gowlerk

I accept your faith as genuine. It does not require proof. I accept that you had an experience that changed you. I do not accept your experience as proof of anything beyond that. It was your experience, it was a real experience for you. Spirituality has always been real in humans for as long as we have been human. It can't be defined. It is like psychiatry. It can be studied but not fully understood because it resides within our brains and our brains are not fully understood. More like an art than a science. But I absolutely believe that the feelings of spirituality you describe within yourself are real feelings. This I do not believe. At least not in the sense that you do. What I believe is that what we feel as a soul is really an artifact of how our brains work. In other words, we can feel spirituality as if it is a super natural force, but in reality it is a very physical thing that is part of our body. I do not feel a need to live in eternity. I have no answer at all for this question. I do not believe that you, or anyone else will live on in an afterlife. But I do believe it is possible for you to die securely believing that you will. And if in your time of dying that comforts you and yours I can find no fault in that. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

When will they ever learn? Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Yes, but what are YOU saying by quoting him and his ideas? Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I'm not saying that at all. Morality doesn't flow from religious practice. It flows from God. And I never meant to imply that secular people can't have morality. God's "Common Grace" applies to all. Then why did you post this? It quite clearly claims that secularization will lead to hell on Earth. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Are you getting desperate, or angry, or are you just playing games here. What is this supposed to mean? Now you are going full Godwin. Hitler was probably anti-Christian. But he made a regular practice of denouncing atheism for political reasons. You are now making the common and false case that morality flows from religion. And that without religion men are just animals with no morals. Any sociologist, including Ron, can tell you that this is completely incorrect. Some of the most immoral people the world has ever seen have been religious leaders. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

LSD has the same sort of effect on some people. Just because a person's faith illuminates their path does not prove the things they see in that light are real. Yes, I suppose calling you out directly as a liar is a personal attack and I apologize because it is beyond the rules of engagement here. Let me merely say that your assertion that there is evidence of God in any of the things you have said has no basis in fact. And that if you were honest with yourself and with us you would admit that. Let me be clear that even though there is no evidence of God I in no way disrespect your belief in God. Faith is not something that requires evidence, that's why we call it faith. It is only your assertion that you can provide proof of God that I dispute. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Don't be worried about HRC. She is not going to run again, she is finished. Although she would be a very good president, she has always been a lousy politician. A good pol needs to be someone that people instantly take a liking to for some reason. Like her husband was. Someone people can relate to. Hilary never had that charm, sometimes called charisma. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Joe, No amount of evidence would ever satisfy you. Define "evidence". You do not seem to have a basic understanding of what the word means. Either in a legal or a common language sense. You have told a bald faced lie and you are not man enough to admit it. Not that it matters..... Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

They speak Persian, AKA Farsi. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I would argue that the Democrats nominated the best candidate of either party in decades. Which is why so much effort was expended on making people hate and fear her. She would have been very effective at moving things forward. Against those who want to move backwards. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Yes, the bible is full of justifications for bad behaviors. If that is what you are looking for, that is what you will find. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

You say that like it's a good thing. A boast. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Some people have a need of leaders to follow. Some people just choose to believe. Some need to look for reasons to believe. Personally I choose to accept that the beauty is in the mystery and that no person can ever know. But that does not mean that I have to reject the knowledge that is available. I do not believe that faith is strong in a person who chooses willful blindness over acceptance of what has been shown to us. Closing your eyes to what has been revealed is a sign of fear and weakness of both spirit and faith. But that is to be expected in a conservative. Conservatism is built on fear and distrust. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Is your faith strong enough to allow you to accept that Genesis is not literal truth? Many people can keep their Christian faith without holding on to this like a rock in the sea of disorder. Those are the people I see as having strong faith. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

People who are in the kind of place both Ron and Jay are can never do what you are asking. It is too terrifying for them to even consider. Because they fear that even a tiny chink in their armour could lead to them losing the faith that they hold so dear. They organize their lives around this and they will not risk it crumbling down around them. The foundation of their belief is very shaky, and they know it. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

A murder/suicide committed by a woman on her boyfriend. Striking a blow for gender equality. I am woman, hear me roar? And yes, Trump literally did send the regular "thoughts and prayers" tweet. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Come now. It's a magical place. Whatever you need will be there. Stephen Hawking is either up there and in perfect health or more likely in hell being tortured for not believing. But really, the point of everlasting life is to be with the Creator. Just imagine the best sex you ever had multiplied by infinity for eternity. You won't need a body at all. God will just tickle your soul. And stop questioning things. Just accept the "truth". Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Guilt, shame, and fear are the main recruitment and retention tools of Christian society throughout history. That and just plain bloody force. Christianity has a long history of crushing suppression of dissenters. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

An interesting premise. But like everything else you have posted about in this thread, a complete falsehood. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_frog Although I do think Trump is using a related principle of outrageous behavior to try to create a new normal. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

This whole religion in America thing is really more about culture than it is about theology. It is a shorthand for who is a "real American" (in Canada some people are starting to say "old stock Canadian") and who is an outsider. The real purpose of fundamentalism is to control the membership and to keep the influence of outsiders at bay. It is the same thing as Islamic fundamentalism except that we have social norms that rejected having priests in charge of government centuries ago. But there is no shortage of zealots who would reverse that in a heartbeat if they could. And that is why the rest of us must be ever vigilant. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

You must be in Wonderland....your posts are becoming curiouser and curiouser. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

There is so little reason, given the knowledge we have, to believe in the story of Genesis or Noah, that enumerating the evidence is pointless. It is sufficient to merely say that only faith demonstrated by suspension of disbelief could lead anyone to accept these stories as literal truths. But genetic theory does teach us that any mammal species numbering less than a few dozen is doomed. That has been well known for quite some time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimum_viable_population Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

For the life of me, I can see no difference whatsoever between the evil of theology and the evil of legal statute. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I've never understood why some people have so much difficulty with this simple concept. The air mass is moving, you are in the air mass and are part of it. You and your parachute are one with the air. Period.