The National Day of Prayer (NDP) takes place tomorrow. By federal law, the commemoration occurs on the first Thursday of every May.Most events around the country are coordinated by the National Day of Prayer Task Force, a private group run by Shirley Dobson, wife of Religious Right leader James C. Dobson of Focus on the Family. The task force instructs its volunteers to allow only conservative Christians to speak, and its events are often laden with ?Christian nation? rhetoric.?A government-sponsored day of religious activity was never a good idea,? says the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. ?Now, the event has been taken over by the Religious Right and turned into an exercise in political posturing and theological one-upmanship.?
“Focus on the Family”. Yeh like a smart bomb they focus on the family.
National Prayer Day is finally not such a bad idea.
I propose that it be extended to every day and that the jesus freaks spend all their spare time praying so they won’t have the time to mix in politics and social policy.
If their prayers work, they will influence public policy without having to do the grungy nuts and bolts grunt work.
Don’t they think their prayers will be more effective than canvassing and lobbying? Either their prayers will work, or they won’t. In the latter case, they have only to admit that they were wrong, both religiously and politically.
I am offended when I go to lunch and the xtians begin to pray to their gods (yes plural with an S) for putting the food on the table.
I think next time this happens, when they start, I may just stand up and turn my back on them till they are finished.
- Off Topic –
DeepRiver:
I don’t understand how Christians can claim that their religion is monotheistic. In what sense are Satan and the rest of the angels not also gods? By any normal definition they are gods, they’re just not omnipotent like God (with a capital “G”).
Deep Diver. You could try praying loudly to Zeus or Odin. I suggest Zeus because some jesus freaks might even have heard of him.
You will have a test about how “tolerant” they are.
You probably can find some old Greek prayers to Zeus, or why not Athena or some other, on internet.
Isn’t it called the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance? Did people just forget that it was supposed to be about remembering 9/11 and not just about praying?
Then why not call it “A National Day of Rememberance?”
I would only be slightly less offended if it was the “National Day of Prayer and Free Money.” They prayer bit ruins it for me.
Because George W Bush just had to make it religious.
This in nothing but political posturing. If the idea was to remember 9/11, then prayer would not even be in the title. The idea is to say it is about 9/11, and label it so that it means more. The left or less christian right, will not attack it because of the 9/11 connection. It is a strategy for making prayer more governmental, even expected. In one hundred years theist can use the argument that it has been that way a long time. They will be able to make an argument from history that the country is religious in nature. That is not a logical argument but the uneducated masses see it as one. That is why the argument from history is used so much today.
Examples:
Our money says “in god we trust”
The pledge of allegiance says, “one nation under god”
These policies were made during a religious frenzy(at different times) in our culture, they are not constitutional, but are used as evidence today.
Like the bumper sticker says….I wish they’d focus on their own damn families!!!!!
I just lost 1 pound, I donate a pint of blood. I spoke up for you alex and let them know that I know many committed gays that should be able to donate. She was simpathetic but realized she didn’t make the rules.
Apple:
They aren?t Gods because they don?t create. Do you attribute god status to them because they are more intelligent than humans?
Anne Marie,
What’s your take on having a national day of prayer?
R4D:
Honestly I haven?t given it much thought. I will however ponder the topic.
Off the cuff I?d have to say since we live in a pluralistic society what?s done for one must be done for all.
Do you (R4D or others) have a national day you would like to see observed? (Don?t get disgusting What).
Anne Marie
My kind of patriot.
Ha, that’s interesting. I’m so used to complaining of all these other national days that I’ve never stopped to think about what I would want. I don’t know, maybe a national day of science? National day of libraries? National day of peace? National day of ’say no to cable news’? heh, I like that last one.
We could all say no to TV altogether, that could be interesting. Might generate a bit more independent thinking.
It would be impossible to do a day of no TV. You know that all the major networks would try and pull people in by having something special come on their stations that day.
I like the National Day of Libraries idea. OOH! National Day of Cupcakes! I could definitely go for that.
Comment from: Apple_Christmas
Satan and the angels were “created”. God is eternal, with no beginning and no end…
Ezekiel 28:15
John 1:3
Revelation 22:13
http://bibleresources.bible.com/bible_niv.php
How about a national day of Good Deeds, maybe a “Paying Forward
Day”.
Or maybe a “Take an Atheist to Lunch
Day?” No better scratch that one. A lot of us might end up with wooden stakes driven through our hearts.
There actually is a National Library Week in April every year.
I like the “just say no to cable news day” idea. Let’s make that one a week, too.
“Or maybe a “Take an Atheist to Lunch
Day?” No better scratch that one. A lot of us might end up with wooden stakes driven through our hearts.”
Too bad. I love free food.
phreedm how was god made.what is god made up with.i’m trying to get at what is the nature of god is it the universe itself.or do you see god as a being in the universe.
phreedm and Anne Marie:
Here’s sort of what I was thinking: There are vary many different gods (some real perhaps, some not real), with many different attributes. The Christian God certainly is a god, I think we would all agree. But what about a god like Apollo? What would you call him? Would you not call him a god also? Supposing Apollo actually existed, would any other word really fit?
It just so happened that there have been many people who actually did think that Apollo really existed, and “god” is the word they used for him. Does the word “god” have a different meaning in Christian theology than it does in common usage? Because in common usage Apollo certainly qualifies. And if Apollo qualifies, than so should Satan.
So in my opinion, calling Christianity a monotheistic religion is simply just asserting it to be so by redefining the word “god”.
Anne Marie and phreedm, you both mentioned that God is a god in part because he creates. Is God the only thing that can create? What does it mean to create (in this sense) anyway? I don’t expect complete airtight answers, but I’d be interested in your thoughts.
I suppose that many readers here also look frequently at onegoodmove. Today there is a post you won’t want to miss.
There is a video of Stephen Colbert talking about French atheist philosopher Michel Onfray. How he got on to him is anybody’s guess. He even gives a plug to Onfray’s book The Atheist Manifesto.
http://onegoodmove.org/1gm/
I have read the French original Ath?ologie and recommend it. However, it requires a certain amount of knowledge of the history of philosophy.
I hope that he will write a more basic book in the future.
Apple:
I?m guessing the my God is stronger than Apollo, nanny nanny boo boo argument won?t suffice so I?ll give the topic some consideration and see if I can formulate something more articulate after a cup or two of Joe.
In terms of the creative part, God certainly gives to humanity the ability to create, or more accurately co-create with God. Take sex for example, it has the potential to be procreative, but it is not always so. Nor is sex intended in humans to be exclusively procreative. So we can see that sex is not exclusively procreative, we can also see that we can reject it?s procreative elements thru the use of contraception among other things. However, we cannot always assure it?s procreative element as evidenced by the proliferation of fertility treatments in recent years. So while the potential for procreating exists ultimately the end result remains the prerogative of God. Our free will to reject God?s intention remains intact, but it does not negate God?s prerogative. As such we can be assured that all human life is ultimately created with specific intent by God. In short all human beings are God?s deliberate creative work, and are desired by God.
Geez, when I read that last post I kept hearing this sound in my head. It sounded like, “blah, blah, blah.”
Anne Marie,
Please rectify the above statement with the Pope’s stand on contraceptives.
Or is the RCC’s official stand no longer: Every sperm is sacred, every egg is grand?
Anne Marie,
You say things like, “god creates” or “god is stronger than Apollo”.
I want to let you know that there is no evidence of any of this. You believe it for your own personal reasons, not because it is fact. Calling it factual is your way of protecting a delusion.
Skeptics and Atheists tend to believe in things that can be tested. Show god create anything in a lab, prove it the same way other things are tested. Real things can be tested, delusions cannot. The math behind gravity and electricity, is always valid. So we believe it. Show any proof that god does ANYTHING, I will believe when it is shown to be true. A simple thing for an all powerful being.
According to the bible, god did not know the earth was a sphere. He did not know that the brain is the thinking part of the human. God even thought insanity was demon possession. These are not the thoughts of an all-knowing god.
Anne Marie, if you would bother to read the links that the Goddess karen has so unselfishly provided for you, all your problems would be solved.
Because I don’t think you will do that, I will try to give a short explaination of the problem you are having with blockquotes. When you included the “/” before the “blockquote” it ends the quote that you started with the “blockquote” without the “/”. If you don’t use the “/” at the end of the part you are quoting then the blocking won’t be terminated. I assure you there is no god idea involved.
Oh, and since you have observed your god idea perhaps give us a detailed physical description of it. Does it have a big one or, not so much?
Ann Marie
Or create in the absence of any gods. Gods are unnecessary in this equation unless you presuppose their omnipresent existence.
The clergy certainly have tried to do so.
Or never so in the case of oral, anal, or homosexual sex – or indeed sex practices by surgically sterilized people.
“Intended”? Intended by whom? Again, this presupposes the unnecessary existence of gods. There does not need to be an intent or purpose.
Actually fertilization is determined by well understood natural interactions and viabilities between the various elements involved. Again, there’s no mystery here. No unknown gaps within which to insert a redundant god or two.
How would we even be sure of a god’s intent? Surely whatever we do could just as easily be construed as inevitable complicity with the intent of some god or other? Or of course disconnected completely with the concept of gods.
Or not. This conclusion holds true only if one presupposes the reality of gods, that one knows the intent of those gods, and that those gods have the will, desire and ability to impose their fertilization intercessions irrespective of the (human) individual’s effort to thwart such fertilization.
In short, such an ambitious conclusion is not supported by the premises and argument.
Comment from: jshanewhit
Oh really…ok. Exactly how did you “test” that God isn’t taking up residence in the Andromada galaxy?
Here’s a simple test. Prove “scientifically” that atheism is real…?
Comment from: jshanewhit
Really…and where does it state this…?
Please don’t try to use “the 4 corners of the earth” as your example…
Well, Phreedum,
I have already heard your atheism does not exist crap. I exist and that is good enough for me.
Where does god say that the earth is a sphere? In the time of Jesus the Greeks knew it. Why did this important fact(and many others) not get mention. Why would the perfect word not have a single important fact in it? Jesus could have saved millions by explaining germs and micro-organisms to the people. Not a single mention of this fact anywhere. Christians say Jesus saves. I can’t see that he did anything to save anyone. He either did not know these facts, or intentionally intended for millions to die. He was either smart and cruel, or he was good and stupid.
Comment from: Apple_Christmas
created…point to another god who is suppose to be eternal.
Great question though…
phreedm:
Right. That was my point. He was created, but most people would call him a god. Or is your point that Apollo does not qualify as a god because he is not eternal? (Assume for the sake of argument that he is real.)
“take sex for example” What a hoot! If our lecturers only knew what to do with that subject more than any other one! Ha!
phreedm:
we don’t need to test that he isn’t there, we simply need to be inable to verify that he is.
this is consistant with the “believe in things that can be tested” idea.
and get off your “scientifically prove that atheism is real” crap, you’ve consistently failed to point out anything wrong with answers that have been (misguidedly) given to you in the past.
they don’t agree because their bible is a ‘reveletion’ so they interpret it differently.they will end up in different heavens