Why the atheist insult to Simon? That seems very rude! Personally, I feel middle of the road on "religion" - on one side, I used to go to a church called Harvest Temple, in Lakeside, California. I have very fond memories of this, the church was colorful, the first place I felt really loved and accepted. Earlier growing up, we belonged to the Methodist church, but my dad was very abusive, and it seemed very strange for him to be in that church, and to behave that way. This of course was not a "methodist" problem, but seemed strange to me as a child.
Flash forward today - I read now complaints about perhaps our former pastor being involved in preaching the financial blessings bit to people who can't afford to give money in very poor countries - I find myself wondering if he really believes this will help these people, or is it a scam? Religion itself can be very scary - families are often torn apart! I know of a young gay guy I knew growing up who actually changed his name, because he hated the young man he was growing up, he did not feel accepted in any way by his religious group, nor by his family. People have committed suicide because they did not feel they were o.k. by their religious upbringing. Be careful - religion is not all good - it can be very evil. I am considering going back to another state where my distant relatives are, until now I have lived 2000 miles away. It is amazing how the talk will go to fear of "going to hell" or "burning forever". It is also troublesome when you try to have a honest discussion about religion and your hand is gently slapped because you are talking about "the sacred cow". Yet, I really don't see a peace in my older relatives who are approaching the end of their lives, they seem scared. An atheist is not necessarily someone who has lost all faith, they don't always dress all in black, with their heads hanging down saying the end is near - I find myself religious in a sense - I found out a friend died young hiking on a trail - I find myself thinking he existed before he was born, and after he died - if he died. However, I find myself thinking also that when we find out what really happens after death, it may very well shatter our little preconcieved notions about what all this is about. Dennis On Wednesday, November 11, 2009, at 08:22PM, "Sandy" <sandracharlot...@yahoo.com> wrote: > -- You received this message because you are a member of the iMac Group, a group for those using Apple iMacs and eMacs. The list FAQ is at http://lowendmac.com/imac/list.shtml and our netiquette guide is at http://www.lowendmac.com/lists/netiquette.shtml To post to this group, send email to imaclist@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/imaclist
