Quote:
Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos
My comments were directed specifically at evman's.
The way I read it, it sounded to me like people who believe in a Christian version of God are dumb. I don't know if that's what he meant or not, but this is what he said:
The first (believing in the Christian God, or not being sure) is clearly ignorant and can be dismissed out of hand by people with an ounce of critical thought in their brains."
I'd say a person without an ounce of critical thought in their head is dumb. There are people who believe in a Christian god that aren't dumb. I think he also said it's some sort of a statistical anomaly, but I don't buy that either.
Certainly there are dumb Christians but that doesn't mean they are all dumb. Many Christian people do have an ounce of critical thought in their brains and haven't dismissed it out of hand. You can say they are brainwashed, indoctrinated, faking it... whatever. They can still have thought about it critically. They just came to a different conclusion than apparently he, you or I did. How they got to that conclusion is just as bizarre to me as it is to you but...
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I think sometimes people truly forget the power of authority when it comes to shaping one's mind. Smart rational and critical thinkers can be influenced into believe and doing extraordinary things. See Germany 1939-1944 for the power of authority.
Also, don't forget the strong need for people to feel like they are special. Everybody wants their life to have a meaning or purpose. They want to believe the their actions on Earth have an end consequence. Bad people should be punished, good people should be rewarded. Unfortunately, that does not work in the animal kingdom. Nature rewards whatever creature adapts best its environs. Good or bad.
Lastly, of course, indoctrination has a huge impact on how we process the world. It isn't a coincidence that most people born in Canada and the U.S. tend to believe in Christianity, most people born in Iraq believe in Islam, and most people born in India believe in Hinduism and Sikhism, etc. People are shaped and conditioned from the day they were born to believe in certain "truths".Almost all religions were formed for control and power, prior to the rule of law. This indoctrination at an early age helps to establish and maintain the power of the church and religion in the mindset of an individual.
Personally, I dont get the whole spiritual and religious aspect when you have science, nature, biology and genetics that contradicts almost all conventional and mainstream religious story-telling. I'll live my life ethically and let facts and testable theories dictate my understanding of the universe.