[thomaskurian89]

(Original post by Astronomical)
Presumably for cultural differences though, rather than the religion per se?

Actually, mainly due to certain differences in the religions. For example, I'm pretty sure no Christian would try to kill me if I said Jesus wasn't the son of god.

[phoenixmiko]

(Original post by Politricks)
Do you respect Hitler? Sure he may have done nice things, like caring for animals, but after what he did during the war, you wouldn't be able to dig out any respect for him.

Why should Islam or Judeo-Christianity be respected? Both gods of those belief systems are horrendous.

Of course not. He did awful things during the war.

I respect all religions even though there may be elements of them I do not like or agree with. I do not hate people for their religions either. People have the right to have faith in whatever religion they please. I will not stop them from believing in what they want to believe unless those beliefs are aligned with those of terrorists who extremists who seek to harm and kill.

Anyhow, this has nothing to do with what you just quoted - the fact that I criticise and debate about Shinto very little.

[Torpedo Fish]

It has to be Buddhism for me.

Why? Because it's not as dogmatic as most religions and in my experience it's followers are humble and not as judgmental as Christians or Muslims. But most importantly, it's a relatively peaceful and benign philosophy; adherents to Buddhist way of life have never tried to violently impose their beliefs on other people, or indeed attempted to oppress followers of other religions.

[Astronomical]

(Original post by thomaskurian89)
Actually, mainly due to certain differences in the religions. For example, I'm pretty sure no Christian would try to kill me if I said Jesus wasn't the son of god.

Perhaps not. Although I'm sure the average Muslim would do no such thing either, not Hindu nor Sihk, etc.

[thomaskurian89]

(Original post by Astronomical)
Perhaps not. Although I'm sure the average Muslim would do no such thing either.

I wouldn't risk it with a Muslim. How would I be sure he's "average"?

[Newbie123]

Why is Buddhism in the poll? It's a way of life, not a religion.

[Dippy Dip]

Jedi.

How is that not on the list?

[Torpedo Fish]

(Original post by Newbie123)
Why is Buddhism in the poll? It's a way of life, not a religion.

Well that depends on your definition of a religion. Granted, Buddhism does not involve a belief in a deity or creator, but it does involve the belief in mythological notions for which there is no tangible or empirical evidence, for instance: karmic energy, the cycle of death and rebirth, various plains of existence etc. On that basis I think it can still be aptly described as a religion.

[Aeonstorm]

Christians simply because I already live amongst them, understand them, and therefore can coexist peacefully with them without constantly questioning they way they live. I'm not quite atheist though, more agnostic. Christianity is also the most Westernised and therefore secularised religion.

[bkeevin]

(Original post by brunettegirl92)
God didn't write the bible. People did. Thats why there's flaws. The writers couldn't resist keeping their cultural influences out and trying to pass it off as religion/god's word. Thats why you get weird bits and inconsistencies.

I don't subscribe to the non-believers going to hell part. Jesus taught to do good and showed tolerance towards other groups.

I don't even know if I believe in hell. I don't believe in the devil.

How can you ever know what bits of the bible are from God and what bits are from humans? Both the Old and New Testaments were after all written by men influenced by their cultural norms and long after the death of the protagonists.

Jesus is generally portrayed meek and tolerant but there are passages where he is very judgemental and prejudiced. In a few passages he insults the Pharisees and scribes as fools, blind, hypocrites and generation of vipers!!! He said he did not come to bring peace but a sword. He claims he came to divide families. You have to love Christ more than your life and your family for him to accept you as his disciple. Do you simply ignore all those weird passages?


Matthew 15;22-28
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.

23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.

24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.

26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.

27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.

28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

[K the Failure]

I have zero respect for any religion, but I fully respect the right of people to believe whatever they want to believe.

And to the overwhelming majority who voted Buddhism, I bet you would think twice about living with these Buddhists.

It is of course purely an exercise in critical thought and I personally voted Buddhism without hesitation.

[King-Panther]

(Original post by heyhey922)
Buddhists are atheists for a start.

And you don't need a a religion to be a theist.

And as an atheist I don't despise any religion, I just often find myself disliking stuff people claim to do in name of religion.

No they are NOT, the ignorance!

[Carter78]

(Original post by thomaskurian89)
Let me rephrase the question: If you were forced to live with religious people, which group would you choose?

Note that atheism is not a religion. I'm going to go with Christianity.

The fact you see the need to re-phrase the question at all just highlights how absurd the original proposition was in the first place.

I'm not a fan of superstition and am vehemently opposed to intolerance, but I don't despise the religious. That would be like be despising people who believe in Unicorns.

How are we meant to promote civil debate between the theists and anti-theists if we sling mud at each other?

[concubine]

Jainists wouldn't let me eat meat, which sucks.



I'd probably go with Jews. Because half of the practicing Jews I know don't even believe in God (I bet some retard claims that they're not Jews. Look up Jewish atheism, retard). And I don't think I've ever encountered a Jew that was a dickhead, whilst having spent time with far more than most people will have.


So. As much as I want to say ZOROASTRIANS. I'm going to go with Jews.




/awaits cries of 'ZIONIST!!!111'

[Alpharius]

Neo-Paganism.

They seem to like nature (I study Zoology). They dress up, which makes me lol. They like studying ancient history. Nothing really against them (yet).

Buddhism is not as innocent as people claim it is. Their monks and priests (along with Shinto) used their faiths to justify, recruit and train Kamakaze suicide fighters during the second World War. They made the claim that their Emperor was a Tathagata ("fully enlightened being").

[brunettegirl92]

(Original post by bkeevin)
How can you ever know what bits of the bible are from God and what bits are from humans? Both the Old and New Testaments were after all written by men influenced by their cultural norms and long after the death of the protagonists.

Jesus is generally portrayed meek and tolerant but there are passages where he is very judgemental and prejudiced. In a few passages he insults the Pharisees and scribes as fools, blind, hypocrites and generation of vipers!!! He said he did not come to bring peace but a sword. He claims he came to divide families. You have to love Christ more than your life and your family for him to accept you as his disciple. Do you simply ignore all those weird passages?


Matthew 15;22-28
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.

23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.

24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.

26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.

27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.

28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

you can tell whats god and whats cultural influences by knowing about the culture of that time. They are often the inconsistencies in the text.
I don't ignore these passages - I study them, analyse them and try to work out where they came from. Do not make the mistake that christians either follow all the text or ignore parts. Some are very intelligent and will question everything.
My beliefs don't just happen - I take themes and messages and i analyse and question them and i think about them - my beliefs I have so far have taken years to form. basically something really goes through the mental ringer before I follow it, or choose not to follow it.
As such my beliefs are quite complicated and the process they got through is complicated and difficult to explain.

also jesus is not meek. I find the notion of a meek saviour almost insulting.
When he went into the temple and turned the tables over he shouted and got pissed off. And thats a good thing.
I also believe he sinned (prepare for the negs from many denominations of christians). For him to live a human life, he must have done human things.
while we are on the subject, whats the definition of a sin?

As you can see, I have some beliefs that may be considered unusual- but i believe in a good way. I often disagree with other christians - last time i was in the CU things got a little heated! So don't make assuptions on my beliefs based on the standards and stereotypes of other christians.

[brunettegirl92]

(Original post by Politricks)
no religion = no faith with no evidence = good.
Does your god really expect people to believe in him if he's not going to provide compelling evidence of his own existence?

But thats the thing that so many athiests don't get. It isn't about proof, its about faith.
To me, I have faith backed up by evidence, thought and religious/spiritual experience.

There is no abosolute amont of evidence needed - different people need different evidence to believe. Its a very personal, individual thing.

You get athiests because they do not have the evidence they would require to believe. You get religious people because they do.

also, science is not a conscious entity - it cannot be for or against religion. My beliefs actually incorporate science, whereas others reject it.

[helllomoto]

Despise? Jesus Christ you guys are horrendous.

[heyhey922]

(Original post by King-Panther)
No they are NOT, the ignorance!

Do they believe in a deity?

I know that usually the Buddha is not considered a deity, have I missed something?

[King-Panther]

(Original post by heyhey922)
Do they believe in a deity?

I know that usually the Buddha is not considered a deity, have I missed something?

No, they believe in a creator (God if you like) but not as the west understands it. They don't believe he universe just popped into existence.

"As to where it all came from, Buddha explains the origins of life in the Surangama sutra, and other sutras and the creation and destruction of galaxies and universe over vast stretches of time. It doesn’t originate from a being called "God," unless by God you mean the Tao or original nature – which is beyond being and non-being. If you call "God" the Tao then everything matches just fine. But if you think of a person you’re off. Of course, that’s the problem with the Western religions controlled by power structures rather than teachings of sages who come and go."

http://www.meditationexpert.com/comp...come_from.html

They have a different and more accurate understanding of God (not a man in the clouds). They also believe in Angels as well as demons and heaven (eventually will be obtained).