Re: thoughts on Jesus

On 5/18/2008 11:23 AM, alwaysaskingquestions went clickity clack on the keyboard and produced this interesting bit of text:
"Vernon Balbert" <vbalbert@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:RHiXj.1066$BL6.915@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On 5/16/2008 4:22 AM, alwaysaskingquestions went clickity clack on the keyboard and produced this interesting bit of text:
"Ilas" <nobody@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:Xns9AA06881FED38lurker@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"alwaysaskingquestions" <alwaysaskingquestions@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in
news:695013F2vsm4oU1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx:

"John Wilkins" <j.wilkins1@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1ih1991.pgql7n1558fhyN%j.wilkins1@xxxxxxxxxxxx
If 3, then one wonders at the necessity for the gap itself. Why, for
example, think there is a "soul" if "soul" is never investigable?
I don't follow your logic there, the belief is addressing the gap, not
creating the gap. People talk about the "soul" as an expression for
things we cannot otherwise explain, if we stop talking about the soul
that does not eliminate those things our wonderment at what causes
them.
You know as well as I do that the soul means something very different to
most Christians. It's supposed to be that indefinable part of you that
ascends to heaven after death (or descends to hell),
It is more than that:

"The soul, according to many religious and philosophical traditions, is the
self-aware essence unique to a particular living being. In these traditions
the soul is thought to incorporate the inner essence of each living being,
and to be the true basis for sapience, rather than the brain or any other
material or natural part of the biological organism"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul

and as such it is
religion creating the gap.
So you reckon that if there were no religion then Man would not wonder where
his sapience comes from?
Religion was created primarily for this reason.

A bit of explanation would be useful about exactly *how* Man, unique among species, created religion.

I thought I had explained it. It's called imagination and a desire to explain how the world works. When you're not very sophisticated you imagine that things happen for a reason and if they happen for a reason that means there's an intelligence behind that reason. And if somebody is so powerful that he can make the sun come up every morning, you're in awe of that power and you figure that he's powerful enough to smite you and so you need to appease him. Other animals do not have the capacity to think in such a sophisticated way, or if they do, we haven't been able to detect it. (Do you speak chimpanzee?)

--
"Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?"
"I think so, Brain! But is Chippendale's ready for 'The Full Pinky?'"

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: thoughts on Jesus
    ... the keyboard and produced this interesting bit of text: ... talking about the soul that does not eliminate those things our ... So you reckon that if there were no religion then Man would not ... What is this 'imagination' thing you are taking about, ...
    (talk.origins)
  • Re: thoughts on Jesus
    ... alwaysaskingquestions went clickity clack on the keyboard and produced this interesting bit of text: ... talking about the soul that does not eliminate those things our ... So you reckon that if there were no religion then Man would not ... What is this 'imagination' thing you are taking about, where does it come from, how does it work? ...
    (talk.origins)
  • Re: thoughts on Jesus
    ... the keyboard and produced this interesting bit of text: ... talking about the soul that does not eliminate those things ... So you reckon that if there were no religion then Man would not ... What is this 'imagination' thing you are taking about, ...
    (talk.origins)
  • Re: thoughts on Jesus
    ... the keyboard and produced this interesting bit of text: ... talking about the soul that does not eliminate those things ... So you reckon that if there were no religion then Man would not ... What is this 'imagination' thing you are taking about, ...
    (talk.origins)
  • Re: thoughts on Jesus
    ... talking about the soul that does not eliminate those things our ... So you reckon that if there were no religion then Man would not ... Religion was created primarily for this reason. ... What is this 'imagination' thing you are taking about, ...
    (talk.origins)