nicanica123 Wrote:To your first point, my reasoning is that even if god did prove his existence it would not make a difference to those that believe he is immoral or sadistic. And so that is another debate as to whether or not he is, but its faulty reasoning against his existence, or non existence.I am not aware of any atheist who uses "I wouldn't serve that god" as a reason for or against the existence of any god. It is simply a reply to the question you posed, which I think that theists often ask in order to show that the atheist is simply a rebellious believer. I don't see what difference it makes how I answer that question, since no one has been able to produce a single god.
nicanica123 Wrote:And as far as your second point, Raymond Franz had all the right in the world to believe in and preach what he wanted. We believe that every human does have that right. But simply, no, you can't be one of Jehovah's Witnesses if you don't believe in what they do.I think you missed the point: Jehovah's Witnesses do not simply stop identifying such a person as a member. They demand that the rest of the membership --including family members and close friends-- cease all communication with the person outside of specific family or business dealings, which they encourage be kept to a minimum. Those who do not follow this command risk being removed as well, and shunned the same way. It is not an attempt to keep the organization free of troublemakers, as much as it is an attempt to intimidate the membership and keep them in line.
nicanica123 Wrote:Raymond Franz preached something that didn't jive with what Jehovah's Witnesses believed.Slight (but important) correction: Franz only differed on a few points of view, and he did not preach these. He discussed them with one or two fellow JWs, and those were also removed from the organization in spite of their protests that they had not agreed with his views. The organization made it clear that even the perception of independent thinking was to be dealt with very severely. Surely you can see how this differs from your Starbucks example?
"Well, evolution is a theory. It is also a fact. And facts and theories are different things, not rungs in a hierarchy of increasing certainty. Facts are the world's data. Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts. Facts don't go away when scientists debate rival theories to explain them. Einstein's theory of gravitation replaced Newton's in this century, but apples didn't suspend themselves in midair, pending the outcome. And humans evolved from ape- like ancestors whether they did so by Darwin's proposed mechanism or by some other yet to be discovered."
-Stephen Jay Gould
-Stephen Jay Gould