Brunei to punish homosexuality by stoning

[Brian37]

Makes me think twice about taking my daughter there in a few years as I had planned.
She's named after the city on the left of Brunei, Miri.

This is the problem with religion. It is not enough to say, "I am religious, but I wouldn't do that."  Not the point. The point is regardless of what you don't do, other people with different interpretations are still drawing their conclusions from the same religion/holy book. Worldwide, most of the world, including Asia and Japan, most of the world still frowns on LGBT. The west certainly doesn't go about murdering LGBT anymore, but even in the west it is still condemned by the religious to greater or lesser extents depending on geography/sect. 

That goes with any religion in the world. I love liberal empathy, and there are liberal theist worldwide in every religion. I love that aspect of my fellow humans. I only dispute where they claim their goodness is coming from. 

Find me a Muslim who defends gays, we can find plenty who don't. Find me a Christian who defends gays, we can find plenty who don't. Even in Japan, there is only one prefecture in a small city in Japan that has just gotten around to making civil unions legal, the rest of the country tolerates gays, but still does not allow them to marry. China doesn't allow it either.

[Megabullshit]

The problem with the Muslims is that they believe in only a single god ,

But they think that god is only a 1400 year old entity .

If they are proper believers they should really give more important to verses like these .

"And God has created every animal from water: of them there are some that creep on their bellies; some that walk on two legs; and some that walk on four. God creates what He wills for verily God has power over all things. (The Noble Quran, 24:45)"

Instead they have too much importance on how deep their prayers should be and how strictly one should follow those 5 times a day .

Why do you think God cares about where and how much times you pray when that God itself talks that life has evolved from the water itself .

Islamic religion is something that you use to judge other people these days and nothing else .

You people have no Interest in science or Interest in the age of the universe Itself .

[Brian37]

The problem with the Muslims is that they believe in only a single god ,

But they think that god is only a 1400 year old entity .

If they are proper believers they should really give more important to verses like these .

"And God has created every animal from water: of them there are some that creep on their bellies; some that walk on two legs; and some that walk on four. God creates what He wills for verily God has power over all things.   (The Noble Quran, 24:45)"

Instead they have too much importance on how deep their prayers should be and how strictly one should follow those 5 times a day .

Why do you think God cares about where and how much times you pray when that God itself talks that life has evolved from the water itself .

Islamic religion is something that you use to judge other people these days and nothing else .

You people have no Interest in science or Interest in the age of the universe Itself .

That is not true. If one wants to say the Koran has been used to justify violence, I can agree to that. Malala whom is not violent, uses that same book to advocate for human rights. But the same can be said for the KKK. They also use the bible to condone bigotry. Martin Luther King Jr used that same book to advocate for empathy and compassion.

Now, you say you are from India. I don't care. Even outside Britain's wrongful colonization of India, a study of India's entire history will also show that even it had it's conflicts with other religions, and even internal battles. 

My point isn't to rid the world of any religion in saying that. My point is to point out nobody invented compassion or violence. Those are not patents held by any one group. There is not one nation in the world that does not have hospitals or prisons. Now please spare me the part where you claim Hindu or Sikh are a race. If you now claim you are an atheist, you are an example of a person born in India that no longer buys in the the polytheism of that geography. Thus Hindu and Sikh are religions, just like all other religions.

And just so you know. People worldwide, of every nation, have tried to paint their location as the seat of modern science. Scientists are people, but the tool itself, scientific method is a process, not a a nation, not a race, not a religion.

Scientific method is why a computer and jet work regardless of where they are being used. Scientific method is why the flu vaccine can be used in India, and China and Brazil and Japan and Iran and Australia and America. No one nation owns a patent on scientific method.

[Megabullshit]

Thanks for the reply ,

Sorry about the lack of clarity in typing , English is not my first language .

I will still try my best to put clarity .

I think the Muslims holy book Quran has many sides to It

Some part talks about the Universe
Some part talks about Older Prophets
Some parts talk about Jesus Christ and Mary
Some parts talk about some rules governing the everyday lives of people .

These are all the main sections of that book .

I am still not following any of these mainstream religions strictly anymore .

That is because i don't really care about religions anymore .

I too have wished that the world had less things to divide people .

It is these mainstream religions itself that divides people .

When some people decide to take points from it , They should at least think a bit wide

My main point is , I do not like this Sultan of Brunei representing this religion like this .

[Brian37]

Thanks for the reply ,

Sorry about the lack of clarity in typing , English is not my first language .

I will still try my best to put clarity .

I think the Muslims holy book Quran has many sides to It

Some part talks about the Universe
Some part talks about Older Prophets
Some parts talk about Jesus Christ and Mary
Some parts talk about some rules governing the everyday lives of people .

These are all the main sections of that book .

I am still not following any of these mainstream religions strictly anymore .

That is because i don't really care about religions anymore .

I too have wished that the world had less things to divide people .

It is these mainstream religions itself that divides people .

When some people decide to take points from it , They should at least think a bit wide

My main point is , I do not like this Sultan of Brunei representing this religion like this .

Your being from India, and being closer to the long going conflict with neighboring Pakistan it is understandable you feel the way you do. But trust me, there are atheists even in Pakistan whom don't like religious conflict anymore than you do.  I have an atheist friend who still lives there who has long since ditched his former religion.

I don't like that Sultan either. Only a prick uses their power to be dicks to their fellow human beings. But I also don't like Myanmar's Buddhists oppressing Muslims. And while I don't want Israel wiped off the map, I am no fan of Bibi. Just like in America where I live, I am not seeking to end Christianity by force, but I am no fan of Trump or the far right base he panders to.

Even if all 7 billion humans suddenly became Hindus, or suddenly became Buddhists, or suddenly became Jews, or suddenly became Christians or suddenly became atheists, the world would still have divisions. I also wish the world were less divided. We will never have a perfect planet where no disagreements occur. But we can as a species spread the fact that we are ultimately still the same species.

[Aoi Magi]

The problem with the Muslims is that they believe in only a single god ,

But they think that god is only a 1400 year old entity .

If they are proper believers they should really give more important to verses like these .

"And God has created every animal from water: of them there are some that creep on their bellies; some that walk on two legs; and some that walk on four. God creates what He wills for verily God has power over all things.   (The Noble Quran, 24:45)"

Instead they have too much importance on how deep their prayers should be and how strictly one should follow those 5 times a day .

Why do you think God cares about where and how much times you pray when that God itself talks that life has evolved from the water itself .

Islamic religion is something that you use to judge other people these days and nothing else .

You people have no Interest in science or Interest in the age of the universe Itself .

Same can be said for hinduism or any religion for that matter. Religion is a tool for manipulation, and any group which has power will use it as such. Hindus till very recently were against gays, and I presume still would be if not for fear of the legal system. Other than that, caste system, child marriage, burning of widows, killing people for eating beef, human sacrifice and more have been justified in the name of the hindu religion by certain groups of people. There are good and bad people in every religion, and refusing to see that is what causes so much bigotry and hate in our society.

[Megabullshit]

The illiterate ones and some political parties are behind most of these crimes .

It is kind of funny that most of them in my place believes that the right to practice their faith is above all the laws set by all the democratic laws in the country .

More educated Hindu people in my place these days are more about Meditation and Yoga .

They think Yoga and Meditation is the solution to all the world problems .

[Brian37]

The illiterate ones and some political parties are behind most of these crimes .

It is kind of funny that most of them in my place believes that the right to practice their faith is above all the laws set by all the democratic laws in the country .

More educated Hindu people in my place these days are more about Meditation and Yoga .

They think Yoga and Meditation is the solution to all the world problems .

I really warn you not to tout your label above all others. AND I also include ATHEISTS. If you take the time to study India's history, you'll find it has had plenty of conflicts with other religions as well as internal conflicts between it's own religious and political rivals. No nation, no religion escapes this reality.

Just like you will not get an Irish Catholic and Irish Protestant to agree on politics. Just like you wont get an Obama voting Baptist to agree with a Trump voting Baptist. Just like you wont get a Tibet Buddhist to agree with a Chinese Buddhist with a Japanese Buddhist.

Just leave it at "more educated". You don't have to bring in the labels even with health suggestions. Even with that every society has those who do better with health and others who do not. 

Christopher Hitchens was a famous atheist author, he smoked like chimney and drank like a fish. Even he admitted when he knew he was dying his habits were not the best idea. But he was also educated, he also advocated for human rights, and was willing to protect the innocent, no matter the label, while at the same time unafraid to challenge social norms.

I am the same way. I have no compunction to tell a conservative or liberal when I think they got it wrong. Dont ask me about my eating or drinking habits, because I already know that will shorten my life. But even with my habits, and my flaws, I have never lost sight that my fellow human beings are just that, my fellow human beings. 

Point being, there have been lots of evil humans, who have never touched tobacco, alcohol or drugs, who did horrible things to their fellow human beings. I am not saying addiction is a good thing. I am saying good and evil is not defined by being a tea totaler either.

If you read the implications in a book like 1984, that is a motif where Big Brother dictates health and exercise on everyone else. Healthy and oppressed does not make one free, it merely makes them healthy and oppressed.

If you want to argue heath, do that, I am fine with that. But don't try to argue that human nature changes because one does push ups and another does Yoga.

[fredd bear]

@Ashwin39

"But they think that god is only a 1400 year old entity ".

Umm, No.

The God of Islam is the same god as that of Jews and Christians, who call him YaHWeH. He is considered to be eternal, having always existed.

All three religions trace their beginnings to the prophet Abraham. For that reason, Judaism, Christianity and Islam are known collectively as "The Abrahamic Religions"

I wrote this in an earlier thread today, but repeat for you: Without exception, every religion reflects the society which invented it. Religions have never created hatred, fear, bigotry or war. Nor compassion, generosity or gentleness. As far as I can tell, all of those things are hard wired in human beings. Believers interpret their own religions in keeping with their own needs and preconceptions. It is common for such people to become teachers and religious leaders--Hindus call them 'gurus', Jews call the Rabbis. Muslims call them Mullas and Ayatollahs , etc etc, so it goes

(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((9))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

"The Abrahamic religions, also referred to collectively as Abrahamism, are a group of Semitic-originated religious communities of faith that claim descent from the Judaism of the ancient Israelites and the worship of the God of Abraham. The Abrahamic religions are monotheistic, with the term deriving from the patriarch Abraham (a major biblical figure from The Old Testament, which is recognized by Jews, Christians, Muslims, and others)."[1]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abrahamic_religions