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guest_
· 4 years ago
· FIRST
most major religions teachings put the needy AHEAD of finery- we can’t blame religion if it teaches one thing and people do another can we? But that said- from the outside looking in- it is often easy to judge without the whole picture.
guest_
· 4 years ago
For one thing- when people think of “temples” and such they often think of them as existing solely for worship, or for the benefit of a corrupt clergy. However- religious buildings- especially with staff who live the words of their religion- are often much more. They can be shelter for those in need, refuge for those who are in peril at home or elsewhere- they can of course serve to inspire and provide hope and all that- but in a tangible sense they can present a pillar to a community- a focal point where communities are built.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
You must think of course. From after school programs, to places to instill morality and virtue, reach life lessons and have community discussions- places to organize and run charities and all manner of groups that benefit the community- and of course as a place where people can get together and share food, discuss things, make plans, and so on.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
You might look at a person who can not afford a home or food- and see them buy a fine new suit and a car- and think “what messed up priorities. For that suit they could buy weeks of meals. For that car- they could rent a bed for a month...”
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guest_
· 4 years ago
Yes. But so long as they have that car- they have a somewhat private place to sleep away from the elements and bugs and the dangers of others. They have transportation to far off places. They perhaps can endure hunger to buy that suit- because the food it would buy would be gone in a short time- and in rags it might be hard to get a job to get more food. With that car and that suit- they have a foundation to build upon to reach a lasting state of self sufficiency.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
If you use the school as a church or the church as a school until you can build the other- what does it matter? If you could get help to build a movie theater from those who would give money or aid- would you care you don’t have a hospital or a church or a school? You have nothing. Build the theater. Use it to teach and to shelter and to help the sick.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
So I mean- in abstract theory, building a grand church probably isn’t a priority compared to other buildings- but in reality we have to look at the details to see what makes sense. If you don’t have the doctors and supplies and beds and nurses and machines and tools to make use of a grand hospital- what do you have other than a building full of dying people and filth? Wouldn’t we look at this empty hospital and say: “instead of building that hospital they should have bought supplies and hired doctors!”
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guest_
· 4 years ago
But.... what happens to your supplies and such when you have no building and they are left in the elements and to animals and people? In a desperate place do you not think things might get stollen, ruined by the elements and so on? You make due with what you have. Sometimes the decision that might seem wisest isn’t.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
If you ask a billionaire for their financial advice- you probably can’t use it. If they tell you that they can make you a hundred million and it only requires you to invest 10 mil... can most of us do it? No. Most people with more cannot understand what it is like to truly have next to nothing. “Why don’t these people just...?” Is something a person who has options says. What about when there aren’t such options? What about when there are dire needs all around? Things are often more complex than we like to think from our couches.
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guest
· 4 years ago
God doesn’t exist. That’s why they constantly live next to de Nile.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
You’re certainly welcomed to believe as you wish- but- let us measure god? We cannot reproducibly produce god, directly observe god, quantify god, create a mathematical formula to prove god.... But.... we can’t really do that for pain either can we? Happiness? The connections between humans? Science cannot tell us where the “gut feeling” comes from- consciousness, a sense of self. Vague hypotheses- a surety that some undiscovered structure of the brain or mechanism of biology powers these things and gives them an explanation... no proof. No way to prove them in 10,000+ years and counting.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
Anyone who would say with certainty there is no <blank> is not being very scientific. Anyone who would say that what they have not seen cannot exist must be rather arrogant- or themselves a “god” (thus disproving the initial hypothesis). There is no force in nature that generates freedom either, democracy, money... what is a stock or a law or currency note except for a piece of paper that represents a mutual agreement to an idea? An idea doesn’t exist does it? It can be acted upon- but have you ever touched one? Seen one displayed on a screen? Can we decode an idea from a random electrical impulse in the brain? Not so much.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
“I think therefore I am..” just about the closest hung we have as a proof that WE exist. Hell- you cannot prove to me that you exist or that I exist. How in fact do you know I exist? Because you can see what I wrote? Because someone else will agree with you? But- how many people agree on the Berenstien Bears vs the Berenstain bears? So then... how can we even say that our very existence isn’t a communal hallucination? Seems daft right? Ok. But... PROVE it. If you can- you will be read about in text books for long to come.
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changetheworld
· 4 years ago
Weird how these posts are always targeted at religious centers. Not the stadium of the person's favorite football team, the mansion of their favorite celebrity, or even their own house compared to those in 3rd world countries. I've gone to small and large churches, and guess what? We need buildings so we have a place to gather and organize. It helps us help the community.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
Uh. Don’t go bringing critical thought or logic into this. People don’t seem to appreciate that. But- for what it is worth I appreciate this post.
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juliesmash
· 4 years ago
I totally agree with you @changetheworld
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