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05-08-2011, 09:32 PM
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#1
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 330
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Religion Question
How many of you encounter friends/ relatives who claim that their religion is the only way / road to "heaven" and that the remaining millions upon millions of "non-believers" are going to hell.
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05-08-2011, 09:41 PM
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#2
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Oahu
Posts: 26,860
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Quote:
... offensive comments about race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and national origin, are not acceptable.
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You might as well just delete this thread now and save the moderators the trouble...
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Co-author (with my daughter) of “Raising Your Money-Savvy Family For Next Generation Financial Independence.”
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05-08-2011, 11:25 PM
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#3
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Pasadena CA
Posts: 3,346
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I agree with Nords. While I think there could be an interesting discussion on the topic, I expect it will not happen.
__________________
T.S. Eliot:
Old men ought to be explorers
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05-08-2011, 11:44 PM
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#4
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Houston
Posts: 2,155
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Geez! I have been dying for an opportunity like this to voice my opinion. May be I can still do it:
Since almost everyone thinks their religion is the best, almost everyone would end up in heaven. That makes heaven pretty crowded, then housing cost would go up. And since everyone up there is good, it would be hard to find liquor and wild parties. All things considered, I think I'll take hell.
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05-09-2011, 01:34 AM
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#5
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: North of Montana
Posts: 2,769
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And alternative view that I'm sure most of you have seen.
At any rate, I have NO friends or relatives who hold such views. I know very, very few people who do. Maybe it's because here in the Frozen North, Hell beats winter and might be considered Heaven?
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There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate conclusions from insufficient data and ..
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05-09-2011, 02:03 AM
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#6
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 2,171
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ferco
How many of you encounter friends/ relatives who claim that their religion is the only way / road to "heaven" and that the remaining millions upon millions of "non-believers" are going to hell.
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That is because religions are based on truth-claims. I think just about every religion, and some non-religious philosophies too, say of something, "THIS is an absolute truth". Why would there not, at least potentially, be dire consequences for rejecting that which is true in an ultimate sense? It would be the spiritual equivalent of denying that gravity exists. It doesn't matter how sincerely a person believes in the non-existence of gravity; what happens if that person steps off a cliff will be determined by what is actually true. Likewise, whether you or I end up in heaven or in hell depends on what actually is true about these ultimate questions, not on what either of us think is true. So give serious thought to what you believe. Your decision about what to accept (or reject) as ultimate truth is too important to be ignored or given only a superficial consideration.
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05-09-2011, 05:03 AM
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#7
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Central MS/Orange Beach, AL
Posts: 9,071
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I have zero friends/relatives who believe their religion is the only way.
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Retired 3/31/2007@52
Investing style: Full time wuss.
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05-09-2011, 05:19 AM
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#8
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 14,328
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In-laws.
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05-09-2011, 05:45 AM
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#9
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gone traveling
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Portland
Posts: 133
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I view heaven as being run by Michael Vick (remember the story of Job?), and hell as being run by some warlord, so I am hoping to stay in purgatory for as long as possible.
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05-09-2011, 06:00 AM
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#10
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 11,327
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None. Of course I would not stay friends with someone who was constantly proselytizing me so I suppose I never get to know folks like that. Interestingly, I was only once (that I can remember) proselytized like that at work where I was exposed to lots of diverse people. So, hopefully, they are fewer than I fear.
People who are absolutely certain that their beliefs are the correct ones always brings to mind Pascal's wager (better to believe in God because if you are right you are saved, if you are wrong no harm, no foul). But in response to that, what if you picked the wrong one of the thousands available? Or, put another way, what are the odds that you happened to be born into the correct set of beliefs from among the thousands that various people have held over the course of history?
__________________
Idleness is fatal only to the mediocre -- Albert Camus
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05-09-2011, 06:12 AM
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#11
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 330
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I didn't mean it as an adversarial question, but a question for discussion on a social / conversational level. I'm not exspousing or disavowing any religion or belief, but in conversations I hear this debated quite vigorously and with passion.......I have no skin in the game either way
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05-09-2011, 06:17 AM
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#12
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Texas: No Country for Old Men
Posts: 50,021
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ferco
I didn't mean it as an adversarial question, but a question for discussion on a social / conversational level. I'm not exspousing or disavowing any religion or belief, but in conversations I hear this debated quite vigorously and with passion.......I have no skin in the game either way
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Regardless of your intent, this subject is not one that leads to civil dialog.
This thread needs to go away.
__________________
Numbers is hard
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05-09-2011, 07:06 AM
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#13
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gone traveling
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Eastern PA
Posts: 3,851
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Quote:
Originally Posted by donheff
...what are the odds that you happened to be born into the correct set of beliefs from among the thousands that various people have held over the course of history?
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That's something I've always believed in. For most of us, any religion we may practice is probably due to what our parents believed in, and how we were brought up.
Of course there are "conversions", or even acceptance of an organized religion based upon later lifestyle circumstances (such as marriage), but for most of us, the "parent trap" is the reason we accept any such "teachings" in the first place.
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05-09-2011, 07:14 AM
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#14
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern IL
Posts: 26,888
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Quote:
Originally Posted by REWahoo
Regardless of your intent, this subject is not one that leads to civil dialog.
This thread needs to go away.
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[sarcasm] Right, we are just all children on this forum, incapable of an adult, civil conversation. We should stick to bacon and 3.4678934% vs 3.7845823% SWR discussions.[/sarcasm]
Where did this following thread go bad? I found it interesting and civil.
http://www.early-retirement.org/foru...m-31897-2.html
-ERD50
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05-09-2011, 07:17 AM
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#15
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 330
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So far responses have been VERY civil and informational. Thank you for the responses. I knew we could do it....gotta love it !
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05-09-2011, 07:35 AM
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#16
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Alberta/Ontario/ Arizona
Posts: 3,393
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dawg52
I have zero friends/relatives who believe their religion is the only way.
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Likewise. Otherwise they wouldn't be my friend.
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05-09-2011, 07:37 AM
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#17
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 11,327
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ERD50
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Good thread. I missed it back in the day. I am very interested in matters of religion, faith, etc. I understand that religious discussions can easily go bad - just like politics. But, like politics, it is worthwhile letting them proceed until they do go astray. This is a better group for a civil discussion of religion or politics than any I have encountered.
__________________
Idleness is fatal only to the mediocre -- Albert Camus
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05-09-2011, 07:44 AM
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#18
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 11,327
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Quote:
Originally Posted by donheff
None. Of course I would not stay friends with someone who was constantly proselytizing me so I suppose I never get to know folks like that.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Danmar
Likewise. Otherwise they wouldn't be my friend.
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I initially posted the same thing but, on second thought, I would like to revise that. It isn't that I would feel hostile towards a proselytizer - I would happily engage them in discussion and be interested in why they believe what they do. But I doubt many of the people described by OP would stick with a skeptical enquirer for long. On the other hand, I have had many a brandy fueled late night debate discussion with a family friend who is a Jesuit - a true believer of another sort.
__________________
Idleness is fatal only to the mediocre -- Albert Camus
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05-09-2011, 07:50 AM
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#19
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Waimanalo, HI
Posts: 1,881
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kyounge1956
Likewise, whether you or I end up in heaven or in hell depends on what actually is true about these ultimate questions, not on what either of us think is true.
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Christians believe it's what we think is true.
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Greg (retired in 2010 at age 68, state pension)
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05-09-2011, 07:56 AM
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#20
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Lawn chair in Texas
Posts: 14,183
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I get a fair amount of mostly Christian preachy stuff from relatives. I ignore it to keep peace in the family.
Most of my friends are heathens like me...
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Have Funds, Will Retire
...not doing anything of true substance...
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