the universe according to the Vatican

[jillybean74]

Apparently it's ok to believe there was a big bang, and that life might have evolved on other planets (even intelligent life). But not ok to believe humans evolved by natural selection?
http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSL146364620080514?feedType=RSS&feedName=scienceNews

Comments

Yes, that was me

[andrew_the_oga]

Context doth make cowards of us all, or at least forces a tighter grip on English grammar than I apparently possess at 0600h.

Omelettes and broken eggs

[andrew_the_oga]

Even if it did, it's about saving lives and reducing human misery.That's correct. But death and misery are seen by plenty of otherwise-reasonable people as perfectly acceptable outcomes for the "lifestyle choice" of promiscuity. In considering the example of the subSaharan trucker's wife and her life of spousal rape, these people usually just say helpful things about how she should just leave the bum anyway. Sigh

Re: Omelettes and broken eggs

[jillybean74]

We need radical speech, if only because when you pull on the end of a continuum, you move the middle ever so slightly too

Biases

[andrew_the_oga]

Given all the biases that influence human motivation, you can easily make a case for both views. (Being a Libra, I'm powerless to do much else.)

Is Richard Dawkins right, when he says that religious moderates, by their very existence, aid and abet the acts of religious extremists? I know many otherwise-reasonable people who seem to be quite religious-- but people who behave well at the dinner table may behave differently when the last lifeboat's being launched. While this latter observation has little to do with confessional status per se, I think it's worth remembering.

Re: Biases

[jillybean74]

"Is Richard Dawkins right, when he says that religious moderates, by their very existence, aid and abet the acts of religious extremists?"

I haven't yet decided what I think about that proposition. I contemplate it fairly regularly, since I also know "otherwise reasonable" people (I find that a slightly funny choice of words, in a true way).

I keep coming back to this thread

[andrew_the_oga]

My buddy Vernon, who turns fifty this year and is possibly the toughest dude I've ever met, is a born-again evangelical baptist. He studied for the ministry (he has, as my mother would say, "more degrees than a thermometer") but decided not to pursue it, taking a job in mountain rescue instead. Now he's a nurse at UAH ER

Re: I keep coming back to this thread

[jillybean74]

Yes, I find that the average religious person tends to want the "feel good" aspect of god/religion, rather than having put very much thought into it. I can count a few friends who have put a lot of thought into it, though. That I can handle, even if I don't agree with their conclusions. At least an intelligent conversation can be had.

What really bugs me is people who say "Oh, I'm not really 'religious' but I'm 'very spiritual.'" Ok, well call me a moron but what the hell does it mean to be "spiritual"? Does it mean you believe in spirits? Some ultimate meaning/purpose to life? Or does it just mean you think life and nature is beauitful? Or maybe it means you think we are more than the sum of our parts. But what about the question of a higher power? How about Intelligent design? All of these are probably too specific for such people. I think that what they ultimately mean is "I can believe in whatever magic I want, and you can't challenge it."

Yup

[andrew_the_oga]

I can believe in whatever magic I want, and you can't challenge it.

I think it's this one.

I preached a sermon some years ago at the Unitarian Church, about, "Spiritual implications of sudden death and unexpected critical illness," and last year gave a talk at a conference on Spirituality in Healthcare, called, "A Playwright's Witness: Simulation Training as Preparation for Spiritual Crisis."

I know how I (rapid atheist that I am) use the word, but I agree with you that most people are just popping smoke and reversing track when they say, "Oh, I'm spiritual." Like Humpty Dumpty said to Alice, "I pay words extra, so I can make them mean what I want."

[buhrger]

I preached a sermon some years ago at the Unitarian Church, about, "Spiritual implications of sudden death and unexpected critical illness," and last year gave a talk at a conference on Spirituality in Healthcare, called, "A Playwright's Witness: Simulation Training as Preparation for Spiritual Crisis."
i don't imagine copies would be available?