This is a vicious circle. If I’m openly tolerant of gays and abortion, then I’m being intolerant of the Catholic Churches intolerance of these people/actions? WTF?
I’ll just say this. My intolerance for organized religion (not just Catholics) stems primarily from organized religions intolerance of other people’s beliefs and actions.
I feel comfortable in saying that much of the intolerance that takes places in this world today is derived from religious beliefs and organized religion. That is a very bad thing.
You can call me intolerant, but it would be like you getting upset with me for hitting you when you hit me first.
I was taught as a young child that the two topics that could get my nose brokem are politics and religion.
Today both of these could be classified as cultish in their beliefs and following. To question a persons faith is to question their intelligence and their life choices. You have to expect those being questioned to repsond with venom and vitriol, not intellect.
Today both of these could be classified as cultish in their beliefs and following. So anyone with strong beliefs is, by definition, brainwashed? A mindless follower?
**To question a persons faith is to question their intelligence **It shouldn’t be. Interesting, though, how often it is. (And I don’t mean how often it’s perceived that way by the person who’s faith is being questioned. I mean, it’s interesting how often those doing the question jump right out of the blocks with contemptuous comments about how stupid people of faith are, how mindless they are, how cultish they are, how backward they are, how ignorant they are, and on and on.)
You have to expect those being questioned to repsond with venom and vitriol, not intellect.
Why is that? (Not, I guess, because the questioning was done with venom and vitriol, of course. Oh, no- any questioning of faith is ipso facto intellectual, and never venomous.) And I guess every response to a question about faith has been met with blind rage, right? There haven’t been any reasonable responses at all.
Today both of these could be classified as cultish in their beliefs and following. So anyone with strong beliefs is, by definition, brainwashed? A mindless follower? Sadly, yes. There is no room for dissent in politics or religion. It is the “ether you are with us or you are against us” mentality. I am glad that you disagree with me. It makes me happy to know that not everyone is as cynical about our institutions as i. By cultish I mean that i am right and everyone else is wrong and I will not listen to and constructively repsond to arguments(or attacks) with intellect but rather just shout the other person down with a stronger more vehement insult.
**To question a persons faith is to question their intelligence **It shouldn’t be. Interesting, though, how often it is. (And I don’t mean how often it’s perceived that way by the person who’s faith is being questioned. I mean, it’s interesting how often those doing the question jump right out of the blocks with contemptuous comments about how stupid people of faith are, how mindless they are, how cultish they are, how backward they are, how ignorant they are, and on and on.) This was a difficult thought to put into words. What I meant to say was that every reiligion/politicalparty believes itself to be the right one(otherwise why would people belong?) Therfore any questioning of the beliefs(whether contemtuos or genuine curiousity) are often met with defensive arguments rather than intellectual argument.
You have to expect those being questioned to repsond with venom and vitriol, not intellect.
Why is that? (Not, I guess, because the questioning was done with venom and vitriol, of course. Oh, no- any questioning of faith is ipso facto intellectual, and never venomous.) And I guess every response to a question about faith has been met with blind rage, right? There haven’t been any reasonable responses at all.
By cultish I mean that i am right and everyone else is wrong and I will not listen to and constructively repsond to arguments(or attacks) with intellect but rather just shout the other person down with a stronger more vehement insult.
Therfore any questioning of the beliefs(whether contemtuos or genuine curiousity) are often met with defensive arguments rather than intellectual argument.
I can’t say that it doesn’t often happen that way, of course. But in the first place, I think you’re somewhat glossing over the nature of a lot of the “questioning.” Too much of it isn’t questioning out of genuine curiosity (like, say, Amy’s question was yesterday) but is, right from the start, a contemptuous attack. I think it’s a bit much to complain about defensive arguments in response.
And more importantly, I don’t think it always happens that way, even in here. Are you really saying that people of faith in here never respond with honest, reasoned, intellectual arguments to honest questions about their beliefs?