Protestantism

» pink101 - Just In Case You Are Ignorant Of The Truth

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Just in case you are ignorant of the truth about Secular Humanism, here is a little information of interest on the subject.
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"Secular Humanism is a way of thinking and living that aims to bring out the best in people so that all people can have the best in life. Secular humanists reject supernatural and authoritarian beliefs. They affirm that we must take responsibility for our own lives and the communities and world in which we live. Secular humanism emphasizes reason and scientific inquiry, individual freedom and responsibility, human values and compassion, and the need for tolerance and cooperation."
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For more information on Secular Humanism go to this link:
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http://www.secularhumanism.org/
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lol
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-- posted by pink101

» pink101 - FREE INQUIRY

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Here is a snippet from this site: http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php...
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"Secular Humanist Morality

"Paul Kurtz is Editor in Chief of FREE INQUIRY, a professor emeritus of philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and Chairman of the Center for Inquiry/Transnational.
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"Secular humanists represent a significant portion of the American public. They comprise tens of millions of people who, though nonreligious, are morally committed. The term nonreligious can be used broadly to refer to those who do not belong to or identify with a denomination or do not claim to believe in God-they may be agnostics, atheists, or skeptics. They look to modern science, literature, philosophy, ethics, and the arts for inspiration rather than the traditional religious 'sacred texts.' They do not attempt to follow the dictates of the Bible, the Qur'an, or other ancient documents. Many nonreligious do not actively practice a faith, though, due to family and other social pressures, they may remain as nominal members of a church or temple. They are truly modern in their outlook and behavior.
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"For want of a better term, they are secularists, and they are committed to humanist values and the civic virtues of democracy. They believe in human freedom and dignity; they are interested in living a full life of creativity and happiness; and they have an altruistic concern for the good of others. They are generally tolerant of diverse lifestyles and believe in the right of privacy."
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There is nothing like getting the truth about a subject, is there?
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-- posted by pink101

» Migisi - FREE INQUIRY

In response to FREE INQUIRY posted by pink101:
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Count me in.
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-- posted by Migisi

» pink101 - We Are

In response to FREE INQUIRY posted by Migisi:
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We are the scourge of the earth according to at least one participant in these threads.
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-- posted by pink101

» Migisi - We Are

In response to We Are posted by pink101:
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We are the scourge of the earth...
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Imagine the ~uninterrupted~ discussions we'll be able to have - in hell - with:
Confucious, Epicurus, Ben Franklin, Thomas Paine, Darwin and Clarence Darrow, Poe, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Walt Whitman, Mark Twain, Nietzsche, Thomas Edison, Sigmund Freud, Marie Curie, Robert Frost, Albert Einstein, Ernest Hemingway, Joseph Campbell, Carl Sagan...
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wink and

-- posted by Migisi

» pink101 - We Are

In response to We Are posted by Migisi:

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Some more on the idea:
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Havoc in Modern-Day Babylon
The idea of unity among all human beings is no more to us than an imaginary children's story. Back in babylon, someone had a way for humanity to unite. Today, our world needs such a method more than ever

"...we are like a pile of nuts, assembled by a wraparound bag. That level of unity does not turn them into an
integrated body. Every slight movement of the bag makes them swing and separate from each other. They, in turn, partially join and unite anew. And all that they lack is the natural unification from within. Any force of unification is due to an external incident. This is very saddening."

Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam),
HaUma (The Nation)

Unity. That is what we experience from time to time, in moments that bring us together as a people. We celebrate the Jewish holidays, each in our own way, and we share many collective experiences rooted in our culture.

But such experiences are not enough to grant us a real sense of a unified people. As Baal HaSulam allegorically puts it, to the onlooker we may seem like nuts in a bag, united only by the cloth that holds us together. Any knock from the outside wiggles the contents to and fro, and when pressed, they unite. When nothing pressures them from the outside, they remain apart.

Obviously, this kind of unity does not really make us feel as one.
What Turns People into a People?

231 years ago, the United States declared its independence. Its residents came from all over Europe, Africa, and Asia. They were Jews, Christians, and others from many religions and nationalities, and they all left their homelands to move to the "land of unlimited opportunities."

These people, separated by language, faith, and culture, had one thing in common-a burning desire for a new and brighter future. Thus, they bridged their differences and went on to establish a vast trade system.

Unlike the United States, where people of diverse nations gathered largely to establish a country based on profitability and benefit, European countries were based on a common ethnic background. England, France, Russia, Germany, and other countries, were comprised of tribes of the same race. For those countries, one's common origin was the uniting force.

It is easy to think that Jews, too, share a common origin. However, genetically speaking, there is no "Jewish gene."
A Different Kind of Unity

To understand what "the Jewish people" is based on, we need to make a short trip to Babylon about 5,000 years ago. Mesopotamia, and especially its capital, Babylon, was a melting pot much like today's New York City. In fact, in many ways, Mesopotamia is the cradle of civilization. Back then, humanity was built as an aggregate of clans. An instinctive, animal-like closeness made people feel very close to one another, as with kin.

But as time went by, human egoism intensified and began to turn people away from one another, to alienate them. People became increasingly concentrated on self-interest, ignoring the needs of others. After some time, exploitation and hatred appeared.

One of the Babylonians was able to see how humanity, once a warm family, was turning into a lions' den. But this was not all that he saw. Abraham realized that beneath its egoistic surface, humanity was, in fact, a single, collective entity, like cells in a body.

Abraham understood a crucial point: once humanity transcends egoism and reunites into a single entity, it will match the inclusive force of love that binds all parts of Creation-the Creator.

Armed with this new perception, Abraham began to develop a method capable of allowing all people to transcend their egos and connect to the Creator. However, few of Abraham's contemporaries expressed any zeal to correct their egos. The minority that did follow his method would actually become the first group of Kabbalists in history. Ultimately, this group grew into what we now know as "the people of Israel."

Why were they called "Israel"? Ysrael (Israel) is a combination of two words: Yashar (straight) and El (God). Thus, Israel means "Straight to God." The name implies the essence of the unity among the people of Israel: a profound, eternal bond that connects them to Nature itself, beyond race, nationality, or personal considerations.
Away from the Public Eye

Since human egoism continued growing to new highs (or lows), the people of Israel gradually lost their unity, as well as their bonding with the inclusive Nature, the Creator. This happened in two stages called "the ruin of the first, and second Temples."

Eventually, only a select few were left who could sense of the immensity of Nature. And for approximately two millennia, away from the public eye, these people, whom we call "Kabbalists," continued to develop Abraham's correction method and adapt it to humanity's (still) growing ego.

Consequently, over the years, authentic Kabbalah has become shrouded in mystery, immersed in misconceptions, and, as of late, tainted by commercialism.

Kabbalists have been preparing the method for a time when humanity would reach the height of egoism. At that point, it would be ready and willing to use Kabbalah as a correction method, and as nothing else. Now, the time has come.
Living in Modern-Day Babylon

Today, our lives are not much different from those who lived in ancient Babylon. Admittedly, we have a variety of foods, clothes, high-tech communication, high-speed transportation and whatnot. And yet, our world is swamped by corruption, hatred, segregation, terrorism, and other forms of menace. We have become so "sobered up" by hatred and pain, and so cynical, that ideals like "love of man" sound absurd, if not inconceivable.

The more the global crisis escalates, the more accusatory fingers will be pointing at the Jews. The reasoning is rather simple: Nature pulls all of its parts into unification, like a magnet at the center of its field. But to be drawn towards the middle, we need to implement the correction, or bonding method, developed and guarded by Israel. As long as we are not using our correction method, all of humanity remains stranded, and the tension between where we should be and where we actually are will continue to grow. As a result, consciously or not, other nations are driven to impel Israel to move.

We Jews must recognize the merit of the wisdom we possess and put it into practice. The authentic wisdom of Kabbalah has nothing to do with any kind of mysticism or belief. It is rather a systematic method, imprinted in Nature itself, aimed at elevating humanity to its next evolutionary phase.

When we find within us the desire to revive our inner unity, we will discover the natural love that awaits all human beings, the kind of love we are intended to dispense throughout the world. In the words of Prophet Isaiah, we will be "a light of the nations."
Feature Article: Havoc in Modern-Day Babylon
ARTICLE: Who is to Blame? - Selected pieces from a discussion on Baal HaSulam's article ARTICLE: Who is to Blame? - Selected pieces from a discussion on Baal HaSulam's article "Introduction to the Book of Zohar" by Rav Michael Laitman, PhD
VIDEO: Fixing the Middle East Crisis - Perceiving Reality discusses the present-day role and global-scale responsibility of Israel VIDEO: Fixing the Middle East Crisis - Perceiving Reality discusses the present-day role and global-scale responsibility of Israel
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Source: http://www.kabtoday.com/epaper_eng/conte...

-- posted by pink101

» Brian Tubbs - BF

In response to We Are posted by Migisi:

You might be disappointed with Ben Franklin. There are indications he increasingly warmed to Christianity through his life. He may have converted before his death. One of those mysteries.

» Migisi - BF

In response to BF posted by BrianTubbs:

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He may have converted before his death. One of those mysteries.
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Or he may not have.

-- posted by Migisi

» pink101 - BF

In response to BF posted by Migisi:

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And his remains may have turned to dust by now.
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-- posted by pink101

» Brian Tubbs - Franklin

In response to BF posted by Migisi:

Sure. I'm not claiming or arguing that he became a Christian. In fact, I've said on numerous occasions that, as far as we know, Ben Franklin was not a Christian in any kind of orthodox sense. Same with Thomas Jefferson (though he often kept up the appearances of being one) and Thomas Paine (who made no bones about his hostility to organized religion).

My only point is that humanists need to put a question mark next to Franklin when claiming his as one of their own. His speech at the Constitutional Convention calling for prayer, for example, was NOT the kind of thing a humanist would say.