In Reply to: condescencion.. posted by ray on April 13, 2004 at 17:28:36:
I don't have any particular religious belief, but I do know that there is something beyond scientific explanation and there always will be. Like people are cloning now, but cloning is not perfected. But there are so many unanswerable questions. Space is so vast, and new galaxies are discovered more rapidly as time goes on. Places we are light years from reaching.
Getting more down to earth, in every religion there are uncanny things that happen that seem to bolster the belief in any given religion. Call them "miracles" if you will. Or clarivoyance, or ESP, Deja Vu, etc. Most of us have experienced some things along these lines whether Christian or not. Religions, I think, make people feel safe by tacking down all the explanations and use the "miracles" to validate their truth as the only one.
As I said, I love the principles that Jesus taught. I hate the principles that are in rigid applications of what spiritual people teach. I also believe that all people are spiritual incl. atheists.
I can't tack down a religion for you, and I do not know really what I believe as far as any religion goes, but I think that some things are clear.
I didn't realize until the other day when I was watching part of a documentary on Jesus and the Bible from a studied viewpoint, that the book of revelations mentions woe to those that destroy the earth. Most fundamentalist Christians seem to have very little value for the planet figuring it will all be destroyed and magically replaced anyway. And for thousands of years the "time of the end" has been "at hand".
I believe that we play a big part in our destiny. And I believe in taking care of the earth, as much as possible. That means, I am not rich so I can't afford to not have a car where I live, be picky about whether everything I have is made with leather, etc. And I am not a strict vegetarian. As the population of the earth grows, and the population of food sources, the more diseases will spread and new ones will evolve. Like Mad Cow Disease. Using diseased animals to feed animals that are not carnivores, now we have diseases that cross animal/human barrier.
Have you ever watched the film "Baraka"? I found it very striking. Motion picture poetry. It was shown several times on the Sundance channel.