they were written sometime between what, 100 years or so after. fine by me.
and no i don't believe in the odyssey. or that they existed.
OK...
I'm going to illustrate this with a really simple annalogy.
in 1870 there was a small child in victorian britain, we'll call him Albert.
Albert lived in, lets say Manchester, and worked in a textile factory.
Unfortunatly one day he was killed in the machinery at the tender age of 14, and that tragic death resulted in that textile mill improving safety.
Albert died so that others could be saved.
Albert was in fact the second comming of the christian Messiah.
if you want I'll continue to 'make up' this story, I'll embelish it a bit with his poor life, might throw in a few modern miracles, and you of course, (given enough faith) will believe this.
this is abviously a fact.
because of the following reasons.
a, Albert is a victorian name.
b, Manchester is a real place
c, child labour was used extensivly in the factories of the industrial revolution era in britain
d, there really were Textile factories in manchester, (in fact is was a centre for the textile industry)
e, people did die in textile mills.
f, it happened so long ago you can't say for certain that it didn't happen
g, but only a hundred years ago is a short enough time for me to 'accuratly' document the entire life of this child, from Birth to death.
h, my work was inspired by the words of God
so there we have it, I've declared myself an aspostle, and written religious scripture, by your own reasoning earlier in this thread there is enough factual historic evidence in that short story that it couldn't possibly not be true.
in fact I'd go as far as to say that most of the story is very likely 100% accurate.
in fact in years to come this will be why schollars believe that religious robes are made from natural fibres and not synthetics, in honour of the second saviour who gave his live in the textile mills of manchester so that others might not have to die.
(basicall I still think that the reasoning of faith alone is a pretty rubbish reason to believe in a single religion/deity),
I am an athiest, or more likely agnostic. I don't believe in a sterotypical christian God, but I do believe that if you look at religion for the purpose of which it was intended then you'll see that religion is there to explain the unexplainable, (like where did we all come from). and it i there to keep order and lawful society, (thou shalt not steal).
if you want to belief in science, then go ahead, if you want to believe in religion then go ahead. if you want to take a balanced amount from both science, and (all if not most) religion(s) then go ahead... but if you do believe something then try to have some sort of reasons for it.
and if your reasons are I have faith, then that should be enough.
I myself would like to believe in the existance of other life in the universe. fundamentally I'd find it far too depressing to believe that this little planet with it's messed up society is the only life in the whole of everything, when I look up at the stars, well, you just have to wish that there is something out there.
do I have proof of this - no.
do I believe this - yes.
that's what faith and religion is about, filling an inevitable emptiness with the belief of something else.
(notable the christian religion denies the existance of aliens).
in other news, the next person to insult someone over their beliefs will be banned for a day.
have a discussion/debat about religion is something that is healthy and should be 'eye-opening' and 'mind-opening' for everyone, regardless of what they believe. not an excuse to call people idiots or retards. (regardless of how idiotic or retarded they may sound).
and no, the thread won't be locked, if you don't like it, don't post in it and it'll die a natural death.
