Yes, they have many treasures and an opulant palace. They also are the funding behind many soup kitchens and other charitable causes.
****And what, you have no problem with the monumental disparities between pitance, a mere fraction of donations received from around the world going in the coffers of the vatican bank, thrown at the poor like bread crumbs whilst the gigantic hoarding of wealth goes on. Yes a mere soup kitchens
What about Babtists, Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Hare Krishnas. They are all religious organizations and if you belong to one then you may not live as well as those on the top. My point is organizations are a manmade thing and therefor prone to mistakes. Don't 'throw the baby out with the bathwater'.
*****Look it isn't confined to the catholicism and the catholic church alone and I could cite many other religious organisations who exploit their positions of power to basically conduct business for profit and not for the needy.
All religious organisations do some good there is no doubt
There are countless good, decent, honourable people among them.
What I am getting at is that due to the false doctrines based on an all supreme being being put on a pedestal and making people subservient to it is what in the end cause people to not take responsibility for their own affairs including their thoughts, feelings and actions.
GOd will decide, GOd will take care of it, God is the final judge and the arbitar and so on the rationale goes giving a green light for people to thrust their responsibilities upon this imaginary figure and not assume it themselves.
The laws of cause and effect applies everywhere irrespective of whether people think that GOD put it there or not, it still applies with no exception therefore in this matrix people living their lives must think for themselves rather than assume that GOD will take care of them.
This then is the crux of the issue.
Once people relegate their responsibilities to something outside of themselves, all hell breaks loose.
It'll be no less an example than a neighbour prone to hoarding so much garbage piled up in his front and back yard depite his neighbour's protests that the disgusting state of his house is actually a serious hygienic problem and its dropping the realestate prices down for everybody living in the vicinity and upon hearing their complaint the bad neighbour tells them its GOD's will and GOD's will alone who will decide what is appropriate and what is not, go back to your houses and let GOD take care of it Amen
Fortunately I live in America where FREEDOM of choice allows one to belong to any religious sect of their choosing. Have to agree with you on that last part.
*****I do realise that people can believe what they want to believe and live their live according to their own free will there is no question about that but we as humanity must truly decide that if something is BAD, something has to be done about it.
For example a toddler is just about to put his hands on a stove left on by the parent who was about to make dinner in which you were invited to, they are busy absorbed in their conversation in which you are not involved in, as the impending danger for the child was about to be consumated, you just let it happen for the fear that if you physically handle the child you might be construed as being a paedophile OR you place the child's safety first, leap out of the chair and save the child from danger
God represents the epitome of righteouness.
**Oh and why might that be and on what grounds and have you seen him act righteously.
newinitiation wrote:And yet this has been the best that religion had achieved up until now, to wreak havoc on society, foster very criminal minded power hungry depots selling GODs name to profit tremendously whilst turning a blind eye to starving children in the own back yards.
Again you paint with a broad stroke all religious people. Most religious people are some of the most sincere and caring people you will find anywhere. The ones I know anyway. I have my charities as I suppose they do also so, instead of judging others, maybe we need to focus on what we can do to 'feed the starving children in our own backyards'.
No not all religious people, my focus is on the people like the pope with vested power to affect tremendous good if he be so inclined to use his power for the benefit of people and not act as the agent of the vatican interests that goes against the very principles that they preach but not follow themselves.
newinitiation wrote:But still people who believe in this nonsense have been so brainwashed by the very belief system that has become an integral part of their own existence that it becomes a threat on account of any outsider that questions the very foundation of their beliefs system which they'll fervently redouble their effort to protect.
It's funny to me how some will persistently argue that belief in the Bible is some kind of mind control when, at its core, it is still just a book. You may label it nonsense if you like; that will not change my perception and, until you prove that it is a fallacy, I will believe that BOOK of RIGHTEOUSNESS over you or any that
claim it is false.[/quote]
***Well I think you have misconstrued my position and my intention and we are veering off way out into a different tangent altogether.
In the end everybody must decide what they'll believe, know, do, say, learn, think, etc according to their own free will but those of us like myself who have a legitimate grounds for pointing out the dangers of religion and any belief system that is not in line with the real truth, must do so in the spirit of genuine helpfulness even if condemned as a heretic or worse delusional.
I don't expect you to understand but hope that saner heads prevail even if I am precheaching to the wrong quoir at least it'll give some food for thought as the conversation evolves and more facts are pointed out.
I really must say LOGIC geared in truth is very important in the right discernment
It is said achieve the wisdom of knowledge so that you may wisely follow the laws of Creation/Nature.