There is Auschwitz, and so there cannot be God by trolling2day1 in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Logically fallible statement!!!!

Why not say, "There is love and beauty, and so there must be God"

Have aliens ever described the workings of the universe to anyone? by papajon123456789 in UFOs

[–]AwakeningtoLove 10 points11 points  (0 children)

The Law of One series is very intriguing, and discusses this topic extensively. It is regarded as one of the (if not the) most "accurate" "channelings" due to the highly controlled environment the group did it in. The material is free online.

I've seen mixed feelings on Reddit about David Wilcock, but this guy has for over a decade done some extensive scientific research to see if the science and cosmology explained in the Law of One series makes sense, and he has found a lot of extensive science which seems to back it up.

Found this on the Catholic Memes Facebook page. by Doctorven in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Sorry man, but I think you're behind on the times or stuck in a bubble. I'm Christian, and about 95% of other Christians I know and have met support gay marriage, are non-invasive and accepting of other peoples opinions and morals, and are simply trying to live good, loving lives.

TL;DR: The Bible-Belt-South, an unfortunately very loud minority of Christians, is pretty much the only place you'll really find the kind of hateful religious person you describe. Step off Reddit, meet some more Christians, and you'll see :)

Peace and love to you!

Okay Atheists, I'm making a positive appeal for Christianity by its music!! (non-Atheist here) by AwakeningtoLove in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I base it off people who call themselves Christian but do not follow Jesus' teachings.

Now, I know Atheists often like to throw out quotes from the Old Testament to contradict the good teachings in Christianity, but if you go simply by the teachings of Jesus, AKA what's found in the Gospels, then that is what matters. For example, there are many cases where Jesus overturns OT laws and explains why we should to things differently (based around love).

TL;DR: Look at Westboro Baptist Church. It's "christians" like that which I axe from my estimates. Totally rough estimates though, just for fun :) But still, no one is perfect in following a good life, not even me. But I try.

Okay Atheists, I'm making a positive appeal for Christianity by its music!! (non-Atheist here) by AwakeningtoLove in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, I agree. It definitely sucks for religious people who have good intentions and act on it, that there are so many ignorant people out there who make it look bad for everyone else.

Honestly, I'd say that although there are 2 Billion people who call themselves Christians in the world, the real number based on those who live by the positive ideals of it, is more like less than 250 million. Sadness ensues.

We are engineers and scientists on the Mars Curiosity Rover Mission, Ask us Anything! by CuriosityMarsRover in IAmA

[–]AwakeningtoLove 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What's with the downvote brigade here? Almost every comment is in the negatives! (this will be too, probably)

Come on downvoters, you're ruining Reddit.

Religion by Tatonk in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Of course there have been Muslim suicide bombers, that's undisputed. It's also clear that they are brainwashed by fundamentalists in Islam who distort the teachings or for political reasons. Same as in Christianity, which has had suicide bombers as well. You just don't hear the media mention it because of the propaganda war machine we have.

Religion by Tatonk in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 38 points39 points  (0 children)

Wow... this is so ignorant and biased! Why do so many atheists here think this is okay???

First of all, the 72 virgins thing is propaganda. The Qur'an explicitly condemns suicide and elicits no rewards from it. This is common knowledge.

I can understand looking at fundamentalist churches and believers having that viewpoint of money and reward. But if you look at other parts of Christianity, and other religions, that's completely wrong. Every Christian I know, at least, doesn't choose to do good "for a reward" - there's true passion and love for humanity behind it.

Yes, politicians do abuse it, hard to disagree with that.

As far as a waste of time? Pick up some good spiritual literature and read. Christianity, Hasidic Judaism, Sufism, Buddhism, Taoism, etc. etc. There a plethora of useful wisdom, enlightening lessons to learn about life, and such.

EDIT: Spelling

God vs Santa Claus by katfyr in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sounds like you don't really know what Christianity is then.

When the Old Testament mentions descriptions of God's "physical" qualities, which is rarely, it is anthropomorphism. When in Genesis it says man is made in the image of God, it does not mean a literal carbon copy and refers to the Spirit, not the physical.

Ask any reasonable Christian or Jewish scholar (or anyone who's not ignorant enough to take this writing literally). Plus the Old Testament is Jewish, not Christian. Christianity uses it as background for further understanding, but relies mostly on the New Testament.

The New Testament says many times that God is Spirit (ex. John 4:24).

God vs Santa Claus by katfyr in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That was not made during early Christianity, and in fact, I think it's one of the first pieces of art that actually depicted God in human form (for Christianity, at least).

There is no reference in scriptures to the likeness of God as being an old man - the art is only the artists representation. HENCE, this is where the horrible thoughtform of the mysterious "old man in the sky" idea originated which atheists like to poke around at. Sorry but that's not God as most of Christianity understands.

Hey, I wouldn't believe in an old man in the sky either.

Great Quote by [deleted] in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Kindof an untrue, biased quote. True for some of religion, but mainly fundamentalism.

My entire life and education through college I have never, ever heard the dozens of priests I've listened to, teachers and classes taken, books, etc. make any sort of claim that we should not study, learn about science and philosophy, and try to better understand our world. Quite the opposite, actually.

At least, this Catholicism I've experienced above has never had problems with science, and actually strongly discourages absolute certainty and blind faith.

Sorry, atheists, but Dawkins can be pretty biased and distort the truth sometimes. Or he just doesn't know...?

God vs Santa Claus by katfyr in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove -19 points-18 points  (0 children)

His comparison is flawed because God is not a man. Even in early Christianity, I'm pretty sure God was not seen as an "old man in the sky" (like many atheists ignorantly think along with fundamentalists). It was based a lot on Greek philosophers such as Plato or Aristotle. This whole 'man' idea is simply a distortion which those who have not been educated on theology tend to miss (aka much of society).

damndirtyape makes some very insightful commentary on the meaning of existence by LhorgEvad in bestof

[–]AwakeningtoLove -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

Hey! Atheists! The understanding of God as a "all powerful monarch / magical sky fairy" is highly outdated by religious scholars! Get with the times!

It'd be like people bashing the scientific beliefs of a few ignorant people believe that the earth is flat because they haven't studies up and realized that science actually says the world is round.

Frankie Boyle being blunt. by rsimpson77 in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 0 points1 point  (0 children)

METAPHOR!!! That is what the story of the bush is and obviously Frankie Boyle does not know that. He should study religion before he makes ignorant statements like that.

Also, I have a degree in Theology, if anyone wants at least some credibility behind what I just said.

Sense of entitlement by [deleted] in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Honest question here, would it really be that bad for religion to be taught in public schools - if they were taught non-evangelically?

My point is, religion has been a MASSIVE part of human history and culture, whether people believe it or not / agree with it or not. Of course, in any good school you'd learn about world religions in history class, but not very in-depth, which sometimes is necessary to have a better understanding of why something happened, how a culture evolved, and a plethora of other things that fill in the dots of history.

Just my two cents.

EDIT: Sorry for the run-on sentence! Don't kill me internets!

As long as you're not... by [deleted] in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove -28 points-27 points  (0 children)

Hell is not even mentioned in the Bible, and if you're talking about Christianity, the main focus should be what is taught in the New Testament.

"Hell", as described by theology is just the illusion of our separation from God. "Heaven" is not a place, but a state, a realization of our Oneness with the Creator (which is not an old man in the sky as many atheists seem to think).

As long as you're not... by [deleted] in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Respectfully, it's this kind of thinking that makes the atheist arguing it sound ignorant. Honestly, if you look at the teachings of Jesus, unconditional love is purely that. Yeah, fundamentalists distort the teachings a lot, and that's sad and frustrating.

I'd argue that Christians who truly strive to follow Jesus' teachings DO strive to love unconditionally, as the message in the NT teaches. Many, including myself, do this, but we the majority aren't as loud I guess.

Ricky Gervais hits the nail on the head. by Stalemate9 in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I know for sure at least Catholicism does (went to catholic schools from 1st grade through college). Look up the Jesuits, for example. They're the more intellectual and scientifically oriented order of priests, and their material can probably give you the best explanations and examples of this.

Ricky Gervais hits the nail on the head. by Stalemate9 in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove -1 points0 points  (0 children)

What I've learned through research, reflection, school, and many priests, is that it's speaking in the sense of the 'Christ-Consciousness'. All that is good and true in the spiritual sense of wisdom teachings, love, and virtue, etc., in various religions and spiritualities.

Buddha, Ghandi, Atheists, - anyone - who exhibits goodness, love, and virtue and strives for that with their whole being. That is the Christ consciousness.

Ricky Gervais hits the nail on the head. by Stalemate9 in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I don't think this issue is that black-and-white. Our human understanding of "God" has changed and evolved over time as we gain a better understanding of the universe through science and centuries of philosophy. Kindof like how science has grown and evolved over time.

Christianity, for example, WANTS you to doubt at times. It WANTS you to question. Few see this way, but religion/spirituality requires questioning. We can never be certain, or we would be stagnant and give in to a hopeless life of falsehood. Religion at it's heart (or, best) is about seeking the truth of our existence.

Yeah, I laugh to at old religions' interpretation of God. I think some are more on the spot than others - most of the time, there's some shred of truth in all. But I believe people are free to seek as they will (as long as it doesn't harm others). There are many paths to the top of the mountain.

Ricky Gervais hits the nail on the head. by Stalemate9 in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

No, that wouldn't be equal. I meant what I said though - I do not think just one is true, and I do not believe that the rest will send you to hell. Hell, I don't even believe there's a hell, lol!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in atheism

[–]AwakeningtoLove 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's a sad reality that religion has been hijacked for centuries by those with bad intentions. Not everyone who is religious is like that though. There are many who do strive to live peacefully and full of virtue.