[Calgaryborn]

Originally Posted by Calgaryborn
Your example of religious intolerance is a poor one. This Quebec family was wise to pull their children out of that school. It is impossible to teach religious positions without bias. It is not the States responsibility to provide the bias. I don't know how you can see that the absence of the States interference will lead to these children to killing heathens. I know a few devote Catholics and have never felt at risk around them.

Not a comment in the literal sense. But it certainly does breed intolerance. Religions can be presented from an unbiased point of view depending on the depth and conviction by which they are delivered. All it does is restricts the parent's ability to impose their own thought process upon the children. While that is within their rights to do so, I don't think it's fair to the child to not provide them with alternate information. I don't understand why religion shouldn't be an informed decision.

I disagree that you can teach religion without bias. Look at the example of Atheists on this sight. Of all the religious sects you would think the "un-religion" would be the most balanced in a discussion. Most of the discussions regarding religion on this site are started by atheists. They appear to have more zeal to proselytize than any other religious group. In a school setting you would have the influence of the teacher and curriculum. Like politics it would be impossible to present it with balance.




I don't know of anyone who believes that humans being created in the image of God equates to any of us being equal in substance. The same book that that says that clearly shows mankind as fallen creatures.

I never said equal in substance. But even the sheer notion that we are created in the same visual image is something I can't agree with.

Again because God is Spirit not too many Christians would interpret that passage in Genesis to mean that God looks like a man. We are like God in that unlike other creatures we are eternal and have a personal volition that can defy both instinct and environmental conditioning. We are also self aware.


My or someone else's inability to adapt from the tenants of their Holy Book should only be a problem if that book instructs them to harm their fellow man. The times in history when Christians have wrongly taken up arms for religious reasons are the times when their leadership has lead them away from the instructions and values of the Bible. Adaptation is not necessarily a good thing.

Corruption, greed, quest for power. The Catholic church has a well documented history of doing all that. In effect the same thing that dilutes Utopian Communism into murderous socialism. Sticking to your guns so devoutly even in the presence of empirical evidence to the contrary turns people against one another. It breeds conflict because one group or the other cannot admit they are wrong.

Corruption greed and the pursuit of power are the causes. Strong differences in beliefs: not so much. For the record; I'm the guy who will invite the Mormon or the Jehovah Witness in when they come to my door. I am civil and don't jump all over them when they don't have an answer. They have to come to their own conclusions. What I won't do is allow them to talk to my children.


At the end of your paragraph you throw out some of your personal doubts about the accuracy of the Bible we have today. I don't agree but, this is probably not the place to start comparing manuscript evidence. Something that large in scope would need its own thread.

Ever play telephone? Purple Monkey Dishwasher FTW. But to add, it doesn't mean that the ideas are wrong, but that the likelihood of them being literal is incredibly small...even for a holy text.

I have never played telephone.

Comments in Blue

Care to respond to my comments regarding the reasoning for the removal of religion in Communism?

You may very well be right. Most people when they think of the Christian church think of the Roman Catholic church or the Greek Orthodox church. Both of these institutions have highly developed cast systems. I suppose any organization Christian or otherwise has by their very nature an authority or cast built in. Of course the communist party becomes its own oppressive cast system once it grabs power.