I can envision an 8'9" basketball player named Shaqyao O'Ming who plays PF three planets away for the Saturn Sodomizers. But I don't believe he/it really exists. Not in reality anyway. Yeah, I took philosophy in college and I realize there is usually no real answer. We could do this all day
The definition is straightforward but the word itself doesn't explain anything about the non-believer. So it's useless. People are just good at loading it with more ideas than are expressed by the word. Pejorative uses of the term 'atheist' are usually either dishonest or aren't articulate enough to express the ideas they intend. I like Dawkins' idea that we are all AZeusist or AThorists, but we don't go around making up labels for all the things people don't believe in. That list of words would be infinitely long.
this whole 'whether atheism is a meaningless tautology' discussion is stupid. atheists set themselves up in contrast to deists. that's the whole point; you're just arguing semantics. Atheism could just as well be called naturalism, i.e. the belief that the universe is not governed by supernatural beings. also, this thread is about zombies, stop hijacking.
If words represent ideas, then its not "just semantics". It's being precise about what we really think. I agree with you about naturalism being a better term. But it still has nothing to do with being angry or anything else. It's up to the individual how they react to the ideas they have.
No one knows how long her heart will last. She could go at any time. To me that’s more sad then her already passing, cause you know its coming.
Let's assume for a second that the whole story about Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead is true. Just follow along, even if you think it's all crap. What was Lazarus saved for? Did he cure cancer? Did he hit a game-winning HR in the World Series? I'm unaware of anything he did, other than be raised from the dead...which pretty much involved standing up. The Bible doesn't tell of these great things he went on to do. It wasn't about him. It was about glorifying God. I lived the better part of my life hearing people say, "you've been saved for some purpose" with speculation as to what it was. Only recently have I been brought to a place where I believe my story is primarily about God's glory. I'm ashamed it took me that long, frankly. I don't feel like it's special treatment. Maybe I would believe it were special treatment if I believed it were about me. But it's not about me. I'm just a player in a story.
Wow. You always hear about the ol' buried alive, alive on the autopsy table story, but this takes the cake.
You don't seem to have any kind of problem giving meaning or purpose to your life, and your conclusion is very humble. I find that very admirable, regardless of how you got there! Thanks for humoring my questions.
I had an aunt who was pronounced dead by the doctors for about 15 minutes.... Her claim is she saw the gates of heaven, but she says she saw a hand do this: I thought it was funny story. This lady by the way was not considered to be a nut job or anything, she was (I think she’s dead now) intelligent and honest.
