i don't see any good old action.
where are my good brothers abracadabra and spider?

Belated Merry Christmas. Sorry, couldn't tell ya where they might have gone, since I don't know anyone on here. I hope you find them soon.

Probably our living life instead of simply sitting and thinking about it?

they know what i mean.
Just a sincere wish of happy holidays to those two good friends of mine.

Merry Christmas to you Miguel...

the same for u

I recently had a discussion with someone whom I admire. He is very well spoken and educated. He is of the opinion that protestants are moral relativists and that no protestant is safe in their salvation, only Catholics can be sure of their salvation. In the end, this very intelligent young man was forced to use a logical fallacy. He suggested that since we can't agree on doctrine, then he must be right because the Pope says so. Truely shameful. Fortunately, I can compartmentalize and I still appreciate his commentary on Politics and society, but I will avoid future discussions of religion.

After this discussion, I realized that discussions are pointless. When the discussion is done, pride has prevented anyone from conceeding ground. I honestly believe that only...maybe 1% of people (on the outside) are capable of changing due to discussing issues with another.

Though im usually just a secondary player in the philosophical arguments on the forums,
Ive been 2 busy writing 2 argue, granted my poetry is an extension of my philosophy and if i piss people off with it then its working

I agree spider, people smart enough to argue philosophy/theology are also too proud to change their opinions due to what someone else says

now for some shameless self-promotion
Hey has anybody seen my doctrine of hedonism?

I’ve been busy writing songs and demonstrating that I can’t sing them.

I bought a set of Conga and Bongo drums in the hope that learning how to drum will help me to get more rhythm. After spending most of my life in either laboratories or classrooms I need to ‘beat’ the nerdiness out of my bones.

I told my sister about it and she surprised me by telling me that she too has been playing drums lately!

She joined a group called “Spiritual Bones”. They aren’t a “musical group”, they really are a spiritual group. A fellow started this as a way to find the spirit in the physical. He argued that far too many people are seeking spirit in meditation, thought, and even by reading doctrines etc. He believes that the spirit is indeed just as physical as everything else.

It’s the “essence” of the physical he says.

In any case, what they do as a group is to get together and he provide them all with various drums and other percussion type instruments. Instruments that don’t require any “musical skill”. Then everyone just sits around and the idea is for everyone to just start randomly making “noise” with their percussion instrument. He says to just do whatever you want without any judgment on whether or not it sounds good. No one cares what it sounds like.

They did these in a room with lighting turned down low and at first it sounding a bit chaotic but they just kept beating away. After al while the group become a pulse as everyone began to fall into a single beat. Then the beat began to branch off into other beats like a fractal growing.

They didn’t this for about 30 minutes and my sister said that it was really cool and she ways drumming up a storm that just fit in so perfectly and it all just came so naturally. She said that she was almost in a trance when they finally quit. It really was a spiritual experience for her.

Sounds pretty cool, I wish I could have been part of that.

Pride, yes, and having an ideological position interwoven with one's own sense of identity.

Spider, I believe you are articulating one of the main reasons so many JSHers avoid the religion forum like the plague.

While no discussion has 'changed' any of my core beliefs recently, many discussion help me to have greater tolerance/acceptance of other's beliefs by virtue of greater understand of how they came to those beliefs, and what those beleifs rest on.

Hi Miguel, everyone(again).

Trying out a new thing, Miguel - make your own doctrine thread. It's really very intersting and though I don't want to ruin it, but..., for a week or so , it seems that we've been a bit more 'tolerant' as a whole.

Of course this may change, now that Santa is out of the picture till next year.

Nice to see ya TLW!

greetings lady di

Hey TLW, I'm not a philosopher, but popped in to say have a great Holiday Season.......

Same here. Not a philosophical brain cell to be had. But love seeing you here.
Kat

Google philosophy talk, there is a fun talk show out of Berkley. Hits on all sorts of topics. Its fun

what action?....I've notice that everytime a question is introduced that might cause one to think beyond an irrational response instead of answering the questions with a debatable rational answer they choose to go off topic or hide behind the utterance of the word "faith"

it has become who can "google cut and paste" from the bible the fastest

Ah... Good morning funches...

Ah... Good morning funches...

Is anyone here a mystical pantheist like me? Or does the crowd believe we're seperate from god and have to use the clergy to communicate and "get it right"?