The Republic of Heaven

oh dear! looks like the pope just recieved a kick in the nuts XO

david attenborough gets hate mail for not crediting the world to god in his nature programs. and his reason is that he went to calcutta and saw the slums. he said 'i cannot believe in a god if such a being would let this happen'.

well said! then there was richard dawkins - 'there's probably no god. now stop worrying and enjoy your life.'

well said! then there was richard dawkins - 'there's probably no god. now stop worrying and enjoy your life.'

Well, that was technically the Atheist Bus slogan. (I want to get one of their shirts. I like the slogan, and the colours on the shirt are pretty.)


Speaking of missing links...

well said! then there was richard dawkins - 'there's probably no god. now stop worrying and enjoy your life.'

Well, that was technically the Atheist Bus slogan.

which was endorsed and thought up by richard dawkins.

Afraid not - it was Ariane Sherine who proposed the idea in a CIF post, complete with yucky click here links.

Afraid not - it was Ariane Sherine who proposed the idea in a CIF post, complete with yucky click here links.

Yeah, exactly. Richard Dawkins just thought it was a great idea and had his picture taken with her. And promoted it on his website.

While I like the concept and the conversation that it stirs up, I think a far more effective campaign would be to use ads quoting the barmiest passages of the various holy books.

A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death.

...and so on.

While I like the concept and the conversation that it stirs up, I think a far more effective campaign would be to use ads quoting the barmiest passages of the various holy books.

A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death.

...and so on.

I know from experience that showing these passages to a religious person doesn't do anything. They either claim it's all metaphorical, or that it's all in the Old Testament and so it's clearly just wrong, or blah blah blah.

I already had this conversation once with Ali... I'm not keen to have it again

The other alternative is for everyone to agree not to be an asshole about whatever they believe. No slogans or ad campaigns or contempt necessary.

i like freedom of belief sans contempt.

but i like catchy slogans too. and i don't mind ad campaigns if they're creative and non-hostile in nature.

that said, i think richard dawkins is a mean-spirited atheist. i much prefer joss whedon types. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTY8-XPhTzQ

this thread could be split if it keeps heading away from the science behind the age of the earth.

but its nice to know that mr. dawkins has the spirit and confiedence enough t endorse putting it on a bus. and i said 'ENDORSE' not 'COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF' just to clear that up.

but its nice to know that mr. dawkins has the spirit and confiedence enough t endorse putting it on a bus. and i said 'ENDORSE' not 'COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF' just to clear that up.

Without wanting to engage in a pedantic spat, you did in fact say "which was endorsed and thought up by richard dawkins." Let's let that be the end of it please! :)

The beliefs which we have most warrant for, have no safeguard to rest on, but a standing invitation to the whole world to prove them unfounded.

I disliked the bus campaign because it was utterly banal, and because Ariane Sherine is a cretin. She once wrote a lenghty column about how evil SSRIs are and how no one should touch them, purely because they didn't work for her. And she fancies herself a spokeswoman for reason?

that said, i think richard dawkins is a mean-spirited atheist. i much prefer joss whedon types. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTY8-XPhTzQ

I really liked that clip, Jess! I like his line about "It's not about being right. It's about 'where do we go from here?'" Before anyone is going to be able to move past the "teach evolution/teach creationism" problem, both the religious folk and the non-religious folk need to get past thinking of the other as a villain and themselves as the hero. The goal, quite clearly, of the overzealous religious is to save you. That seems kind of iffy.

Other favourite line:
"Faith in God means believing absolutely in something with no proof whatsoever. Faith in humanity means believing absolutely in something with a HUGE amount of proof to the contrary. We are the true believers."

Last night I met a Christian who can't stand other Christians.

weird. well, i guess we know someone who will go atheist soon.

weird. well, i guess we know someone who will go atheist soon.

just because someone doesn't like fellow christians, doesn't mean one isn't a fan of god.

i'm splitting this thread. it's gotten stupid.

In fact, her view was interesting and quite refreshing. Her problem with other Christians was with a general "arrogance" (her word) and closed-mindedness; she said she wanted to feel like she'd "been converted" every day - that she'd opened her mind to other possibilities and at the end of each day made the decision to believe and live the way she had, rather than simply continuing with a choice she made long ago; and I think she liked the company of people who would help her challenge herself rather than allowing her to become comfortable.

I know one or two people like that, Kinders, and they're always rather refreshing. It's also kind of unfortunate that by the name "Christian", they get lumped into the same group as the people who stand on street corners shouting "The end is near!"

Christianity, just as much as any other set of beliefs, should not be a static thing (or a passive thing like many people employ) but something that adapts and changes in light of new understanding and new ideas. It's always good to see when people manage to do that.

I liked her a lot. ^_^

And you're right; identifying someone as a "Christian" tells you about as much about them as finding out their favourite colour. There are so many denominations and variations of Christianity that as a label it's pretty meaningless.