People often have conversations in which we label others into groups. Those group identities can be created by others or the group themselves. Either case, when we talk about the group ambiguity creeps in. The perceiver may make the assumption that the conversation must apply to the entire group rather than the group in general. […]
Filed under: context, conversation, logic | 2 Comments »
A lot of people are laughing at Harold Camping and his followers lately. In less than 48 hours Camping’s prediction will be proven wrong, but what I find interesting is Camping’s most fervent detractors are not atheists, but Christians. As an atheist, I have no problem laughing at Camping and his ridiculous beliefs, but Christians […]
Filed under: context, delusion, End of Days, End of the World, prophecies, Religious Manipulation, The Rapture | 4 Comments »
One tactic that I often run into when discussing religion with the religious is a variation of the old sports strategy called, “running the clock.” The idea is to load the atheist up with stuff and waste our time. Here are a few examples: The most common example is when religious believers simply make multiple […]
Filed under: context, conversation, debate, discussion, Religion | No Comments »
The Bible (or any Holy Book, really) seems to be open to lots of various interpretations. Frequently when I point out a particular issue I have with the Bible to a Christian they will inform me that I am interpreting it incorrectly. If I take a liberal view of the Bible, the fundamentalists say I […]
Filed under: context, language, Real Christians, Religion, the bible | 2 Comments »
A long time ago in my studies of Hebrew (which I really can’t read any more), I remembered hearing that the term “neighbor” in Bible didn’t mean the universal neighbor we think of as all humanity as most people interpret it today. The context that it is used by most Christians and Jews today is […]
Filed under: context, Neighbor, Religion, the bible | 7 Comments »
“People say that I hate chocolate. That’s not true, I love chocolate. It tastes sweet.” If someone were to claim that I said, “I hate chocolate,” Then they are clearly taking my words out of context. If someone said that, “I love chocolate” they are also taking my words out of context. However in the […]
Filed under: context, Religion, the bible | 15 Comments »
