2013-01-23, 02:03 | Link #3381 | ||
Obey the Darkly Cute ...
Author
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ...
Age: 66
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A dust devil or tornado is an example of temporary complexity. So is a human being. They are simply different orders of complexity. The science of complexity theory and emergent behavior is fascinating. I'll modify my "don't believe in anything" a bit ... I *believe* in the importance of friends, close ones, treating other people the way I'd like to be treated, stopping others from harming people. But even those are simply variations on the Golden Rule or empathy - a trait shared by most mammalian species (even rats). Quote:
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2013-01-23, 02:17 | Link #3382 |
Romanticist
Join Date: Aug 2009
Age: 33
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I've posted a bit in this thread, but I realized that I never really answered the question:
I'm officially a Roman Catholic, but in practice, I'm probably much closer to atheism than anything else. Aside from that, my philosophy of thought leans toward a cross somewhere between Nihilism and Zen Buddhism. But I disagree with the idea of using labels to refer to religion since I see it as more of a manifestation of individual experience. As such, there will always be subtle differences between the beliefs of each individual person that overgeneralized labels simply cannot capture.
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2013-01-23, 02:32 | Link #3383 | |
Knight Errant
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Age: 35
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Quote:
Personally, I find all the varieties of "Paganism" to be the most fun. I think they most directly relate to the Human experience, though they tend to be a lot lighter on "spiritual enlightenment" as found in Buddhism or Christianity. |
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2013-01-23, 03:15 | Link #3384 |
Obey the Darkly Cute ...
Author
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ...
Age: 66
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Agreed, even the darker elements are "fun" (as long as we're not sacrificing someone so the crops grow better to appease the Jackass Demi-god o.O)
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2013-01-23, 09:49 | Link #3385 | |
廉頗
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Massachusetts
Age: 34
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Speaking of philosophy and Buddhism, from a historical perspective, I find the intersection of Hellenistic cultures and Buddhism on the fringes of Alexander's conquered realm particularly fascinating. I'd have liked to have seen what these early syncretic Mahayana sects with Greek influences were like. Probably quite different from the Mahayana sects of today. Last edited by ChainLegacy; 2013-01-23 at 09:59. |
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2013-01-23, 09:53 | Link #3386 | |
Nyaaan~~
Join Date: Feb 2006
Age: 40
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Quote:
It boggled my mind really how anyone could take it seriously since nearly half my knowledge of it came almost directly from watching "Journey to the West" when I was younger..
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2013-01-23, 10:12 | Link #3387 | |
廉頗
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Massachusetts
Age: 34
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Quote:
I am also a huge fan of European 'pagan' religions like Vexx and Don. I'm particularly fascinated by the druids of Ireland and Britain. The parallels one can find between mainland Celts, Germanic tribes, and Atlantic Celts points to an interesting degree of cultural continuity from groups that seemingly would be isolated if we are to accept the Roman viewpoint of them as primitive savages. Not to leave it out - I'm also quite intrigued by early Judaic religious beliefs. I went to a Catholic high school and actually enjoyed reading the Old Testament quite a bit from a sociocultural/historical perspective despite being an agnostic myself. |
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2013-01-23, 10:31 | Link #3388 |
Knight Errant
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Age: 35
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Chinese and Japanese folk religion is "fun" in a manner similar to "western" paganism (and also Hinduism).
In terms of western paganism, I was raised on Graeco Roman mythology, though I also enjoyed Norse/Germanic mythology (but less of that is written down). There is a certain level of continuity between Mediterranean Paganism, Germanic Paganism and Middle Eastern Paganism. In terms of Irish mythology, I didn't read as much of it, it's not quite as "prestigious" as Classical mythology. To go back to Buddhism, I actually think there's a lot of similarities between Christianity and Buddhism. Both of them put a higher emphasis on Philosophy then myth making, and both "hijacked" indigenous beliefs to an extent. This particularly applies to Catholicism/Orthodoxy, and less to the various Protestant sects. Both also have a messianic twist, and both put an emphasis on form of meditation and spiritual cleansing. Evangelical protestantism is a bit different though. While on paper it's very similar to Catholicism, in practice it's very different. In Evangelical Protestantism it's all about the personal relationship with Jesus, and the emphasis is taken off theology and ethics. It doesn't really matter how you behave, if you believe in Jesus you've got a ticket to heaven. In Catholicism is more... prescriptive, and encourages a kind of self hating attitude (in that you have to restrain your lesser impulses). However Catholicism has also been getting more evangelical of late, though the hierarchy is still pretty orthodox. |
2013-01-23, 10:32 | Link #3389 |
Nyaaan~~
Join Date: Feb 2006
Age: 40
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If you're interested in "origin" religions of the various modern religions as well as cultural roots of concepts now commonplace, might I recommend a nice light read, called:
The History of Hell ~! http://books.google.ca/books/about/T...MC&redir_esc=y I read it years ago and it traces the evolution of thought of how a concept of "Hell" came into existence in modern religion as well as the history of what the "afterlife" was thought of prior to the construction of this concept. It traces the roots from religions prevalent in Babylon and Mesopotamia as well as Christianity's roots in Judaism and Zoroastrianism.
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2013-01-23, 15:16 | Link #3390 | |
Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
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Quote:
The idea here is that, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, salvation cannot be achieved through good works, but only by the grace of God through Jesus Christ. That said, when asked about the greatest commandment, Christ gave two: 1. Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. 2. Love your neighbor as yourself. Thus, I do believe that doing good/behaving well toward others has an important part in one's life as a Christian, only it is not done to achieve salvation, but as part of loving God. As Christ also said: "Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me." and "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." |
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2013-01-23, 16:34 | Link #3391 | ||
廉頗
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Massachusetts
Age: 34
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2013-01-23, 18:01 | Link #3392 | ||
Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
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As an aside, I don't believe in the idea of purgatory. Quote:
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2013-01-23, 22:03 | Link #3393 | |
Nyaaan~~
Join Date: Feb 2006
Age: 40
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Quote:
Our way of life, what we believe, these things are all so transient .. heck, the internet itself hasn't really been around that long! PS: This was random, but there was someone showing a "Million Dollar Home" on the "Lifestyle" or something network. Their house included a functioning academic library with a 1st edition copy of the King James Bible. He said it was worth around $200,000 and is amusing because at printing the letter "v" did not exist.. so "Leviticus" was "Leuiticus" ..
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2013-01-24, 01:42 | Link #3394 |
( ಠ_ಠ)
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Somewhere, between the sacred silence and sleep
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I don't find a godlike monkey being birthed from an egg in a stone any less likely than a burning bush telling you it's the incarnation of the Creator, and he sculpted your ass out of mud.
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not a debate, philosophy, religion |
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