I am a doubting Donald.

Heraclitus comments on Apr 14, 2019:

Not sure what this has to do with philosophy, but OK. I have never seen an ET either, but I once momentarily thought I saw a UFO. It turned out to be the Goodyear blimp turned sideways.

The "God Concept.

Heraclitus comments on May 5, 2018:

Reminds me of the theologian Paul Tillich's redefinition of God as one's ultimate concern in life. Whatever is one's ultimate concern in life, or whatever is one's ultimate motivation in life, is one's God. A better God concept than a guy on Mt. Olympus raining down thunderbolts, or a guy on Mt. Sinai raining down fire and brimstone. The ultimate concern of an agnostic/atheist is truth.

Causality, much like reality, isn't what it used to be... [phys.org]

Heraclitus comments on Oct 31, 2019:

Just when I thought I was beginning to get my head around spooky-action-at-a-distance, now physicists come up with a serious consideration of retrocausality, which is even more counter-intuitive, that may supercede it.

oubliette - french for a dungeon with the only entrance or exit being a trap door in the ceiling

Heraclitus comments on Jul 26, 2018:

Comes from the French word oublier which means to forget. People in a dungeon are forgotten people.

What is Nothingness, does nothingness exists?

Heraclitus comments on Apr 18, 2019:

If total nothingness existed, we wouldn't be able to ask the question.

I WILL REACH LVL 7 - Probably in a month or so. After that, I'll be there for years.

Heraclitus comments on Nov 5, 2018:

Yeah, I finally just made level 7.2. Sure you could post and comment all day, day after day, have no other life, and make level 8 in a matter of months, but what is the point of chasing points for the sake of making points? If you want a T-shirt so badly just go to the website store and buy one.

One thing I've noticed, is that many here and elsewhere who have rejected christianity, in theory ...

Heraclitus comments on Nov 12, 2018:

Most people seem predisposed to believe in something greater than themselves. It almost doesn't seem to matter what it is. Some scientists argue that this is genetic in nature. Ever hear of the god gene VMAT2? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_gene

What's atheism without religion?

Heraclitus comments on Apr 11, 2018:

There is an old saying: " In the beginning God created truth. Then the devil said, 'Let us organize truth and call it religion.' "

Is atheism loosing ground owing to religious fundamentalism?

Heraclitus comments on Apr 14, 2022:

We are entering a time of increasing chaos and anxiety for a number of reasons. In such times people tend to turn more toward religion for comfort and hope. The religious fundamentals also tend to become emboldened and more vocal.

aa Individualism vs Perfectionism 20190807 By my early 20s, as a new young adult, I had become ...

Heraclitus comments on Aug 7, 2019:

Perfectionists are delusional and project their own shortcomings upon others. What they cannot tolerate in themselves, they cannot tolerate in others.

Another recent announcement from the Lurch of splatter spray taints Apparently from this year on, ...

Heraclitus comments on Feb 16, 2019:

I guess it is hard to convert others when you are depressed, homesick, suicidal, and attempting to escape.

(So absurd & pitiful...) The Zack Smack - AXP [youtube.com]

Heraclitus comments on Sep 6, 2018:

Anyone who claims the bible predicts and validates modern science knows neither science nor the bible.

Salvation, Damnation and everything in between thanks to Tommy Johnson. [youtube.com]

Heraclitus comments on Jun 7, 2018:

Crossroads was resurrected by Cream in 1966.

Why are agnostics and atheists so hostile to my non-theistic belief of theological noncognitivism?

Heraclitus comments on May 17, 2019:

Sounds similar to ignosticism. I have often told people that I am ignostic without experiencing hostility. Though I have occasionally come across a narrow-minded atheist who insists there are only atheists and theists in the world and denies all other distinctions.

He Made America Great Again [ghionjournal.com]

Heraclitus comments on Dec 7, 2018:

Do you mean, he made American grope again? :)

Human Traits Derivative of God & Sacrifice of Jesus | Chris - Boise, ID | Atheist Experience 22.

Heraclitus comments on Nov 7, 2018:

Painfully weak rationalizations.

What's the Difference Between Agnosticism and Atheism? | HowStuffWorks

Heraclitus comments on May 2, 2019:

You didn't include the option of Ignostic.

Ah-h yes .

Heraclitus comments on Sep 22, 2019:

Nothing is more malleable than scripture. If you take the Bible literally, it condemns itself.

I was raised Catholic and always questioned why priests and nuns could never get married.

Heraclitus comments on Aug 29, 2018:

It goes back to Paul and 1 Corinthians 7:8 "Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do." The idea is that you are "married" to the Church and theoretically you will be more dedicated to the Church if you don't have a family to worry about. But there is more to it than that. Priests and nuns are supported by the Church, and if they were allowed to marry then the Church would be obligated to support their whole families which would cost considerably more money.

How quantised inertia gets rid of dark matter by Mike McCulloch.

Heraclitus comments on Feb 2, 2019:

An interesting fringe theory, but often criticized as pseudo-science. Of course, that doesn't automatically mean it is false.

Hello to all, I just joined this group. How are all my fellow heathens to night?

Heraclitus comments on Jun 12, 2018:

Greetings. So why did you join this group? Any story to tell?

Truth as such has no value in itself

Heraclitus comments on Jun 16, 2019:

Your statement that truth has no value is not true. But, according to your own post, I don't suppose you really care much whether it is true or not.

Is right and wrong relative or fixed (absolute)?

Heraclitus comments on Oct 3, 2019:

You don't give enough options. Sam Harris, for example, argues for a humanistic ethics based on well-being that is neither absolute nor entirely relative.

Seven months ago, my mother implied that I would go to hell if I became an catholic.

Heraclitus comments on Sep 12, 2018:

I've often wondered if that has ever worked? Telling someone, or implying, that they are going to hell if they don't believe as you do always seems to have the opposite effect. Why would it be convincing?

Natural disasters

Heraclitus comments on Oct 6, 2018:

The Apocalypse is mythical, and I don't find myths scary.

Is religion the cause of all (or most) wars?

Heraclitus comments on Aug 23, 2018:

It may not be that religion is the direct cause of the beginning of most wars, though it certainly is of some, but it sure is useful in uniting and motivating people against a common enemy, as in "if God is for us, who can be against us?" and "if God is on our side, the devil must be on theirs."

Hi folks! I'm about to meet a psychic for the first time. What do you think about medium work?

Heraclitus comments on Aug 26, 2018:

I had a reading once. (It was a free first reading.) But I could tell she was telling me what she thought I wanted to hear.

I’m With Progressives Against Impeachment [commondreams.

Heraclitus comments on Dec 12, 2018:

There could be a case made against impeachment, but I don't think you have made one. I think the calls for impeachment are premature, but to address your points: 1) If there is a case made for impeachment it won't be about personal morals. That wasn't even true for Clinton, Nixon, or Andrew Johnson. It would be about abuse of power, obstruction of justice, conspiracy to influence the election, perjury, etc. And if we never do anything to stop that, we can kiss what's left of our democracy goodbye. 2) You are ignoring the importance of scale as those are not the leader of our nation and the Free World. Corruption on a lesser scale does not justify corruption on a greater scale. But that notwithstanding, so what? Maybe they should be thrown out of office, too. Should we really just give up and declare all corruption to be OK? 3) The fact that other people are corrupt and culpable (who BTW are not the President and not as important) doesn't make the guilty innocent? What if we let a murderer off because other people murder. What if we let thieves off because other people steal? Etc. Try telling a cop that it makes no sense to give you a speeding ticket because other people speed. You can't justify corruption and evil with the excuse that other people are corrupt and evil. If that makes it OK we might as well throw out all our laws. What kind of a world would that be? 4) This simply is not true. There was a very extensive Stop Trump movement. It just failed. The fault lies with the American public who voted for Trump anyway, not those who tried to stop him and failed.

Supernatural VS Atheist

Heraclitus comments on Jul 22, 2018:

I've never heard a ghost story that was convincing. It always sounded like someone's imagination running away with them. BTW, trusting someone is irrelevant to whether or not a "ghost" is really a ghost. I'd be curious to hear what stories you have heard that were so convincing.

Welcome @Recordstatic

Heraclitus comments on Mar 20, 2019:

Welcome apostate. :)

I was raised in a Mormon family and I currently attend a Unitarian Universalist.

Heraclitus comments on Feb 28, 2019:

You seem to fit the agnostic category.

1 Corinthians 7:29 (NRSV) - I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from ...

Heraclitus comments on Sep 30, 2019:

...and you are supposed to abandon your wife?

Overpopulation – The Root Cause of Our Problems – Why Is It a Taboo Topic?

Heraclitus comments on Nov 25, 2018:

Didn't know it was taboo. Have heard people talk about it all my life, although I heard more talk about it when I was young. Also, I heard more talk about the possibility of nuclear war when I was young. Maybe it is just because we are more focused on terrorism, climate change and being replaced by robots. It is difficult to panic about too many things at once.

[askforevidence.org] EVIDENCE HUNTER PACK available

Heraclitus comments on Feb 2, 2019:

Sounds encouraging. Something adults could use, as well.

"Only sheep need a shepherd." Voltaire

Heraclitus comments on Jan 16, 2019:

Well, that's most of us, unfortunately.

Life is much easier to living without hell or a god

Heraclitus comments on Oct 29, 2018:

Bill Moyers once confessed that life would be easier without a belief in God because then one would not have to spend one's whole life trying to reconcile religion with reality.

"It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he never was reasoned into.

Heraclitus comments on Aug 3, 2018:

Gee, now I understand theists! ;)

Arguments about God?

Heraclitus comments on Apr 16, 2019:

I too find the argument by Plantinga incredible, but I do think he is right about one thing. Most people do believe without any real reason to do so other than they were raised to so believe and it makes them feel good, comfortable and secure to continue to do so. It is called blind faith. The fine-tuning argument is basically bogus: 1) The so called fine-tuning is not as "fine" as theists would often have you believe. There is a range to these variables, though a small one, so it is not as precisely "tuned" as they would have you believe. So, if God is perfect, why didn't he get it precisely right in his so-called "fine tuning"? This is an argument for a somewhat sloppy God. 2) It is not true that if any of these variables were changed beyond these ranges that life would not exist. Just that life as we know it would not exist. It is this narrow-minded assumption and lack of imagination, along with anthropic arrogance that life must be modeled after us, that underlies the theistic fine-tuning argument. We really have no idea what kind of life forms might exist in hypothetical different universes as we have no such experience to relate it to. 3) This universe, as far as we know, is actually extremely hostile to life. It appears that in 99% plus of the universe life, as least we know it, doesn't exit and it may be impossible for it to exist. This is the theist argument of an extremely wasteful God. 4) If any of the multiverse theories (hypotheses) are correct, then there is actually a virtual certainty (you approach a mathematical limit) that life would exist in at least one, if not many, universes. Theists dishonestly fail to mention this because it would undercut their entire argument. As for your Simulated (Virtual Reality) Universe proposal, it is entirely possible and there is even some evidence for it at the quantum level of physics.

The following question came up during a lunch break at work.

Heraclitus comments on Aug 26, 2019:

It is not necessarily gene editing itself, but how it is likely to be used. It might work itself out eventually over time, but initially gene editing and designer babies will only be affordable by the rich. If you think we suffer from class disparity now, just wait until gene editing becomes the privilege of the wealthy privileged power elite to more or less clone themselves through their children (only a little better). Just imagine a country dominated by a thousand Trump clones and you'll get the gist of the danger. And it is also quite possible that the wealthy power elite will never allow the lower classes to enjoy the advantages of designer babies in order to maintain their hold on power. In other words, the world of designer babies may well be more dystopian than utopian. What do think will think become of the rest of us? If we do in up in such a dystopian world of the privileged genetically superior it may takes centuries to recover...if at all.

A smooth exit from eternal inflation? (Stephen Hawking, Thomas Hertog)

Heraclitus comments on Nov 7, 2018:

Why, of course. Why didn't I think of that. ;)

Is the universe finite?

Heraclitus comments on Sep 12, 2019:

You will never even begin, and I stress "begin", to understand the Universe if you think only in Flatland and Newtonian terms.

An interesting algorithm

Heraclitus comments on May 19, 2018:

Thanks for sharing this. Older Mormons have told me that the semi-deification of Joseph Smith is a relatively recent phenomenon. When they were growing up JS was talked about as a more failable human being and it was only gradually that it got to the point that you didn't dare say anything even slightly negative about JS. More recently, however, it seems the lid has come off. BTW, before the days of computers, this used to be called a flow chart.

I believe that religion is an early, primitive attempt to understand the world.

Heraclitus comments on Dec 15, 2018:

Agreed. Without the mystery of unanswered questions there would be no religion.

Some people think way too much and don't get to any place at all.

Heraclitus comments on Nov 25, 2019:

That's usually because they are thinking about the wrong things, or asking the wrong questions, and so go round in stagnant circles.

Hello fellow Carolinians! I was going to say Tarheels but I remembered our southern sister ...

Heraclitus comments on Feb 7, 2019:

Well, some say its gamecocks. Don't think that's official, though.

Welcome sharkymama

Heraclitus comments on Jan 27, 2019:

Welcome.

Have you ever debated with a Scientologist?

Heraclitus comments on Jun 7, 2018:

Yes, they usually identify so strongly with their belief system that a debate is useless. I think they feel that if they admit they are wrong, they are admitting they have wasted their lives.

I want to fall in love and be loved. I wonder why that is so hard

Heraclitus comments on Nov 13, 2018:

You don't choose who you fall in love with, that's why it is called "falling" in love. Because if feels like involuntary falling without a net. And if you don't fall in love, it is pretty hard to be loved back.

The Christian religion was created by the Roman Flavian emperors, according to Joseph Atwill and a ...

Heraclitus comments on Mar 8, 2023:

If Jesus was not invented until the Roman Flavian emperiors how is it possible that there were popes prior to this, and that there are plenty of historical documents verifying this? The only way to maintain this Flavian conspiracy theory is to denounce countless historical records as fraudulent. If you can denounce history as a fraud, then I guess you can maintain any conspiracy theory you want, can't you?

An article in today's Guardian discusses the Socialistic uprising that is pushing the Democratic ...

Heraclitus comments on Aug 20, 2018:

I think it is a loss of faith in unbridled corrupt casino capitalism. Capitalism simply doesn't work without the proper institutional restraints. Look at what happened when Russia experimented with capitalism. It was a disaster that drove them back into an authoritarian state. It may, however, be too late for this country to go socialist, even if we wanted it to. There is already serious talk of cutting Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and government pensions. Where would a government with over 21T in debt get the money to pay for additional socialist programs without jacking taxes through the roof? We would probably end up like Venezuela or Greece.

Dances with Wolves with Kevin Costner

Heraclitus comments on Oct 16, 2018:

A classic. A long movie that never loses your attention.

Is democracy really the best form of government? | Steven Pinker, BigThink [youtube.com]

Heraclitus comments on Jul 7, 2018:

One could make an argument that we don't really live in a democracy anymore. It has become a plutocracy under a democratic guise.

The earth's magnetic North is shifting so fast! [amp.businessinsider.com]

Heraclitus comments on Apr 30, 2019:

Hmm, reminds me of the Immanuel Velikovsky theory that every once in a while the earth's poles flip causing natural catastrophes.

@JimPlatt2 Welcome Jim

Heraclitus comments on Dec 11, 2018:

Welcome

Glass half full or half empty?

Heraclitus comments on May 10, 2018:

An optimist says the glass is half-full. A pessimist says the glass is half-empty. An engineer says the glass is twice a big as it needs to be. :-)

I like to bring up Zipporah.

Heraclitus comments on Jun 23, 2018:

"24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. 25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. 26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision."

The center for inquiry is suing CVS for selling homeopathic treatments.

Heraclitus comments on Jul 25, 2018:

There isn't a single specific example of what they are calling homeopathic medicine, which makes me skeptical of their widespread condemnation of homeopathy.

What if Jesus was really black?

Heraclitus comments on Oct 3, 2019:

One thing is for certain, Jesus was not a blue-eyed blond Caucasian. A small possibility he was black, but almost certainly an olive-skinned semite who looked much like the millions of semites whose looks Christians have insulted and have persecuted down through the centuries.

THE CONCEPT OF NOTHING.

Heraclitus comments on Oct 20, 2019:

It is false that scientists claim that the universe came out of nothing. Even when there is "no thing" or no mass particles (fermions) there are quantum fields and the inherent energy of quantum fields. Anything beyond the Big Bang (not before the Big Bang since speaking of the time before time existed makes no sense) we simply have no knowledge of, and that's all that scientists really say, not that the universe came out of nothing. On the contrary, it is modern theists who claim that God created the universe out of nothing, or creation ex nihilo. Early Greek philosophers, and all ancient mythologies that we know of, routinely believed that the earth was created out of some sort of pre-existing stuff or matter, not out of nothing. This is because they felt it was inherently illogical for something to come out of nothing. Nothing comes from nothing. (Even Shakespeare's King Lear says this.) Something can only come from something. Creation ex nihilo is a second-century theological development of Roman Catholic theologians as a way of saying, "our God is greater than your God because he can even create something out of nothing." Theists recognize this is an illogical claim, even for God, so they simply say that this is a miracle that cannot be understood.

Welcome Dakin

Heraclitus comments on Nov 30, 2018:

Welcome and share your experiences.

"Even if you believe a creator god invented the laws of physics, would you so insult him as to ...

Heraclitus comments on Jul 29, 2018:

Or maybe God didn't do such a good job on the laws of physics, so he has to violate them once in a while just to make things work out the way he wants them to. Come to think of it, that might explain a lot about how the earth has turned out. ;)

Which God is best?

Heraclitus comments on Sep 21, 2018:

The one whose name people shout all the time, "Ohmygod".

I was once President Packer's home teacher.

Heraclitus comments on Jun 18, 2018:

I knew someone who was almost disfellowed by BKP because of an article he wrote for the New Era, although obviously the editors of the New Era, located in the LDS Church Office Building, had no problem with it.

So, why are you an Atheist?

Heraclitus comments on Feb 3, 2019:

Honesty. Why pretend to believe something you don't know?

Ugh.

Heraclitus comments on Jun 2, 2018:

Agnosticism, in fact, is not a creed, but a method, the essence of which lies in the rigorous application of a single principle ... Positively the principle may be expressed: In matters of the intellect, follow your reason as far as it will take you, without regard to any other consideration. And negatively: In matters of the intellect do not pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated or demonstrable. — Thomas Henry Huxley Agnosticism is of the essence of science, whether ancient or modern. It simply means that a man shall not say he knows or believes that which he has no scientific grounds for professing to know or believe. Consequently, agnosticism puts aside not only the greater part of popular theology, but also the greater part of anti-theology. On the whole, the "bosh" of heterodoxy is more offensive to me than that of orthodoxy, because heterodoxy professes to be guided by reason and science, and orthodoxy does not. — Thomas Henry Huxley

"It's not what I say, it's what the Bible says."

Heraclitus comments on Aug 23, 2018:

When they say something like that, they are in effect, admitting their conscience disagrees with the Bible. They are doing something their conscience tells them is unethical but they are allowing the Bible to override their conscience. So, then the question is if they were not indoctrinated in the Bible as a child and were reading any so-called "scripture" for the first time, would they do something evil or "sinful" just because some old book says so?

Magnetic Force Does NOT Exist! Science Asylum [youtube.com]

Heraclitus comments on Jun 8, 2018:

It appears to be a fun, weird way of saying that there is not really such a thing as a separate magnetic force. It is all electromagnetism.

Are you a "Noah denier" If you recognize that the great flood story is just a myth?

Heraclitus comments on Aug 24, 2019:

I agree we should be objective, but Richard Carrier who is a cherry-picking mythist and activist is far from objective. He has made up his mind that such people never exited and argues his way backwards from his mythological assumptions, refusing to consider the validity of any historical evidence or witnesses which he justs dismisses as so much BS. It's all just a global conspiracy theory, don't you know? What difference does it matter if an itinerant peacher Joshua ben Joseph, along with hundreds of others like him, existed anyway? You don't have to deny someone's existence to dismiss their related religious nonsense. Ask yourself why it is so important to Carrier to deny that such people even existed? Heck, similar self-proclaimed prophets even exist today? So what? Who cares? What's the hangup? Instead, let's be objective.

Sam Harris demolishes Christianity.

Heraclitus comments on Dec 12, 2018:

The Christian God is obviously not a loving God. Even if there was a God, I don't see how it could be the hateful Christian God.

Does anyone believe their is something else out there after our time on Earth?

Heraclitus comments on May 1, 2019:

Wishful thinking.

"Not far from the invention of fire... we must rank the invention of doubt." Thomas Henry Huxley

Heraclitus comments on Jan 16, 2019:

I doubt that doubt was ever actually invented.

So.

Heraclitus comments on Jul 20, 2019:

So...where did they go? Did they just figure that creating us was all one big mistake and flew the coop?

Well that'll do it I suppose Christian Teacher Ended Her Husband’s Porn Habit… By Shooting ...

Heraclitus comments on Apr 30, 2019:

That oughta do it.

I have often heard atheists and agnostics accused of believing in nothing, especially by apologists.

Heraclitus comments on Apr 5, 2022:

I don't think it is simply a matter of replacing old broken and corrupt beliefs with better ones. Agnostics/atheists are saying that don't believe in religious belief systems, which the other things you mention are not. It is a rejection of theistic-based belief systems.

Why we are escaping the death?

Heraclitus comments on Jun 3, 2019:

Because most people live in denial of death. The human ego fears death and so lives in denial and escape. But if you can shake the almighty ego's hold on you it is pretty easy to accept the inevitable.

Religion = intolerance

Heraclitus comments on Feb 8, 2019:

Scarily true.

This is the narrative from: God's 12 Biggest Dick Moves in the Old Testament, Rob Bricken, ...

Heraclitus comments on Feb 2, 2019:

So, God creates someone a certain way and then disowns his "mistakes"?

Hal Galper trio - like sonny [m.youtube.com]

Heraclitus comments on Aug 23, 2019:

Galper worked with Chet Baker and Stan Getz and accompanied vocalists Joe Williams, Anita O'Day, and Chris Connor.

In other species there are thieves, murderers and those who display what we would describe as loose ...

Heraclitus comments on May 21, 2019:

I have seen dogs, and even a kitten, show looks of remorse on their face after a scolding. But I doubt that is the same as guilt. Guilt is something that humans dwell on and introvert on. Animals seem to immediately move on to their next action.

I'm at a complete loss why most people think everything has to be so binary.

Heraclitus comments on Jul 25, 2018:

Seems to be symptomatic of our post-modern society in which so many people grow up in their own isolated social media bubble.

There is no debate.

Heraclitus comments on Nov 13, 2019:

???

Theists and believers

Heraclitus comments on Jul 23, 2018:

Sure, but be prepared to be challenged. But, I assume you must be willing to be challenged or you wouldn't be here. What most agnostics/atheists on this site object to is theists coming on this website to save us poor infidels from the eternal torturous hell of a loving God.

How do you view Jesus?

Heraclitus comments on Dec 6, 2023:

Yes, I think he actually existed, though of course, his name was not Jesus. That is a Greek name. He was most likely Yeshua or Jeshua. Of course, he was not a Christian. The word did not even exist during his lifetime. He was Jewish, preached Judiasm, and never claimed to be anything else. I don't understand why some people find it so important to claim that he never even existed (Mythicists). They often claim that there is not definite proof that he lived even though there were countless witnesses and writings about him including non-Christian sources. But, guess what? That is pretty much true of every ancient historical figure. Can you definitely prove that Alexander the Great ever existed? How? So should we then claim virtually all ancient historical figures to be myths? Some even claim that New Testament Gospels were written by a group of individuals connected to the Flavian family of Roman emperors and that is when the "myth" of Jesus Christ began. But there were Christian popes before then, so how did there get to be popes before Jesus?

Did Jesus even exist?

Heraclitus comments on Jun 12, 2018:

Saw an interesting talk by three Mythicists, Robert Price, Richard Carrier, and David Fitzgerald on the topic "Did Jesus Exist?" Very interesting. Robert Price admitted that the historical Jesus may have existed. Richard Carrier stated that we can't extract "truth" from the Gospels. However, this is a philosophical argument (his training is as a philosopher) and not a historical argument. He is improperly imposing a philosophical judgment upon history. Historians don't even go there. David Fitzgerald said Mysticists love Ehrman because he agrees with them so much and makes their arguments for them such as in his book Forged. He also said that the only difference that Mysticists have with Ehrman is that they take their conclusion a little further than he does. Carrier then agreed and said that Mysticists are only a couple of tweeks away from Erhman. This is exactly correct! The only major difference between Ehrman and the fringe group the Mysticists (they refer to themselves a fringe group in this talk) is that Ehrman, out of scholarly honesty, refuses to leap to the illogical conclusion that the historical man Jesus never existed. Hurray for honesty! Without professional honesty we simply become what we despise...just on the opposite end of the spectrum.

You can't be agnostic and athiest so..

Heraclitus comments on Jan 22, 2019:

How Can Someone be an Agnostic and an Atheist at the Same Time? https://www.patheos.com/blogs/godlessmom/2019/01/how-can-someone-be-an-agnostic-and-an-atheist-at-the-same-time/?utm_source=Newsletter=email

Welcome Superwhiff

Heraclitus comments on Nov 25, 2018:

Welcome

Jesus' own mother and family thought he was crazy-go nuts according to Mark 3:20-21.

Heraclitus comments on Dec 9, 2019:

Also, Luke 2:49-50 child Jesus teaching in the temple: And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” But they did not understand the statement which He spoke to them. So, how come Jesus' parents didn't know what he was talking about? Wasn't the angel Gabriel clear enough? Or did they think that Gabriel was crazy-go nuts, too?

THE UNWOKE BLIND RACISM OF CANCEL CULTURE Sometimes the white supremacy assumptions of extreme ...

Heraclitus comments on Mar 12, 2023:

I am still amazed with how many people completely missed the point of the OP, whether consciously or unconsciously, simply by taking issue with the single word "banned" and totally ignoring the entire substance of the OP as if they would not, or could not deal with it. Cancel culture does not, of course, legally ban anything and that, of course, is not what I meant. I was rather referring to being effectively removed or "banned" from our culture, society, and schools, which is what happened through the effect of getting TTTISIOMS removed from publication. It is now a collectors item, quite expensive and effectively beyond the access of almost all of us. I did not simply keep using the same word "canceled" because that would have been a tedious redundancy and hence poor grammar. I did not use the world "censored" would not have been an appropriate word either, for that implies a forceful legal action that did not occur. What I really find scary, however, is the ostrich-with-its-head-in-the-sand approach of distraction by focusing on a misinterpretation of a single word as an excuse for completely ignoring a serious issue on several levels.

I came here to share info with other like-minded individuals.

Heraclitus comments on Jun 2, 2018:

Profile's gone. Anyone know what the flouncer's beef was? What would constitute "other like-minded individuals"?

Did Jesus ever wonder about this about his all powerful omnipotent father?

Heraclitus comments on May 6, 2019:

Matthew 27:46 Around the ninth hour, Jesus shouted in a loud voice, saying "Eli Eli lama sabachthani?" which is, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Mark 15:34 And at the ninth hour, Jesus shouted in a loud voice, "Eloi Eloi lama sabachthani?" which is translated, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" It is the only saying that appears in more than one Gospel

The Bible is so full of ridiculous inconsistencies! The poor couple of sloths would take 52 years to...

Heraclitus comments on Aug 13, 2018:

Gee, I wonder how long it took all the virus and bacteria to walk to the arc? :)

This is very interesting.

Heraclitus comments on Jul 16, 2018:

Too much speculative based on too many far-reaching assumptions for me. Ancient pyramids that were really power plants, really?

Prof Stephen Hawking's multiverse finale - BBC News

Heraclitus comments on May 21, 2018:

It's metaphysics, not physics. BTW, inflation is not unproven, though everything else is. So what? No scientist ever claimed the multiverse hypothesis was proven science. If it was it wouldn't be an hypothesis.

I seem to have lost 1,000 points in the past week.

Heraclitus comments on Oct 29, 2018:

I refreshed my points page recently and saw 5 pts disappear. Not much, but I can't explain it.

The existing/non existing Universe

Heraclitus comments on Oct 4, 2018:

Past and future are convenient human concepts that are difficult to grasp scientifically. For example, everything you experience is in the past. It takes a small amount of time for light waves to travel to your eyes, and then a small amount of time for your brain to process your sense data. And, of course, everything that is further away is something further in the past relative to you. The sun is eight minutes and twenty seconds in the past relative to you on earth. You never experience life in the absolute present. So, the true present is unknown and unknowable to us. There are possible future events, but the future does not exist as an existential entity, but only in our imagination. So from the standpoint of human experience, there is only the past.

Why is Faith considered so dearly and science is not?

Heraclitus comments on Apr 29, 2018:

Because your facts, evidence, and proof are a threat to their emotional declarations of faith. People who feel threatened defensively lash out, including ad hominem attacks against the speaker. If they can dismiss you as one of the eternally damned, then why should they have to listen to you in the first place?

James Madison on the separation of church and state

Heraclitus comments on Oct 24, 2019:

When religion and government marriage they corrupt each other. The Founding Fathers knew this because they knew the history of Europe.

Apparently out Islamic Brethren are in a flap again because if one takes the term "Nike air max" ...

Heraclitus comments on Feb 4, 2019:

Stepping on Allah is considered pretty badly blasphemous in the Muslim world. And there are probably some who suspect this similar design was intentional. It is so hard not to blaspheme nowadays.

I wish but doubt a blue wave

Heraclitus comments on Nov 3, 2018:

Most predictions are for a small blue wave, more of a large ripple.

Atheist = Depressed?

Heraclitus comments on Oct 22, 2018:

I don't see the depression here that you do. Haven't come across anyone here that seemed suicidal. I think you might be mistaking cynicism and sarcasm for depression. Personally, I am happier and more relaxed since stripping myself of theistic delusions. Religious people are actually often under a lot of pressure to be good enough, have enough faith, keep up appearances, maintain their reputation in the congregation, always interpret scripture correctly, believe the socially acceptable right things, never let any doubt show, etc. I've known a lot of fake-happy Christians who put on a happy face.