(August 18, 2015 at 8:35 am)Irrational Wrote:(August 18, 2015 at 5:30 am)robvalue Wrote: To those sort of questions, I would respond that they may have done so simply to give the illusion of truth. People can be sneaky. Analyzing their motivations is a choppy business. (I don't feel the need to identity as anything, I simply have my own conclusions as per my checklist.)
Wow, I thought my checklist was going to cause a shitstorm
Sure, ok. Do you want to come up with a reason for them being unnecessarily sneaky?
This is about plausibility, rob. You want to muse about Jesus' nonexistence, you're free to do so, lol.
Analyzing motivations is part of what scholars do.
As I stated above, people who are convinced of their religious convictions are not always above using deceitful tactics to convince others. The rationale often goes something like, "I know this to be true, and I'm convinced that everyone should believe it's true, so if they don't believe on the same evidence I do, I'm willing to come up with whatever evidence it takes, even if I have to make some of it up. The most important thing is that people believe."
I used the example of faith healers, some of whom truly believe in Jehovah and are willing to "help him along" by fabricating miracles for people to believe in. Not every charlatan is an atheist or even a skeptic.
Verbatim from the mouth of Jesus (retranslated from a retranslation of a copy of a copy):
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you too will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. How can you see your brother's head up his ass when your own vision is darkened by your head being even further up your ass? How can you say to your brother, 'Get your head out of your ass,' when all the time your head is up your own ass? You hypocrite! First take your head out of your own ass, and then you will see clearly who has his head up his ass and who doesn't." Matthew 7:1-5 (also Luke 6: 41-42)
Also, I has a website: www.RedbeardThePink.com
"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you too will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. How can you see your brother's head up his ass when your own vision is darkened by your head being even further up your ass? How can you say to your brother, 'Get your head out of your ass,' when all the time your head is up your own ass? You hypocrite! First take your head out of your own ass, and then you will see clearly who has his head up his ass and who doesn't." Matthew 7:1-5 (also Luke 6: 41-42)
Also, I has a website: www.RedbeardThePink.com