(New member)Questions

[Tekore]

Well, this will be my first post, so I hope I don’t make an ass of myself, I also hope this is the correct section for this. I have several questions which I hope haven’t been asked a hundred times somewhere in the forums that I didn’t see.

First off, as it relates to an argument with my mother- if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to idealized beliefs of that religion?

Do you consider someone to be atheist if they do not believe there is a god, but do believe in other ‘spiritual’ things, like souls or love.

Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such. However it does not seem to have this meaning in forums-maybe I just don’t get the context, but more than likely I misunderstand the definition.
Although it could just be that I (seriously) don’t pickup on subtlety and sarcasm very often.

Thanks in advance.

[Tekore]

ignore QUOTE:

I didn't mean to do that. sorry

[Hotfoot]

Well, this will be my first post, so I hope I don’t make an ass of myself, I also hope this is the correct section for this. I have several questions which I hope haven’t been asked a hundred times somewhere in the forums that I didn’t see.

Oh, this is the right forum all right...

...you ass.

First off, as it relates to an argument with my mother- if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to idealized beliefs of that religion?

Probably, though it would depend on how far you're willing to carry that realization. If you think that Jesus Christ was just some guy who had some really good ideas on how to treat people and such, but that there isn't a heaven or hell, no God, etc., you'd be on shaky grounds trying to sell yourself as a Christian.

Do you consider someone to be atheist if they do not believe there is a god, but do believe in other ‘spiritual’ things, like souls or love.

Technically, that does fit the requirement of an Atheist. However, you would be better defined as a Spiritualist, as Atheism is just simply a null state with no real belief structure.

Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such. However it does not seem to have this meaning in forums-maybe I just don’t get the context, but more than likely I misunderstand the definition.

It's traditionally used to describe anyone who is not Jewish, Christian, or Muslim, though these days there is a growing Paganism movement which involves Wicca and New-Age stuff.

Although it could just be that I (seriously) don’t pickup on subtlety and sarcasm very often.

Well, there will be a test shortly, see how you do.

Thanks in advance.

You're welcome...


you ass.

[InnerBrat]

There's an edit button, y'know.
--EDIT

In the Science, Logic and Morality forum there isn't.

Yes there is. See?
/EDIT--

First off, as it relates to an argument with my mother- if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to idealized beliefs of that religion?

Yes. Especially Chrisitanity - to which you belong if you believe that Jesus dies for your sins.

Do you consider someone to be atheist if they do not believe there is a god, but do believe in other ‘spiritual’ things, like souls or love.

Athiest means no God, so yes, that's still an athiest.
Someone who doesn't believe in love is a cold hearted cynical bastard.

Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such. However it does not seem to have this meaning in forums-maybe I just don’t get the context, but more than likely I misunderstand the definition.
Although it could just be that I (seriously) don’t pickup on subtlety and sarcasm very often.

Paganism is a general term for a number of religions, which usually are polytheistic. It includes, but is not limited to, Wicca.
Hope that helps...

[haas mark]

[bites the n00b] Welcome to SD.Net, enjoy your stay!

THe onyl question I could answer anywhere NEAR coherently right now is the one about being pagan, and I would be the one to talk to on that aspect. But even the Insomniac (myself) sleeps, sometimes, and I've just gottena migraine from doing fuckign HTML all night, so I bid thee adieu..

[GrandMasterTerwynn]

Well, this will be my first post, so I hope I don’t make an ass of myself, I also hope this is the correct section for this. I have several questions which I hope haven’t been asked a hundred times somewhere in the forums that I didn’t see.

Hey! A newbie! Since poking is wearing a bit thin, I shall welcome you to SD.net by taking a whack at you with a scimitar. Hold still . . . *WHACK*

First off, as it relates to an argument with my mother- if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to idealized beliefs of that religion?

Yes. There are a fair number of mainstream Christians who recognize that a lot of the Bible is a great load of elephant dung, yet still firmly believe in the idealized core concepts. Mind you, this is the most accessible example I could think of.

Do you consider someone to be atheist if they do not believe there is a god, but do believe in other ‘spiritual’ things, like souls or love.

There are a number of nontheistic faiths that have no strong concept of a god or gods. In the most literal, technical sense, they are atheists, as atheist merely means 'without a god.' However, the atheists you tend to find around here are secular humanists who tend to see the whole spirituality thing as being a load of hooey.

Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such. However it does not seem to have this meaning in forums-maybe I just don’t get the context, but more than likely I misunderstand the definition.

Traditionally, the word has been used by Christians to describe the adherents of a variety of ancient European religions. As a result, it tends to be used nowadays to describe a number of New Age faiths that have appeared very recently, such as Wicca, that incorporate elements from the old European non-Christian faiths, such as druidism and elements of Roman religions.

Hope this helps,

[Stormbringer]

First off, as it relates to an argument with my mother- if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to idealized beliefs of that religion?

You'd still be a believer. Just a moderate rather than a conservative or fundamentalist.

Do you consider someone to be atheist if they do not believe there is a god, but do believe in other ‘spiritual’ things, like souls or love.

You'd be an atheist under the strictest definition but wouldn't really fit the term as it's generally used.

Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such.

That's the literal definition. Now day's it all self applied term used by the New Agers to be trendy and rebelious. Same with Wiccans, Druids, etc. Just a self applied catch all term that has no real meaning.

[Knife]

Well, this will be my first post, so I hope I don’t make an ass of myself, I also hope this is the correct section for this. I have several questions which I hope haven’t been asked a hundred times somewhere in the forums that I didn’t see.

Well not a hundred, but alot.

First off, as it relates to an argument with my mother- if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to the idealized beliefs of that religion?

Follower, yes. A devote member, no.

Do you consider someone to be atheist if they do not believe there is a god, but do believe in other ‘spiritual’ things, like souls or love.

Meh, yes though the soul part is probably going to be a problem. Intelect? Yes. Concious and subconcious mind? Yes. The essence that is a being? Yes. A soul? Not really characteristic of an atheist. If you believe in spiritual things but not the conventional 'gods' I would lable you more of a deist in that you don't believe in any particular god but believe in all the bells and whistles.

Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such. However it does not seem to have this meaning in forums-maybe I just don’t get the context, but more than likely I misunderstand the definition.

Origianly, pagan meant peasent. The peasents were refered that because the big city folk believed in the major deities while the country folk mixed and matched various deities from various places and had their own individual deities that the city folk had never heard of, let alone pray too.

When monotheism started scooping up the peasents, the term pagan took on the meaning of those who believed in polytheism and has pretty much stayed that way for the last 15 to 17 centuries. The current new age pagans worship multiple gods and have taken the derrogatory term and made it their own to desribe themselves.

[Zoink]

if you come to the realization and acceptance that all the holy texts of your religion are faulty and inaccurate, do you still count yourself a follower if you hold true to idealized beliefs of that religion?

If the religion in question believes that the bible is literally true, then you aren't really following that religion, rather a modified version that suits your own beliefs. If you believe that God doesn't exist, and that Jesus was not the savior of mankind, then you technically are not a Christian.

The person(s) to ask is really your church, as they should have an idea of what are the requirements to be a "follower". Keep in mind that if you tell them something like "I don't believe in God, but...." they'll probably just tell you that you're wrong and arrange some special "reprogramming" sessions to save your soul. I'm sure they'd be happy (depends) to address issues about their take on the literal truth of the bible.

[Montcalm]

[quote="Tekore"]Also, what exactly is a pagan? I had the impression it was a derogatory term for people who worship, well... tribal gods and such. However it does not seem to have this meaning in forums-maybe I just don’t get the context, but more than likely I misunderstand the definition.
Although it could just be that I (seriously) don’t pickup on subtlety and sarcasm very often.

Thanks in advance.[quote]

Paganism is the worshipping of idols,so by this definition Christianity is paganism.

[Crayz9000]

There's an edit button, y'know.

In the Science, Logic and Morality forum there isn't.

[GrandMasterTerwynn]

There's an edit button, y'know.

In the Science, Logic and Morality forum there isn't.

Yes there is. It isn't there in the science fiction forums though.

<edit>
And I don't think it's there in Politics either.
</edit>

[Stormbringer]

The Edit is disabled in the following forums:

Star Wars vs Star Trek
Other Sci-fi
Politcs


All of them had the edit button disabled because members used them to alter their posts to "cheat" in debates or hide stupid/flameworthy things they said.

Good to see people read the announcements and FAQ.

[Montcalm]

The Edit is disabled in the following forums:

Star Wars vs Star Trek
Other Sci-fi
Politcs


All of them had the edit button disabled because members used them to alter their posts to "cheat" in debates or hide stupid/flameworthy things they said.

And we`re screwed if we mispelled a word or the sentence.

[GrandMasterTerwynn]

The Edit is disabled in the following forums:

Star Wars vs Star Trek
Other Sci-fi
Politcs


All of them had the edit button disabled because members used them to alter their posts to "cheat" in debates or hide stupid/flameworthy things they said.

And we`re screwed if we mispelled a word or the sentence.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's why you give your posts the old once-over before pressing the submit button. And I'd rather see a thread where the flow of events was accurately portrayed, as badly spelled as it might be, rather than a thread where everything is spelled correctly, but one has to look very hard for any gems of truth.

[Crayz9000]

All of them had the edit button disabled because members used them to alter their posts to "cheat" in debates or hide stupid/flameworthy things they said.

Good to see people read the announcements and FAQ.

OK, my mistake... IIRC, it *used* to be disabled in this forum.

[Stormbringer]

All of them had the edit button disabled because members used them to alter their posts to "cheat" in debates or hide stupid/flameworthy things they said.

Good to see people read the announcements and FAQ.

OK, my mistake... IIRC, it *used* to be disabled in this forum.

Not since September or so.

[haas mark]

Paganism is (by dictionary definition) anything that is not Christian (and Judaic?). Wiccan is the study of magic(k) and the belief in the God and Goddess, karma, and a myriad of other things. PM me for more info.. got to go soon.

[Stormbringer]

Paganism is (by dictionary definition) anything that is not Christian (and Judaic?). Wiccan is the study of magic(k) and the belief in the God and Goddess, karma, and a myriad of other things. PM me for more info.. got to go soon.

Actually, it's anything outside the Judeo-Christian system of beliefs according to the conventional definition.

Now days it, Wiccan, and Druid are just used by any New Agers that wants to slap a label on themselves. They're all trend titles for kids that have no idea what they're talking about. Titles for posers 99% of the time.

[haas mark]

Paganism is (by dictionary definition) anything that is not Christian (and Judaic?). Wiccan is the study of magic(k) and the belief in the God and Goddess, karma, and a myriad of other things. PM me for more info.. got to go soon.

Actually, it's anything outside the Judeo-Christian system of beliefs according to the conventional definition.

Hence the first sentence..

Now days it, Wiccan, and Druid are just used by any New Agers that wants to slap a label on themselves.

In some respects, yes, in some respects, no. It has its own denominations and so sometimes people trying to find their path call themselves pagan (quite like Christians who call themselves Christian because they haven't chosen a denomination).

They're all trend titles for kids that have no idea what they're talking about. Titles for posers 99% of the time.

That I won't touch... for obvious reasons..

[Stormbringer]

In some respects, yes, in some respects, no. It has its own denominations and so sometimes people trying to find their path call themselves pagan (quite like Christians who call themselves Christian because they haven't chosen a denomination).

Which is my point. It's a blanket title for any New Ager with a kooky idea. There's no formal pagan, wiccan or druid (not those that claim it these days anyway) religion. It's a hodge podge of loons that take on the label.

They're all trend titles for kids that have no idea what they're talking about. Titles for posers 99% of the time.

That I won't touch... for obvious reasons..

There can be sincere "pagans" but the vast majority of the people are simply posers and wannabes. They have no idea what they rant about and simply slap the label on themselves to be cool. It's simply a trend for the overwhelming majority of it's proclaimed followers.

[haas mark]

In some respects, yes, in some respects, no. It has its own denominations and so sometimes people trying to find their path call themselves pagan (quite like Christians who call themselves Christian because they haven't chosen a denomination).

Which is my point. It's a blanket title for any New Ager with a kooky idea. There's no formal pagan, wiccan or druid (not those that claim it these days anyway) religion. It's a hodge podge of loons that take on the label.

As I said, sometimes. However, there are set definitions between them (which I do not know myself ~ I only know there IS definition between them).

They're all trend titles for kids that have no idea what they're talking about. Titles for posers 99% of the time.

That I won't touch... for obvious reasons..

There can be sincere "pagans" but the vast majority of the people are simply posers and wannabes. They have no idea what they rant about and simply slap the label on themselves to be cool. It's simply a trend for the overwhelming majority of it's proclaimed followers.

Just as Christianity is, it can be argued.