What is an atheist? The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines an atheist as follows. “A person who does not believe in the existence of a god or any gods.” Because this definition does not define which god one must reject to be a “true…
Blog Archives
Letting Go
I have recently been reminded of an excellent song by the band Kansas entitled, “Dust in the Wind.” It is a song I remember hearing and enjoying as a child, as it came out in January of 1978 when I…
Posted in Christianity, Death and Immortality, Other Thoughts Tagged with: afterlife, benefits, dust in the wind, ego, free will, illusion, impermanence, Jesus, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Kansas, letting go, New Testament, non-belief, Old Testament, Rene Descartes, self, theism atheism
Having it “Both Ways”
It has become a famous slogan from the fast-food restaurant Burger King to “have it your way.” This is in the spirit of our self-centered mindset in which we would all prefer to have things “our way.” Who could honestly…
Posted in Christianity, Other Thoughts Tagged with: authority, cognitive dissonance, conflate, contradictions and double-standards, doublethink, epistemology, evidence, fact, faith, falsifiability, falsifiable, Greta Christina, have it both ways, hypotheses, hypothesis, knowledge, Rene Descartes, revelation, sound reasoning
Morality?
I just recently heard a fascinating debate between Sam Harris and William Lane Craig, which addressed the questions of whether the foundations of moral values are natural or supernatural, and whether or not moral values of “right” and “wrong” actually…
Posted in Favorite Posts, Other Thoughts Tagged with: David Hume, debate, epicurus, goodness, have it both ways, is, moral values, morality, natural, ought, ought-is problem, relativism, Sam Harris, supernatural, values, well-being, William Lane Craig
The “Sacred” and the “Miraculous?”
It is an oft used phrase that “nothing is sacred” in this world. It is a phrase often used with a sigh by those who believe “the good old days” were better than what we have today, as if something…
Posted in Other Thoughts Tagged with: being, god, idolatry, miraculous, objectification, objectify, sacred, Sam Harris, soul, spirit, spiritual
Our Slavery Addiction
In the United States of America especially, we continually hear about “freedom.” It is the one value we claim to cherish, perhaps above all others, especially within our secular Western culture. It is therefore quite hypocritical that in the United States…
Posted in Death and Immortality, Favorite Posts, Other Thoughts Tagged with: Abraham Lincoln, afterlife, death, ego, freedom, heaven, hell, immortality, immortality of the soul, reincarnation, slavery, soul
No Absolutes?
I have lately been finding myself exploring some thoughts which have been continually recurring in my mind with regards to both theists and atheists, and the essence of their views on reality. I have come to realize that on the whole,…
Posted in Favorite Posts, Other Thoughts Tagged with: absolute, absolutes, atheist, cognitive dissonance, contradictions, ego, egotist, illusion, moral values, morality, mystic, relativism, Sam Harris, self, theist, truth, William Lane Craig
Rocking the Boat
The fear of change, or at least the desire to “stay put” is possibly the biggest reason for dishonesty. It is far easier to stay put, blame others, and not reconsider our point of view so our world can remain…
Posted in Favorite Posts, Other Thoughts Tagged with: all, beliefs, big picture, conscience, love, narcissism, relativism, self
Free Will?
The question of free will has been present in my mind for quite some time now, and while I have touched on this concept briefly in the past, only now have I felt compelled to actually investigate this question with any real…
Posted in Favorite Posts, Other Thoughts Tagged with: accountability, Benjamin Libet, blame, blame game, Buddhism, Buddhist, choice, compassion, compatibilism, compatibilist, consciousness, credit, Daniel Dennett, determinism, ego, empathy, fatalism, free choice, free will, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Jonah Lehrer, karma, me, meditation, nirvana, no choice, paradox, practical, practicalism, practicalist, Rene Descartes, responsibility, Sam Harris, self, self-concept, self-transcendence, thanks, will
Head and Heart
Until very recently, my journey in seeking Truth has largely been a private one. The vast majority of my friends and family are strong or moderate Christian believers, and I have often felt uncomfortable sharing my questioning journey with them, because…
Posted in Christianity, Favorite Posts, Other Thoughts Tagged with: christianity, doubt, faith, god, head, heart, substance dualism
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