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#21 |
Jesus Online
Join Date: Dec 1969
Location: a glass castle
Posts: 30,163
Local Time: 02:12 AM
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I'm sure there are more new religions in this day and age than there has ever been zooropa. We just call them cults these days. Except for the crazy ones we hear about where leaders convince the members to do ridiculous things like suicide or murder there ar probably hundres more that either fade away or remain localised or specific to the branches they form, never really gaining mass popularity or public support. Some cynics have even called Christianity the longest running and most successful cult. At least Christianity doesnt seek out the weak minded for its own advances.
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#22 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Milwaukee, WI (USA)
Posts: 11,743
Local Time: 10:12 AM
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I took a course (at a Catholic school) that examined the development of cults. It was horrifying and fascinating at the same time. All religions start as cults or fringe religions (even Christianity was at one point a cult). The distinction is between cults and destructive cults that utilize mind control (techniques that can include prayer, meditation, chants, singing songs, visualizations, affirmations, positive self-talk, breathing techniques, hypnosis, "speaking in tongues", ecstatic dancing, music, isolation from family and friends) and require total submission to an all-powerful leader). Cults convince followers that the outside world is bad and that the world of the leader is the "right" world. There is a man Steve Hassan whose books we read for this course who explains a lot of these things better than I can ... It's interesting reading to say the least: Here's an FAQ: http://www.freedomofmind.com/resources/faq.asp Here's a current list of cults: .http://www.freedomofmind.com/groups/groups.asp While it may seem a simplistic example, does anyone recall the Simpsons episode where everyone in Springfield joins a cult ... well, although a watered down example, it was dead on |
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#23 | |||
Blue Crack Addict
Join Date: Apr 2001
Posts: 16,652
Local Time: 09:12 AM
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#24 |
Acrobat
Join Date: Aug 2000
Posts: 320
Local Time: 03:12 PM
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The B'hai faith is a fairly new and consistently growing religion...I'm not sure 'how new'...but its a youngster compared with the other monotheistic traditions..
I don't mind atheists...some of my best friends are atheists ![]() Its when either one gets so in your face you can't breathe or think that I don't like them... Most of the atheists I have had the pleasure to meet have been good people overall...no fanatics.. I have met some fanatical Christians but thanfully they have been in the minority... dream wanderer |
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#25 |
Refugee
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Purgatory
Posts: 1,101
Local Time: 10:12 AM
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JessicaAnn, those links don't seem to be working. That sucks because they sounded interesting.
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#26 |
Refugee
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Purgatory
Posts: 1,101
Local Time: 10:12 AM
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Another point to add,
In my geography class there were all these posters on different religions up around the walls. One religion whose name I cannot remember (I hadnt heard the name before) looked like a scam. There were all these pics of this "holy" dude. He was supposedly a religious leader who had some sort of power (faith healing, talking with "God", something like that). One of the pictures had rays of light coming out from behing him. It reminded me of pictures of one of those televangelists. It just looked like a scam. It's kind of hard to explain how, it just looked like one. |
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#27 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Milwaukee, WI (USA)
Posts: 11,743
Local Time: 10:12 AM
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FAQ: http://www.freedomofmind.com/resources/faq.asp List of Groups: http://www.freedomofmind.com/groups/groups.asp |
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#28 |
The Fly
Join Date: Dec 2001
Posts: 74
Local Time: 03:12 PM
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WHY do people have to judge each other? Ok, I'm NOT a atheist, but that doesn't make them differnt from everyone else. They just don't agree with some people. At school (during football season) the school makes us all go to the gym for a peprally ( "Let's worship wannabe football kings") and so everyone puts their heads down to pray. NOW I think that is just plain dumb, so I don't do it. I could care less about the football and cheerleaders. I just stare at the people that DO do it ( ah they are so sad). I have been visited by my counceler cause she
(and most of the teachers) consider me a devil worshipper ![]() But, that's because I choose to wear black clothes and nailpolish... I just think people should get along ![]() I mean, if Mr. Marilyn Manson and Bono can get along, why not everyone else? Even though Manson had tons of people attacking him, Bono spoke up for him ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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#29 | |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
FOB Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: back and to the left
Posts: 8,523
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uhm...did you notice that these phrases were within sentences of each other in your post? |
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#30 |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Gulf Coast State of Mine
Posts: 3,405
Local Time: 10:12 AM
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Excellent observation, Lilly!
~U2Alabama |
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#31 | |
ONE<br>love, blood, life
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Lookin' for the face I had before the world was made
Posts: 12,144
Local Time: 11:12 AM
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Write for Interference! Email or PM me (kim@interference.com) if you're interested. |
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#32 |
Acrobat
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: South Bend, IN USA
Posts: 399
Local Time: 03:12 PM
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Before I start my little rant, I'd like to point out a very important difference among atheists. Besically, there's two (2) kinds of atheist. There's weak atheism, which is the non-belief in the existance of a higher power, and there's strong atheism, which is the belief in the nonexistance of a higher power.
The mentality behind weak atheism makes a lot of sense to me (although i wouldn't describe myself as one), and the argument behind it makes a lot of sense. Strong atheism, on the other hand, is quite possibly the most ridiculous system of beliefs that I've encountered. The basis for strong atheism is this: There is no evidence for God, therefore God doesn't exist. We all know that that's an invalid argument, but they cling to this argument and spout nonsense like, "Faith is for the weak." and "God is just pretend." They have the mannerisms of psycho fundamentalist jesus freaks. They complain when a person presents his or her belief in God as fact, but they go out of their way to offend theists and attacking their beliefs, and they defend themselves with the "knowledge" that they're right and anyone who believes in God is wrong. I hate those people, and I really want to beat them all with a hail of bullets. |
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#33 | |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
FOB Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: back and to the left
Posts: 8,523
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that was a good post though...i don't see the mentality behind that, although i will TOLERATE them. i should hope fundamentalists on either side learn tolerance...cos this is just annoying. |
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#34 |
Blue Crack Addict
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: slovenija
Posts: 21,062
Local Time: 04:12 PM
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So the atheists on, say, this forum are weird?
![]() I'm an atheist, and i don't think i'm a weirdo or a freak because of it. I know both atheists and religious people, and all of them were good people (IMO there should only be one divide between humans: either they're good persons or not). I have never EVER had religious beliefs enforced upon nor have i EVER persuaded anyone else into atheism. I also have seen people with black clothes and nail polish and even though they looked a bit "excentric" i would never call them Satan worshippers. IMO people should believe what they want and seek happiness in their own way. |
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#35 | |||
Acrobat
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Long Island, New York, USA
Posts: 421
Local Time: 11:12 AM
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#36 | |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
FOB Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: back and to the left
Posts: 8,523
Local Time: 09:12 AM
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that was my title choice clearly, but my first statement was "well, not ALL of them...". i tried to describe the woman as best i could...her fanatical ways and her fundamental mannerisms were just a bit off color. i apologize if i worded it more poorly than i thought, i did not, by any means, mean to pass judgement on or categorize you. |
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#37 |
Babyface
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 23
Local Time: 03:12 PM
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there's big differences between being a non-believer, atheist, satanic, and anti-christ. It's what you believe. Believe is what you want to believe, while fact is what you believe you see. So as a -matter- of- factly speaking, doesn't believe in the same God doesn't make you an atheist, and doesn't believe in christ the son of God also doesn't make you an atheist, and don't believe in organized religion also doesn't make you atheist. Satanism was started to plea against the first human, Adam, and then when the offspring of that first human resents christianity, that's when the church of satan revived. It's just a matter of belief, to endorse religion or to exercise freedom of belief in a secular state. All are equal before God, even those who doesn't belong to the same faith in believing God. All human are equal before God even those who doesn't believe in, or even more who goes against, God. Engels and Marx are atheist, even so they didn't call theirself atheist, they just plainly doesn't care and doesn't even think that there is a God or there isn't any. Anthony Lavey grew up in an orthodox catholics family, he grew up hating everything christianity have. Gandhi was a very religious and spritual human, he practices spiritual lights that can't be claimed solely by any religion in the world. And atheist isn't weird, certain human are weird. Does anyone of you dare to say that Jerry Falwell is not weird?
get along, that's the key FallenAngel |
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#38 |
Refugee
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Purgatory
Posts: 1,101
Local Time: 10:12 AM
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Well said FallenAngel! Very well said indeed.
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#39 |
War Child
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Tucson, AZ ....USA
Posts: 528
Local Time: 07:12 AM
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atheists are weird....
but, so are people.... dammit, that means i'm weird! god-dammit-fuckin'-hell! argh! ![]() |
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#40 | |||
Acrobat
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: South Bend, IN USA
Posts: 399
Local Time: 03:12 PM
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