Do you believe all religions are truly one and the same?

Shutting down indeed. :wink:

fresco,

It's wasted in the sense that it's futile. But it's entertainment. Hell, were it not for this conversation I would have never thought it possible for someone to take pride in their "skill" in using Caps Lock.

truth
Zg...teest, besides confessing that you are too dense to float on my "mystic cloud", what the devil did you mean by stretching my metaphor to include the other side of the telescope? Seems like a major non-sequitur to me and a reflection of your failure to get my point.

I will as you say, "not quibble" with who you were obviously addressing.
I was refering to your statement in that address that refered to me. Again, I won't quibble about what you meant or what I thought you meant. All
things considered, in your address, it really doesn't matter to me.

Happy New Year EVERYONE!

2003 has been an especially rewarding one for me -- and I look forward to 2004 with optimism.

I hope 2003 was as rewarding for you all -- and I hope 2004 is even better.

I appreciate your cyber friendships -- even when we are taking shots at each other -- and I thank you for sharing your thoughts with me.

truth
Happy New Year, Frank. Yesl, it has been good. Thanks.

Re: The real actual proof


There is an awful lot around me that was made with intelligent design. But then again there's an awful lot that wasn't.

You focus on that which is for obvious reasons.

truth
Qkid, you are a master of the false analogy and the non-sequitur. Happy New Year anyway.

Re: Back with answers


Not all religions are the same. I consider fundamentalists to be "People of the Lie" because they are so desperate to retain archaic beliefs that they reject all data that conflicts with what they are told and choose to believe pseudoscience and outright fabrications.

There is a huge body of scientific evidence that the earth is over 4.5 billion years old, but arteest ignores all of it in favor of a single long-since-reputed theory based on polonium halos found in a few specimens of granite. (Gentry's theory ignores the possibility that the halos are caused by radon during a natural biotite and fluorite recrystallization process.)

We do not know whether the universe we live in is finite or infinite in extent. It appears to have begun in a big bang about 13.7 billion years ago, but no one knows how or why it began. There is no evidence whatsoever that any creator was needed, and to imagine that a god "just happened" to exist, complete with the requisite knowledge and ability to make a universe magically appear out of nothing, is more incredible to me than a collison of branes or an unstable fluctuation in the quantum foam.

The only thing the same about all religions is that they're all crap.

truth
I must confess that while I agree with Terry's points, I did not understand all of them. But I DO agree with and completely understand Wilso's point.

All religions are not the same. They all believe in a god but there is the question of answering which god do they believe in.
I believe in the God that stood up to the plate and said mankind is mine and I love them all. You have rejected me even though I gave you this wonderful world and universe. I have given you everything you have since the day I created you. But now I want you back under my wings so I can shelter you like I wanted to. Because I love you. I planned on giving you everything to make you completely happy with yourself and happy with the reason I created you. I am God, I will have no other gods before me. I knew you once in Heaven where your spirit was with mine. Some felt they did not need to follow even then. I let you go. Here again is your chance to rule yourself. But do not look to me for the promises I promised the ones who love me. Eternal life is only for those who love and me and want to be with me in Heaven. The mind of a child grasps this fact. I gave you a mind to see me and hear me and feel me, I touch you daily, I roam the earth looking who to help who wants me to intervene because they have no other source that will help them and I will be there because they WANT me.
Fine... make your own future, make your own life, make your own grave, make your own resurrection from that grave, believe another god who tells you he can get you out of that grave, I will be waiting for all eternity to see that. (God laughs)

Amen. (Except, I know God is saddened with those who refuse His love.)

Ruach & Z

All I can say is that I hope I am never so terrified of a god that I would do that kind of sucking up to it in public.

You two remind me of the Iraqis shown demonstrating in the streets of Baghdad prior to our invasion -- holding and kissing pictures of Saddam.

I might call to your attention to the fact that this "loving" god you two "worship" and "love in return" reminds me a lot of Saddam -- except that Saddam was not quite as tyrannical and cruel.

Get a grip on it, both of you.

Have the balls not to be afraid of the dark.

It is embarrassing to watch your grovelling.

Frank, how do you keep reading my mind so well? should I be worried about the amount of time you seem to spend in my head?

Great minds..... :wink: :wink: :wink:




Amazing how easy it is to see the fear in these two, isn't it?

And you have to wonder how they can be blind to it.

But they do "believe" this god of theirs is watching over their shoulder all the time, so I guess they really have got to be on their toes.

Imagine: They even think the god can read their minds -- so they can't even let a bit of doubt linger for a second or two so maybe they can gain a bit of freedom from the monster.

Sad!

Frank- I am not so sure how sad it is. For some people, having to evaluate and think for oneself in making life decisions is far more frightening than following a strict set of rules.

You are right!



(But I still think it's sad! :wink: )

Question to Qkid.

Does the "Q" denote "Qu'ran" ?

truth
Frank, you said on their toes. Did you mean on their knees?