Faith and belief

You obviously do not know who I am, child.Read not to contradict and confute, not to believe and take for granted, not to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider - Francis Bacon

Thankyou for the history lesson. You are a clever cookie aren't you? I am so sorry we seem to have crossed wires, I didn't know I was having an argument and if I were you are way off the mark!Read not to contradict and confute, not to believe and take for granted, not to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider - Francis Bacon

You are doing well, child. You have begun to see that beliefs themselves cause the trouble. Beliefs are indeed a very bad thing to have and must be overcome. I don't believe anything. I have overcome childish reliance on beliefs. As all people must. Or so you believe. hahahahahahaIt is difficult, I know, still to be trapped as you are inside the veneer of your beliefs. But be patient.Eat the Biscuit of Being. Let the Jalapeo of Healing scorch thy soul and purify thy speech. Let the Horseradish of Reality light thine eyes and clear thy head.All will be well._____Edited by Archer Opterix, : ongoing quest for literary perfection.Edited by Archer Opterix, : html.

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ArcherAll species are transitional.

I agree to a point, I do not know who you are beyond what you post, which, as I have pointed out, shows an abysmal lack of knowledge about world history.So, who do you claim to be?Also, calling me or anyone else here a 'child,' 'boy,' or whatever playground moniker you may choose clearly shows that you are unwilling to discuss the issues if it involves your cerebral cortex as opposed to your emotion-laden R-complex.Many full grown adults can admit when they are wrong. How about you?

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Read not to contradict and confute, not to believe and take for granted, not to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider - Francis BaconThe more we understand particular things, the more we understand God - Spinoza

We are getting a bit too snippy with each other. The next person who calls someone a child will find themselves trapped in the principals office for a good 6 hours!This is directed at all of you!

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[So who constitutes "we." Is it the royal "we" in which you are speaking on behalf of your 'subjects'?]I don't think this is discussing the subject and as you acted as a child, I percieved you were. My mistake. I was attempting to meet you on your level but seems went straight over your head.You get personal I take it personal. [I agree to a point, I do not know who you are beyond what you post, which, as I have pointed out, shows an abysmal lack of knowledge about world history.]It shows how bloody clever you are though, doesn't it. ha ha ha ha ha. Why do you feel the need to exhibit your intelligence through inferring lack of mine?Knowledge is not wisdom, anglagard. It is knowledge coupled with experience then applied.

I didn't mean to offend you and I apologise for referring to you as a child. I was really referring to the childish comment and not you personally. I haven't taken offense at anglagard doing the same to me. I expect it was to teach me a lesson, and it did.Yesterday the replies I recieved sent me reeling. I didn't know how to respond. I was totally confused. I felt I couldn't take any more and felt completely defeated and yet in my mind, I wasn't having a fight. What had happened?I re-read the whole thread and I saw myself (which is what a couple of you suggested). It showed me that I am the perception I have of you. That all my life I have been an ankle-biter and that I needle people and I anger people and I patronize people and poke and prod and push, and god knows what else. What a jerk!Also to show me how it bloody well feels when your well intentioned beliefs cause such genuine offense. It is not nice to have one's beliefs threatened, is it? Mine were severly threatened on this forum and it was a horrible feeling.I know I have made others' feel this way and I can promise you I will never do it again. It is not the way to go. I sincerely apologise for any offense and cannot thank you enough for bringing me this gift.I have enjoyed your company but I realize I was in the wrong place at the right time.

It should be. Only when your beliefs are challenged, tested, tempered and questioned regularly can you refine them and strengthen them.Always try to find those who will threaten, question and challenge your beliefs.

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Aslan is not a Tame Lion

I found this an interesting thread and think that to change one's beliefs is quite difficult. I'm getting on in years and really want to know how the younger gernerations percieve life today and what beliefs are held. I realize the beliefs held are either creationism or evolution. I'm a don't know and yet I feel life must have more meaning that of procreation.

Many people think that, however it is not quite accurate.The difference is actually between a belief in some form of "Special Creation" and those of us who support the fact that Evolution happened and that currently, the Theory of Evolution is the best model explaining what is seen.I am a good example of that. As a Christian, I believe that God created all that is, seen and unseen. I also believe that what we learn from science, whether in Biology, genetics, cosmology, geology or any other field, is simple a better understanding of "How God did it." That's fine, but it is also totally unrelated to Evolution. We provide meaning to life, I happen to think that the meaning of life is to try to do what is right, try not to do what is wrong, to honestly evaluate our behavior, acknowledge when we do screw up, try to make amends and also try not to do that in the future.But meaning and purpose are unrelated to how life evolved. Regardless of the mechanism, we create purpose. It may be though religious beliefs, through interaction with family and peers, through education, through experience or any similar combination. I happen to think humans are unique, particularly in our capability to have empathy regarding other humans and even other species that are not part of our immediate communion or geographic area. The idea, for example, of a Veterinarian or an Endangered Species List is uniquely human.

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Aslan is not a Tame Lion

Thanks for your reply. Can I challenge this belief (below) and ask why?

I have no idea what belief you are talking about but certainly you can challenge any belief.

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Aslan is not a Tame Lion

editEdited by pelican, : No reason given.

How is that working for you? I would think it is a constant battle of judging right from wrong, good from bad and then some. Maybe you don't have to 'try' anything and just be who you really are?[That's fine, but it is also totally unrelated to Evolution. We provide meaning to life, I happen to think that the meaning of life is to try to do what is right, try not to do what is wrong, to honestly evaluate our behavior, acknowledge when we do screw up, try to make amends and also try not to do that in the future.]

It works. It's not like you every finish.Of course it is a constant struggle, and you almost always need to work without complete knowledge and information. That's why you also need to look honestly at what you have done, evaluate where you you screwed up, try to make amends if possible and also not to make the same mistakes in the future.

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Aslan is not a Tame Lion