We all have differences in opinion. It's pretty obvious, especially to those of us who write "progressive" blog entries. The idea is that everyone has their own opinion, and they want to be respected for it. Whether or not you agree with someone, you may find they have intriguing points.
This should also be applied to people's religious beliefs. Once again, we all have our own beliefs. There are many religions to choose from: Buddism, Christianity, Muslim. Clearly there will be many people with many different beliefs. Even atheism is a religion, because it is a belief in reference to what happens after death.
I don't think anyone should think a certain religion, or religions different from their own, should be considered "wrong". After all, how could something be wrong if no one truly knows what happens when we die? Also, no religion should be considered exclusively right, because there may be flaws in it's teachings. (Do you think the Bible remained unchanged for the past two thousand years? Think about it: God did not write the Bible. He was probably bowling that day. Men wrote the Bible, and men are not perfect.)
This is why I hate when religions try to convert people to their beliefs. They seem to accept themselves as right, and everyone else as a sinner. Well, going by those beliefs, everybody's a sinner. Once again, no one is perfect. We've all lied at some point, and probably have done other "no-no's".
Have your own opinion, but respect the opinion of others. This is a lame saying, but it seems to be a good moral guideline: Treat others as you want to be treated. Don't you wan't to be respected for your ideas? Yeah, I thought so.
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We are all sinners. The only difference is that some are forgiven. I find it ironic that people consider Christians to be self-righteous when in order to be a Christian you must admit your sins and that you will always be insufficient.
I agree accept with the fact that atheism is not a religion. THEISM is the belief in some god/gods. ATHEISM, by definition, is the lack of belief in god/gods. Just as dark is not something but is simply the absesence of light.
Have a Nice Day.
T
Thanks for the comments.
T: Actually atheism is considered by many people to be a religion simply because it is a belief: the belief that there is no God. That's what I meant.
KC: And...we should all just ignore those who think they're better than us!
> religion simply because it is a belief: the belief that
> there is no God. That's what I meant.
Many people view things inaccurately and imprecisely. Thus many people may very well consider atheism to be a religion, but that doesn't make their consideration consistent with the definitions of the terms involved. I would suggest that many religious people try to pain atheism as a religion as a form of pejorative designed to confine that philosophy within the errors of logical and reason which by definition plague all theological arguments.
percivale
... not collecting stamps is a hobby.
... health is a disease.
... bald is a hair color.
I wish I could claim credit for those quotes but I can't.
Cheers,
Darwin's Beagle
Okay, atheism is a BELIEF. A belief in no God. Not a religion in the technical sense. You've beated me. Ouch.
Bald being a hair color would be pretty funny though.
By the way, I'm not an overly religious person trying to demean others. I try to respect everyone's opinions. If you're an atheist, that's fine. It's not for me to judge how any one should be, act, or tell them what to believe. That's not me.
Good day all.
Your definition only defines some atheists. Technically speaking, there are two types of atheists. At the risk of oversimplifying...A hard atheist actively believes that there is not "god," but a soft atheists merely believes that there is no reason to believe in "god." A hard atheist has reached a conclusion, but a soft atheist is still open to the idea, should any contradictory evidence appear. Most of the modern atheists that I have known are of the latter category.
percivale
"We shall party like the Greeks of old! [lowers voice] You know the ones I mean." ~ Hedonism Bot
I probably would not have thought of there being two types of atheists...but that is quite true. There are some people who just seem not quite sure what to believe or believe in. There are others who are convinced there is no God. Hard and soft, good definitions, are they made up by you or did you find these someplace else? I would have never thought there would be different distinctions like this.
The different branches of the atheistic mode of thought have been around for ages (at least since the Ancient Greeks, anyway), though the actual terms "hard atheist" and "soft atheist" ("strong atheist" and "weak atheist" are another version) date back to the early eighties, I think.
percivale
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Arthur: Which is the greatest quality of knighthood?
Merlin: Truth. That's it. Yes. It must be truth, above all. When a man lies, he murders some part of the world.
(From John Boorman's Excalibur)
Be better described as an agnostic.
"Let it first of all be emphasized that neither of these writers [Darwin and Marx] were of the first class. They were neither of them illuminating or creative thinkers; they were neither of them original; they were both of them inordinately lengthy, prosy, and dull."-Hilaire Belloc
By definition, and agnostic is someone who believes that it is impossible to know whether or not an ultimate cause, or "god" exists. Most agnostics (though not all), do in fact believe in the basic existence of some sort of deity or universal force that exists ourside of their reckoning. A soft atheists by contrast does believe that evidece is possible but merely absent, and that absense of evidence is what drives their skepticism.
percivale
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Arthur: Which is the greatest quality of knighthood?
Merlin: Truth. That's it. Yes. It must be truth, above all. When a man lies, he murders some part of the world.
(From John Boorman's Excalibur)