by Anti-Christ 17 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
America seems to be full of angry apocolyptic type Christians. They're certainly not given to quiet peace loving contemplation of the divine. The eastern religions put them to shame in that. From an Australian perspective American 'christians' don't look christian at all but some weird hybrid Old Testement meets wild west-hillbilly-gunslinger-hate filled-ratbag religion.
unclebruce from the land of milk and other dairy products.
unclebruce writes:
From an Australian perspective American 'christians' don't look christian at all but some weird hybrid Old Testement meets wild west-hillbilly-gunslinger-hate filled-ratbag religion.
Love your honesty, unc.
unclebruce: "From an Australian perspective American 'christians' don't look christian at all but some weird hybrid Old Testement meets wild west-hillbilly-gunslinger-hate filled-ratbag religion."
From a Pennsylvanian perspective in the U.S., American Christians don't look Christian at all but some weird ............ fill in the rest. I'm a first-generation American born to immigrant parents. This gives me a perspective I wouldn't otherwise have. In comparison to other cultures, Americans have some customs and beliefs that are very strange indeed. I attribute this to our relative isolation, geographically. We're very insulated against other ideas, cultures, and beliefs. That's why 9/11/01 was such a wakeup call for Americans. We really had no idea that so much of the world hated us that much.
Footnote: Angry Muslims are a lot scarier than angry Christians.
parakeet wrote:
From a Pennsylvanian perspective in the U.S., American Christians don't look Christian at all but some weird ............ fill in the rest. I'm a first-generation American born to immigrant parents. This gives me a perspective I wouldn't otherwise have. In comparison to other cultures, Americans have some customs and beliefs that are very strange indeed. I attribute this to our relative isolation, geographically. We're very insulated against other ideas, cultures, and beliefs. That's why 9/11/01 was such a wakeup call for Americans. We really had no idea that so much of the world hated us that much.
Footnote: Angry Muslims are a lot scarier than angry Christians.
I don't attribute it so much to America's isolation as the 'keep the wagon's in a circle' mentality of your fore-fathers related though they are. As for Angry Muslims being scarier than Angry Christians, I think that very much depends on where you and your family are standing when the 1,000lb bombs drop or Mulah's call for Jihad.
unc.
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Hi scully, it's good to see you. x
great video link, thanks.
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elsewhere wrote:
Think about it for a second:
If it were true that there is a god who will burn you in hell for all eternity, then it would be INSANE for someone to NOT go around giving all sorts of stern warnings and mocking everyone who did not believe it!
Imagine if you knew a bunch of people who thought it would be perfectly safe to walk in front of a speeding train. You'd say they were NUTS too! These religious people, from their perspective, are just doing the same thing
I'm amazed there are not MORE religious people going around executing people who talk against the church. When you get down to it, if the church was right about hell and eternal damnation, it would be illegal to talk against the church.
Fortunately cooler heads have prevailed... for the most part.
I understand the point you're making. It's one the WBTS uses to blackmail people into doing their distasteful bidding. But why would it be insane? What would be wrong with just getting on with your life and accepting one's fate at the hands of such an unstoppable psychopathic God? Why would any sentient being feel morally obligated to spend this life runing about like some headless chook shouting the house down and abusing people over problems ahead in another place and time? It just sounds like very fuzzy reasoning to me. I think there's a big difference between warning someone of a real and present danger and one based on fairy tales. Call me callous but I'm well and truely over any percieved need to save the world or anyone in it. I know self esteem is important but the vanity of men never ceases to amaze me.
unclebruce
The problem is that Christianity has so many built-in defense mechanisms to protect the scams contained therein. It is the largest scam in the world--religion itself has most of the people caught in the scam.
First, you have such a heavy penalty for disbelieving. That alone prevents most rational people that are caught in the scam from looking outside. Hell and death threats are severe, plus there is the knowledge that anyone that is a heretic "has sinned against the Holy Spirit" and should not be paid attention to. That alone prevents Christians from looking objectively at their religion. Instead, they look within the religion for answers, and when they do not find answers, they use another mechanism to protect the scam.
Which is "Wait on God". When we don't have answers and cannot find them within the religion, the thing to do is to wait on God to reveal the answers. And they are kept waiting their whole lives, afraid of running ahead of God by looking at independent sources. This is similar to the mentality that perpetuated the First Dark Ages for a thousand years. Waiting on God instead of doing some science has kept many in the dark for their whole lives, and they are thus prevented from seeing through the scam by science and observations that clash with their beliefs.
Another part of the scam is the need to recruit others. This is why many Christians will bash atheists and those who promote atheism and/or Satanism. Everyone that is taught the fact that it is a scam is a poor prospect for falling for the scam. That is why it's so hard to get learned atheists and learned Devil worshipers to become Christian (as opposed to those who just dabble with it). Once you learn the scam, you will not believe their lies again. And they know it--so they attack anyone that exposes them while tuning out any messages that might teach them that they are in the world's most successful scam.
We also have prayers. Has anyone else noticed that God never answers prayers in a direct way? Even though the Bible has references to prayers that were answered in ways that are unmistakable. Don't believe me? Has anyone at the Kingdumb Hell ever prayed that God bring in everyone in the world within the next two hours before field circus? No, though it would have handily accomplished God's supposed purpose. It would also be blatant that God answered it, and God cannot have that. Or, that the world be set free of totalitarian governments that control whole countries and threaten to control the whole world? Or that all cancer be cured tonight? Notably, God never answers any prayers that are unambiguous. Rather, He will "give you the strength to endure" or someothing like that--which is impossible to prove that God did it.
Every religion has its defense mechanisms to prevent the average believer from seeing through it. Otherwise, they would lose their members and have a miserable time getting new ones. And, if that happens, they would all go belly up. The most successful religions are also the most difficult to see through--even though they contain the Original Sin lie, the "need" for a savior from same sin, and strings attached for that salvation. And the need to not pay attention to anyone that points out that their religion is a scam.
For me it boils down to them & actually every human, being caught up in their own ego. They identify themselves with whatever belief they hold dear, even atheism and when question on this, they take it as a personal attack. Then each ego feeds off the other and so the tension builds.
If you are going to brutally honest and just spit things out without any regard then some one may just give you the same treatment *shrug*
Interesting points. Uncle Bruce, I get the past can have an influence on someones belief especially when it comes to religion. BTW you are hilarious.
Every religion has its defense mechanisms to prevent the average believer from seeing through it. Otherwise, they would lose their members and have a miserable time getting new ones. And, if that happens, they would all go belly up. The most successful religions are also the most difficult to see through--even though they contain the Original Sin lie, the "need" for a savior from same sin, and strings attached for that salvation. And the need to not pay attention to anyone that points out that their religion is a scam.
That is an excellent point.
LouBelle I expect people to be "brutally" honest because I am, but like I said there is a difference with being honest and insulting someone, for example lest say someone cooks me a meal and I find it to be not my taste, the person who prepared it ask if I liked it, I could lie and say it was good or I could say that I did not like it not one bit. Now this person might feel insulted but there is a difference I would not call the person a moron or an incompetent fool no I just say that what they prepared was not good. If it was very very disgusting well I would not hold back I would say it was absolutely disgusting. I think I am doing someone a favor by being honest the same goes with someone that believes in crazy things and especially if it is damaging to themselves and others. Thanks for your input. I find LouBelle that you have a very wise and enlightened way of seeing things.
I still don't understand what some people who call themselves Christians
The point being, they call themselves Christians.
