tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.comments2023-03-23T02:04:52.956-07:00Tommy Holland's VisionUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-53453981519478738792018-10-15T01:14:39.937-07:002018-10-15T01:14:39.937-07:00thank you for your interesting infomation. buy dvd...thank you for your interesting infomation. <a href="https://www.dvdshelf.com.au/buy-dvd-in-australia/the-walking-dead-season-8-australia-dvd-on-sale/" rel="nofollow">buy dvd the walking dead season 8</a>Blog Comment Backlinkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11978208268095899570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-24874190890702800752018-10-02T00:30:58.058-07:002018-10-02T00:30:58.058-07:00This is very educational content and written well ...This is very educational content and written well for a change. It's nice to see that some people still understand how to write a quality post! <a href="https://www.dvdshelf.com.au/buy-dvd-in-australia/homeland-season-7-australia-dvd-on-sale/" rel="nofollow">buy dvd homeland season 7</a>Jessica Schweizerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04436076737908935700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-12246699502136270092013-02-26T17:08:12.076-08:002013-02-26T17:08:12.076-08:00Thank you for commenting, Alan.
You raise an inte...Thank you for commenting, Alan.<br /><br />You raise an interesting point concerning the holding of a position when others hold the opposite belief. A commitment to humility would demand that we take the wisdom of others into account.<br /><br />Wouldn't that make life so much simpler? How remarkable it would be if, when confronted with a confusing or compelling issue, to simply discover the belief of some other bright person, and then adopt his or her position. No more weighing of evidence, no more seeking counsel, no more conducting trial experiments or gathering reliable data--just listen to whatever they say and then believe likewise.<br /><br />Of course, there might be a danger in such an approach. Suppose the person in question is wrong? Suppose he or she was misled? Wouldn't it be foolish to blindly accept their beliefs if there's a chance their beliefs--regardless of how comforting they might be--don't align with reality?<br /><br />And, as always happens, suppose two seemingly equally bright individuals hold equal but opposite positions on some crucial matter? How does an interested third party decide between the two? It doesn't take much effort to find clever fellows who argue on opposite sides of all sorts of moral and ethical issues, such as abortion, or capital punishment, or the teaching of Creationism in science classrooms. How are we to choose?<br /><br />One method, as you mentioned, would be to rely on a sacred text, and for many, that's enough. In fact, it was enough for myself for much of my life. But a careful examination of the Christian Bible has led me to question the simplistic notion that the words we read are the direct thoughts of a Creator God who's deeply concerned about our moral fiber. In essence, there are those who feel that the Bible is God's ideas about man, and there are those who feel it is man's ideas about God.<br /><br />Another method, as you mentioned, is to name long lists of noteworthy people who are said to believe as we do. Of course, truth is not determined by popular vote, as we all agree on. There was a time when the vast majority sincerely agreed that the sun revolved around the earth, and they were all wrong.<br /><br />And of course, not all noteworthies believed equally. Some of them held very questionable beliefs. Isaac Newton believed in an orderly God, but he also believed in Atlantis, a missing continent as big as Eurasia and Africa sunk beneath the sea, and he held other occultic beliefs. George Washington believed in a Deity and also owned slaves. <br /><br />Likewise, there have been great minds that have for various reasons eschewed the traditional evangelical position. Thomas Jefferson praised the morality of Jesus and excised the miracles of Jesus from his Bible. Charles Darwin originally studied to be a parson, but his natural studies led him to declare himself an agnostic. What's more, Socrates believed in God and called him Zeus. Consider Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking, both brilliant scientists who don't espouse religious views.<br /><br />Again, how is an interested person to choose between the beliefs of one great mind or another?<br /><br />As for the idea that Satan has lulled us into disbelief, the notion is compelling, but unfortunately it is unfalsifiable. One could say the same of a menagerie of diabolical creatures such as Loki, Rakshasa, or even Darth Vader. If we allow ourselves the idea that a lack of belief in a being is somehow evidence of that being's manipulations of our minds, then we leave ourselves open to all sorts of malicious and ultimately futile thinking.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15321466949515992295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-62263003812578761992013-02-24T14:13:43.891-08:002013-02-24T14:13:43.891-08:00Dear Tommy,
Just because Jesus has been banned fro...Dear Tommy,<br />Just because Jesus has been banned from the motorcade, are we to assume there is NO spiritual influence projected by that mororcade?<br />Have you ever heard the phrase "satan's greatest gambit is convincing people he does not exist?" <br />While you may have heard that idea, you may not believe in satan. In that case I, as a Believer, will say, in the case of Tommy Holland, satan has been eminently successful.<br />But it goes further, and deeper than that. I have Biblical evidence (which is a given you reject) those who do not believe in the "god of this earth (satan)," (Holy Bible, New Testament, Book of 2nd Corinthians, chapter 4, verse 4 [KJV]) truly worship satan. Here is the evidence: "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship<br />him (satan, see 13:4), whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Ibid, Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, chapter 13, verse 8. There is ONLY one way to have your name written into the Book of Life, "Ye must be born again." Ibid, Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 7.<br />Can you accept the possibility this life is merely a test to determine where each of use will spend eternity? Do you know of a third destination, other than Heaven or Hell, for where each of us will spend eternity?<br />God will send no one to Hell, that is strictly a matter of personal choice. God has laid out the rules of the game, the only true choices are Christ or satan. There is NO third option.<br />If you are familiar with some of the greatest minds in western history, brilliant minds in any field you can name, and if you are further familiar with the spiritual faith and belief of those men and women, you would rightly judge me the most arrogant of men were I, without well documented evidence, to reject the spiritual testimony of those men and women. <br />These men and women are my “witnesses” in support of my personal faith. Their faith has become part of my faith in God and His Word. Were I to reject the Bible and the testimony of these “witnesses,” you would rightfully and logically ask, "By what authority do you reject the word of men and women like Blackstone, Locke, Coke and Montesquieu, Pascal, Napoleon, Shakespeare, Rousseau, William Penn, George Washington, Thomas Jeferson, Samuel and John Adams, James Madison, the signers of the Declaration of Independence, John Marshall, John Hancock, Daniel Webster, Benjamin Rush, Roger Sherman, William Gladstone, Benjamin Disraeli, Gallileo, Sir William Hershel, Charles Darwin (Yes, Darwin), Pasteur, Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, Queen Victoria, Abigail Adams, Queen Elizabeth I, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Johannes Gutenberg, Sir Isaac Newton, Booker T. Washington, George Washington Carver, Michael Faraday, David Farragut, Lord Nelson, Douglas MacArthur, John Harvard, Elihu Yale, Jedidiah Morse, Noah Webster, William Holmes McGuffey, Lord Acton, Edmund Burke, Charles Dickens, Simon Greenleaf (trilogy, Rules of Evidence to be Used in Our Courts of Justice), Alexis DeToqueville, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Handel, etc., etc., etc. What evidence could I possibly present to contradict the faith of those mentioned and so many, many more of the bright lights of history not mentioned? Take my word for it; I have not scratched the surface in terms of numbers of “witnesses.”<br />You, and any reasonable observer, would laugh me to shame if I tried to counter the faith of the greatest thinkers in history. And I would be ridiculous indeed, if I simply rejected their conclusions without carefully examining their evidence.<br />Love, Alan (Ibid, Gospel of Matthew, chapter 5, verse 44)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06369904541061107313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-56973742706721604862011-05-06T13:52:49.053-07:002011-05-06T13:52:49.053-07:00(it looks like Chris is a "she")<em>(it looks like Chris is a "she")</em>Joshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17303885427565816487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-87932218735094664932011-02-02T07:13:10.693-08:002011-02-02T07:13:10.693-08:00I never said I was "surprised" by Scanla...<i><br />I never said I was "surprised" by Scanlan's response.</i><br /><br />That you mentioned it all tells me that you found the comment, and nothing else she said, to be remarkable.<br /><br /><i>Why should I be ashamed of identifying with the minority in God Discussion's unscientific poll? Is there something about siding with the majority that imbues one's opinion with greater merit?</i><br /><br />That would depend on what the opinion is.<br /><br /><i>Where did I say, "atheists can't enforce law?" </i><br /><br />You are correct, and I used the wrong term to summarize your point. My apologies.<br /><br /><i>if you do not believe there is a God whose act of creation established the natural law, any affirmation of that law is merely your opinion.</i><br /><br />And what is your evidence that there is such a God or that there is such a natural law? In years past, it was natural for blacks to be discriminated against and enslaved. Today, in the US, that's no longer the case. Was the natural law established by God amended somehow in the last two centuries? <br /><br />The laws of this country are available for view by any citizen; where can we look up this Natural Law to examine for ourselves the proper position about some thorny ethical issue?<br /><br /><i>Regardless, the Declaration and the Constitution are inseparable in interpreting the intent of the latter.</i><br /><br />What is your basis for that? There is no mention of one document in the other. The Declaration's only mention of any rights we have are "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," none of which are mentioned in the Constitution. The Constitution is even more godless than the Declaration (which only mentions in passing 'the Creator,' reflecting the deism of the document's framers.)https://www.blogger.com/profile/15321466949515992295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-86847687184806952512011-02-02T04:01:34.014-08:002011-02-02T04:01:34.014-08:00It's quite apparent that you did not comprehen...It's quite apparent that you did not comprehend my post. Clearly, you were too busy imputing ideas that I neither explicitly conveyed nor implied.<br /><br />I never said I was "surprised" by Scanlan's response. In point of fact, it doesn't surprise me at all.<br /><br />Why should I be ashamed of identifying with the minority in God Discussion's unscientific poll? Is there something about siding with the majority that imbues one's opinion with greater merit?<br /><br />Talk about a strawman (a term you misapply, by the way, as I explicitly stated I was speaking to a hypothetical). The post is right there! You can quote it directly. Where did I say, "atheists can't enforce law?" What I <i>actually</i> said was, "While it is possible for an atheist to still affirm these rights, their inability to acknowledge a divine source removes the essential authority upon which those rights are based. In other words, if you do not believe there is a God whose act of creation established the natural law, any affirmation of that law is merely your opinion. It carries no more weight than the next guy who believes his arbitrarily defined social class is inherently superior." That is substantively different from saying atheists can't enforce the law.<br /><br />As for your point about the Declaration not being applicable to legal arguments, I'm not making a legal argument! I'm sharing my justification for making a personal decision in a voting booth! Regardless, the Declaration and the Constitution are inseparable in interpreting the intent of the latter.<br /><br />Finally, my statement that I would vote for Tea Party atheist over a socialist believer was in no way contradictory to my previous statement that "if all else were equal" I would not vote for an atheist.<br /><br />You really need to work on your reading comprehension.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-15628981729064814082011-01-23T17:51:05.088-08:002011-01-23T17:51:05.088-08:00Thanks, Shira. You can always reach me here or di...Thanks, Shira. You can always reach me here or directly at tommyholland99@gmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15321466949515992295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-7183876068057728472011-01-23T09:25:20.334-08:002011-01-23T09:25:20.334-08:00Hi Tommy, I wrote the article and I definitely wis...Hi Tommy, I wrote the article and I definitely wish it could have been longer so I could have interviewed YOU (and gotten all perspectives)! Let's please be in touch for a follow-up or related future piece.<br />ShiraShira Hirschman Weisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03760389785827273424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-87132243703245164662011-01-08T18:55:01.153-08:002011-01-08T18:55:01.153-08:00Wait, isn't Allah's symbol the moon?
...
...Wait, isn't Allah's symbol the moon?<br /><br />...<br />...<br /><br />BILL O'REILLY IS A SECRET MUSLIN!!1!one-hundred-and-eleven!Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05927378164670751211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-58396721984774315632010-12-23T09:50:40.723-08:002010-12-23T09:50:40.723-08:00We will never know. People are prone to pressure,...We will never know. People are prone to pressure, to lying and cheating, to living according to how the believe they are perceived rather than how they actually feel. So, even people's actions can be deceiving.Gygeekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09622989816410529247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-10472776946242239592010-12-21T15:05:56.214-08:002010-12-21T15:05:56.214-08:00Ah, conservapaedia, thou art so ridiclueless.Ah, conservapaedia, thou art so ridiclueless.Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05927378164670751211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-68395495517206437142010-12-10T11:50:33.729-08:002010-12-10T11:50:33.729-08:00Thanks for promoting the story. Greatly appreciate...Thanks for promoting the story. Greatly appreciated.<br /><br />Charles LewisUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01315985483991710016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-11760323755816883052010-11-24T04:31:18.653-08:002010-11-24T04:31:18.653-08:00Thanks for the review.
Hahaha... "Dembski co...Thanks for the review.<br /><br />Hahaha... "Dembski complained that once he started working with Intelligent Design his career began to suffer"<br /><br />What fool would bring up Mother Theresa in the presence of Hitchens!? I think that you're right in your suggestion that Dembski didn't prepare specifically for a debate with Hitches.Michael Moffatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02647170691323353569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-62155954488897106602010-11-24T04:28:45.659-08:002010-11-24T04:28:45.659-08:00This comment has been removed by the author.Michael Moffatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02647170691323353569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-37961354205323634312010-10-27T20:38:15.201-07:002010-10-27T20:38:15.201-07:00Dennett has an interesting take on why believers k...Dennett has an interesting take on why believers know less than non-believers, but I'm not sure his is the full story. I think it might be one factor among a few.<br /><br />Most non-believers grew up in a religion. It's just that they left the religion while others -- while believers -- stayed in the religion.<br /><br />So let me suggest that non-believers might be people who are more concerned with beliefs, dogmas, and ideas than the average believer.<br /><br />On the other hand, I think the average believer -- the average person who sticks with a religion -- might be more concerned with friends, community, and companionship than the average non-believer. <br /><br />Churches these days are bankrupt in theology, but they still create communities of friends and associates. People for whom it matters that their church provides them with friends might not care that much what the church's theology and history are. And people for whom it matters what the church's theology and history are might not care that much for the friendships the church offers. <br /><br />I would guess the above is a factor, perhaps one factor of a few, that influences whether believers or non-believers know more about a religion.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-37170914934369533882010-10-17T07:58:51.507-07:002010-10-17T07:58:51.507-07:00To me, this phenomenon is entirely clear: you beco...To me, this phenomenon is entirely clear: you become an atheist by educating yourself about a great many topics, not least religion.<br /><br />I unlearned Christianity by studying it. By reading the Bible, by puzzling out the logic of its implications, by comparing its morality to my own.<br /><br />Evolution is inescapable if you study it, Religion is untenable if you study it. This is why so many clergy are agnostic.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06865502910365631855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-28448199852523778762010-10-17T07:40:56.167-07:002010-10-17T07:40:56.167-07:00There is a strange dichotomy to the whole Christia...There is a strange dichotomy to the whole Christian description of God. He is "all-powerful" (per dogma) yet He is constrained in countless ways (per the state of the observed world.)<br /><br />He can't make us happy; erm...that would exclude free will. He can't prevent the natural disasters that kill countless innocents for some reason [waves hands about.] He can't detect the ill will of some malevolent person and intercede NOW in a way that would protect victims because something something Hellfire.<br /><br />We can all think of myriad things we could do better if we were benevolent and omnipotent. How would we judge a mere human being if he blithely watched a toddler wander into traffic?<br /><br />Maybe God doesn't have free will.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06865502910365631855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-57712261463764670432010-10-16T19:44:39.744-07:002010-10-16T19:44:39.744-07:00It's indeed interesting how badly certain doct...It's indeed interesting how badly certain doctrines fall down on this point, but I prefer not to harp on it because the (despicable) religion I was raised in has concocted a more or less unobjectionable answer (if taken in isolation of course), despite being fundamentally racist, misogynistic, and homophobic (in no particular order). <br /><br />The LD$ Church preaches that those who didn't get a fair chance to accept the gospel in this life will be given a second chance in the afterlife (with the inescapable conclusion being that, if there <i>is</i> an afterlife, there will still be door-to-door Mormons, oh fucking shit...) <br /><br />In any case, since we're making it all up anyway, they've basically plugged that hole. That's why I prefer not to focus on it. "Woo hoo, you came up with a way to tweak your sadistic doctrine to allow <i>anybody</i> to become equally sadistic, whether they've heard of your fucked-up sadist plan or not. Um..... Congratulations???James Sweethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17212877636980569324noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-11022760835548146782010-10-16T19:34:04.529-07:002010-10-16T19:34:04.529-07:00So I had to skip some of the last part to get to b...So I had to skip some of the last part to get to bed, but I have to say, you're final two arguments didn't manage to hit the one I was thinking of: If the only thing that would cse humans to exercise their "free will" in order to do something contrary to God's commands would be "Satan"... then what is the difference between "Satan" and "Free Will"?!? After all... it seems that both are basically <i>defined</i> according to "This is the thingy that will allow you to do Y even if God says X..."<br /><br />Which gets double-worse if your theodicy is "God gave us free will" (i.e. Satan), "hence evil." Oh shiiiiiiiittttt....James Sweethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17212877636980569324noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-44559743437527168572010-10-16T12:07:20.197-07:002010-10-16T12:07:20.197-07:00A bit hyperbolic, but point well taken. Maybe when...A bit hyperbolic, but point well taken. Maybe when atheists start blowing up churches in the name of Dawkins, such labels as “militant atheists” will merit more than derision. But not foreseeably.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-6742483863364580902010-10-16T08:42:10.747-07:002010-10-16T08:42:10.747-07:00Awesome post!! I found this via Ed Brayton on Sci...Awesome post!! I found this via Ed Brayton on Science Blogs.Gygeekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09622989816410529247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-35730152257866711782010-09-25T05:35:12.081-07:002010-09-25T05:35:12.081-07:00Their confusion comes from their refusal to take t...Their confusion comes from their refusal to take the Bible, Jesus and his apostles seriously. Once you believe in Bible inerrancy and the Holy Spirit's inspiration you have 100's of verses that also have been ignored or sidestepped. Such as all the ones that say "this generation" "soon", "at hand", "at the door" and the ones that have the Greek word Mello in them but the word gets missing in our English translations Mello is of course " TO BE, ABOUT TO BE" occurs many times but TOTALLY missing in our texts<br /><br />It is clear there is NO end of time. Even this phrase is a distortion of the phrase "time of the end" see Daniel etc. If you don't know what the end is of, you'll never understand it's "time".<br /><br />Of course the appointed time of the end is of the temple and Mosaic Judiasim! To this very day the Jewish folks I know refer to the "temple as "heaven & earth" as kinda a nickname. This changes everything!JOEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13362690237408870694noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-45243104048093472872010-07-17T17:35:59.487-07:002010-07-17T17:35:59.487-07:00Accepting 'micro' and rejecting 'macro...Accepting 'micro' and rejecting 'macro' is akin to saying that you can add 1 and 1 to get to 2 but you cannot ad 1 to 1 to 1 to 1 etc and arrive at 10.magx01https://www.blogger.com/profile/14831638782847911405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7622246248744583059.post-1112135759800832812010-07-17T17:33:54.456-07:002010-07-17T17:33:54.456-07:00These sorts of stories always fill me with a despa...These sorts of stories always fill me with a despair so great I cannot even begin to qualify/quanitfy it. The words to exemplify it in a way that does it justice simply do not exist.magx01https://www.blogger.com/profile/14831638782847911405noreply@blogger.com