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Do you respect believers?

Started by MatureMcLeod, October 14, 2016, 12:57:15 AM

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Dave

Quote from: Dredge on March 24, 2017, 07:35:24 AM
If I send you $10, will you respect me for one week?
No, respect is earned, not bought.

Give $10 a month to a charity like MSF or Save the Children and you will earn a little respect from me for that act.

Demonstrate a sincere understanding that there are evil and good people in every faction of belief and unbelief and you will earn a lot more.
Tomorrow is precious, don't ruin it by fouling up today.
Passed Monday 10th Dec 2018 age 74

atomgram

I can respect the person, but I just can't bring myself to respect belief in something for which no evidence exists.  It seems so intellectually lazy and not genuine.  If you told them that you go every Sunday to watch Jimi Hendrix jam in a cave by your house, they would laugh at you.  Why do we have to respect utter nonsense?  I hate that part of this agreement.  Makes me crazy. 

Biggus Dickus

Quote from: atomgram on May 03, 2017, 05:21:23 PM
I can respect the person, but I just can't bring myself to respect belief in something for which no evidence exists.  It seems so intellectually lazy and not genuine.  If you told them that you go every Sunday to watch Jimi Hendrix jam in a cave by your house, they would laugh at you.  Why do we have to respect utter nonsense?  I hate that part of this agreement.  Makes me crazy.


I always try to be respectful to the person, not always so much to the religion, but I do watch my tongue in certain company...although I have little patience for those who proselytize or want to force their religious views or beliefs on others, for them there is little respect and even less patience.

Recently I was on vacation in Honduras visiting the wife's family, and during part of the trip we stayed with a niece and nephew who also take care of my mother-in law.

The niece is wicked smart, and is actually a professor of mathematics at the university, and I enjoy not only her companionship, but also her cooking...she's also a damn good soccer and volleyball player.

She's also an evangelical, but very subdued and not at all preachy...when we would eat together she would usually be the last one to sit down and start eating while we were in her home because she was serving us, and often times there were other family members present so it would be a full table.

She would always bow her head and say a silent prayer to herself before eating, but everyone else at the table would go on talking, laughing and eating even though they are all catholic or fellow evangelical types, but I would always put my silverware down and stop eating while she did so out of respect.

One of the last meals we had together I did the same, and as she finished eating she reached over and slightly grasped my hand in what I took to be a show of thanks...she knows more or less that I'm a non-believer. I felt very close to her at that moment. Again my respect for her is boundless.

Funny part is on Easter Sunday everyone else in the family was at the local cathedral for the Easter mass and celebrations. Outdoor type of festival (I'll be posting some pictures soon as it's quite festive), started at 8am and ended around 12:30-1pm.

I went along with everyone that morning, but while they sat with my mother in-law up in front taking in the mass, I walked around and took in the sights, stopping at a couple coffee shops, reading my book, grabbing a light snack...the niece I mentioned, who as I said is evangelical had come with us to the cathedral and sat with the grandmother for awhile, but later she saw me sitting at an outdoor cafe right next to the cathedral and came and sat down next to me.

I bought her a coffee and we sat together for while, but then she took me walking and showed me some old parts of the city I hadn't seen before, as well as took my by her father's electronic shop.
While we were there her young niece who was about 6 years old was hanging out, so we took her with us on our walk...the three of us had fun together that Easter morning, stopping for more coffee and a snack for the little girl, and then strolling through the park.

I remember thinking at the time how ironic or funny the situation was, here we were an evangelical and an atheist enjoying easter morning together in beautiful Honduras...it was one of the more enjoyable moments of my trip.
"Some people just need a high-five. In the face. With a chair."

Dragonia

Aw, Father Bruno, she can't help but love you! No matter what wickedness lays in your heart.  :devil2:
I love your stories about Honduras and I can't wait for more pictures!
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. ~ Plato (?)

Magdalena

Quote from: Father Bruno on May 04, 2017, 02:21:51 PM
...
I remember thinking at the time how ironic or funny the situation was, here we were an evangelical and an atheist enjoying easter morning together in beautiful Honduras...it was one of the more enjoyable moments of my trip.
That's nice.  :tellmemore:

"I've had several "spiritual" or numinous experiences over the years, but never felt that they were the product of anything but the workings of my own mind in reaction to the universe." ~Recusant

Biggus Dickus

#20
Quote from: Magdalena on May 04, 2017, 04:25:36 PM
Quote from: Father Bruno on May 04, 2017, 02:21:51 PM
...
I remember thinking at the time how ironic or funny the situation was, here we were an evangelical and an atheist enjoying easter morning together in beautiful Honduras...it was one of the more enjoyable moments of my trip.
That's nice.  :tellmemore:









p.s. hey mags, i think that be the same dude who don't like pupusas ;)
"Some people just need a high-five. In the face. With a chair."

Magdalena

Quote from: Father Bruno on May 04, 2017, 06:22:59 PM
Quote from: Magdalena on May 04, 2017, 04:25:36 PM
Quote from: Father Bruno on May 04, 2017, 02:21:51 PM
...
I remember thinking at the time how ironic or funny the situation was, here we were an evangelical and an atheist enjoying easter morning together in beautiful Honduras...it was one of the more enjoyable moments of my trip.
That's nice.  :tellmemore:









p.s. hey mags, i think that be the same dude who don't like pupusas ;)


The pupusa is perfect, if he doesn't like pupusas, that is fine because the pupusa will still be perfect even if he doesn't like them.

"I've had several "spiritual" or numinous experiences over the years, but never felt that they were the product of anything but the workings of my own mind in reaction to the universe." ~Recusant

Dragonia

^^^true dat.... perfection doesn't change just because someone doesn't like it.
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. ~ Plato (?)

Magdalena

Quote from: Dragonia on May 04, 2017, 10:25:33 PM
^^^true dat.... perfection doesn't change just because someone doesn't like it.

Power to the pupusa.

"I've had several "spiritual" or numinous experiences over the years, but never felt that they were the product of anything but the workings of my own mind in reaction to the universe." ~Recusant

Biggus Dickus

Often times my respect for believers goes flying out the fucking window...



By the way I have no issues with Mrs Trump having posed nude at all, but the hypocrisy of assholes like Robertson really piss me off.
"Some people just need a high-five. In the face. With a chair."

Harmonie

Quote from: MatureMcLeod on October 14, 2016, 12:57:15 AMI think the reason they ignore the bad parts is because it hasn't processed in their minds yet.

As a Progressive Christian before I finally turned over to atheism (well, that's a long story, but not particularly relevant here so moving on. lol) I can attest to this point. I was simply not even comprehending the immoral atrocities of the Bible. It's as if my mind was programmed not to go there.

I was somehow able to look at the Leviticus laws to stone men who slept with other men and write it off for some of these reasons:

1. It's being taken out of context. The law referred to a particular time and it referred to a particular location - a temple.
2. The words that are commonly interpreted as homosexual in modern Bibles are not translated properly, and actually meant "male prostitutes".

Somehow, through all of that, I was not comprehending that a supposedly loving God was ordering people to be stoned. My mind was programmed so hard not to look that way, but only to preserve my view that homosexuality itself can not be wrong.

In terms of slavery, I'm not sure I even ever thought about it. My mind was so far gone, that I didn't even have any kind of justification for that one. I just simply didn't even acknowledge it in my mind.

Once my beliefs came crashing down, I was able to rationally look at it, and I just can't believe myself. I can not believe I ever thought like that.

Icon Image by Cherubunny on Tumblr
"I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires." - Susan B. Anthony

Arturo

The reason I cannot respect believers is that they throw out logic just to believe in something.

https://youtu.be/0gAeYxgwuSo

I don't believe in God but I believe in myself. I am not perfect however and neither is anybody else. And as soon as you dismiss all criticisms without acknowledging and saying you or god is above them is, to me, the signs of a dictatorship (or a cult, take your pick)
It's Okay To Say You're Welcome
     Just let people be themselves.
     Arturo The1  リ壱

Tank

Quote from: Harmonie on August 27, 2017, 04:12:19 PM
Quote from: MatureMcLeod on October 14, 2016, 12:57:15 AMI think the reason they ignore the bad parts is because it hasn't processed in their minds yet.

As a Progressive Christian before I finally turned over to atheism (well, that's a long story, but not particularly relevant here so moving on. lol) I can attest to this point. I was simply not even comprehending the immoral atrocities of the Bible. It's as if my mind was programmed not to go there.

I was somehow able to look at the Leviticus laws to stone men who slept with other men and write it off for some of these reasons:

1. It's being taken out of context. The law referred to a particular time and it referred to a particular location - a temple.
2. The words that are commonly interpreted as homosexual in modern Bibles are not translated properly, and actually meant "male prostitutes".

Somehow, through all of that, I was not comprehending that a supposedly loving God was ordering people to be stoned. My mind was programmed so hard not to look that way, but only to preserve my view that homosexuality itself can not be wrong.

In terms of slavery, I'm not sure I even ever thought about it. My mind was so far gone, that I didn't even have any kind of justification for that one. I just simply didn't even acknowledge it in my mind.

Once my beliefs came crashing down, I was able to rationally look at it, and I just can't believe myself. I can not believe I ever thought like that.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences. I was once discussing with a Christian of some sort what they would do if God told them to kill their child. They flatly refused to accept that he could and it would be Satan attempting to fool them. I asked them who asked Abraham to kill his son. They said that was Old Testament and Jesus had come to show us a better way. I asked them that if the OT was wrong there was no Adam and Eve and therefore no original sin and no need for Jesus to be born. They said as best as I can recall words to the effect "Well Adam and Eve were true and Jesus came to deal with that but all the bad bits of the OT were added by Satan!" I swear it's easier to get a grip on wet soap!
If religions were TV channels atheism is turning the TV off.
"Religion is a culture of faith; science is a culture of doubt." ― Richard P. Feynman
'It is said that your life flashes before your eyes just before you die. That is true, it's called Life.' - Terry Pratchett
Remember, your inability to grasp science is not a valid argument against it.

Dave

It's probably easier to catch a greased piglet than work out how the dedicated religious mind works!

I knew a fundie Christian who though alcohol was evil and sinful - yet he drank cider. When it was pointed out that cider is an alcoholic drink he refused to accept it. When shown the % alcohol on the label he got really angry and stormed off. It is part of the same syndrome I think.

As the old saying goes, "There's none so blind as those who will not see."
Tomorrow is precious, don't ruin it by fouling up today.
Passed Monday 10th Dec 2018 age 74

Biggus Dickus

I don't respect them at this very moment, as it only took a couple of days after Texas was hit by Harvey for the religious bullshit to hit the fucking fan.

Fire destroyed their home during Harvey. But a Virgin Mary statue survived

God is fucking great isn't she? Billions and billions of dollars of damage, lives lost, tens of thousand of people uprooted from their homes, devastation beyond belief, and recovery will be years and years down the road...but god saved this fucking statue of Mary because she is so loving and powerful, and aren't miracles something.

I can't stand this shit, don't even understand why with all that's going on now, and the storm is still impacting the region, that they would even run with this ridiculous story...(Maybe the stone statue, actually half of it that appears left survived because it's fucking made out of stone?)

"Some people just need a high-five. In the face. With a chair."