World religions such as Christianity, Islam and Judaism all embody a traditional and sometimes bizarre set of animal sacrifice rituals in their holy texts. These practices, despite being borderline barbaric and not in keeping with modern ideas of animal welfare, are still in use today by religious communities all over the world, including in the most modern countries. Although it […]
B to L Cat
Did humans invent Gods? – Matt Burwood, (Quora)
Originally Answered: Is the concept of God the invention of human creativity and imagination? The evidence points to yes (kind of), and ironically, any answer to the contrary (as with a few here so far) is in-fact based solely on the imagination of the author – what they wish to be true, or what they believe is the case etc, rather than taking a […]
Meaning of the Number 12 – Moe
“And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:14). The number 12 has had a significant meaning for many centuries in various cultures throughout the world. Many stories that have been passed down to us to help us understand […]
The Babylonian Legends of the Creation – British Museum pdf
“The publication of the above-mentioned texts and translations proved beyond all doubt the correctness of Rawlinson’s assertion made in 1865, that “certain portions of the Babylonian and Assyrian Legends of the Creation resembled passages in the early chapters of the Book of Genesis.”
The Divine Number 12, 12 Gods, 12 Disciples, 12 Tribes and the Zodiac – Vexen Crabtree
Starting out life as an immensely useful number for counting and dividing things, the number 12 became a number revered by mathematicians and early astronomers. So the skies were divided into 12 portions as were the months of the yearr reflecting the annual movement of heavenly bodies. Superstitions and religious beliefs were piled on top of respect for the […]
Our Revolution – Religion as Impediment – Peter Dudink
Anarchy Today we live in a psychopathic civilization. It’s not a pleasant conclusion to arrive at, but perhaps it can spur us to build an alternative a thousand times better than the current planetary disaster. Why not? It’s within our reach. All we need is a concerted effort to revolutionize every aspect of life. Why […]
Conspiracy! – John Byrne MD
Contents 1 Conspiracy 2 Conspiracy Theory 3 Characteristics of Conspiracy Theories 4 Prevalence 5 Psychology 6 Evaluating the Logic of Conspiracy Theories 7 Medical Conspiracy Theories 8 Conclusion 9 References and Links Conspiracy Dictionary.com lists a definition as: “an agreement by two or more persons to commit a crime, fraud, or other wrongful act.” Conspiracies happen. The assassination of President Lincoln was a conspiracy. Most internet scams are conspiracies. The Madoff Investment Scandal was a conspiracy. The Watergate scandal was a conspiracy. Price fixing is a conspiracy. Real conspiracies […]
Cognitive Dissonance – John Byrne MD
Contents 1 What is Cognitive Dissonance? 2 Supporting the Theory 3 Cognitive Dissonance and the Self 4 Cognitive ‘Consonance’ 5 Dissonance Management, Science and Pseudoscience 6 Motivated Reasoning 7 “The Backfire Effect” 8 Cognitive Dissonance and Baby Steps 9 Examples 10 Conclusion 11 References and Links What is Cognitive Dissonance? How can a person hold two mutually contradictory beliefs at the same time? Psychologist Leon Festinger speculated in 1956 […]
Waking Up – Sam Harris – Video and Link to YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjcw7Ln136E
The Folly of Pretence – Daniel Dennett
We must not preserve the myth of God – it was a useful crutch, but we’ve outgrown it The question: Should we believe in belief? As I explain in the chapter by that title in Breaking the Spell, “belief in belief” is a common phenomenon not restricted to religions. Economists realise that a sound currency depends on […]