Why are these posts coming out blank?
why are these posts coming out blank? click on Katenjammers blank post
[quote]pittbulll wrote:
why are these posts coming out blank? click on Katenjammers blank post[/quote]
There was one missing close-quote tag.
[quote]pittbulll wrote:
why are these posts coming out blank? click on Katenjammers blank post[/quote]
Katz shootin’ blanks? Nah.
I agree with Paul on so much of what he says. There is definitely something to incorporating the spirit into a healthy lifestyle. However, I believe he is guilty of the projection bias he lectures against when it comes to the way he views Christianity. He is taking a very narrow-minded view of Christianity, perhaps his own experience or limited opinion of it, and projecting it into a broad-brushed definition. His projected view of Christianity is not necessarily inaccurate 100% of the time, but it is not a complete view.
I admit, though, that many Bible thumpers and fundamentalists out there would fit his perception of Christianity pretty well, but that does not mean it is the TRUE definition or ideal in any way.
I got news for Paul. Jesus meditated. Jesus was in touch with the environment around him. Jesus may not have lifted dumbbells, but the guy was a freaking carpenter and he carried his own cross shaped tree up a hill for who knows how many miles. He was not necessarily a couch potato. If he was, he would have died in the desert long before 40 days was up.
Here’s what this thread has been dancing around and what people like Paul simply don’t get: Christianity is the only religion that truly glorifies matter, the senses and the body.
There. I said it.
ahem
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
That’s fine but quite beside the point. Even if you are not a believer, there is nothing comforting (or wishful thinking or whatnot) about Christianity. It’s simply a matter of understanding the faith.
Regarding the “Christianity = santa claus/flying spaghetti monster” red herring thingie that’s always thrown out on these boards - I am always mystified by this bit of bizarreness.
Christianity transformed the entire western world into a magnificent reality - complete with an enduring and nearly eternal art (paintings, the music, the literature et cetera), a massive and revolutionary scientific enterprise, and the most humane, successful and just political and legal systems in the world. Not only did Christianity provide many of the intellectual underpinnings for these and other impossibly beautiful and unprecedented realities, each and all of these things were informed, inspired, and mobilized by a people brimming with a deep and abiding faith.
Now, Orion, please point me to the civilization similarly indebted to Santa claus or the flying spaghetti monster.
Finally, it seems to me that the people I know who are devout Christians are the most realistic, the most grounded, the least self-deceptive, the most caring people I know. Far from being self-involved, they are intensely absorbed in the people and things and events around them. I cannot say the same of so-called “atheists” (who really aren’t atheists at all because such a thing isn’t really possible.) And I sure as hell can’t say that about new agers. [/quote]
[quote]Orion wrote: While I agree that Christianity was influential we do not owe that much to it.
[/quote]
Chek should stick to things he knows such as poo measuring and wrong theories on the TA.
I’ve had men from an abrahamic faith spend a considerable amount of time and resources to try and kill me. I’ve also had a chaplain from another abrahamic faith spend a considerable amount of time and resources explaining why I should kill people.
It seemed to me and my friends, sitting in a foxhole, that the chaplain’s religious justification for my actions and the religious justification the guys who were trying to kill me were all a bunch of bullshit.
I’ve seen people hung because they weren’t of the same abrahamic religion as someone else. I’ve seen people set on fire because they weren’t of the same abrahamic religion as someone else. It seemed to be some pretty evil shit in the name of a god who supposedly doesn’t like that stuff, although in the early chapters of the book written supposedly with his guidance he engaged in all sorts of that type of behavior.
War hasn’t made me bitter about government, or the military, or even given me PTSD. It has created a strong dislike and distrust of anyone who blindly subscribes to a faith, any faith. Once you follow a book, any book, without asking questions and expound publicly on the error of other people’s beliefs, then you are beginning to walk the same path as a guy who blows himself up in order to send some infidels to hell.
PC isn’t right, christians aren’t right, TC isn’t right, jews aren’t right, buddhists aren’t right, muslims aren’t right, native americans aren’t right, scientologists aren’t right. None of them are right. The only good religion is one that you the individual can find that brings you some sort of balance and peace. It is different for every person and as long as you can wade through the bullshit and keep it from warping you into an extremist, then good on you.
[quote]BH6 wrote:
I’ve had men from an abrahamic faith spend a considerable amount of time and resources to try and kill me. I’ve also had a chaplain from another abrahamic faith spend a considerable amount of time and resources explaining why I should kill people.
It seemed to me and my friends, sitting in a foxhole, that the chaplain’s religious justification for my actions and the religious justification the guys who were trying to kill me were all a bunch of bullshit.
I’ve seen people hung because they weren’t of the same abrahamic religion as someone else. I’ve seen people set on fire because they weren’t of the same abrahamic religion as someone else. It seemed to be some pretty evil shit in the name of a god who supposedly doesn’t like that stuff, although in the early chapters of the book written supposedly with his guidance he engaged in all sorts of that type of behavior.
War hasn’t made me bitter about government, or the military, or even given me PTSD. It has created a strong dislike and distrust of anyone who blindly subscribes to a faith, any faith. Once you follow a book, any book, without asking questions and expound publicly on the error of other people’s beliefs, then you are beginning to walk the same path as a guy who blows himself up in order to send some infidels to hell.
PC isn’t right, christians aren’t right, TC isn’t right, jews aren’t right, buddhists aren’t right, muslims aren’t right, native americans aren’t right, scientologists aren’t right. None of them are right. The only good religion is one that you the individual can find that brings you some sort of balance and peace. It is different for every person and as long as you can wade through the bullshit and keep it from warping you into an extremist, then good on you. [/quote]
“Violent extremeism” is a perennial tendency of all humans in all cultures and all religions. No religion has a corner on violence; except perhaps secular “religions,” which seem to spawn far more than their fair share. There are many reasons for this: the number one being, only a proper religion can keep you from becoming warped into an extremist, which is why the secular “religions” around the world outlaw the worship of God.
Faith is NOT about “finding balance and peace.” That is absolute new agey woo-woo hogwash. Faith is about Truth.
Nor is faith “blind” - genuine faith is the exact opposite of blind.
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
Faith is NOT about “finding balance and peace.” That is absolute new agey woo-woo hogwash. Faith is about Truth.
[/quote]
I think that’s a product of living in the age that we do. Everyone wants to feel good NOW. Someone will commit to following a certian religion, or philosophy if it makes them feel good immediately. That is certainly not what Christianity is about and that is why many turn away from it. That’s not to say that you will not have a better life, long term if you follow Christian principals.
Many are looking for a religion that encourages them to do what they like to do. Unfortunately some things that they like to do tend to bring pain to themselves and others over the long-term, while at the same time making them feel good in the short term.
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
Faith is NOT about “finding balance and peace.” That is absolute new agey woo-woo hogwash. Faith is about Truth.
Nor is faith “blind” - genuine faith is the exact opposite of blind.
[/quote]
exactely!
[quote]BH6 wrote:
I’ve had men from an abrahamic faith spend a considerable amount of time and resources to try and kill me. I’ve also had a chaplain from another abrahamic faith spend a considerable amount of time and resources explaining why I should kill people.
It seemed to me and my friends, sitting in a foxhole, that the chaplain’s religious justification for my actions and the religious justification the guys who were trying to kill me were all a bunch of bullshit.
I’ve seen people hung because they weren’t of the same abrahamic religion as someone else. I’ve seen people set on fire because they weren’t of the same abrahamic religion as someone else. It seemed to be some pretty evil shit in the name of a god who supposedly doesn’t like that stuff, although in the early chapters of the book written supposedly with his guidance he engaged in all sorts of that type of behavior.
War hasn’t made me bitter about government, or the military, or even given me PTSD. It has created a strong dislike and distrust of anyone who blindly subscribes to a faith, any faith. Once you follow a book, any book, without asking questions and expound publicly on the error of other people’s beliefs, then you are beginning to walk the same path as a guy who blows himself up in order to send some infidels to hell.
PC isn’t right, christians aren’t right, TC isn’t right, jews aren’t right, buddhists aren’t right, muslims aren’t right, native americans aren’t right, scientologists aren’t right. None of them are right. The only good religion is one that you the individual can find that brings you some sort of balance and peace. It is different for every person and as long as you can wade through the bullshit and keep it from warping you into an extremist, then good on you. [/quote]
Right on man.
Reminds me of an Emerson quote:
"There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion; that thought the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till.
Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles."
R.W. Emerson: Self-Reliance
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]tyciol wrote:
Consider the Flying Spaghetti Monster to be the equivilent of jabs such as “no atheists in fox holes” and the like. [/quote]
There is zero equivalence here. The former is a simply a sophomoric sneer; the latter is a simply an undeniable reality - albeit, one that must be truly experienced. Which few do or ever will.
[/quote]
I always thought that that saying made an excellent point about fox holes but none about the existence of a higher entity.
[quote]orion wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]tyciol wrote:
Consider the Flying Spaghetti Monster to be the equivilent of jabs such as “no atheists in fox holes” and the like. [/quote]
There is zero equivalence here. The former is a simply a sophomoric sneer; the latter is a simply an undeniable reality - albeit, one that must be truly experienced. Which few do or ever will.
[/quote]
I always thought that that saying made an excellent point about fox holes but none about the existence of a higher entity.
[/quote]
There is a bit of wittiness in there somewhere. LOL. Okay, pray tell, what excellent point does the saying makes about fox holes?
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]orion wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]tyciol wrote:
Consider the Flying Spaghetti Monster to be the equivilent of jabs such as “no atheists in fox holes” and the like. [/quote]
There is zero equivalence here. The former is a simply a sophomoric sneer; the latter is a simply an undeniable reality - albeit, one that must be truly experienced. Which few do or ever will.
[/quote]
I always thought that that saying made an excellent point about fox holes but none about the existence of a higher entity.
[/quote]
There is a bit of wittiness in there somewhere. LOL. Okay, pray tell, what excellent point does the saying makes about fox holes?
[/quote]
I think he’s saying that people in desperate situations are willing to grasp at straws.
[quote]JoeGood wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]orion wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]tyciol wrote:
Consider the Flying Spaghetti Monster to be the equivilent of jabs such as “no atheists in fox holes” and the like. [/quote]
There is zero equivalence here. The former is a simply a sophomoric sneer; the latter is a simply an undeniable reality - albeit, one that must be truly experienced. Which few do or ever will.
[/quote]
I always thought that that saying made an excellent point about fox holes but none about the existence of a higher entity.
[/quote]
There is a bit of wittiness in there somewhere. LOL. Okay, pray tell, what excellent point does the saying makes about fox holes?
[/quote]
I think he’s saying that people in desperate situations are willing to grasp at straws.[/quote]
Or finally willing to open their mind to the truth, take your pick.
[quote]ZEB wrote:
[quote]JoeGood wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]orion wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]tyciol wrote:
Consider the Flying Spaghetti Monster to be the equivilent of jabs such as “no atheists in fox holes” and the like. [/quote]
There is zero equivalence here. The former is a simply a sophomoric sneer; the latter is a simply an undeniable reality - albeit, one that must be truly experienced. Which few do or ever will.
[/quote]
I always thought that that saying made an excellent point about fox holes but none about the existence of a higher entity.
[/quote]
There is a bit of wittiness in there somewhere. LOL. Okay, pray tell, what excellent point does the saying makes about fox holes?
[/quote]
I think he’s saying that people in desperate situations are willing to grasp at straws.[/quote]
Or finally willing to open their mind to the truth, take your pick.
[/quote]
Not everyone in a foxhole becomes a born-again wild eyed religious text thumper. Some of us find a different truth. Your “truth” is nothing but a religious point of view. I think your truth is just a silly as you think my truth is. You keep your truth to yourself, I’ll keep mine to myself, and perhaps Chek will keep his to himself.
Or we can wait for the next religious thread to come along. I’m going back to the war room.
To know Paul Chek is to know someone that is all loving and judges no one. Try doing that. Bet you can’t. His life of pain has not only given him the obvious strengths that he exhibits but allows him to empathize with all. That is how he knows me (and you) so well. He does not dwell in the pain of his abusive childhood, instead he sees the beauty and gifts that those journeys have given him and uses them to further his legacy.
Paul sells nothing but the truth and I think those that don’t see this just can’t handle the truth. But that’s ok I’m sure Paul will still love and understand you. I consider myself one of the countless people fortunate enough to have been able to learn from Paul.
[quote]orion wrote:
[quote]katzenjammer wrote:
[quote]tyciol wrote:
Consider the Flying Spaghetti Monster to be the equivilent of jabs such as “no atheists in fox holes” and the like. [/quote]
There is zero equivalence here. The former is a simply a sophomoric sneer; the latter is a simply an undeniable reality - albeit, one that must be truly experienced. Which few do or ever will.
[/quote]
I always thought that that saying made an excellent point about fox holes but none about the existence of a higher entity.
[/quote]
Atheists always refer to this “Flying Spaghetti Monster” like they all read the same book, Atheist Bible?.