Society Religious Discussion and Q&A Thread

[Vampire_Fanatic]

then private message me with what you hav to say......i put up with criticizing all of the time, but i know that it is the only true path, well for me anyway

 

[weixiaobao]

if there is God, please bless those that just die during the China earthquake, Myanmar cyclone, and else where in the world... ...

Spoiler

Dang it.. DAng it Dang it .. I feel so frustrated that i cannot do shit

 

[geassman]

Nice thread.
I am a Jehovah's Witness, I searched the thread and nobody asked questions about it, so if you are curious, ask away!

 

[bigtymer32]

i am not religious at all i'm agnostic.i'm open to hear about other peoples faiths.i wish people would exactly be a little open minded most all religion was made as a guide line for people to live.plus most religions are not too different there are just minor differences.it should really come down to what it means to the person and how it impacts your life.state of mind people.

so i want to learn about all religion because i'm super open minded and want to learn as much as i can with my time on the earth

---

Nice thread.
I am a Jehovah's Witness, I searched the thread and nobody asked questions about it, so if you are curious, ask away!

i am curious about the mission trips ,why you became a jehovah's witness and what do you want people to understand about it that you think they dont know?

 

[Lil' Froggy]

i see your point and i can say i am agree with you but i think you can also see the dilemma in that point. if someone believes in something, whether it is religion or not, s/he starts to think that other stuff than his belief is "false"..and as much as he believes in religion, he sees other religions more corrupted...may be not everyone, but i think this is true for most people

well,in my opinion the word ^corrupted^ is true in a way but lets look at another point of view.I think when you believe in something ;you start to question other things more and more and more.believing with your heart can sometimes block your ability to think rationally. than denial comes ,than accusations follow.There are some facts about corruptions in religions or in politics maybe,but people chose to denie because they are actually afraid that if the thing they are believing appears to be a delusion;they'd have nothing to fight for ,nothing to believe and maybe sometimes have no certain path they'd follow and as a result of that they'd be defeated and who wants that to happen anyway~

 

[geassman]

@bigtimer32-The mission trips, we(well, I am too young to go on them but JWs in general) try to spread the beliefs of our religion on those trips.^_^
I became a JW after someone "witnessed" to me-that is, talked about their beliefs to me, showed me why they believe what they do-and I want people to understand our beliefs because we believe that we are at the end of the times in the world, and that many religions the people practice are fake, and we want people to get out of those false religions. Our views on certain things-some are views on afterlife and holidays- also differ from many other Christianity religions, like Catholicism, so we wish to make that widely known.
We also believe that if people had no idea about our ideas, then they will be spared so they can learn the truth as we call it, however we believe that if you live by our religion's morals and standards, you will be able to live the best of life possible and will put you at ease.
I'l fill ya on some things our religion differs from other common Christian beliefs, but later. I have to go now.

 

[Lil' Froggy]

@ geassman
I really am interested in what you are alking about,if you can be more specific about your motives ,I'd be glad to hear your way of thinking about religion because you seem to be believing it very much.

 

[bigtymer32]

@ geassman

nice i look forward to hearing more and learn what your religion is about.glad to see you exactly expressed why you choose that way to life.

 

[weixiaobao]

I became a JW after someone "witnessed" to me-that is, talked about their beliefs to me, showed me why they believe what they do-and I want people to understand our beliefs because we believe that we are at the end of the times in the world, and that many religions the people practice are fake, and we want people to get out of those false religions. Our views on certain things-some are views on afterlife and holidays- also differ from many other Christianity religions, like Catholicism, so we wish to make that widely known.
We also believe that if people had no idea about our ideas, then they will be spared so they can learn the truth as we call it, however we believe that if you live by our religion's morals and standards, you will be able to live the best of life possible and will put you at ease.
I'l fill ya on some things our religion differs from other common Christian beliefs, but later. I have to go now.

okay ... we are at the end of the times in the world???? 5 years? 1000 years? a thousand light years?

as for many religions are fake? why so? why do your God created these people so that they follow the fake teaching? It is almost like your God led these people down the wrong path first and then become a hero to rescue them later.. quite funny i would said...

anyway i do want to hear more about the end of the world..

 

[Alan Smithee]

as for many religions are fake? why so? why do your God created these people so that they follow the fake teaching? It is almost like your God led these people down the wrong path first and then become a hero to rescue them later.. quite funny i would said...

I dont really have much to add to the discussion I just was reading it and felt that this statement made no sense at all. God (if you believe in him) did not create the fake religions (if there are any religions which can be called "fake") nor did he create people to follow fake teaching. As far as I know every religion teaches that person is endowed with free will the ability to make their own choices. People in the past chose to interpret things in a certain way even if they knew it to be false, people choose to follow certain religions and yet more people choose not too.

If there are false religions in the world it is mans doing and not Gods.

 

[Lil' Froggy]

God gave humans free will and also gave two choices,hope&despair.In eveyones heart I think worshiping someone is like an instinct.There are various numbers of people who dont believe in God of course but I think even they believe that they'll be in peace after death,like believing into a gap,a huge black hole which consumes both good and evil is just ,I dont know close to despair itself however it doesnt seem so at the fist sight.So in order to prevent 'despair' ,people created Gods,Immortality etc. these fake beliefs were created just because of the hopelessness of other people.Its not that we can judge the ones who belive in those things,you can denie it as much as you want but I dont think you can make a person listen you who is in despair.

Indeed ,fake religions and beliefs arent God's doing and God lets all those things happen like wars,illnesses,hopelessness.You cant change the rules of the nature you can change the destiny though~

we just believe and try to live our lives,It doesnt matter if the religion or the belife or the path you are following is fake or not,believing itself helps you to keep sane sometimes.Having faith sometimes can make you smile and look forward.Even though I dont support fake religions or mans doings,sometimes it is good for the society to actually believe in something but of course in the other hand as long as you are good person and aware of your circumstances,try to help others and be uselful ,try to be better;I think being an atheist is even better than believing in something else.Religions were sent to give those messages to humans and create humanity inside them ;not to approve wars or I dont know anything which sounds inconvenient.

another reason why people are furious to religions is that they dont want their territory to be changed and not feel uneasy or limited.Its all because of the free-will.Sometimes I really ask myself why we were created?The only answer comes to my mind is we were created because we had be created.It sounds a bit weird I know but there must be another reason,which God keeps for himself,other than just believing God and worshiping him.Maybe even though he knew everything and never been born or given birth but also he wanted a race which actually can make their choices ,can choose what to believe or not ,for people to be aware of God,to find our own path,to be useful ,to find humanity and show how perfect and orginised is the creation of the planets,humans,flowers,sun,moon,mathematics and the facts connected to it.This life and the afterlife is beyond our understanding no matter how hard we think of it in my opinion.We understand loads of facts I know but there are just gaps within our mind to keep us sane I guess :P

Anyway ,I'm too tired to express my feelings about this issue right now
**feeling like drunk**

 

[weixiaobao]

I dont really have much to add to the discussion I just was reading it and felt that this statement made no sense at all. God (if you believe in him) did not create the fake religions (if there are any religions which can be called "fake") nor did he create people to follow fake teaching. As far as I know every religion teaches that person is endowed with free will the ability to make their own choices. People in the past chose to interpret things in a certain way even if they knew it to be false, people choose to follow certain religions and yet more people choose not too.

If there are false religions in the world it is mans doing and not Gods.

hmmm.. this is not my view.. i just want to know Geassman's logic in that ...

that what you said it also bias from religion to religion, since back then long long long long time ago people thought God is someone they must make tribute to so that God will not anger and flood or destroyed their lives..

 

[bigtymer32]

pretty much religion is a persons moral codes to follow.thats why there different ones.people believe in different ways the world works.if you believe in a certain religion then thats the way you see you should live your life.

 

[weixiaobao]

pretty much religion is a persons moral codes to follow.thats why there different ones.people believe in different ways the world works.if you believe in a certain religion then thats the way you see you should live your life.

are you hinting that religion restrict a person's life... and to achieve full freedom one must free themselves from any attachment of any particular religions??

 

[bigtymer32]

are you hinting that religion restrict a person's life... and to achieve full freedom one must free themselves from any attachment of any particular religions??

i personally think to can extent it restrict some peoples life.people that are die hard religious believe things in the world go a certain way and feel that happiness is what there religion speaks of.like there morals and so on.alot of people that are devoted to a certain faith are not very open minded(yes not all of them are closed minded but a pretty good percentage think a certain way).now does this mean people should get rid of religion all together no.for some people if they can live there life to the way there faith says they should then they feel free and fulfilled.in the end its about the person and the reason you choose the faith in the first place.if you feel your faith makes you a better person and happy then thats the faith for you.


now i dont know if your die hard religious or not but you seem like a open minded person since you did ask the question and didnt say your totally wrong in what you say then again you could in your post haha anyways i like to debate things and hear other peoples views on things

 

[weixiaobao]

bigtymer32- me? i grow up in a Buddhism/Confucianism/Taoism society and it also a communist country. Since it was communist, they really didn't like superstition, and goes against local psychics and shamans.

I brought up to find answer to life in more logical way than faith. Especially my mom, who found that religion tend to persecute people in history, therefore she has no religion at the moment. And that influence me alot.

The most spiritual time of my life was the period and the immediate period after I spend living in a Catholic church (about 3 days) when I was really young (perhaps the craziest time of my life). I pray often after that to find my lost pair of shoes or trivia matters. Then I come to the conclusion that I bother God (if there is one) too much for such little things, so i stop praying all together.

so my view on things is that, "we human should just worry about our places in life and that is the priority first. As for God/(or by any other name), he/she is too great and we are completely at their mercy. If he/she is a kind one, then there should be no worry as long as you a good human being (even without religion). And if he/she is a mean one, then no matter what you do you will still being punished. So I do what I want, and if one day I go to heaven or hell, I will not be a hypocrite about it. I would gladly accepted my punishment/reward for an eternity if that is the case"

 

[Lil' Froggy]

bigtymer32- me? i grow up in a Buddhism/Confucianism/Taoism society and it also a communist country. Since it was communist, they really didn't like superstition, and goes against local psychics and shamans.

I brought up to find answer to life in more logical way than faith. Especially my mom, who found that religion tend to persecute people in history, therefore she has no religion at the moment. And that influence me alot.

The most spiritual time of my life was the period and the immediate period after I spend living in a Catholic church (about 3 days) when I was really young (perhaps the craziest time of my life). I pray often after that to find my lost pair of shoes or trivia matters. Then I come to the conclusion that I bother God (if there is one) too much for such little things, so i stop praying all together.

so my view on things is that, "we human should just worry about our places in life and that is the priority first. As for God/(or by any other name), he/she is too great and we are completely at their mercy. If he/she is a kind one, then there should be no worry as long as you a good human being (even without religion). And if he/she is a mean one, then no matter what you do you will still being punished. So I do what I want, and if one day I go to heaven or hell, I will not be a hypocrite about it. I would gladly accepted my punishment/reward for an eternity if that is the case"

well,first of all the things you mentioned in the last paragraph also show my way of thinking. But I dont think that you should give up praying just because you think you bother God.You cant bother him no matter how hard you struggle in my opinion.Its not that he'll be bored.also as I said in my previous post,I also think that being a non-believer isnt the issue,the problem is if you have humanity inside or not.

there is no faith I think.I was born in a society which believes in destiny very much.I think destiny just means the rules of the nature.Now that is something you cant change for sure but you create your own destiny ,God is just a watcher and helper In life.But most of the people in my country believes that God creates our destiny the day we were born.Then,if it is that way;why did God created us at all if he just wanted to give us orders and play games with our minds? I think its nonsense to believe that something is actually planned and you cannot do anything to change it.

Also our society(even though it is the most modern muslim county) is a bit prejudiced
It is not an insult but people dont know how to react towards others beliefs and try judge them.This is an educational gap but it also involves some of the customs which nowadays most of the teenagers find nonsense.This is the reason why destiny is such a major topic in our country.It annoys me actually that the things are this way.Religions has nothing to do with customs but people think that customs are more important than the religion itself.This brings misunderstandings because they dont read or debate about religion .

 

[weixiaobao]

It is not an insult but people dont know how to react towards others beliefs and try judge them.This is an educational gap but it also involves some of the customs which nowadays most of the teenagers find nonsense.This is the reason why destiny is such a major topic in our country.It annoys me actually that the things are this way.Religions has nothing to do with customs but people think that customs are more important than the religion itself.This brings misunderstandings because they dont read or debate about religion .

i am curious.. what's custom? My guess is that there isn't much variety of religion in Turkey?

or and what is your own personal destiny ?

 

[miyi]

I brought up to find answer to life in more logical way than faith. Especially my mom, who found that religion tend to persecute people in history, therefore she has no religion at the moment. And that influence me alot.

we can go back far enough, and make a list of the pros and cons of religion, who persecuted who, etc.

throughout history, it's fair to say, you'll find at least two likely events:

+ religious people "persecuting" non-religious people

+ non-religious people "persecuting" religious people.


True, we can ascribe so many wars, torture, etc., due to religion (ie. the Crusades, the Inquisition, or "Jihad").

But it is equally true that secular societies are equally capable of inflicting wanton destruction to humankind (ie. world wars I and II, etc.)

So this argument cuts both ways.

...

In a nutshell, the way I would describe religion, and how it functions for humans, as most people in this forum have attempted to summarize, is as follows:

it is a way to express, and to validate one's existence....it provides meaning to life. It is a source of authority for which we intend to follow (like someone above suggested, it's sort of like a code, or guide for everyday life).

A lot of religion may be practiced differently, but I bet a lot of it, have these things in common. Even those who don't practice a religion, share these common values.

 

[Lil' Froggy]

i am curious.. what's custom? My guess is that there isn't much variety of religion in Turkey?

or and what is your own personal destiny ?

Its true that there isnt much variety.for example I never saw a buddhist who is a Turkish citizen,of course there may be but I'm not aware of it.I have 4-5 max. jewish friends and 1-2 max. christian friends in Turkey and thats all.(there are some atheists though)
Customs arent about variety ,those are a whole bunch of crap which nearly half of the society follow ^3^ People understand religion in a false way and without reading or discussing ,they say okey to some kinds of rules ...luckily in Istanbul there arent much people following the customs and my family is über-modern

I'm a bit young to actually see how my destiny will be but I wanna be a great business woman wondering around the world one day XD I love success and also seeing different places in the world(luckily I have chance ) so I want a combination but I gotta study a lot to be accepted to a good university well,I started to creat my own destiny an so far it is going okey Destiny is a bit messed up subject in my opinion You may plan your destiny but things may go wrong and than you might consider yourself as a failure but thats not always true.that can for example help you to discover a better way to live or to be more passionate.I dont know ,my own destiny can be to always be more passionate.well,I'm confused[never considered her own destiny even though she knows what she wants,she still is not aware of her real mission in life .... ]

what about yours?