We have a local free newspaper called "The Citizen". It's basically adverts dressed up as a newspaper but it does have a Thought for the Week, right yes, that would be TFTW but we are used to TFTD.

About two weeks ago the TFTD was written by a humanist, and it was different. Most weeks it is written by one or other of the Christian Churches and contains a Christian message of hope and love. One might have expected the Humanist TFTD to be about humanism, but it wasn't. It was about prayer and how pointless that is.

I do many pointless things each day, one annoying habit is getting to the top of the stairs and not being able to remember why I had gone upstairs. After casting around trying to conjure up a reason I give up and go back downstairs. Annoyingly as soon as I get down, I remember why I went up, so up I go again. The first journey up was pointless, but it actually did me some good at the same time as being annoying. I get exercise browney points.

No one writes to the paper saying how stupid it is to climb the stairs without taking your memory with you, so I can't help wondering what the motivation was for the Humanist writing to the paper about something they consider pointless. Do they consider prayer harmful? No, just pointless. Then why bother. It's illogical.

DtB

I can't help wondering what the motivation was for the Humanist writing to the paper about something they consider pointless. Do they consider prayer harmful? No, just pointless. Then why bother. It's illogical.

Then why bother?

Vanity. Same with that Dawkins fellow and the majority of those posters of antiReligious and quasiPhylosophical Topiary board.

They might all benefit from a mind expanding trip to SpecsSavers, thought on arrival they'd probably have no idea why they went there.

ATB

I was going to post this on DtB's last thread on his less posting thingy..

But maybe it can fit in here..

I feel sorry for David, because he feels as though he is banging his head against a wall here when he doesn't get support/recs for his posts and his BP is rising because of my disagreements with his views..

Is his faith so weak that he feels this way when the early believers suffered torture and death for God and for Jesus? Sticks and Stones and all that? But to me, he is not to blame. Its being part of a Church that forced people into rites and rituals and some dogmatic heaven and hell place unless you drink the blood of Jesus etc..The Eucharist became the whole purpose of its existence while forgetting the core message of the Gospel..

I really do urge him to view that series on the lost Gospels where it doesn' just cover those but the reason why we have the NT as we have..and how the early Christians were free to believe in God via the teaching of Jesus in all manner of ways that suited the individual. The divinity of Jesus was not an issue for the disciples or anyone UNTIL the 'Church' started to TELL people what they should believe and then as we know enforced that by cruelty and so centuries past by while the power and influence of Rome grew to a quasi political power and so lost its way that Jesus showed us...ie A simple message that God loves us and we can live daily by his grace and to love each other and love really does conquer all hate and all prejudice..

Nowadays everyone can read the Gospels and watch such programmes on them and see that was we have is just a potted abridged version and can make their own minds up..

So indeed you could add 'What is the point'..For the Christian Church today?

I know David likes to post here as I do...I hold my hand of friendship to him because I am empowered by God and by humanist instinct to do that no matter what...Now that for me is the point!..It was no accident imo on the story of the Good Samaritan that the ones that passed by on the other side were those that had religious prejudice and self importance and lacked the basics of human compassion and love for others....

"One might have expected the Humanist TFTD to be about humanism, but it wasn't. It was about prayer and how pointless that is."

A lot of these people seem to define themselves by what they're not - specifically that they're not Christians. So they have to take Christian beliefs and practices and say they don't participate in them as if we didn't already know that. It's a bit attention-seeking, I think. It's almost teenage rebellion like those crazy kids listing to Slipknot or Satanica and you indulge them, humour them and wait for them to grow out of it, come back to normality and join the faith. But some people never grow up.

It does seem odd to be presented with a glorious opportunity to talk to the masses of 'The Citizen' and not share the joyous, life-affirming message that they live by and instead moan about Christianity. But they wanted us to look at them, didn't they? And you did look at them. And now I've looked at them. And all of us Christians on here have looked at them. And the humanists will be wetting themselves with excitement at the frightful 'mischief' they've caused and we adults will pretend we're annoyed but deep down we love them. God bless them.

I will pray for them.

I've just realized that I am on DtB's ignore list, something I've never ever used and so he won't see my reply. Maybe someone else will repost it with my hand of friendship to him....Ta very much..

FAO Frinders;

http://boards.fool.co.uk/i-was-going-to-post-this-on-dtbs-la...

I know David likes to post here as I do...I hold my hand of friendship to him because I am empowered by God and by humanist instinct to do that no matter what...