Hasn't that ship already sailed? Does your god typically want go back to (Gentiles) who have consistently voted "No thanks." ? Why spend so much spiritual energy on reprobates? The "better" results would be to sell your bundle o' goods to poor and/or uneducated societies that are more likely to buy into (whatever) Bronze Age writings grip the imagination. Places in Africa come to mind. Oops, already happening.
You must be kind of lonely to come and visit us.
Apostates are what? less than 1% of the population.
Atheists are about 5% of the population.
I think we are doing pretty good, when it comes to actual numbers.
Christianity is actually in the increase the world over, every day that passes you are becoming less relevant.
If this keeps up we might have to put a few Atheists in the Zoo as an endangered species.
Of course apostates would deserve special protection.
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Apostates are what? less than 1% of the population.
Of the entire population? Is that what you really want to measure? Consider how that if only 1% of all apostolic believers ever left their beliefs, then apostolic church sects would be much, much bigger to have retained 99%. 1% of world's population isn't a bad number--isn't that more than all apostolics combined? But popularity and size trends of belief systems is little indication of which side is more or less true.
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Originally Posted by FlamingZword
Atheists are about 5% of the population.
Sure, if we define "non-atheist" to include anyone who wishes to claim being some kind of "believer" or other. Pagans, wiccans, animists would be included, as well as lapsed catholics, muslims, and anyone else who thinks they believe that a supernatural world containing supernatural beings exists. So no problem, go ahead and claim all those for your side of the equation. (What a testament to the chaos of various belief systems.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by FlamingZword
I think we are doing pretty good, when it comes to actual numbers.
It's fun to talk numbers, but I thought you were instead lamenting about _behavior_ in an America that needs to be <<Rechristianized>>. Your term indicates neither a cause nor a god that is "doing pretty good," in USA, IMO. On the other hand, we could measure sales of Christian music, and god is definitely doing "pretty good" there.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FlamingZword
Christianity is actually in the increase the world over, every day that passes you are becoming less relevant.
Some researchers would disagree, but it probably depends on exactly what you are measuring, and how you measure the "what." Here's a different take on the matter, from the Religion Section of the Huffington Post, which we both realize is liberal, and not necessarily authoritative, but probably neither are you or I in this case.
If this keeps up we might have to put a few Atheists in the Zoo as an endangered species.
Millions of Muslims would clap in agreement to your kind of humor.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FlamingZword
You must be kind of lonely to come and visit us.
And likewise NASA scientists scour the vastness of space hoping to hear intelligent life of some kind, and are so far empty handed, but that doesn't mean they are lonely (of course they may be anyhow, who knows.) And here I enjoy poking through a half-vast space, a.k.a. religion.
NASA scientists have scoured the vastness of MarcBee headspace hoping to find intelligence of some kind, and are so far empty handed, but that doesn't mean they have given up. (of course they may be eventually give up, who knows.) And here I enjoy poking through a half-vast space, a.k.a. atheism.
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How dishonest to change someone's else's quote and repost it as if theirs. But I'm not surprised you have no better ideas or ethics than that.
You talk about ideas or ethics?
come on according to the atheists everyone's ideas and ethics are equally valid.
A mass murder ethics are just as equal as a missionary who saves lives.
the Ethics of Hitler, Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot are just as Valid as the ethics of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington.
What makes my ethics wrong and yours right?
Should not my ethics have equal validity as yours?
based on what are your ethics better than mine?
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Come on humor me, tell me what makes your ethics better than mine, please enlighten us poor foolish Christians.
Never said my ethics are better than yours. But not surprised you would miss the nuances of what I did say not far back in TT, something like, "there can be several equally valid moral or ethical systems, according to the needs of particular societies." But today, perhaps my ethics are better than yours, considering I would never change someone's post, then repost that as if they had said it, as you just did.
But since you ask to be humored, here is one of the basic ideas of morality and ethics. The truly useful laws come organically from human nature (ie, empathy) as well as develop culturally according to needs of a society (ie, stability.) Consider the 3 most universally useful of the 10 commandments--don't murder, don't steal, and don't commit perjury. Were those a big surprise to the people of Moses' day, or rather something already understood thanks to human nature and a prior moral system already developed? Yet some christians today would have us believe that we only have Moses' tablets to thank for that knowledge. Consider the "original" 10th commandment (Ex. 34:26) "Thou shall not boil a kid goat in its mother's milk." And thus faith-based laws and morality ends up with useless silliness that is hard to change with reason alone, because the "faithful" are required to think only in terms of the faith handed to them. Sure, silly laws and ethics can come from other sources too, but those can be more easily killed with reason and poor results. Larger secular society today tries force the faith-filled-folks to grow up--and that's why only 3 of Moses' 10 commandments are taken very seriously by modern law. Those are the same 3 that are worth anything today, and the 3 that will and should remain. And no gods are necessary for any of this.
Never said my ethics are better than yours. But not surprised you would miss the nuances of what I did say not far back in TT, something like, "there can be several equally valid moral or ethical systems, according to the needs of particular societies." But today, perhaps my ethics are better than yours, considering I would never change someone's post, then repost that as if they had said it, as you just did.
But since you ask to be humored, here is one of the basic ideas of morality and ethics. The truly useful laws come organically from human nature (ie, empathy) as well as develop culturally according to needs of a society (ie, stability.) Consider the 3 most universally useful of the 10 commandments--don't murder, don't steal, and don't commit perjury. Were those a big surprise to the people of Moses' day, or rather something already understood thanks to human nature and a prior moral system already developed? Yet some christians today would have us believe that we only have Moses' tablets to thank for that knowledge. Consider the "original" 10th commandment (Ex. 34:26) "Thou shall not boil a kid goat in its mother's milk." And thus faith-based laws and morality ends up with useless silliness that is hard to change with reason alone, because the "faithful" are required to think only in terms of the faith handed to them. Sure, silly laws and ethics can come from other sources too, but those can be more easily killed with reason and poor results. Larger secular society today tries force the faith-filled-folks to grow up--and that's why only 3 of Moses' 10 commandments are taken very seriously by modern law. Those are the same 3 that are worth anything today, and the 3 that will and should remain. And no gods are necessary for any of this.
I guess some people need divine decree to be good. (Never mind that they don't actually follow all of those decrees. I'm just talking about motivation, here.)
Reminds me of a plaque I saw on a Christian friend's wall the other day. (Actual wall, at their house, I mean. ) It was a Bible verse:
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
I read it and thought, "Really? That's why we should be kind to strangers? In case they are actually angels?"
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Hebrews 13:23 Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty
I guess some people need divine decree to be good. (Never mind that they don't actually follow all of those decrees. I'm just talking about motivation, here.)
Reminds me of a plaque I saw on a Christian friend's wall the other day. (Actual wall, at their house, I mean. ) It was a Bible verse:
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
I read it and thought, "Really? That's why we should be kind to strangers? In case they are actually angels?"
Hey Timmy Angels are mighty and powerful a couple of Angels destroyed Sodom and Gomorra, you would not want those two guys outside your house and not invite them in like Lot did.
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) It was a Bible verse:
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