Correlation between Religion and Athletes

[Blind Guardian]

My grandmother considered all kinds of sports sinful to begin with. Perhaps that's more of an old school thing among religious people, but people always tend to bend the will of god to make him more convenient to handle.

 

[Hez]

/thread

j/k

Seriously though,
[...]
trivialize it.

Great post.

I stopped being condescending (for the most part) a while ago. It's not good for you, bro. I wish this whole board would learn to be less condescending and more accepting of one another.

Also great post (not necessarily regarding this forum; I've hardly been around long enough to judge.)

Y'know, I used to be irritated by the point-to-the-sky thing, but then I changed my mind. An intelligent athlete of faith who does this isn't saying "God made me catch the ball", he's saying, "my faith gives me the strength to accomplish great feats" or "God helped me become a strong enough person to do these things". It's just like saying "thanks Mom"; your mom didn't put the ball in the hoop, but she supported you as you learned how to.

I hate threads about religion, but I did want to throw that out there.

Another great post! I suppose maybe this phenomenon could be associated with the way a lot of people become extremely religious very close to death or in mentally/physically demanding scenarios. It requires a lot of willpower and determination to train hard and frequently enough to achieve what most major athletes achieve, and perhaps religion is a way of coping with similar mental strain.

 

[Lateralus14]

I stopped being condescending (for the most part) a while ago. It's not good for you, bro. I wish this whole board would learn to be less condescending and more accepting of one another.

I've noticed in general, but would you still call me a faggot?

 

[cookiecutter]

How do you verify something scientifically that would assumably happen outside the laws of the universe? I am curious.

If it happened "outside the laws of the universe" (whatever that means) how would anyone even be aware of it?

 

[metal_wrath]

The worst thing about the major religions is they play off of human fear of horrific pain and suffering by threatening one with a purgatorial afterlife. This is a concept born of human's imagination and is a complete joke. Any atheist who is afraid of hell is not a true atheist.

I was raised in a Muslim household but I believe religions do more harm than good and are false.

 

[Onder]

When I try to understand Christians I imagine it's the same for them like it's for anybody in very early childhood, i.e. your mother keeps telling you she's your mother when you're 1 year already and shit, so you take it as a fact. You know it's your fucking mother. The same it's if you grow up in a christian family, then you take it as a fact that God exists, because you've been told so before you could talk or even understand how you learn shit. However, if somebody NOW racionally explains to you that your mother is not actually your mother and proves it than you have no other option that to admit it and you -propably painfully- will, because you have a proof. But nobody can prove you that God doesn't exist in which it's so hard for Christians to change their faith (and it would be very difficult, same as you knowing that your mother is some whore, it's your greatest certainty broken into fucking pieces). In this sense I feel sympathy w/ them. I hope I've made my point....

EDIT: It now appears to be more of a sorriness than anything.

 

[RedFox742]

Hez, I really hope the general douchebaggery of these sorts of places doesn't suck the refreshing decency out of you.

Complimenting three people on their posts is not commonly seen in a place like this, and much less if they disagree.

Thank you.

 

[Cythraul]

P.S. You and Cythraul are the most condescending posters here.

I am not condescending, chief.

 

[~Derek~]

That Guardian article also said that people who "convert" to atheism are more likely to be working class, so your experience actually fits.

I'm a product of that statistic. I've been an atheist since I was 16 and I come from a lower middle class type family.
Another interesting aspect of religion is why people stop being theists and abandon religion. Dodens Grav mentioned it and elaborated well on this whole topic.

 

[damnromulans]

The worst thing about the major religions is they play off of human fear of horrific pain and suffering by threatening one with a purgatorial afterlife. This is a concept born of human's imagination and is a complete joke. Any atheist who is afraid of hell is not a true atheist.

I was raised in a Muslim household but I believe religions do more harm than good and are false.

I suppose a lot of people require that kind of incentive to refrain from engaging in antisocial behaviors, and for that I guess I am sort of thankful.

 

[cookiecutter]

When I try to understand Christians I imagine it's the same for them like it's for anybody in very early childhood, i.e. your mother keeps telling you she's your mother when you're 1 year already and shit, so you take it as a fact. You know it's your fucking mother. The same it's if you grow up in a christian family, then you take it as a fact that God exists, because you've been told so before you could talk or even understand how you learn shit. However, if somebody NOW racionally explains to you that your mother is not actually your mother and proves it than you have no other option that to admit it and you -propably painfully- will, because you have a proof. But nobody can prove you that God doesn't exist in which it's so hard for Christians to change their faith (and it would be very difficult, same as you knowing that your mother is some whore, it's your greatest certainty broken into fucking pieces). In this sense I feel sympathy w/ them. I hope I've made my point....

EDIT: It now appears to be more of a sorriness than anything.

I think this is a very good point.

 

[Saparmurat_Niyazov]

/...Black Death's (that's your new name Sap') ...

Sweet nickname.

The last 3-4 pages have been filled with rational, mature debate. Good job GMD!

 

[waif]

I am not condescending, chief.

It's just that it's frequently necessary to talk down to the submen, right?

 

[metal_wrath]

I suppose a lot of people require that kind of incentive to refrain from engaging in antisocial behaviors, and for that I guess I am sort of thankful.

I disagree. People do not act good because they are threatened with hell, those who commit wrongs do not think twice, and the religious ones think they can do whatever they want and they will be forgiven for it anyway. At least alot of Christians act this way.

 

[damnromulans]

Not the "hellfire and damnation" ones. Catholics aren't even Christians, all you have to do is 50 Hail Marys and you're absolved from raping little boys.

 

[metal_wrath]

Not the "hellfire and damnation" ones. Catholics aren't even Christians, all you have to do is 50 Hail Marys and you're absolved from raping little boys.

I wholly disagree with your previous point. I think it does more harm than good, a culture where people are driven by fear of make believe stories who irrationally follow a set of beliefs that are meant to make them behave a certain way, which has proved to be ineffective and often leads to even greater evils being commited.

 

[Dak]

often leads to even greater evils being commited.

Such as? Don't bring up the Crusades or anything similar. THose were purely wealth and conquest driven, while religion was used to sway the masses.

 

[Onder]

I think this is a very good point.

Cool thanks.

 

[Cythraul]

It's just that it's frequently necessary to talk down to the submen, right?

Did I give you permission to speak to me?

 

[metal_wrath]

Such as? Don't bring up the Crusades or anything similar. THose were purely wealth and conquest driven, while religion was used to sway the masses.

It leads people of one faith ie. Judaism, to believe that everyone else is going to hell and only themselves will enter the kingdom of heaven. It gives an incentive for slaves to be loyal and in some religions ie. Islam woman are subjugated while they believe that is the will of God in the Quran and if they don't shut up and do what they are told they will go to hell etc etc etc...