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Common ground.

BrettNortje

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The way religion works is that there is a focus of the religion and then you need to try to get into that way of living. this is true with every religion from christianity to buddhism, where you have a mantra or rules and then you need to try to set an example for others to follow too.

Today, everybody follows examples, whether they know it or not. take that diet guy, that is a way of living, yes? following his rules would be like a way of life. when the pope talks about gay rights, people often follow for a short period and then forget about it. this is because there is so much going on around them, they have only so much attention to give.

I find the common ground between religions comes in the society they thrive in. all religions suite the place they are in, because they were made by the people that came generations before, and, the way things have panned out, they are more like those people than other people, obviously.

Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them. which ones says you must not steal? all of them. this means that all religions are more or less the same - it is the people practicing them that change them. this is because the people that wrote their bibles were seeing the world one way, and said something else. this is because the slogan "do as i say and not as i do" is so relevant today. if everybody did as they said, not as they did, then there would be more satisfaction for the people.

Why do people have religions? this would be because of agreements between leaders and people to act in a certain way, so it is something like politics, in practice. having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior.
 
The way religion works is that there is a focus of the religion and then you need to try to get into that way of living. this is true with every religion from christianity to buddhism, where you have a mantra or rules and then you need to try to set an example for others to follow too.

Today, everybody follows examples, whether they know it or not. take that diet guy, that is a way of living, yes? following his rules would be like a way of life. when the pope talks about gay rights, people often follow for a short period and then forget about it. this is because there is so much going on around them, they have only so much attention to give.

I find the common ground between religions comes in the society they thrive in. all religions suite the place they are in, because they were made by the people that came generations before, and, the way things have panned out, they are more like those people than other people, obviously.

Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them. which ones says you must not steal? all of them. this means that all religions are more or less the same - it is the people practicing them that change them. this is because the people that wrote their bibles were seeing the world one way, and said something else. this is because the slogan "do as i say and not as i do" is so relevant today. if everybody did as they said, not as they did, then there would be more satisfaction for the people.

Why do people have religions? this would be because of agreements between leaders and people to act in a certain way, so it is something like politics, in practice. having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior.

There are many areas of commonality among religions, but there are also claims that religions make that are irreconcilable with other religions. For example, according to Christian belief Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life. That there is even such a thing as eternal life is disputed by some other religions. These differences can result in real, practical differences in the behavior of believers. For example, if eternal life is the only thing that really matters, then what happens to us here in this life is less important. If this life is all we have then obviously it takes on supreme importance, and all efforts are extended to preserve it. For some Christians these efforts are pointless, and so they don't make them. If one is a Buddhist and believes that this life is only an illusion then what does that do to one's efforts to change and effect the world, to make things better? If one is a Muslim and believes that God wants all the peoples of the earth to submit to Islam then obviously that has an important effect on their attitudes and behaviors toward unbelievers.
 
There are many areas of commonality among religions, but there are also claims that religions make that are irreconcilable with other religions. For example, according to Christian belief Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life. That there is even such a thing as eternal life is disputed by some other religions. These differences can result in real, practical differences in the behavior of believers. For example, if eternal life is the only thing that really matters, then what happens to us here in this life is less important. If this life is all we have then obviously it takes on supreme importance, and all efforts are extended to preserve it. For some Christians these efforts are pointless, and so they don't make them. If one is a Buddhist and believes that this life is only an illusion then what does that do to one's efforts to change and effect the world, to make things better? If one is a Muslim and believes that God wants all the peoples of the earth to submit to Islam then obviously that has an important effect on their attitudes and behaviors toward unbelievers.

I find, more practically, as religion changes behavior, as you seem to agree, then the culture changes for a merit. this would be reflected where, for example, the murder rates and child pornography rates are non existent in the near east, which i have researched, of course. on he other hand, when evil men rise under s good disguise in the near east, they find it easy to enlist soldiers to their cause. of late, this has receded, as potential soldiers are turning away from guns to 'convert the world.' the way to lead living people to allah is obviously through debating and understanding.
 
There are other common things between religions, we could look at the societies they have created? for example, all regions say that murder is against the law, and this stems from religion, and, other social issues stem from religion. indeed, most politics comes from religion, yet lately in the last few centuries, the law has strayed from the 'religious roots,' and that is what makes people join bodies like isis and the rest.

If we were to compare people that follow these religions, it stems from 'relay culture' too. for example, some families will pray five times a day in the near east and they will have friends that pray five times a day too. this will divide communities, as they will debate or argue the right ways to worship, of course. on the other hand, people in the west prize community over all, so will agree to not let religion get in the way of the society. while this seems to be vastly different, we must surely agree that god plays a role in all societies and cultures and law making, bringing people together in awe and appreciation of their role in life none the less.

The problem is with the media that is reporting to the people that can afford their newspapers and shares a life style with them. this would mean that middle class reporters will endorse the news of the people around them, as this is what they find to be true. never mind the poor people that live more for the lord, but rather reporting on things they find to be important, of course. this will sway their 'values' and in turn sway the values of others. it was not so long ago everybody worshiped on sundays in the first world, but since it has been dampened by the media, with all their 'progressive policies,' people have found it common not to be a part of it, yes?
 
But, before we continue, i would like to say that i worship venus as opposed to main stream gods. i guess you could call me a venetian?

Anyways, there is a lot in common with lakshmi from hinduism and venus. i believe my god is a planet named venus, of course, which is a cross over from greek mythology, which used to support the pantheon of gods, and this god makes me very joyous and laugh a lot.

So, what is religion to you? is it about worshiping the most powerful god, or praising the one that makes you happy, the one you believe will make you feel this way in your next life?
 
More to observe as being like between all people is genetics. we may look different on the outside, but we are all human beings, of course. if all people are made the same, then we must have the same needs, and having the same needs we would have the same things to satisfy those needs, like food, for example.

This means we all seek the same things, yes? of course, our methods of looking for satisfaction vary, yet we will keep on doing it as the society around us does it. the thing is, in the west things change all the time, and in the east there is little change. south america finds itself torn between economic woes and catholic views, holding tightly to them no matter what, and that is why there are few wars there. on the other hand, moslems in africa deceive the younger generation into picking up arms to fight for things they say are based on religion at first, then they just carry on, while the leaders have evil dreams, of course - who doesn't after a while?
 
The way religion works is that there is a focus of the religion and then you need to try to get into that way of living. this is true with every religion from christianity to buddhism, where you have a mantra or rules and then you need to try to set an example for others to follow too.

Today, everybody follows examples, whether they know it or not. take that diet guy, that is a way of living, yes? following his rules would be like a way of life. when the pope talks about gay rights, people often follow for a short period and then forget about it. this is because there is so much going on around them, they have only so much attention to give.

I find the common ground between religions comes in the society they thrive in. all religions suite the place they are in, because they were made by the people that came generations before, and, the way things have panned out, they are more like those people than other people, obviously.

Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them. which ones says you must not steal? all of them. this means that all religions are more or less the same - it is the people practicing them that change them. this is because the people that wrote their bibles were seeing the world one way, and said something else. this is because the slogan "do as i say and not as i do" is so relevant today. if everybody did as they said, not as they did, then there would be more satisfaction for the people.

Why do people have religions? this would be because of agreements between leaders and people to act in a certain way, so it is something like politics, in practice. having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior.

No they are not all the same. One leads to Eternal Life, the others eternity in the lake of fire. You could call those slightly different outcomes.
 
No they are not all the same. One leads to Eternal Life, the others eternity in the lake of fire. You could call those slightly different outcomes.

Don't they all support good policies? this leads to 'good people laws.' this means that they will have a god serving community, of course. if a community abides by all the laws of god, or not, does not stop a different god letting you go to their heaven.
 
Don't they all support good policies? this leads to 'good people laws.' this means that they will have a god serving community, of course. if a community abides by all the laws of god, or not, does not stop a different god letting you go to their heaven.

If you talk about religious people running for political office, you have a point. When it comes to salvation, no. From that perspective, elected officials from any religion opposing secularism is a good thing. It doesn't get much press, but India's PM Narendra Modi repealed most of India's "Homosexual rights" laws.
 
The way religion works is that there is a focus of the religion and then you need to try to get into that way of living. this is true with every religion from christianity to buddhism, where you have a mantra or rules and then you need to try to set an example for others to follow too.

Today, everybody follows examples, whether they know it or not. take that diet guy, that is a way of living, yes? following his rules would be like a way of life. when the pope talks about gay rights, people often follow for a short period and then forget about it. this is because there is so much going on around them, they have only so much attention to give.

I find the common ground between religions comes in the society they thrive in. all religions suite the place they are in, because they were made by the people that came generations before, and, the way things have panned out, they are more like those people than other people, obviously.

Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them. which ones says you must not steal? all of them. this means that all religions are more or less the same - it is the people practicing them that change them. this is because the people that wrote their bibles were seeing the world one way, and said something else. this is because the slogan "do as i say and not as i do" is so relevant today. if everybody did as they said, not as they did, then there would be more satisfaction for the people.

Why do people have religions? this would be because of agreements between leaders and people to act in a certain way, so it is something like politics, in practice. having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior.

Why do people have religions? I think the answer depends on the viewpoint one takes to think about it. A devout Buddhist monk might find a different one than that it is opium for the people.
 
Why do people have religions? I think the answer depends on the viewpoint one takes to think about it. A devout Buddhist monk might find a different one than that it is opium for the people.

I think it might be fear leading the people towards god, fear of being separated from their families in death? fear from not knowing what is on the other side? not knowing if there is another side. this would drive people to say, for example, birds are spirits, then through some observations unknown to me, they would pray to volcanoes and stuff.

The funny thing is, i believe volcanoes are spirits too,being a summary of faeries that make them, collecting them into one. why do people worship idols if nothing happens - is this merely a placebo effect?
 
I think it might be fear leading the people towards god, fear of being separated from their families in death? fear from not knowing what is on the other side? not knowing if there is another side. this would drive people to say, for example, birds are spirits, then through some observations unknown to me, they would pray to volcanoes and stuff.

The funny thing is, i believe volcanoes are spirits too,being a summary of faeries that make them, collecting them into one. why do people worship idols if nothing happens - is this merely a placebo effect?

Sociologically it has usually been a societal tool to organize in a dangerous environment. A priest might say it was revelation by the God. A physicist might say she couldn't say.
 
I wonder why there are so many division in the christian church - the original was catholic stuff, then came all these protestants and quakers and methodists and anglicans... the list just goes on! i am sure at one stage they used to fight, but now all agree to disagree. this is different in islam, where the sects try to wipe each other out, yes? this is because they have less in their lives, so think more about things they have, like the religion set forth in the quran.

If the west wants to slowly bring the world together, they should ban religion in any television or songs, as, this will lead to questions from young people, being answered by some guy from the movies! these movies are supposed to be exciting, so they have action - often the answer to the problem, yes? all media should ban any mention of religion also because they are making their case based on the words of god - using hte words of god to get what you want must be a sin. but, if the words of god are hidden, then less people will adhere to them.

In everyday life, nobody has time to listen to god or the clergy. they simply go about their daily business thinking nice things about their immediate circles. hell, they don't even think about what it is like to be a pop star, let alone a prophet or god, do they? this means that any religious stuff is either ignored or people try to use it for their own gains. i would see this as a 'sin,' so, if i am right about it being 'a sin,' then simply putting it out there is like selling viagra without condoms, yes?
 
If the west wants to slowly bring the world together, they should ban religion in any television or songs, as, this will lead to questions from young people, being answered by some guy from the movies! these movies are supposed to be exciting, so they have action - often the answer to the problem, yes? all media should ban any mention of religion also because they are making their case based on the words of god - using hte words of god to get what you want must be a sin. but, if the words of god are hidden, then less people will adhere to them.

I'm not quite sure what you're trying to say here, but isn't this a contraction of what you said in your OP (opening post) that "having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior"?
 
I'm not quite sure what you're trying to say here, but isn't this a contraction of what you said in your OP (opening post) that "having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior"?

More people trying to live 'right' or morally with less people using religion to slice a bit of something for themselves.
 
It is strange how the bibles of the world differ. they all talk about one supreme being, yet he seems to do things differently from place to place. of course, maybe this is because he wants people to worship him differently? it doesn't take a genius to resolve that these are different gods, yes? how can there be only one god?

Is there such a thing as a true god? i would say that a true god would say all these things said in each bible, but they cover different things, of course. this is also an indicator of different gods, but if there were different gods, some would think they would want us to fight each other, and that is why they fight on the ground.

Unless you get a direct message from god, i think it should be that you abide by his laws. nowhere does it say you should kill other god's people, it merely says you should encourage your god and denounce theirs, maybe? this could lead to fighting, which means that denouncing other gods leads to fighting or arguing, and therefore these are not true gods. nothing i would worship would ever tell me to say bad things about other people unless they are breaking their laws, of course.

This is why it must be peace. what sort of heaven would you go to if your god ordered you to fight now already? these gods need to be listened to and great wisdom shown in listening and interpretation, as, they just say that they are the true god. this is why i say they are all true gods and they would never say these thing, it is not understood their testaments.
 
Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them. which ones says you must not steal? all of them. this means that all religions are more or less the same - it is the people practicing them.

You weren't doing too bad until you got to this line. No, that does not mean all religions are more or less the same. It may point to the fact that there are certain values that are shared by all religions or may even be universal. But it does not say that all religions are more or less the same. To cite a clear example, take the Buddhist ideal of self denial and compare that to the Christian belief in living an "abundant life". The two are diametrically opposed. The Buddhist* would have you live in a monastery, focused almost exclusively on meditation while the Christian would have you living in the world and enjoying all it has to offer. The ideal Buddhist spends endless hours focused on internal pursuits; his own mind, his own spirituality, etc. The ideal Christian spends his time serving others, trying to make the world a better place. The two religions could not be any further apart.

The fact there are certain values that are shared among religions does not mean they are essentially the same; they aren't.



*I don't want to paint all of Buddhism under the same brush. Thus I'll clarify that I am mainly referring to Theravada Buddhism and some of the other styles that are dominant in Tibet and other Eastern cultures. There may be branches of Buddhism that diverge from what is stated here (or there might not be...I don't know).
 
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It is strange how the bibles of the world differ. they all talk about one supreme being,

Umm...no they don't.

Buddhism doesn't talk about any supreme beings at all; in fact, the Buddha talks about god being a myth resulting from fear. Buddhist views on a supreme being tend towards: atheism, pantheism or panentheism, all of which are views incompatible with the concept of "one supreme being".

Hinduism talks of hundreds of gods, none being supreme.

I'm not sure where you are getting your information, but you are incredibly misinformed on this topic. The scriptures of the major religions do not all talk about one supreme being.
 
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I think social behaviors in irreligious people and christians are quite similar. When I stopped being a christian, the only changes in viewpoints for me was that I no longer viewed homosexuality as morally wrong, I began to oppose the religious indoctrination of children because it limits their ability to abandon it when there's evidence to the contrary, I no longer viewed parochial schools not being funded by the government as a double standard, and I no longer see a moral problem with incest (I'm not gonna try it but it's practically the same as homosexuality. In about a century, having the common view held today will get you labeled as a bigot). Probably the most boiled down version of my moral stance is that you have absolute individual freedom until you violate someone else's.
 
Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them
Um, Judaism, islam and christianity all command their followers to kill.

Have a look at these verses.

Deuteronomy 17:12
Exodus 22:17
Leviticus 20:13
Leviticus 20:27
Exodus 21:15
Proverbs 20:20
Leviticus 20:10
Leviticus 21:9
Exodus 22:19
2 Chronicles 15:12-13
Zechariah 13:3
Deuteronomy 22:20-21
Exodus 31:12-15
 
I think there is a lot of stereotyping of oneself in the world. people look at the world around them, and, try to fit in, naturally, sometimes with needless problems arising from this. for example, a russian person and a american person sitting at a table may decide not to like each other - do they really dislike each other? why do they dislike each other? they could be family for all they know, but they choose not to like each other by submitting to stereotyping and then there are, well, problems.

More specifically, i am talking about jews and arabs - on the streets of jerusalem there are none of these problems, everybody is busy living their lives, not a worry in the world. then, due to main stream media, the muslims and the jews in other areas dislike each other, often to the point of violence. how do these rumors get around - due to the bibles of theirs they squabble and look for faults with each other. there is nothing noble about this if you observe it the way i do.

So, what can be done? between these mortal enemies, surely the sharks and dolphins will fight? this 'colossal clash of nuclear isreal and chemical iran' will see crater all over the world, or will it? i think there needs to be some media coming out of jerusalem before it is around there, by 'unknowing people.' i mean, it is like me going to report on the centuries old endeavors of mongolia nd china - what do i know abut them, except rumor has it they do not get along?

The most important thing we need to deal with is 'islam versus christianity.' there is no such fight, merely people agreeing to disagree. it is used as a cover or blanket for real agendas. imagine standing up at a convention and saying that america must pull their off shores out of arabia? imagine standing up in church and disguising your reasons as religious things? the latter is much easier, so they do it.

Unless the world can agree to hear each other, and observe each other, there will be more 'rabble sentiment.' this will have to be justified from now on - maybe from today or soon? - so as for people to first think about what they want to say, truly, rather than slapping a cross on it and spitting.
 
The way religion works is that there is a focus of the religion and then you need to try to get into that way of living. this is true with every religion from christianity to buddhism, where you have a mantra or rules and then you need to try to set an example for others to follow too.

Today, everybody follows examples, whether they know it or not. take that diet guy, that is a way of living, yes? following his rules would be like a way of life. when the pope talks about gay rights, people often follow for a short period and then forget about it. this is because there is so much going on around them, they have only so much attention to give.

I find the common ground between religions comes in the society they thrive in. all religions suite the place they are in, because they were made by the people that came generations before, and, the way things have panned out, they are more like those people than other people, obviously.

Now, which religion says you must not kill? all of them. which ones says you must not steal? all of them. this means that all religions are more or less the same - it is the people practicing them that change them. this is because the people that wrote their bibles were seeing the world one way, and said something else. this is because the slogan "do as i say and not as i do" is so relevant today. if everybody did as they said, not as they did, then there would be more satisfaction for the people.

Why do people have religions? this would be because of agreements between leaders and people to act in a certain way, so it is something like politics, in practice. having more religious people would be a good thing as it would encourage more moral behavior.

no.. I have to disagree a slightly bit. Christianity does not say that you shouldn't 'kill'. It says you shouldn't 'murder'.

Maybe with us thinking that 'murder' is bad would be a good place to start. Regardless of which 'religion' it is coming from...
 
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