, that's not even a real response: finding isolated examples of the contra-positive, in the modern day, does not prove that the entirety of christianity from the beginning was a charitable enterprise alone. Maybe try toning down the manipulative language and actually think, for a bit? Because if you can really look at the obscene wealth of the Vatican, the huge salaries that successful preachers pull directly out of the pockets of their congregation, and the merchandising spree that is christian apologetics, and say that there isn't a hugely profitable market in your religion, then you're too far gone to talk to.

Oh, and saying those examples aren't true christians is.... another assertion, not an argument.

I am sure you have read the NT. Can you find anything to support your claim that Christianity is about money? I think the teachings on greed and self-sacrifice are pretty clear. Do you think it wrong for me to assess whether someones actions mirror that of the teachings in the NT and then say they were not behaving like a Christian.