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Religon for the weak minded?Follow

#1 Feb 03 2005 at 2:04 PM Rating: Good
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Today in my Psychology class we were covering the topic of mental health and the six ways according to Jaahoda to achieve ideal mental and one of them was Personal Autonomy, which basically means to rely on your own inner strength.

Then the teacher went on to say that some people believe in God or follow a faith because it helps them cope with life and maintain a healthy mental state. He had a little story about his friend who had 'found' God and said to him that his aim in life was to 'save' him. The teachers wife said to him that he thought his friend was weak minded and that he used God to 'prop them up' to help them cope and to keep their mind healthy .

So does anyone agree with that?, I personally believe that their must be some drive for people to believe God. Obviously it fills a hole that people may feel is a 'spiritual' hole but in reality it is merely a psychological dependence to maintain mental health.

#2 Feb 03 2005 at 2:06 PM Rating: Decent
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Religion, logically speaking, is just that. However, there are things that logic can't explain.

As an athiest I tend to side with your professor and his wife. However, most religious people see it as much more.

Its one of those issues that there really is no way to solve.
#3 Feb 03 2005 at 2:10 PM Rating: Decent
Of course religion is an opiate for the masses. Everyone knows that.

Know what really surprised me? When the whole world seemed shocked about priests molesting little boys. This is the same guy who looks you IN THE EYE and tells you that some imaginary man in the sky wants you to give a portion of your income each week to his organization.

What does God need a space ship for?
#4 Feb 03 2005 at 2:13 PM Rating: Default
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I'm not an aethiest nor a tried and true church going christian. I have issues believing a book that is riddled with one-sidedness and the fact that most minsiters/preachers/etc only use it as a tool for personal gain.

Psychology is just a bored man's way of dealing with life, analyzing it past the point of relevance. That being said, for some people religion is a way to get through life, but that doesnt make them weak minded, some people just need something to believe in.

I believe your professor's view and his wife's is very narrow minded and are prob "elitist". They think others are inferior just because they share a differing view. (my view on the subject matter)

Dont get me wrong, psychology is a mind blowing science, I enjoyed the few classes I took in it, but professors of psychology usually have warped aspects on life.
#5 Feb 03 2005 at 2:14 PM Rating: Excellent
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Your teacher sounds like a smug little atheist. Not that there's anything wrong with being an atheist but being a smug one makes him the same as smug Christians or whoever.

Plenty of people have gone through a lot of pain and agony for their faith rather than renounce it. Either God is real and strengthed them or God isn't real and their strength came from within and their devotion to their beliefs. Doesn't sound "weak" to me.
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#6 Feb 03 2005 at 2:14 PM Rating: Good
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My crappy karma even more crappy wrote:
Score: Default [2.33]


Someone obviously doesn't like religous discussions? Or me calling people who believe in fluffy cloud men 'weak minded'.



Edited, Thu Feb 3 14:17:12 2005 by TheDave
#7 Feb 03 2005 at 2:14 PM Rating: Default
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actually, that's EXACTLY how i feel.

think about it, just take Christianity - hell, go back a few pages in the OOT forum and find a thread i started on why you believe in Christianity. during the whole freakin thing the ONLY reason i could get Christians to say that they believed was because they "had faith". what's faith? oh yeah, BLIND TRUST.

that's exactly what religion is - a crutch for the weak. instead of putting their "faith" into themselves, they put it on an intangible saviour that they can pray to and ask for help. and why? because they have "faith". blind. faith. and because there's some hole there that for some reason they think can only be filled by blinding trusting and living by someone else's doctrine.

there is no hell. there is no heaven. and if that thought depresses you, you're gonna find solace in someone who'll tell you, "no no, dear, when you die there will be an afterlife with a God who will take care of you and make everything perfect." because they need that feeling in order to get by. or something.
#8 Feb 03 2005 at 2:20 PM Rating: Excellent
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You know what I hate more than a religious *** hole who tells me I am going to hell for not believing in what he does? An athiest *** hole who tells me I am weak and stupid if I don't believe in what he does.
#9 Feb 03 2005 at 2:21 PM Rating: Excellent
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It's been my finding that the people who are most religious are those who have had other addictions in the past.

Not to say that there are others out there with the same convictions that have never had any addictions whatsoever but that’s what I’ve seen.

Ex drug addicts that find religion become addicted to it...it’s their new crack.
#10 Feb 03 2005 at 2:23 PM Rating: Good
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I rated you up because you have a cool name and ******* about karma.


I can respect that.
#11 Feb 03 2005 at 2:28 PM Rating: Decent
TheDave wrote:
Personal Autonomy, which basically means to rely on your own inner strength


Jophiel wrote:
Either God is real and strengthed them or God isn't real and their strength came from within and their devotion to their beliefs. Doesn't sound "weak" to me.


Religion IMO is genius. I soundly believe that the "power" or "strength" is within every person. How do you explain this in a way that will transcend time? Explain that there is an all powerful "GOD" who gives us strength. Even children can understand that concept because it seems tangible. Try to get that same passionate recaction that you get from people who have 'found God' from people whom you explain that there is no God and the power is just within you. It does not happen.

However, if someone has an epiphany and realizes that they are one and the same, and that there really is true power there, that person attains "Personal Autonomy".

Simply put, overall, the people who have found this "power" or "God" as you will, are stonger than those who do not.

#12 Feb 03 2005 at 2:32 PM Rating: Decent
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Quote:
Simply put, overall, the people who have found this "power" or "God" as you will, are stonger than those who do not.


you say this while in the same argument you say that even children find this concept understandable. ... ???

to me, you're just proving that the thought is childish.

Quote:
I soundly believe that the "power" or "strength" is within every person. How do you explain this in a way that will transcend time?


what does the trancendance of time have to do with anything? just because something passes the tests of time does NOT give it validity.
#13 Feb 03 2005 at 2:37 PM Rating: Excellent
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you say this while in the same argument you say that even children find this concept understandable. ... ???

to me, you're just proving that the thought is childish.
You know, the other week my son came to me and told be that he learned in kindergarten that bees go to flowers for nectar to make honey and that helps spread pollen to make more flowers.

Holy sh[/i]it! The concept of pollination and symbiotic relationships is childish!

[i]Edited, Thu Feb 3 14:38:02 2005 by Jophiel
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#14 Feb 03 2005 at 2:38 PM Rating: Excellent
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Quote:
Simply put, overall, the people who have found this "power" or "God" as you will, are stonger than those who do not.


OR, they find this inner power BECAUSE they are inherently stronger. OR, they have this inner power but it has nothing whatever to do with God, or divinity of any description. OR, they have both (faith in a God-creature and inner strength) but it's purely coincidental.

You have not established a causal relationship. Back to work, you.
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#15 Feb 03 2005 at 2:40 PM Rating: Good
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Everyone has their own beliefs, and that's cool. I figure, as long as what you believe floats your boat, then good for you. But don't go pushin your sh[/i]it on me.

[i]Edited, Thu Feb 3 14:40:54 2005 by KakarSmakar
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#16 Feb 03 2005 at 2:43 PM Rating: Decent
Quote:
Quote:
Simply put, overall, the people who have found this "power" or "God" as you will, are stonger than those who do not.

you say this while in the same argument you say that even children find this concept understandable. ... ???

to me, you're just proving that the thought is childish.


The most powerful things in life do not need to be complicated. However, explaining them can be. Have you ever been asked "Why is the sky blue?" Try answering that in a way a small child or a ****** could understand. Now realize that if you are an "average" person, that 50% of all people are below average. The point is, not everyone is a Rhodes scholar, but you can still be empowered if you are given a way to understand. The concept that they need to understand is that there is a way to gain self-power. It does not matter if it comes from outside or inside, the fact remains that they can get it.

Quote:
Quote:
I soundly believe that the "power" or "strength" is within every person. How do you explain this in a way that will transcend time?

what does the trancendance of time have to do with anything? just because something passes the tests of time does NOT give it validity.


The point I am getting to here is each religion that still exists in this world including satanism and paganism provide a way to tap into this 'mysterious power'. Every religion calls it something else, but it all boils down to there is some sort of power you can 'call on' to get through life. That is why religion is genius, it is a way to teach people this, unfortunately there are so many other strings attached to each religion because of it's manipulation over time that the true meaning has been all but obscured.

#17 Feb 03 2005 at 2:45 PM Rating: Decent
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#18 Feb 03 2005 at 2:45 PM Rating: Decent
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An athiest *** hole who tells me I am weak and stupid if I don't believe in what he does.


I'm more of an agnostic really, I don't know exactly how I feel about the whole God issue. I've never been touched by God or seen anything to sway me either way but i'm keeping my options open just in case Jesus decides to pop back for another spin.

A slight hijack of my own thread here but anyone ever heard of the Ontological argument for the existence of God? Which basically states that :-
'If we have an idea of God it is greater than something that we can imagine. If it exists in our mind anything that exists in reality is greater than the God in our minds because it exists, so we must believe that it exists in reality because it is the greatest thing imaginable.'

Also :-
'God is a perfect being, existence is requirement of perfection, hence God exists'

Bear in mind the original argument was intended to strengthen the beliefs of people who already believed in God and the definition of God as being a supremely perfect being. Not to prove the existence of God. Their is an argument by Dacarte supporting this idea but I can't remember it off the top of my head.

Also if you do believe in God, who believes in that definition of God? Because for the argument to work it requires people to accept that definiton but many people have different ideas about Gods existence and how to define his existence.
#19 Feb 03 2005 at 2:45 PM Rating: Decent
SamiraX wrote:
OR, they find this inner power BECAUSE they are inherently stronger. OR, they have this inner power but it has nothing whatever to do with God, or divinity of any description. OR, they have both (faith in a God-creature and inner strength) but it's purely coincidental.


Well said, thank you for elaborating it. I agree compeltely and did over-simplify. Well made point.
#20 Feb 03 2005 at 2:49 PM Rating: Good
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You know what I hate more than a religious *** hole who tells me I am going to hell for not believing in what he does or an athiest *** hole who tells me I am weak and stupid if I don't believe in what he does. An agnostic *** hole who wont make up his mind and acts as if he is better than the rest of us because of it.
#21 Feb 03 2005 at 2:54 PM Rating: Good
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I personally believe that their must be some drive for people to believe God. Obviously it fills a hole that people may feel is a 'spiritual' hole but in reality it is merely a psychological dependence to maintain mental health.


Why does a person keeping thier mind healthy using a crutch? Does the athiest feel somehow superior to the religious person?

There is at least a thought process to a religious person feeling that they need to help the athiest to keep them from going to hell. What is the athiest's excuse? Why would a person who doesn't believe in God or an afterlife put so much effort into trying to convince everyone else that their religion is false?

Is it a "well if im wrong then I want to take everyone with me" sort of attitude?
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#23 Feb 03 2005 at 2:59 PM Rating: Decent
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Quoth Monty Python:

matter is energy.

In the universe, there are many energy fields which we cannot normally perceive.
Some energies have a spiritual source which act upon a person's soul.

However, this soul does not exist ab initio, as orthodox Christianity teaches. It has to be brought into existence by a process of guided self-observation.
However, this is rarely achieved, owing to man's unique ability to be distracted from spiritual matters by everyday trivia.


oh, and people aren't wearing enough hats..




NOw realllly think about the "Self Guided Obervation" thing... and then think about everything that you know about Perception, relativity, and Quantum Mechanics(oberseration effecting the oberved)

Edited, Thu Feb 3 15:01:25 2005 by Kelvyquayo
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#24 Feb 03 2005 at 3:00 PM Rating: Decent
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An agnostic *** hole who wont make up his mind and acts as if he is better than the rest of us because of it.


Wait a sec, better make that a satanist or a believer of some poly-theistic religon, the one with the God with the thunderbolts who sleeps with loads of mortals.


Edited, Thu Feb 3 15:01:45 2005 by TheDave
#25 Feb 03 2005 at 3:03 PM Rating: Decent
Kelvyquayo wrote:
oh, and people aren't wearing enough hats..


Shhh! The world tin-foil supply will suffer if the secret gets out.
#26 Feb 03 2005 at 7:16 PM Rating: Good
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Quote:
There is at least a thought process to a religious person feeling that they need to help the athiest to keep them from going to hell. What is the athiest's excuse? Why would a person who doesn't believe in God or an afterlife put so much effort into trying to convince everyone else that their religion is false?

Is it a "well if im wrong then I want to take everyone with me" sort of attitude?
Excuse? For what, having a belief that's as sincere as a deist's?

When someone insists on discussing matters of faith with me, I don't sit there and tell them they're wrong and I'm right. I just smile and nod, and gently enforce my boundaries if they start try to apply their religion to me (like telling me what god has done for me, etc.).

I'd love to see the human race accept responsibility for our past and our future destiny and get on with the work of creating a better world for ourselves. Let's quit waiting for either armageddon, or a helping hand from a deity.

And hats simply make my hair full of static.
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