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Author Topic: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?  (Read 914 times)

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LiquidWave32

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Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« on: August 31, 2009, 03:16:03 AM »
Undoubtedly, regardless of what you believe is true cosmically, you have either been criticized or have criticized another person for their ideas. It's kind of a logical presumption. If you believe something to be true, you obviously believe something to be false, and if you live in a society where there are multiple individuals of multiple faiths, it seems okay to assume that one of these two actions has happened in front of your eyes, right?

Anyway, what I want to ask is even though somebody may have a philosophy and feel the need to spread or teach it, how does one go about such actions without sounding too offensive? Plus, what exactly qualifies as merely stating an opinion and being downright offensive?

I think it is the threat concept. That really the line is crossed when one religion, or rather one ideology, chooses to label other specific beliefs as an actual physical threat, rather than simply a different idea or moral philosophy. Like, when I hear somebody say something like a religion or ideology is violent or that it's consumer like or that maybe it's nihilistic. Basically a physical threat to the life and function of a society and its people, then I feel a line has been crossed. And I feel that any ideology is capable of doing this and pretty much has done this at some point in the past.

 What if the person truly does feel that the opposing idea is a sort of threat to the safety of others? Sometimes religious or political powers use this act in order to simply maintain power, knowing it is wrong. But what about people who truly think Christianity and Judaism are misogynistic and oppressive? Or people who truly believe that people who are Atheists or Pagans are being manipulated by demons or Satan? Like as a logical conclusion? How can you have a multi faith society if you have certain classes amongst a certain faith that feel that the other is a threat that actually needs to be eliminated not simply because it's false, but because it threatens human existence and joy as a whole? Can you? And if you can't, why do we try?

Anybody have an example of such things or another idea? I'd like to show some examples of what I'm talking about, but I'd like to see if anyone is interested in such a discussion.
« Last Edit: August 31, 2009, 04:34:25 AM by LiquidWave32 »
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Richard Sweat

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #1 on: August 31, 2009, 11:38:14 AM »
Quote from: LiquidWave32 on August 31, 2009, 03:16:03 AM

Anyway, what I want to ask is even though somebody may have a philosophy and feel the need to spread or teach it, how does one go about such actions without sounding too offensive? Plus, what exactly qualifies as merely stating an opinion and being downright offensive?


You offer your advice, intake or beliefs. Never impose them upon someone or shove them down someones throat. That is where you can get into good conversations with people. Don't go in with an agenda of swaying someones opinion to match up to your own. Friendly conversation where both parties will agree to disagree but also look at all sides.
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Derailer

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #2 on: August 31, 2009, 11:57:22 AM »
You put up 2 signs in front of your house at once, one is a for sale sign and the other is a big ol passage from the bible. No better way to say "we don't want anyone but Christians buying this bitch".

  Seriously, I am very hard to get flustered. I am an easy going guy who only feels strongly about a handful of things, but putting a sign in front of your house broadcasting your beliefs... I am officially flustered. I think I will pay my snot faced little cousin to deface said sign by covering it with a huge copy of David Bowies face... just because that guy is the shit!!!
« Last Edit: August 31, 2009, 11:57:58 AM by Derailer »
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LiquidWave32

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #3 on: August 31, 2009, 03:43:32 PM »
 like I've said before, many of my friends are atheists, but they take the time to listen to my beliefs and they respect my faith in an unseen but seen all present God. While I do so back. And they consider themselves spiritual even though they are atheists. Now this is where I feel contradictory or hypocritical in a way. You see, I have no problem with my atheist friends because not only do they respect my beliefs, but they aren't really all that different from me in that they believe the quality of human freedom and the human soul. Buuut, I think of atheists(as well as other faiths) as in the way people in education or media like Richard Dawkins or maybe Penn and Teller are atheist as more of a "threat" not just to me, but to my atheist friends as well, because their ideas are very hardcore. They think my faith is immoral and psychologically dangerous and they think of everything in the universe as having no real meaning beyond its "Darwinian function." Now, in my opinion, such a thinking is very dangerous, as well as some Shia Islam and Laveyan Satanism, and that such philosophies are destructive. Now when you think about it, it seems hypocritical of me to say that you shouldn't preach that another ideology is a threat that needs to be eliminated, but at the same time have a list of faiths that I think are dangerous and a threat not just to me, but my friends of other faiths too. And it made me realize that a lot of democratic nations ignore one simple rule of humanity. NOT EVERYONE CAN GET ALONG! I kinda think that I can get along with people of different faiths but there are certain faiths that I will never, as long I believe what I believe, get along with at all because we see eachother as moral enemies.
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Richard Sweat

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #4 on: August 31, 2009, 03:49:41 PM »
Are they just claiming Atheism to claim it? Cause it sounds like they are Agnostic if they are "spiritual."
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LiquidWave32

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #5 on: August 31, 2009, 03:55:00 PM »
Well the way my friends describe is "I don't believe in a God or gods or goddesses, heaven or hell, but I believe like in an afterlife or that I have a soul," They always took atheism at times just meaning literally  "no gods," Like buddhist kinda atheists. Or they took God in the Bible as meaning one's good self. Or they just didn't believe in any religious doctrine doctrine, but never lost any sorta spiritual flare. There were a few different atheists that I liked talking to that I met.

I would also meet atheists who didn't believe in anything spiritual, not even Buddha or anything, those were the atheists I always was at odds because they would want to be my friend but then tell me my religion was oppressive and stuff. And it's like "Why do you want to be my friend then? My hair? The way I treat you is based a lot on what I believe religiously, so if you're saying my religion is oppressive totalitarian....what are you saying about me??"
« Last Edit: August 31, 2009, 03:57:50 PM by LiquidWave32 »
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Richard Sweat

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #6 on: August 31, 2009, 03:56:16 PM »
Ah I see I see.

So yeah i'd say they are just "spiritual not religious." Seems to be better than Atheist in my opinion. But whatever's clever yanno!
« Last Edit: August 31, 2009, 03:58:15 PM by GraphGPT »
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LiquidWave32

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #7 on: August 31, 2009, 04:07:36 PM »
but like I found I couldn't get along with certain philosophies like fundamental christianity or like hardcore atheism because we both sorta saw eachother as "threats." And it made me realize, that you can make friends with a lot of people but some people will always fight and clash with eachother.

Not to get all politcal, but I think the government knows these things and I think that at times, all the religious wars(in the social sense) is a way to control and contain the people, and that's why when we think of the words christianity, islam, judaism, paganism, and atheism, we always think of the same single groups, because really all we see on television are the televangelists, hamas, loose pagan women, and super hardcore evolutionists. SO they can create a society that is so different in philosophy, that it's always clashing and is distracted enough to where it won't unite and rebel. Like, divide and conquer.
« Last Edit: August 31, 2009, 04:09:46 PM by LiquidWave32 »
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Richard Sweat

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #8 on: August 31, 2009, 04:21:07 PM »
Well the government may very well know about it all. But I mean, religion goes back many many many many years. Religion was government at one point in time. The fact that people are free to pick and choose their religion doesn't really have much to do with government control. Unless somehow they could disprove religion all-together, but just keep them around as a control unit.

Really on the grand scheme not many people deep within religions try to push their views on people. The places where religion has the strongest pull on peoples minds I think are small towns. Everyone knows everyone, and all of your business so it is easy for people to want to follow the heard in such a place. You want to fit in and not be outcast.

As far as major cities, I don't see as much outright pull for people to join into religious groups. I mean it is there on every street corner, but keeps to itself for the most part. Or maybe I just don't see it as much being in Los Angeles because there is such a heavy traffic of people in general.

And I am right there with you about not getting along with extremists. It's hard to be around someone like that because every word out of their mouth is something pertaining to their views and how most others are wrong. But this goes outside of the religion realm. Extremists of any kind can get quite annoying, religion, politics, snobby artists, etc...
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LiquidWave32

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Re: Critcism of Religion or Philosophy.... when is it offensive?
« Reply #9 on: August 31, 2009, 04:43:32 PM »
Well I think the media tries to encourage extremism more so than the religions' free thought counter parts so they can create non religious individuals that do nothing but work to keep the economy running and religious extremist individuals that do nothing but fight with eachother to maintain control. I think the state encourages extremism so as to make sure that people either working and consuming product because they don't want to get involved in the religious battles, and I think they encourage the religious battles to keep people from uniting by making them so focused on each other or scaring people into not wanting to get involved so they do nothing but, you guessed it, work and consume.
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