scottedward

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Everything posted by scottedward

  1. I watch a lot of CNN. lol They have a show called 'Believer', and last week's episode was about Scientology. Because the official church didn't even return the host's calls, he interviewed people that have been booted but still chose to practice their religion. The church has been less than tolerant. but the point is these recent events mirror much of what other religions have had to deal with throughout history.
  2. I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge those who have been unjustly ostracized from The Church of Scientology, 'disconnected' from any indoctrinated family, and yet still choose to risk legal consequences from their former church by practicing the religion. Hm, religious persecution... interesting...
  3. Rev, I think the world is standing upon a precipice of its own making. It is a world or society in desperate need for change, but controlled by a collective of individuals who are ever resistant against new ideas. Now, I understand that all I've thrown at you are generalizations, but there can never be any concrete ideas capable of making positive change, without impeding opposing thoughts or opinions. Some may be okay with this, but I am not.
  4. I believe that things would be better in the world if more than a few religions simply became practices with which to venerate the objects, churches, or the focus of the religion in question. It's good to see everyone.
  5. I appreciate being able to hear from you. I Hope you find being here as rewarding as possible.
  6. It's official. You (you know who you are) are responsible for creating the headache I have in my eye. I think I will call it George...
  7. I'll try to be clear. Life is not black or white. You keep reading things I write and have taken them as far to the extreme right as you can. Please knock it off. Common sense plays a role in determining which of the hopeless are safe and which of them are freakin' Adolf Hitler or Bin Laden. The hopeless could simply be someone without hope. They might be someone without means, who can be driven to doing something extreme to make an important or desperate point. These unfortunate people can be shown. They can learn that we regain our Hope simply by offering the same to another. They can be guided in a better direction. It is for this reason that I continually stress that 'hopeless' and 'evil' are two completely different labels. I find that Evil is too simple.
  8. I never said that, either. I'll put it simply. One cannot know love without knowing hate. One does not exist without the other. Dark cannot exist without light, as an example. We cannot know warmth without cold. Hate has always been a part of my arsenal, but I choose not to use it. Also, it was never suggested that Hate was a worthless emotion. If I have at some point, I apologize. I've called it a hopeless emotion, because it can lead to suffering. There are more than just two categories in life, and they aren't only Good or Evil. hopeless things aren't always worthless. People who are hopeless can change. They can become better people. They aren't always hopeless. They can be Hopeful again, and do good works. It would appear to me that you like to take what you're told to the extreme, but that's okay.
  9. Hubris annoys me... It should be pointed out that the conceits above shall not push me into a pointless debate. This forum was never one of the undeniable, or of unyielding facts set in marble. We speak only from our hearts. Discussions of thought, of concepts meant to give us warmth or comfort in a frigid reality. We speak of our faiths, and of our Hopes. We're meant to offer comfort where it might be needed, but there are some who act as though comfort is not readily available. They're referred to as the hopeless, but these souls are never lost. As always, I will pray to my deity; as always, I shall meditate and pray that these individuals receive what they need, and become of good intention, rather than just bluster and noise.
  10. This is nothing new for me. Honestly. My suggested way of approaching things has been criticized a time or two before. Twice before it had to be pointed out that I've never implied we do nothing, or that we confront the person with a knife and attempt to 'hug it out'. All I've ever said is that hate is a hopeless emotion, and it will only lead to additional suffering. We can take the steps to protect ourselves without hatred acting as our emotional 5-Hour-Energy. It takes strength to do what might be necessary, but neither your deity or mine will give us said strength if it leads to additional suffering. We can hurt others without help, and we can cause them great pain or sorrow, but it will not be because our creator wished for it.
  11. Sir, it is possible to feel sympathy for the victims without perpetuating the problem with hate toward the transgressors, and I never suggested that we 'do nothing'. I'll thank you very much for not putting words into my mouth. I never suggested that we 'love our enemies'. All I've said was that we not hate them. hopeless? Really? I don't appreciate that you've used my own words to hammer your point home, and I also never suggested that we pretend it doesn't happen. Chill out, Dan.
  12. I agree, and even suggesting the decapitation without rhyme or reason behind it--with little to no context-- greatly weakens Dan's point. Call us pacifists or don't, it doesn't matter. Ignoring ones desire to be vengeful takes far more strength than it might take to use the dull blade. I choose to be Hopeful.
  13. IMO Excuse me, Dan. Hate is generated as an emotional response when a person or thing causes you pain or discomfort. It is the mind's way of protecting oneself. I will not imagine my mother's decapitation with a dull knife, because I'm not nuts. Nor am I searching for a reason to hate. Terrorists are unique because their lives suck, regardless. They tend to hate everybody and everything. Islamic extremism gives their hate the focus they need to keep from butchering the neighborhood. Hate is a hopeless emotion. It has this tag because it only leads to suffering. I tend to focus on that of The Hopeful.
  14. imo I believe that some only choose to hate someone or a people because they've been told they're supposed to. In this case, not having respect (which often has to be earned, anyway) is what they use as a cause (or personal justification) for their hate. It has to be done, because hatred can be suggested or inspired by another person, but it can't be engineered. It's only superficial.
  15. There are many who feel a need to speak what they see as the truth. While some attempt this to be helpful, others do not. I won't point any fingers, or hurl accusations. All that I, or any of us can do is act Hopefully, and reach out to those who need us to. This would include those who wish to hear about our beliefs, and those who need help in their struggles with real life.
  16. It's been suggested at times that when a violent person physically attacks another, I believe karmic law says that the attacker's inner-self would suffer the worst damage. Perhaps cuchulain is referring to something similar?
  17. I've dealt with that problem as well. I can empathize.
  18. I'll put this as gently as I can, but Fox News hasn't been a source of good journalism for over ten years.
  19. I sit on the floor at my home and repeatedly and quietly chant every Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon as a show of devotion to The All (or Our Source of Creation). In the morning I spend time in silent prayer to my chosen god (also a gift from The All), offering my gratitude for the continued lives of my loved ones. At night I also express my Hope that the hungry find food, the oppressed know justice, the helpless have support, those in pain receive comfort, and I selflessly offer my modest strength to those with a more urgent need for it.
  20. Extraordinary Gnostic, for someone so anti-scripture, you're quite adept at sounding like an expert. i liked Richard's answer, personally. It was both open and clear-headed, and wouldn't you be just a little happier had all of us acted like that?
  21. My beliefs don't have much to say about what part of our souls or personalities may or may not survive after death. I think if we were meant to know with absolute certainty, we would. All I might suggest is that not one of our forms (be it matter or energy) is a constant, but neither is it vulnerable to eradication. All that happens is metamorphosis. All things change, which is as close to universal law as any of us can probably get. If all things change, I very much doubt that our Higher Selves are immune. Nice to meet you, Aeternus.
  22. I'm here, though I rarely comment. Nice to meet you, Sister.