From: Jim Choate <ravage@EINSTEIN.ssz.com>
Date: Wed, 16 Sep 1998 17:13:19 +0800
To: cypherpunks@EINSTEIN.ssz.com (Cypherpunks Distributed Remailer)
Subject: RE: Democracy... (fwd)
Message-ID: <199809162238.RAA09965@einstein.ssz.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text



Forwarded message:

> From: Matthew James Gering <mgering@ecosystems.net>
> Subject: RE: Democracy... (fwd)
> Date: Wed, 16 Sep 1998 15:07:37 -0700

> > Try pantheism. If one fundamentaly believes that god does not 
> > exist, which clearly involves faith, then yes it is a religion.
> 
> Then I guess you could say that pantheism is an atheist religion, as
> opposed to a theist religion.

You could, but you'd be wrong.

> My nice definition of atheism is reason over faith, science over
> mysticism, basically an anti-religion. While that may be etymologically
> unjustified, it does accurately reflect the views of the majority of
> people I know who call themselves atheist, myself included.

Atheism means that one believes that there is no God.

> > By your view an agnostic can't be religion
> 
> No, and it's not, it's like standing in the doorway of a religion, not
> sure whether to enter or leave, perhaps practicing but not believing.

Ah, so there are personal beliefs that aren't religion and then there are
personal beliefs that are? What a self-rightous, pretentious, egotistical
viewpoint.

Your view is *exactly* why the 1st was put in there.

> Such indecisiveness annoys me, but it accounts for the majority of the
> population.

Actualy not, the vast majority of people believe in God, just not your
particular brand - which after all is what the 1st is all about.

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