Religulous!

Discussion Topic

Return to Forum List

This thread has been locked

Messages 1 - 20 of total 179 in this topic

<< First | < Previous | Show All | Next > | Last >>

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Original Post - May 25, 2010 - 03:35pm PT

Religulous, the word, describes religious ideas, beliefs, or claims that are patently absurd, comical, or ridiculous.

Believing that the words we use matter...

It is an honor to show my support publicly for this newly coined word. Thanks, Bill Maher. Yes, I believe religulous should have a place, insofar as it doesn't already, in the English lexicon and in every thinking person's vocabulary.

Religious beliefs are ideas, too:

(1) The idea that we humans are fallen and flawed and must suffer (because of what our forefathers did) is religulous.

(2) The idea that we need to believe in God Jesus to be forgiven for our fallen nature and to be empowered to live forever is religulous.

Welcome to the 21st century. It's already a revolution and it's only just begun.

Robb

Social climber

The other "Magic City on the Plains"

May 25, 2010 - 03:53pm PT

What do you hope to acomplish by continuing to post this stuff?

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2010 - 03:55pm PT

Clarity in thought and practice. In the practice of living. Clarity in discourse regarding many subjects that relate to the practice of living. Some evolution of belief would be nice. I'm hopeful about that. In the interest of better living.

Most esp, in this thread, some popularization of the word religulous, however small. (Or knott.)

Jingy

Social climber

Nowhere

May 25, 2010 - 03:56pm PT

here, here!!!

good idea

thanks bill

caughtinside

Social climber

Davis, CA

May 25, 2010 - 03:56pm PT

your little movie poster says 2008. Get with the times, and get a life.

Robb

Social climber

The other "Magic City on the Plains"

May 25, 2010 - 04:00pm PT

"Evolution of belief"
Which leads to what?

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2010 - 04:00pm PT

It has a place.

Traditional fundamentalist Christians who don't like the thread would be right to consider it blowback ...

...for their religulous ideas expressed as antagonistic political pressure.

Example: Against a good man, Dr. Jack Kevorkian. -Who was imprisoned for 8 years for his avant gard views and actions concerning death and dying. Who in good spirits I just watched on Bill Maher. Jack Kevorkian, a personal hero, way to go.

There were religulous ideas concerning (a) death and dying and (b) what "God wants" that played a role in putting him behind bars. Only a fool or liar wouldn't ack this.

At least it offers something in the way of a counterpoint to that crazy Ark thread.

tuolumne_tradster

Trad climber

Leading Edge of North American Plate

May 25, 2010 - 04:05pm PT

I'm a devout agnostic and I watched this film with high hopes of being enlightened & entertained. Very little enlightenment occurred and was only mildly entertained. IMHO, Maher created a schizophrenic film because he couldn't decide whether he was trying to be serious or funny. He ended up creating a mockumentary. That said there were a couple of choice scenes like the gay healer and the biblical natural history park.

The 1st part of the film Zeitgeist provides much better insight into the history of religion, especially christianity.

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2010 - 04:07pm PT

Tradster- I didn't particularly like the film either. Pretty shallow. But I do like the word. Concise. To the point. I'd like to see it gain popularity in the English lexicon.

EDIT 1:11p Tradster- So it doesn't have to devolve into that. It doesn't when we consider the evolution of other things. Sure, religulous is thought provoking but it is not synonymous with religious.

tuolumne_tradster

Trad climber

Leading Edge of North American Plate

May 25, 2010 - 04:10pm PT

I hear ya HFCS...I'm going to run before the fireworks, finger pointing and name calling start

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2010 - 04:20pm PT

Why here? I believe in the Taco campfire. This campfire is as good as any other.

Why now? It makes sense that these issues are coming out now. This being the information age. Everybody waking up to the fact that the long-standing custom of giving religions a free pass on their "ideas" is weak sauce. Civilization progresses through ideomachy (war of ideas). Better ideomachy over the internet than over real trenches in Pakistan.

I'm a believer. I believe in higher achievement in the practice of living through higher education. (Words and idioms, by the way, one doesn't typically hear in the Abrahamic religions, esp Christianity and Islam. How come?)

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2010 - 04:29pm PT

Robb- I thought you valued concise arguments at least once in awhile around the fire. Even OT. (As opposed to all the juvie rants.)

"Evolution of belief"
Which leads to what?

What children don't learn in Sunday School (and most likely medrasahs, too) is that beliefs are "behavioral drivers". Beliefs matter. There is a direct link between belief and behavior (actions and deeds). Evolution of belief leads to evolution of behavior. Which on so many levels is what many if not most of us seek.

Ghandi: Be the change you seek in the world.

By the way, were ETI's watching us right now... I'd rather them reading threads from wherever (e.g., Taco) on our attempts and struggles to work out better practices for ourselves in the practice of living (esp given the challenging times we're living in) than threads modeled after the National Enquirer that get 1000 plus posts worth of attention.

TrundleBum

Trad climber

Las Vegas

May 25, 2010 - 04:41pm PT

My Religulous nature was born of 'Stuperstition' and...

don't tell anyone but I am also 'Telepathetic' !

'n I know......

Im'a gunna die !!!

Lynne Leichtfuss

Sport climber

Will know soon

May 25, 2010 - 04:56pm PT

An interesting post t*r. Recently the loaves and fishes spoke to me of the invisible world that we cannot see but exists. Like the atom, the wind, light traveling from the sun to the earth. Thought about this for several years. Could there be a spiritual mathematics that we have not even explored ? Just asking. Searching beyond the common thought for things that are not seen, but exist. lynne

High Fructose Corn Spirit

Gym climber

Full Silos of Iowa

Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2010 - 05:06pm PT

It's also about connecting the dots.

When the religulous beliefs of supernaturalists through "trickle over" get turned into religulous laws, policies and regulations --that in turn feed back to express those religulous beliefs-- well, that's when naturalists should get involved (and when naturalists like me Caughtinside "get a life," get involved however we can) and take a stand.