Christianity almost impossible without indoctrination

[Esquilax]

Perhaps the belief that you have to be indoctrinated to believe in God is a belief you were indoctrinated into.

And perhaps this is a belief you were indoctrinated into! hock:

How deep does this rabbit hole go???

[Sword of Christ]

And perhaps this is a belief you were indoctrinated into! hock:

How deep does this rabbit hole go???

Everyone has had some influence from someone at some point in their life that was instructive in forming their view on whatever subject. It doesn't mean everything you believe has to be programmed into you like a machine but only atheists believe this if they deny any basis for freewill. You can see the madness involved there if you claim indoctrination for others when that's the only basis for what anyone ever believes including yourself seeing as you're biological programmable machine like everyone else.

[Esquilax]

Everyone has had some influence from someone at some point in their life that was instructive in forming their view on whatever subject. It doesn't mean everything you believe has to be programmed into you like a machine but only atheists believe this if they deny any basis for freewill. You can see the madness involved there if you claim indoctrination for others when that's the only basis for what anyone ever believes including yourself seeing as you're biological programmable machine like everyone else.

So we can add another thing to the list of things you've seen fit to talk about without knowing what they are: indoctrination.

Indoctrination isn't just the act of being taught something during your formative years, Sword. Indoctrination is being taught that thing in such a way that discourages further investigation or contradiction of that concept; like, say, being threatened with burning in hell if you don't believe that thing to be true. Among other things.

[Sword of Christ]

Sword. Indoctrination is being taught that thing in such a way that discourages further investigation or contradiction of that concept; like, say, being threatened with burning in hell if you don't believe that thing to be true. Among other things.

You don't see many atheists investigating religion and God further than just reading a few choice parts of the Bible and atheist polemic books such as the God Delusion, God is not Great, The End of Faith and Breaking the Spell.

[Esquilax]

You don't see many atheists investigating religion and God further than just reading a few choice parts of the Bible and atheist polemic books such as the God Delusion, God is not Great, The End of Faith and Breaking the Spell.

How would you know? How many of the world's population of atheists do you actually personally know, in order to make that sweeping generalization?

I've read the bible cover to cover. My girl Luckie is a former christian who definitely knows hers. In fact, there are numerous former believers just here in our little sample size. So not only do you have no basis for saying that at all, the evidence as it stands proves you demonstrably wrong.

More importantly, this is a transparent dodge, because what you're talking about now isn't indoctrination, seeing as there's no component of not investigating something that discourages investigation in that thing. In order for your point to even be relevant, what you would actually have had to bring to the table is evidence of atheists threatening people with the consequences of not blithely accepting atheism, the same way christians do.

[FreeTony]

You don't see many atheists investigating religion and God further than just reading a few choice parts of the Bible and atheist polemic books such as the God Delusion, God is not Great, The End of Faith and Breaking the Spell.

Atheists tend to know more about the bible than Christians: http://www.pewforum.org/2010/09/28/u-s-r...ge-survey/

[Sword of Christ]

Atheists tend to know more about the bible than Christians: http://www.pewforum.org/2010/09/28/u-s-r...ge-survey/

That may well true as a lot of Christians don't even read it. But atheists don't read books like these in order to appreciate what Christianity is all about.





Or if you want God proved to you rationally there is this kind of thing.




Once you come to know how good the message of Jesus is (supposed to be) and you combine that with pure hard reason and all the evidence that points to God you would no longer be able to maintain this whole atheism thing.

[Mondrian]

Look guys, this is 2014 not 1714.

Religion is just a hang over from the old days when man lived in caves and hadn't yet invented science. Gods were just a means of explaining what Man didn't understand. Gods of all sorts of things were invented eg. War, Thunder, Love, The Sea, The Sky etc. Back in those days man was very superstitious. If there was a storm, for example, Man thought that he had offended the Gods. He wasn't sure how but he knew that he had. He then thought about how. Usually, the thought processes only extended to the last thing that he did before the storm appeared.

Then, some smart cookies became shamen/priests/medicine men and pretended to act as intermediaries between the Gods and Man. They became powerful members of the community - and liars.

Then, some even smarter cookies came along who had the idea that if they invented a super God, a God of all Gods, then they could become rich and powerful. So, being smart and learned (and liars and power-crazed) they invented God. They invented stories about this God and wrote it down on papyrus and added some facts so that they could associate their lies with some truth, thereby converting the lies into truths. They made this God real scary because people would then be afraid not to believe. They wrote tripe such as 'God 'smite' such and such or so and so', though what the hell smiting means, fcuk knows. This piece of turd constituted the old testament. Not many people believed this twaddle and Man stuck to the old Gods, save a few that lived in Middle Earth.

These smarter cookies realised that they screwed up when they invented this malicious and nasty god. He didn't prove at all popular. Then this nut-job jesus guy shows up claiming to be the son of god. He preached love and peace, man. Just what the smarter cookies needed. They invented all sorts of sh1t that the jesus guy did and re-branded this one god fella as a jolly good chap. As a consequence, they wrote all sorts of new sh1t and called it the new testament. This was a lot more popular 'cos he was a good god. He was all forgiving and all.

Something stinks at this point, methinks. This nasty piece of work called god now suddenly becomes this cool dude who is all full of love and all.

This new/old god proves to be a bit more popular and word soon spreads out of middle earth into the suburbs.

These jesus freeks start converting Man into god-fearin' christians and the ball starts a rollin'.

Then the katlicks get to work and come up with this virgin birth nonsense - for pity's sake guys, get a brain.

Then the katlick priesthood decide that if their followers believe in that bloody nonsense, they can use the church to cover up the fact that they are performing their vile sexual acts on young boys. After all, the followers of the katlick faith can't be intelligent and believe the denials of their men of god.

For pity's sake christians, get a grip.

Is it likely that a virgin gave birth?

Is it likely that there is a sky wizard?

[Bad Wolf]

Coating a shit in diamonds still makes it a shit

[Sword of Christ]

Look guys, this is 2014 not 1714.

There isn't really that much of a difference you're only covering the modern era.

Religion is just a hang over from the old days when man lived in caves and hadn't yet invented science.

What does science explain (not speculations but fact) that the God of the Bible explained? Even if you want to say evolution you'll note that God doesn't make any of the plants and animals individually in Genesis he commands the Earth to produce these living forms within itself which is compatible with evolution.

Gods were just a means of explaining what Man didn't understand.

Exactly and the Bible rejected all of those gods.