The Compendium of Beliefs

[Daxx]

Scaredgirl seems to have gotten it already, but I'll post anyway.

About The Religion
Deity Name: None - Irreligious Atheistic Strong Agnosticism
Describe who this deity is: Most likely does not exist. If it does, then it is almost certainly not as imagined by any of the popular religions.
Other questions in this section not applicable.

Our Life
Who or What gives us life: Consciousness, that emergent pattern developed from the firing of neurons in a brain.
When does life begin: It is probably impossible to specify an exact time. A person is "not alive" immediately before conception. A person is "alive" when they are conscious and capable of rational thought. Clearly life begins at some point between those two.
When does life end: Similar answer to above, but substitute in "the cessation of bodily functions including brain activity on a permanent basis" for "not alive".
What is the Soul in your religion: Depending on the definition of "soul", it could be considered the emergent creation of the brain's activity. No supernatural origin, probably.
Purpose of this life: No intrinsic purpose.
What are we required to do in this life: No intrinsic requirements. Physiological drives to reproduce and propagate our genes, and mental drives to propagate our meme-packages might factor in.
Why are we required to do those things: N/A
Afterlife: Probably none.

The World/Universe
Who made the world/universe: Probably no-one.
What was the world/universe created for: Probably no intrinsic reason.
When was the world/universe created: Probably around 13.7 billion years ago.
How was the world/universe created: See the Big Bang theory
How (if relevant) does the world/universe end: Potential Big Crunch or Heat Death. Possibly other outcomes depending on the shape and composition of the universe.
Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end: No intrinsic reason bar the laws of physics.
When (if relevant) does the world/universe end: Unknown.

[Scaredgirl]

Great idea. Here are my answers.

About The Religion
Deity Name: Invisible Pink Unicorn
Describe who this deity is: Invisible? Then how do I know that he is pink? Because I believe.
Other deities involved:-
Describe them:-
Holy land:-
Place of Worship:-
What does your deity require of you:-
Most important concepts/teachings:-
What are some sins/misdeeds/evil things in your religion:-
What is prayer/meditation for in your religion:-

Our Life
Who or What gives us life: Life just happens. Nothing "gives" us life.
When does life begin: Birth.
When does life end: Death.
What is the Soul in your religion: Lol, soul..
Purpose of this life: Reproduce like all living things. No higher purpose. We are not special. We are just like ants, only bigger.
What are we required to do in this life: Reproduce.
Why are we required to do those things: We are not "required" to do anything. This is not homework. We just do it because it's in our genes.
Afterlife: yeah right.. again we are not special. We will turn into dust like everything else.

The World/Universe
Who made the world/universe: Big Bang.
What was the world/universe created for: Most likely no specific purpose.
When was the world/universe created: About 14 billion years ago
How was the world/universe created: Big Bang.
How (if relevant) does the world/universe end: After expanding, our universe will shrink into one small dot and then Big Bang again.
Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end: Physics.
When (if relevant) does the world/universe end: I forgot. But not for a while. We are talking about billions and billions of years.


If anyone wants to join me and worship the great Invisible Pink Unicorn, send me a PM.

[SnDance]

This forum looks like its going to get ugly, fast. So I would propose this: Everyone posts here on their believes. No comments on anyone else beliefs unless you need to have something they said clarified.

I'm starting this topic because even if we were all the same religion we would argue about what is right and what isn't. There are thousands of christian denominations, and not because they just felt like a change of name. So we might as well say what exactally we believe and how we intemperate things.

Code: [Select]

[b][size=large]About The Religion[/b]
[b]Deity Name:[/b]
[b]Describe who this deity is:[/b]
[b]Other deities involved:[/b]
[b]Describe them:[/b]
[b]Holy land:[/b]
[b]Place of Worship:[/b]
[b]What does your deity require of you:[/b]
[b]Most important concepts/teachings:[/b]
[b]What are some sins/misdeeds/evil things in your religion:[/b]
[b]What is prayer/meditation for in your religion:[/b]

[b][size=large]Our Life[/b]
[b]Who or What gives us life:[/b]
[b]When does life begin:[/b]
[b]When does life end:[/b]
[b]What is the Soul in your religion:[/b]
[b]Purpose of this life:[/b]
[b]What are we required to do in this life:[/b]
[b]Why are we required to do those things:[/b]
[b]Afterlife:[/b]

[b][size=large]The World/Universe[/b]
[b]Who made the world/universe:[/b]
[b]What was the world/universe created for:[/b]
[b]When was the world/universe created:[/b]
[b]How was the world/universe created:[/b]
[b]How (if relevant) does the world/universe end:[/b]
[b]Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end:[/b]
[b]When (if relevant) does the world/universe end:[/b]Copy the code and fill it out. Add anything you feel is relevant.

Sample (not real, but kind of cool):

About The Religion
Deity Name: The Omega One
Describe who this deity is: He is an all powerful deity who governs fish.
Other deities involved: Serman, the fertile
Describe them: Serman is the demi-god of fish reproduction who makes sure all baby fishes know how to find their way home.
Holy land: The Amazon Rain Forest. It is not necessary to travel there in a fish’s life time.
Place of Worship: Waterfalls. Its traditional to jump them over and over and over again. Worship is complete when the fish finally jumps over the waterfall and continues upstream. There is no set time for worship, just whenever you come across a waterfall.
What does your deity require of you: To be fruitful and multiply, a lot.
Most important concepts/teachings: 1) Go with the flow. 2) Be as the water. No mater where it is, it always returns to the ocean, its place of origin and the lowest place.
What are some sins/misdeeds/evil things in your religion: To fail to go return home means the end of your line.
What is prayer/meditation for in your religion: Concentration at the waterfall is the only prayer/meditation.

Our Life
Who or What gives us life: The omega created all things in the beginning, but particularly the fish. The first fish was a great whale. Then Omega realized that if all fish were that size the oceans would be filled quickly, so he created more, smaller fishes, and then got creative and so we have things like manta rays and lantern fish. But the greatest creation was the freshwater fish. Small, durable, and the only ones with access to waterfalls, and so being, they are the priests of the world.
When does life begin: When eggs are touched by Sermans hand
When does life end: Freshwater: When the great bear (or equivalent) takes you and eats you. Saltwater: When the great shark (or equivalent) takes you and eats you.
What is the Soul in your religion: The soul is a small ball of energy that is contained in the eyes.
Purpose of this life: To be, and to let be.
What are we required to do in this life: To eat, and to be eaten.
Why are we required to do those things: Because it is the way of true balance.
Afterlife: You become another fish.

The World/Universe
Who made the world/universe: Omega
What was the world/universe created for: Entertainment. Why have an empty universe?
When was the world/universe created: Millions of years ago. There have been uncountable types of fish. Omega doesn’t just stop when he’s designed enough fish. He makes new ones.
How was the world/universe created: Omega simply willed it to be, and it was.
How (if relevant) does the world/universe end: When Omega sleeps, the world and universe are ended, and when he wakes up, it is born anew.
Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end: He sleeps, that’s why.
When (if relevant) does the world/universe end: When he gets tired.

[The conartist]

About The Religion
Deity Name:sandwichDescribe who this deity is:a slice of meat and cheese on sourdough bread
Other deities involved:pickle
Describe them:greenHoly land:ice creamPlace of Worship:kitchen
What does your deity require of you:hunger
Most important concepts/teachings:don't eat too muchWhat are some sins/misdeeds/evil things in your religion:eating tofu
What is prayer/meditation for in your religion:putting our god together
Our Life
Who or What gives us life: hatred
When does life begin:when you die
When does life end:when you live
What is the Soul in your religion:war sucks
Purpose of this life:mine is too be angry
What are we required to do in this life:eat
Why are we required to do those things:to live
Afterlife:heaven
The World/Universe
Who made the world/universe:
What was the world/universe created for:When was the world/universe created:
How was the world/universe created:How (if relevant) does the world/universe end:
Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end:When (if relevant) does the world/universe end:


I was too lazy to fill out the rest

[Evil Hamster]

When does life begin: It is probably impossible to specify an exact time. A person is "not alive" immediately before conception. A person is "alive" when they are conscious and capable of rational thought. Clearly life begins at some point between those two.

Just a question, not a criticism-

How would you define "rational" thought and what age do humans posess that capability?

I only ask because I heard one of Obamas advisors has actually argued FOR after-birth "abortions" for children up to 3 years old since they are not capable of rational thought. (I might be wrong about the age)

[Belthus]

I only ask because I heard one of Obamas advisors has actually argued FOR after-birth "abortions" for children up to 3 years old since they are not capable of rational thought. (I might be wrong about the age)

Quote please. My guess is that is a highly biased interpretation of some statement that said nothing of the kind.

[Daxx]

A source for the quote would be nice. It sounds like someone made it up and put into the same chain emails that claim that Obama is a Kenyan, a Muslim and a Terrorist.

Peter Singer has some interesting things to say about consciousness and rational thought. It's often him that the animal rights movement references when they talk about the (im)morality of killing animals, as they are compared with small children. He would make for some illuminating reading, I think.

Very young children, as well as some mentally handicapped people, are in that grey area where they are not capable of engaging with the world in the way society expects its members to do so. Therefore it's somewhat of a debate as to whether they are responsible for their actions, or capable of acting morally. Depending on how you define being "human", there is a case to be made that they aren't fully human in the moralistic sense - otherwise we'd have to ascribe certain aspects of humanity to apes and dolphins, who are at least as capable as functioning, mentally, as a very young child. Artificially restricting ourselves to homo sapiens is extremely useful when we need to construct working definitions, but if we're talking about what ethical crime murder actually constitutes we are on somewhat muddier ground.

Given that the question is framed in such a way to elicit responses as to the morality of abortion, then I think it's safe to say that due to the massive grey area surrounding the start of life, any point that you mark as being the divisor between moral or immoral is entirely arbitrary (there are even arguments over conception, though I don't subscribe to those) - hence my answer which was that it's impossible to specify an exact time for when "life begins". It is somewhere between the two - exactly where you would want to pick for the purposes of establishing a workable model for public policy is a different matter.

Though this is an interesting subject, I think abortion needs its own topic if you want to debate it.

[Belthus]

Unless we are talking about abiogenesis billions of years ago, each life is a continuation of its parents. The sperm and the egg are alive (though not complete). Personhood and individuality are different issues. There are many cases of people being alive but not fully functioning as human individuals. Policies about who/what is protected by the law are social decisions, not biological mandates.

[Daxx]

Unless we are talking about abiogenesis billions of years ago, each life is a continuation of its parents. The sperm and the egg are alive (though not complete). Personhood and individuality are different issues. There are many cases of people being alive but not fully functioning as human individuals. Policies about who/what is protected by the law are social decisions, not biological mandates.

You're absolutely correct. I think the question was looking at "alive" in terms of "killing this organism constitutes the legal crime of murder", which puts a different spin on things (though I could be wrong, that was just what I thought was intended).

[BadWolfskin]

About The Religion
Deity Name: Human beings, if you really want to call it a deity.
Describe who this deity is: Us, you, me.
Other deities involved: Animals, plants, everything alive.
Describe them: Different than us, but not to be handled w/o respect.
Holy land: Earth, the place we should be looking after more...
Place of Worship: Earth, as well.
What does your deity require of you: You tell me.
Most important concepts/teachings: We are all interconnected. ALL.
What are some sins/misdeeds/evil things in your religion: To call anything inhuman. Everything done by humans must (per definition) be human. You just judge differently.
What is prayer/meditation for in your religion:
On the heath Lear asks Gloucester: "How do you see the world?" And Gloucester, who is blind, answers: "I see it feelingly.'"
I see it feelingly.
-Shakespeare, King Lear

Our Life
Who or What gives us life: Our need for it.
When does life begin: We do not know for absolutely sure.
When does life end: At a different time for each of us.
What is the Soul in your religion: The soul may be the feeling you get, when you perceive something of absolute beauty and it vibrates within you for hours, or even days. But we are not absolutely sure whether it exists, or not.
Purpose of this life: Finding out our purpose.
What are we required to do in this life: I ask you.
Why are we required to do those things: You ask yourself.
Afterlife: Could be, could not.

The World/Universe
Who made the world/universe: We do not know enough yet to be sure.
What was the world/universe created for: irrelevant
When was the world/universe created: Tsk, too far in the past to tell for sure.
How was the world/universe created: irrelevant
How (if relevant) does the world/universe end: irrelevant
Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end: irrelevant
When (if relevant) does the world/universe end: Nah, too far in the future to tell for sure.

[Kamietsu]

About The Religion
Deity Name: Life/Gaia/The Universe
Describe who this deity is: Everything we see around us and that which cannot be seen.
Other deities involved: None/All/Any/Whatever others believe exist.
Describe them: N/A
Holy land: This universe when living, and middle ethereal world when dead and waiting reincarnation.
Place of Worship: Anywhere/everywhere.
What does your deity require of you: To do as you wish, but harm none.
Most important concepts/teachings: To be a good person. Achieve as high as you can for yourself. Help those in need whom you can help. Just do as you wish, but harm none.
What are some sins/misdeeds/evil things in your religion: Most accepted laws. Basically, no stealing, no murder and the big ones of course.
What is prayer/meditation for in your religion: Positive thinking.

Our Life
Who or What gives us life: Our vital organs, blood, food, air, natural instinct, self-preservation, our parents, and ultimately i will go back as far as the birth of our star.
When does life begin: Birth/the first breath of air.
When does life end: Upon the beginning decay of the physical body.
What is the Soul in your religion: Possibly non-existent, but if a Soul of some type exist it is most likely a so far impossible to trace/detect metaphysical representation of all that is a person, personality, thought process, etc.
Purpose of this life: To live, grow, learn, expand, and die. There is no higher purpose for life, simply live to live.
What are we required to do in this life: To live, grow, learn, expand, and die.
Why are we required to do those things: To be able to continue to live, grow, learn, expand, and die.
Afterlife: Reincarnation, not of just humanity, but reincarnation to be able to be reincarnated into anything, on this planet or even on another.

The World/Universe
Who made the world/universe: It made itself
What was the world/universe created for: It was not created for anything but simply happened
When was the world/universe created: This world/universe began in the beginning. But this world/universe most likely isn't the first and only world/universe.
How was the world/universe created: Spontaneously happened.
How (if relevant) does the world/universe end: It's a surprise ending ;P
Why (if relevant) does the world/universe end: All beginnings have an end of some kind.
When (if relevant) does the world/universe end: When it chooses to.

[Lanidrak]

My beliefs don't fit into any sample questionnaire.

I believe that there is a "force" or "power" that created the Big Bang (which in effect is just a scientific theory and has about as much proof as the Crucifixion of Christ or that Mohamed, peace be upon him, walked this Earth). I refuse to call this "force" or "power" God. I am ultimately agnostic, in that I believe this "force" or "power" exists, but in my day to day life I am very much unconcerned as to worshiping or paying homage to the fact that it exists. It's existence suits me as much as my existence suits myself. Just as other people exist, their own beliefs and thoughts can co-exist with mine. If it is their belief in the Holy Trinity of Jesus Christ, God Almighty and the Holy Spirit, then that is their belief and they are welcome to it as much as I am welcome to mine. I believe that to be an Atheist is to deny yourself an active imagination, yet as much as this belief exists, I am not to demote or deny Atheists their belief to non-believe.

I also happen to believe in that planet Earth is a super-organism. Also regarded as the Gaia Concept. That Earth regulates its oceanic salinity, atmospheric composition, ice cap fluctuation and sea levels itself. Humanity is a scratch upon the surface of this super-organism and we are wholly unable to comprehend or predict the environment.

I believe that the sad fact of the modern 21st century world is that currency makes the world spin on its axis of greed. Exploitation, colonization, crime, hatred and war all exist as means to make people rich. My code of morality is such that I can live my day to day life by obeying three simple rules without fear of falling astray. First, always speak truthfully and avoid idle chatter (gossiping, talking behind peoples backs, plotting etc. Secondly, never harm a woman or child. Thirdly, obey the first two rules at all costs. To survive as a human being you need food, water and shelter. Health and education are obvious benefits. The way I see it is that money has replaced food, water and shelter. Health and education are equally only accessible to those with money. I also believe that the planet Earth has too many human beings on it for sustainable living, based on works and theories carried out into a carrying population. 6.4bn people, and growing means that our resources are running out and will run out and that the quality of life for the average person will severely decrease. To determine a 'carrying population' (defined as a number which can live indefinitely without fear of lacking resources) one must decide on what level of education the average person will have, what will be the average access to healthcare, what will be the average salary, how long in years will the average person have to work for, how many children will the average couple be allowed to have, what will be the level of technology available to the average person, what will be the dominant political system, who will rule, will there be a class divide or a caste system... These, and a thousand and one other questions need to be calculated into this equation for the theory to have any solid ground.

These are my beliefs, they are for the most part mine. They may be disproven in time, and I can then re-evaluate my beliefs accordingly.