BrianW

The world bank has acquired its power from what people collectively have given it (the implicit trust in the financial institutions which latter, mode...

And suppose, like Jesus said, the laws were made for man, not vice versa. Also, those commandments which direct to kill a witch also demand that adult...

If the personal interpretation has nothing to do with the teachings of the scriptures in terms of principle, context, related teachings and texts, etc...

Check out this article:- https://www.goldcountrycalvary.com/images/pdf/HAClass7Principles.pdf. It shows there are many more considerations in hermeneu...

We can't ignore the reference of good and evil because it is made explicit in the conversation between God and adam &eve. Also the change in perspecti...

Sorry about this. It only matters because I kept omitting the words 'the knowledge of' and I had to check to remind myself what the correct designatio...

Just checked with my bible and it's the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

If the 'hom' and 'soma' tree can represent the same idea, why can't the term 'good and evil' be used alike? It's not about identical words or terms ju...

The above statement (which I believe bears repeating again) is significant because there's much wisdom in it's precise and concise form. It portrays a...

I think we're lost the moment we fail to realise our ability in determining our circumstances. The parents and care-givers determine to a far reaching...

He's a member of tpf, I just appreciated his contribution.

Concerning negativities and biases, there was a study conducted to investigate whether our lives at present is much improved compared to the 18-19th c...

Allow me to use the Buddha's teachings to show how perspective can be reconciled. (From Vinayapitaka, The Book of of the Discipline volume 1, Suttavib...

What do we want to achieve, to succeed at, to win? The great Tao teaches what we must direct our activities so that we achieve, succeed and win that w...

:up: :ok:

If the starting premise is that God is omnipotent, then it can't be followed up by an if "he creates a stone he can't lift." Because the second premis...

Please allow me to share my thoughts on this, it is a subject I'm very fond of. It is not necessarily a passiveness because in terms of focus, concent...

I think it is a commentary on the perception of the absolute (the great Tao) from the perspective of relativity. By master is meant one who has cogniz...

Everything I know starts with "I" and then "I AM". I may not know everything about myself but the only certainty I have is that "I" am, regardless of ...

- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave–particle_duality Therefore, from A is A, we get quantum entity=quantum entity. The conditioning does not alter th...

The law of identity just states that A is A. The law of non-contradiction states that A is not and cannot be Not-A (the Not-A could be anything from B...

Right. I haven't met any deal to speak of.

By practical I mean having utility or being functional, and both the material and immaterial have proved to be that. I find that logic to work in all ...

Not explicitly. I used "the principles which govern the working of reality" because reality applies to everything that is, regardless of conditioning....

Then, where would the thoughts and illusions exist?

Depends on what is meant by logic. If by logic we mean rationale or reason then it becomes subjective and dependent on perspective. This is because we...

It refers to omnipotence from human perspective. It is not about if God is omnipotent or not, but whether we (humans) can understand omnipotence. And,...

You speak as if the stone paradox is fact. God's abilities are just as speculative as God's inabilities. How can there be any definite conclusions abo...

How and why?

Yeah, that's my point; that superstition superseded atheism, and that the presence of superstition contradicts atheism in some way. My point is, even ...

I'm just saying that even before belief in gods, there was belief in supernatural phenomena e.g. spirits, angels, demons, elementals, etc. Aren't such...

I think it's close but not quite because paganism also involves a kind of deism.

I feel like 'atheism' is the wrong word to use considering our inclinations to believe in supernatural (beyond the norm and unlike the norm) phenomena...

I think the beast represents the ways of association along the lines of bias (such as racial, cultural and historical, economic, social, religious, ge...

I am more inclined to accept the esoteric spiritual teachings on consciousness and mind. That means, I think the mind is a part of consciousness which...

When you mention omnipotency, it negates inability in any and every way. So, why and how do you arrive at a stone that can't be lifted? If God is omni...

I believe it's the intelligent way since it reflects self-discipline and personal responsibility over one's endeavours.

In common use, the terms facts and truth are very fluid in their definitions. Personally, I define truth as the part of reality that is constant and u...

You're the one who brought up the notion of contradictions and truth. My questions to you are attempts to find out what you mean by truth and how you ...

Yeah, I believe developing faith is similar to developing understanding. And part of it is, as you say, realising the relation between the abstract an...

I think if people perform their due diligence of employing their reasoning faculties then the confusion fades away. And it begins with knowing what on...

Agreed. I find people who find fault with scriptures are at fault themselves for not evaluating the nature of what they're extracting from those scrip...

Contradictions in what? Statements may have truth value but are not truth in themselves, are they? Why should the bible be infallible? Doesn't that po...

By 'lift' do you mean against gravity or what? And what do you mean by create, it sounds like compiling material to add to their collective weight. My...

As you read, the words and sentences are being converted into a narrative in your mind by your understanding. That is what I mean by interpretation. T...

It's a good question so allow me to provide a reply. The contradictions are fact. However, the bible is not a collection of historical or scientific f...

Apparently, for some people, it doesn't matter why the statements might contradict as long as they do. Why should reasons matter?

At least the priests have their priorities in order.

I wish. It's more like the priest keeps saying the same things over and over again until... Oh, wait, they're not done yet. And that's the downfall of...

Those who seek faults find faults. There is also great wisdom to be found in the bible. I wonder, do the contradictions highlighted devalue or invalid...