Why do you feel sorry for me? (Page 2)

Luxxis: Sorry - just to add to the Realm thing - the deciding factor of "sorting us out" is where Karma now comes in. Your actions. Again, reeeeeeeeeeally don't want to be an Angry Ghost. Hahah. X

Zanjan: Luxxis, Buddha lived 500 years before Christ. He also prophesied that another Buddha would appear 500 years later. He didn't say where or use the word Christ (that was a Jewish term) but it was clear He was speaking of another Messenger of God; and that's exactly what happened and when.

Buddhism can't improve because its not supposed to. Religion is organic so it must change to adapt to the times. When too much time has lapsed, it's too old, has developed too many wrinkles to have any impact; it shrivels and wastes away.

"No one claims their religion is perfect -"

I do. My religion is 100% perfect. I don't mean it's perfect for me, I mean it's Revelation is infallible; furthermore, it was designed specifically for our times.

Zanjan: Doc, why are you not understanding or accepting what Crash is telling you? You keep asking the same question as if no one has offered any answers.

He says that, despite your intelligence and quiet demeanor, you belong to a corrupted organization and don't feel put off by that. He believes you're wasting your life/potential by identifying with bad history and ongoing bad reputation of a religion.

I can relate to that, you know - it was the main reason I refused to join the Christian Faith.

Unlike Crash, I don't feel sorry for you because it's where you feel a need to be, whether delusional or not. Those who want to set a good example for their co-workers should be appreciated for their efforts, even if they don't quiet meet another's expectations.

Crash: WOW. I never thought I would ever agree with anything Zan said. haha...but her last post is pretty much spot on.

TheDoctor394: Alright, Crash never actually said I was wasting my life due to being a Christian, but since he seems to agree with it, I will ask my next question.

Why do you think I'm wasting my life/potential by being a Christian?

TheDoctor394: Thanks for that, Luxxis. :-) I appreciate some more clarity on the Buddhist beliefs.

shadowline: I suppose you can see "sorry" from both sides of the divide. Those without religion see those with it as delusional, and those who have a religion see those without one as missing the many things religion does for a person.

What I can't comprehend is people of either stamp who just can't stand that someone believes differently from themselves, and fight tooth and nail to take it away from them. This site has been quite an eye-opener for me that by far most of those are in the non-religious camp.

TheDoctor394: Shadow, can I ask, what is your world view in regards to religion? In a nutshell. :-)

Zanjan: Doc: "Why do you think I'm wasting my life/potential by being a Christian?"

I said Crash thinks that, not me. I either deduced that from his posts or read his mind - hard to tell. Was waiting for him to jump in. Either way, the answer is in the post.

chronology: Zan, it was Sigmund Freud who explained his biggest objection to religion was the fantasy nature it gave life. He said you can never make informed decisions about you life when you are basing them on completely wrong premisses.

For example, a woman with an abusive husband who is a athiest will probably devorce the Guy and move on. A religious woman will probably beg forgivness from the husband for making him beat her her up and spend all his money on drugs 'it must be Karma for my pasts wrongs' she may sigh affter being punched yet again.

This is what Freud found so objectionable about religion, it completely confuses it's followers. Some people would call the woman cray, but others would correct that statment by saying 'no she is religious which is the same thing, but inflicted on her by creeps who peddle religion' .

TheDoctor394: Yes, my answer was primarily aimed at Crash. But anyone can give their two cents worth, of course. :-)

Zanjan: Chron, hardly anyone is a Freud fan anymore. People moved on to Jung. Religion doesn't have much of anything to do with a bad marriage - it's ones values that make the difference. Like seeks like. When people divorce, it's because they've discovered their values were no longer the same.

Identifying with a religion is not the same thing as being actively religious.

Case in point:
In the news the other day, some employees are suing CSIS in a class action for prejudice - that is, for homophobia, Islamophobia, etc. Some people were passed up for promotion due to incidents unrelated to their jobs.

For example, a Muslim employee decided she'd start wearing the Hijab so her boss began tracking her private life, including tracking members of her family. Apparently, they took the scarf as a sign she might have become radicalized. Conversely, a boss made a rude remark to a gay employee who was living with his Muslim partner. Seriously? That's two counts against Islamic law, and the partner still calls himself a Muslim!

I could see someone being harassed/chastised for doing something wrong, not for doing something right. However, when values are on the chopping block, that sometimes goes into reverse. I have stories about that. Anyway, it will be interesting to see how this case pans out.

chronology: Zan, a person who believed the earth is flat, or that fairies live at the end of his garden is going to make some very bad decisions in life.

A group of believers were told a few years ago by their sleazy church leader that god had spoken to him and told him he was to be given the heavy task of satisfying the sexual needs of their wives. Yes, he alone would screw their wives, they would be free to work extra hours at work to donate more money to the church.
Some people just cannot believe any people are as dumb as people like that. But when people have their natural common sense twisted and warped by religion they are made gullible enough for any con man.
It is like the two church members who came into an inheritance and told their minister about the money. He suggested they put the money in his bank account for safe keeping, so they did. He stole every penny. Again people cannot believe any one could be so stupid, but after your common sense is broken down by religion you are wide open to any scam.

Like Dr Freud said, when you build your life on fantasies you believe to be true, the future decidions you make based on those fantasies are certain to be harmful to you.

Zanjan: Not everybody has a high IQ but that isn't necessary - I've seen retarded individuals make better choices than some who are not. Most of us have to learn the hard way where to put our trust. We've all been duped or betrayed by somebody more than a couple times in our lives when that was no fault of our own perception.

One has to ponder what makes a person vulnerable - that is, what perception do they have that leaves them defenseless? Is it always ignorance? Often, it's not so much about inexperience as it is their own weak character. Most of the vulnerable are *users*; some users will become predators for any number of reasons.

Everyone hangs out a flag; sooner or later, somebody who's looking for that flag is going to spot it. As it's written, 'the devil only deceives the wicked'. Meanwhile, the pure in heart will smell the wicked even through the computer.

chronology: As I always say Zan, each to his own. I have heard churches called 'idiot factories' , but some people just prefer a laid back atmosphear with having to consider the problems of life, just let religion do it for them. 'Fast Food' for the mind. Hey nothing wrong with TV dinners, or TV religion, but I know you hate the Media based religions.

Luxxis: No. Zanjan, Buddha did not prophesize Jesus. The verse has been dissected many times and proven to be a fraud. Most notably because of the language used and also the mention of "Heaven" in the script. Buddhism has no Heaven. The next issue is that in the script, they keep referring to Buddha as Buddha. In scripts proven to be authentic surrounding Buddhism, he is almost always referred to as Tathagata, at times Bhaghava. Also, it speaks of burnt offerings. There were no burnt offerings in ancient Indian times. There is also no Pali equivalent for the term "burnt offering" which almost all of the scripts are written in. However, plenty of mentions in the Bible regarding burnt offerings. Last of all, it mentioned the need to pray 5 times a day - this has never been a ritual of Buddhism. Ever.

Christian lies surround other religions. In an effort to maintain that they are the true perfect one. Pathetic. Although, does not speak for all religions.

Zanjan: Luxxis, your speaking for all Buddhists is the same as one person speaking for all of Christianity, including all of its reported sects.

Fact: There are absolutely NO authentic Buddhist scripts - all scholars affirm that mankind's first authentic scripture was the Quran.
Fact: Buddha is a title, meaning "The Enlightened One" - the name of the Founder of the Buddhist religion was Siddhārtha Gautama.

Fact: Not merely "enlightened", He held a rare rank of authority. His family tree goes back to Noah's sons; a branch of descendants split into the Aryan group - Buddha is a direct descendant of Krishna, Prophet-Founder of the Hindu Faith. All God's Divine Messengers are connected by special lineage; for that reason, these holy family trees were carefully preserved.

Has it never occurred to you why Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree?

Zanjan: There is one Buddhist sect that most certainly does believe in heaven, an afterlife, and also has the prophecy of the Western Paradise. They turned out to be right. The "heaven" in Buddhism is called "Nirvana".

I've read the scriptures. What verse are you talking about? The word GOD has been removed throughout the body of texts; any line that would have suggested God exists has been replaced with another line. The tampering is so obvious the logic used to fill the gap looks like a 12 year old dreamed it up. You probably don't want to hear that, Luxxis, but anyone can read it and make their own determination.

"Christian lies surround other religions"

I'm not Christian and I never lie. Anyone can investigate for themselves - most people are literate. Don't think I'm dissing your faith; what I'm doing is refusing to sacrifice reality and fact to please someone else.

Fact: Buddha believed in God. How do I know? Because He could see far into the future, and only a God-believer can access that power. Those who tampered with the scriptures didn't know that. This was their mistake - not deleting the right things.

Do you think the curse at the end of the Bible came out of a vacuum? No, it's because people badly tampered with the last religion's scriptures (atheists hijacked Buddhism) so, that's God's last warning. Furthermore, it takes God to *confirm* a previous Prophet's standing; no one can prevent that.

Zanjan: On the positive side, you're right about one thing: The biggest mistake Christians make is to assert their religion is the only true religion, that Jesus was God's only Divine Messenger. History has proved this is a serious misconception.

TheDoctor394: How has history proven that?

Zanjan: How? That members of other religions of God showed up. They've got Houses of Worship and their Holy Books, also names, cultures and their own histories - most of them before Jesus came along. Great civilizations were built on them, one after the other.

Wow, the God in the machine just keeps coming back onto the scene! Nobody can stop it.

You know, we're all free to choose the religion that fits us best. However, one can never advance their own religion by belittling the validity of another religion. That's contempt for God's Will - it's by the Will of God they all came into being. Nothing exists without His permission.

God, Almighty, is in control here, not us.

There are few things Christians have abused so badly as the "nobody else but Jesus" tract. It's time to bite the humble bullet and accept reality. How hard is it to appreciate all who believe in righteousness, justice, and love for their fellow man? If one's aim is true, then it aligns with one, universal aim towards peace. That's not obtainable when one's eyes are crossed.

Furthermore, if Christians would study other scriptures, they'd find more support for their own religion, and deeper understanding and strength in their faith.

TheDoctor394: Alright, so you're saying that other religions show that Christianity is not the only true religion.

The problem with that view is that we have different religions which say different things. That means they cannot all be valid themselves. Either they are all wrong, or one is right. These other religions cannot all dismiss Christianity, because they themselves contradict each other. At best, one can disprove Christianity - if it proves itself to be the right one.

It's unavoidable. If you see Christianity is true, then you have to reject the others. Same if you're convinced by Islam, Buddhism or anything else. It's simply impossible to accept all religions, because they all contradict each other in certain ways. Either they';re all wrong, or one is right. It's a matter of working out, through study and experience, what the solution is.

Zanjan: "The problem with that view is that we have different religions which say different things."

Yet they all say the EXACT same things too. These are the immutable truths - there are no differences in spiritual laws and dynamics because they're universal and timeless. While there's always somebody who claims that a certain religion ripped off a truth from a previous one, that's a moot point because they're agreeing with the same truth. I see no problem there.

So, what's bothering you is the differences in **social** laws. Social laws are always changing so that can never be the criteria for identifying a religion. If one can't tell the difference then one's beliefs can't hold water - in other words, they couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag.

Zanjan: " If you see Christianity is true, then you have to reject the others"

Since when? That simply doesn't work even by the Bible's standards.

"Same if you're convinced by Islam........."

If one finds Islam convincing but denies Christ, one can't be a Muslim.

If one can prove Christianity, they also prove that three other religions - at the very minimum - are equally valid. This is a critical point - Jesus would have got nowhere if He hadn't supported the truths of Moses and Abraham, especially, if there had been no prophesies from Them to another "Advent". Jewish prophesies permitted Jesus to fit into one spot.....not all of the spots. Every truth needs to have a concrete foundation; so does every religion.

There was no point in the ancient Messengers speaking about religions the people had never heard of and never would in their small, illiterate world. They were unable to see the "face" of God. Suffice to say, the names of God's previous Messengers were mentioned; they mean nothing to anyone today because those religions are long dead and gone, passed into antiquity.

Furthermore, since there is record of God delivering these same truths more than 6,000 years ago, why would He ever have to speak again? If He speaks again, does it make sense He'd just keep repeating in an endless loop with nothing new to say?

Whatever criteria you're using to establish the validity of Christianity as a real religion, it's not the same as our government uses - as long as the organization is a charitable agency, it will receive recognition. That's a lot of respect for far fewer features.

Zanjan: As a side note, a Jehovah's Witness once stood at my door, telling me about his belief in Jesus, attempting to provide proofs of who Jesus was. Then he said he didn't believe Moses was a Messenger of God. He described Him as a greedy, dishonest tyrant. Immediately I knew the truth - this guy was a liar - He didn't believe in Christ at all.

I didn't assume all JWs were liars, I was only concerned with what this man said. Once a person blows integrity, I stop listening to them.

FYI, the phrase is: "either they're all wrong or they're all right". That basically means zilch. I've never seen 5 people in the same room agree on everything. If they're parents and the subject is about parenting, no two parents will ever agree on everything. This is the reason arguing humans need third party intervention and the religious need Divine Mediators.