Freeing the mind slaves

[Jacob(smooth)]

Lol. You give good emoticon.

I would merely opine that morality tends to be contextual. 70 years ago it was considered immoral for a woman to have a career instead of raising a family. 150 years ago it was immoral for a woman to show her ankles. Now its fine. It's hard to objectively judge anyone by contemporary standards.

[Faith No More]

I would merely opine that morality tends to be contextual. 70 years ago it was considered immoral for a woman to have a career instead of raising a family. 150 years ago it was immoral for a woman to show her ankles. Now its fine. It's hard to objectively judge anyone by contemporary standards.

Yes, but what does a changing standard of morality have to do with you being a Christian?

[Jacob(smooth)]

I would merely opine that morality tends to be contextual. 70 years ago it was considered immoral for a woman to have a career instead of raising a family. 150 years ago it was immoral for a woman to show her ankles. Now its fine. It's hard to objectively judge anyone by contemporary standards.

Yes, but what does a changing standard of morality have to do with you being a Christian?

Ah sorry. I thought the question related to my stance on what would you say about a man who was aware of slavery and wanted to be a part of it.

What was the question again?!

[Faith No More]

Ah sorry. I thought the question related to my stance on what would you say about a man who was aware of slavery and wanted to be a part of it.

What was the question again?!

Well, the question was about someone who was aware of slavery, mind slavery that is, that wanted to be a part of it.

Your OP was a comparison of religion and being a slave of the Matrix and about how some people understand that they are in the Matrix while others think it is reality. In this sense, you are like a person that is aware of the Matrix but chooses to stay in it.

In other words, if you see religion as mind slavery, why do you label yourself a Christian?

[Esquilax]

Your OP was a comparison of religion and being a slave of the Matrix and about how some people understand that they are in the Matrix while others think it is reality. In this sense, you are like a person that is aware of the Matrix but chooses to stay in it.

It's worse than that: the person who remains in the matrix by choice gains a much nicer- if physically false- reality than the post apocalyptic robot nightmare that is the alternative. The religious person who straps himself to that wheel by choice is only given an unjustified promise of something to come.

[Angrboda]

Cypher: Okay. I get my body back into a power plant, re-insert me into the Matrix, I'll get you what you want.
Agent Smith: Access codes to the Zion mainframe.
Cypher: No, I told you, I don't know them. I can get you the man who does.
Agent Smith: Jesus.
Cypher: You're not even trying, are you?

[Rayaan]

Religion is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy. But when you're inside, you look around, what do you see? Businessmen, teachers, lawyers, carpenters. The very minds of the people we are trying to save. But until we do, these people are still a part of that system and that makes them our enemy. You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inured, so hopelessly dependent on the system, that they will fight to protect it.

Fits disturbingly well doesn't it...

1. So do you think that you are also in this matrix as you described above?

2. If the answer is yes, then do you want to get out of it?

3. If you want to get out of it, then what do you think is preventing you from doing that?

[Jacob(smooth)]

Ah sorry. I thought the question related to my stance on what would you say about a man who was aware of slavery and wanted to be a part of it.

What was the question again?!

Well, the question was about someone who was aware of slavery, mind slavery that is, that wanted to be a part of it.

Your OP was a comparison of religion and being a slave of the Matrix and about how some people understand that they are in the Matrix while others think it is reality. In this sense, you are like a person that is aware of the Matrix but chooses to stay in it.

In other words, if you see religion as mind slavery, why do you label yourself a Christian?

Oh I see! Sorry, makes sense now.

Couple of reasons, again paraphrased

I know religion may not be real. I know that when I make that prayer my subconscious will tell me it's helpful, and uplifting and comforting. And after 13 years you know what I realise? Ignorance is bliss! And anyway, What is real? How do you define 'real'? If you're talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then 'real' is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain. In which case, God is real.

Your OP was a comparison of religion and being a slave of the Matrix and about how some people understand that they are in the Matrix while others think it is reality. In this sense, you are like a person that is aware of the Matrix but chooses to stay in it.

It's worse than that: the person who remains in the matrix by choice gains a much nicer- if physically false- reality than the post apocalyptic robot nightmare that is the alternative. The religious person who straps himself to that wheel by choice is only given an unjustified promise of something to come.

Actually no. At least some pleople gain reprieve from the apocalyptic world as well. Religion, for me, is far more than pie in the sky when we die. It's pie down here as well!

---

Religion is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy. But when you're inside, you look around, what do you see? Businessmen, teachers, lawyers, carpenters. The very minds of the people we are trying to save. But until we do, these people are still a part of that system and that makes them our enemy. You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inured, so hopelessly dependent on the system, that they will fight to protect it.

Fits disturbingly well doesn't it...

1. So do you think that you are also in this matrix as you described above?

2. If the answer is yes, then do you want to get out of it?

3. If you want to get out of it, then what do you think is preventing you from doing that?

1. Yes
2. No.
3. NA

We're all in a fantasy world, that private little space between our ears. To quote Milton, "The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..”. We will never know reality other than what our sensory apparatus and cognitive process can derive. I find life is much easier when you learn the trick of remoulding the matrix as you see fit.

[pineapplebunnybounce]

We're all in a fantasy world, that private little space between our ears. To quote Milton, "The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..”. We will never know reality other than what our sensory apparatus and cognitive process can derive. I find life is much easier when you learn the trick of remoulding the matrix as you see fit.

This is very true. You can change your emotions and mood amazingly by looking at things in a positive way and it leads to a more positive outcome because your productivity and motivations are improved.

But doesn't religion put you in a worse reality to begin with? I mean you were going to put this in the banning burka thread, so I'll use that as example. Religion puts them in the situation where they are in a burka but it allows them to feel ok about it. But if religion wasn't there, they don't have to hide themselves and they'll feel ok with that too. And I mentioned in the burka thread that the niqab is not just about religion it affects how you make friends, get jobs and so on because it hides your face, I have a friend who used to have to wear that and she said it was almost impossible to make friends, people cannot tell who you are. That has to affect people somehow, even if the religion allows them to be at peace with the difficulties they have to face.

[Rayaan]

1. Yes
2. No.
3. NA

So, the "Yes" in number 1 = You do believe that you are in a matrix, and the "No" in number 2 = You don't want to get out the matrix.

But in your OP you wrote: "Religion is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy."

So you wrote that religion is a system and that the system is our "enemy," yet you still want to stay in that kind of system? That doesn't make sense to me.

We're all in a fantasy world, that private little space between our ears. To quote Milton, "The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..”. We will never know reality other than what our sensory apparatus and cognitive process can derive. I find life is much easier when you learn the trick of remoulding the matrix as you see fit.

{Emphasis mine).

Well, in your OP you were talking about those people who are trapped in religion specifically, but now, you say that we are all in a fantasy world; the whole world is a fantasy.

Then that would mean that the whole world is like a matrix, not just religion as you implied in your OP, right?