As the Christian Church Crumbles, is Humanism Ready to Step Up? - TheHumanist.com

brentan comments on Sep 2, 2018:

I think the RCC will leave a moral vacuum that humanism isn't ready to fill.

But he used bible verses to justify his actions: [patheos.com]

brentan comments on Sep 2, 2018:

She must have been very evil.

1:30 AM and I have been watching a movie on Netflix.

brentan comments on Sep 2, 2018:

Yes, I loved that film too. The one that had me teary-eyed for the whole second half of the film was Goodbye Christopher Robin.

BOWDLERIZE: bowd-ler-ize.

brentan comments on Sep 2, 2018:

I read that schools prefer to use Julius Caesar because it has no dirty jokes in it. I've just finished Antony and Cleopatra and it is loaded with them.

I just watched a film that can only be described as “insightful,” a directorial masterpiece that...

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

The Brazilian version, I guess.

Did anyone see "Bishop" Charles Ellis III fondle Ariana Grande.

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

Charles Ellis the Turd.

He's constantly peeping..24/7

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

Well, he's only human.

There are hiking trails all over the Columbia Gorge, but I favor a particular two mile hill climb ...

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

I went there twice, once to see James Taylor and then to see a combo of Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan. When the sun goes down over the gorge, it is absolutely beautiful!

Hello September Everybody !!! ?

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

Hello to you too from a sunny September 1 in Ireland!

I had my first ever dealings with the morons, I mean Mormons, yesterday .

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

If they were Catholics, they'd be bishops!

I'm on my way!

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

I tell myself I'm on the road less travelled!

The Bible, the old and new testament.

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

I see the Bible that way too. For me, the history of thought, culture and morals comes first with myth, then religion, then philosophy. One thing that needs to be kept in mind is that although it covers everything from the beginning of time in its own way, supposedly written by Moses around the 13th century BC, it was probably started around the 6th century BC.

I received a message today from the CEO of a Christian youth program nonprofit.

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

I think your conscience would be troubled day in day out. I felt uncomfortable enough just being in a Christian choir. In your case, you get the pleasure of doing some good. In mine, I got to sing some of the loveliest songs around. So it's a tough call.

Hi, I figured I should let everyone know that I’m new to this group, and would love to hear the ...

brentan comments on Sep 1, 2018:

Hello and welcome. I take meds myself. I'm 63 and have been on them all my adult life. There were a few times I thought I could get by without them. I say never, never, never give up your meds.

I let out a trump today in a meeting.

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

Trump has taken over from Hitler and the Nazis as the comparison that makes everything else OK. I accept you didn't mean to fart but don't use me to condone flatulence as a way of life just because Trump exists in the world.

Does Notre Dame’s Mascot Trivialize The Heartbreaking Genocide Of Leprechauns?

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

Ah, the fightin Oirish! Are dey dyin de det or doon de despoilin'?

I feel like praying for something gives a person the impression that they no longer need to actively...

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

I think you're right. It's a lazy, disconnecting perspective that not only works on the personal level to do nothing useful, but also on the global level, where taking care of the earth is pointless because God will sort it all out when he comes.

Nothing says Catholic love like a Cardinal telling the victims of sexual abuse by priests to shut ...

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

That was a very crude version of 'let him who has not sinned cast the first stone'!

Sigh.

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

Oh, the power!

Archbishop Alleges Pope Francis Long Knew About Abuse, Calls On Him To Resign : NPR

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

The YouTube blogger Church Militant claims Cardinal Wuerl has gone into hiding and will be secreted out of Washington to gain immunity in the Vatican.

"President Trump told Evangelical leaders that there will be 'violence' if Democrats take control in...

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

I guess he wants to point towards the violence of the left, as demonstrated by Antifa in physical ways and then the general negativity of the left which has nothing to offer except tearing down the institutions of society.

Four Great Religious Truths ?

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

Well, I'm relieved to hear these things. I thought all objective truth was gone!

Anyone seen the film The Foreigner? It's so awful it's embarrassing to watch!

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

I liked the way Pierce Brosnan played the Gerry Adams-type character. I'll say nothing about the rest of the film because I'm not a critical movie watcher in general.

Two German sopranos that reached the peak of their careers in the 1950s were Elisabeth Schwarzkopf ...

brentan comments on Aug 31, 2018:

I hadn't heard anything by Humperdinck before. That was really nice. I will get around to listening to the whole opera soon.

We're all just walking each other home...

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

It's a lovely picture, and then I thought of Hansel and Gretel.

The sad state of education in the US

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

If you took down the outside clocks, you could fool the weather into thinking everything was normal.

My dads entire life he was an Atheist.

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

She did a bad thing for what she thought was a good reason. I would forgive her. She must have cared for him.

I called to wish my grandma a happy birthday, she's 90, devout Catholic.

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

When i was a Jehovah's Witness, I thought nothing was more important than truth. Nowadays I'm convinced that was wrong and kindness should be the priority.

Facebook profited by selling data that helped sway the US Presidential vote in 2016.

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

I don't think people will leave FB for moral reasons. I'm pretty sure it will only happen when it doesn't serve a need anymore. Forums like this will probably drive nails into FB's coffin.

Following Outrage, Retiring Bishop Won’t Move into $2.3M Home Bought by Church | David G. McAfee

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

The apostles would turn in their graves.

That's Life ?

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

Life is a chequered experience.

What is a book that has been important in the development of your worldview?

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

William Horwood's Duncton Wood has a great influence on me as a young person. It is a series of stories about animals in a wood. On another level it is about culture, history, identity and spirit.

Which do you think is more important ?

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

If I remember right, the commandment said something like 'honour your parents so that you will live long on the land'. I think it meant your parents would get to live longer because you would help them, and then your children would do the same for you. But it would be daft to think all parents merit honour by their family position. Not enough counsellors advise children to get away from their toxic parents.

Something I've noticed on almost every Disney film

brentan comments on Aug 30, 2018:

I recommend watching Jordon Peterson's YouTube lectures on Pinocchio. He explains the psychology behind the story. Here's a relatively short one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YhVruKGkjs

A referendum to repeal the Blasphemy Law is to be held here in Ireland in October.

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

I hope so. I can only see Muslims complaining.

Hi world glad to join. So hard to keep friends once they find out u r a non believer

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Hello and welcome!

After this life

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Not many come back after death. So far, none of them have said what it's like in the afterlife. I think that's because life after death is so good, people on earth would start topping themselves in their thousands. I'm going to make a big effort to get back and if I manage it, I'm going to tell everyone all about it.

So what are your plans for Labor Day?

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

I'm glad at least one country honours women giving birth.

Je Suis Charlie

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Hello Charlie. Welcome to the forum!

Sastrugi Noun (plural) Parallel wave-like features caused by winds on hard snow, especially in ...

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Isn't that strange? Just like sand.

Honesty is the best policy

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Oh gosh, yes, fuck 'em! But you can't fuck 'em when your family needs the cheque.

When I was in ballet, my first toe shoe solo was set to this piece.

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Works like this are the height of human aspiration. We are carried away on a wave and then return to the shore. I'm glad you had that moment!

One of my favorites - Verdi- Nabucco - Gefangenenchor [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Nabucco is my favourite opera. I love the stirring tunes. Opposed to them, there is the very plaintive song Nabucco sings near the end of the opera when he gets sense and begs God to help him save his daughter. This is my favourite version of the song sung by Renato Bruson. It's called Dio di Giuda, which probably means 'God of the Jews'. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tds4znmgnFs

Women are bi

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

I think that's written on a mirror in an Irish pub called The Glen Bar.

Palliative (of a medicine or medical care) relieving pain without dealing with the cause of the ...

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

My father got that care shortly before dying. It seems to be very skilled work, walking a tightrope between practicality and compassion.

A hard drive

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Yes indeed. Are we there yet?

Hyperglot: a person who is fluent or proficient in at least six or more languages.

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

I would love to be able to do that, not just for communication but to have some insight into how people with other languages think. I'm learning Spanish almost all my adult life and forget more than I pick up.

In regards to uncommon words (not one in particular).

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Keep the language alive but remember the poor guy in the movie Idiocracy when he used big words. They called him a faggot!

I was raised Catholic and always questioned why priests and nuns could never get married.

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Yes indeed, and what about women who cannot have children. Should they and their partners abstain from sex?

Made a group recently for any WNYer's ( g:559 ). Are there any out there?

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Have you guys got a certain way about you - idiosyncrasies or mannerisms - like New York Jews perhaps?

I posted this video last week in World Music Group, but it had hardly any views.

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Oh my poor debilitated libido did well to survive that. I thought I had heard it before but thought it was a bit like The Handsome Family's 'Far From Any Road'. But no, it goes back to 1967.

One of my favorite pieces of Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Summer. [youtu.be]

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

Excellent. Lovely, lively piece of music!

What is your Idea about the "SUPREME BEING"?

brentan comments on Aug 29, 2018:

I think there might be something out there. I'm not as certain as you are. It might be a cosmic consciousness, as per Eastern thought, and that probably means we are also part of that eternal consciousness. I have no idea what that could mean in terms of morality.

Just got back from a 1600 mile ride up the California, Oregon coast beautiful ride 55° to 65° F.

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

I have very fond memories of Highway 101, over to Eugene and then on up I5 to Seattle. We had travelled from Seattle to Disneyland via I5 and I wanted to see the Pacific Coast in case I never got the chance again.

Does anybody else want a Viking Funeral?

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

Yes but I want to be dead first.

The S.

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

I never know whether to sympathise with people who miss their parents or envy them. I don't miss mine but I doubt my apathy is a good thing. That is a nice prose/poem.

John Williams. - Rodrigo’s Guitar Concerto de Aranjuez (adagio) [youtu.be]

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

Real men don't play gittar sitting down but I guess he's not too bad!

Where's the love?

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

It's understandable to think of love in the OT in terms of love for God or love for his commandments and apart from that see nothing but hate for those who don't accept that god or break his laws. You can see lots of evidence of hatred in Leviticus and Deuteronomy where the curse is laid out for those who won't live according to the law. Very few people comment on the blessings. And even fewer talk about the laws demanding right behaviour towards the alien residents in the land, along with the duty towards widows and orphans. One of the most enlightened laws concerned the freedom from servitude which came about legally during years of Jubilee. According to the OT, the laws were not obeyed so that the love of God could shine through and that's why they lost the blessing and suffered the curse of annihilation or exile.

Wasn't sure I wanted to post this here or in the Gun Control group but since I decided it's more a ...

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

"Was he mad or was he furious'? I fear labelling these perpretators as mad seriously holds up a proper understanding of the problem. We could get away with such lazy conclusions when very few commit these atrocities, even though we might still be wrong. I think we need to think in terms of a social malaise that engenders fury. I feel the malaise is the lack of meaning in the lives of people that takes them from bitterness to nihilism to mass murder.

cordwainer = a maker of shoes

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

Cobblers!

Greetings from Genesee country

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

I always wanted to visit Italy!

Today in Kansas: Dude breaks his wife out of prison, gets in a fire fight with deputies while ...

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

I hope that's 2.30 in the afternoon.

It better rain

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

Absolutely - honest Injun!

I heard the Salvation Army are saving 'fallen women'.

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

Sin is enjoyable but exotic sin is delightful.

If "god" made me in his image, he/she must be a real ass!

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

Don't worry , all is not lost. You just need Jesus in your heart and you'll see God in your mirror!

PARADOX: par-a-dox.

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

An ingenious paradox from Gilbert and Sullivan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7FsoMXqENw

DOOLALLY.

brentan comments on Aug 28, 2018:

I learn something new every day. That's a good one.

What's the big deal about Level 8?

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

It confirms that you don't have a life.

21,973 more points to 8. My goal is Oct 31st. Do you think I will make it?

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

It would be tragic if life got in the way!

Played so many board games yesterday!

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Oh gosh, you'll have to stop that right now! I'm afraid next time you post you'll be doing jigsaw puzzles.

I know, I know... But you have to admit it is funny!

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Out of the mouths of babes and piglets.

What do the words "mindfulness," "awareness," and "presence" mean to you?

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

I think of it as pro-active consciousness as opposed to a mind running on automatic pilot.

I felt a need for an infusion of caffeine :-) Bach: Kaffee-Kantate (Nossek, Nau, Büchner, ...

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Gott in Himmel! Vot vos dat?

Go head and do your happy dance. [facebook.com]

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

That's delightful! I'd love to have a fraction of that get up and go.

The pope is more concerned with how the church is going to look.

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

I've heard him referred to as 'the pope for unbelievers' because he seems to be more interested in looking good to them instead of his own. I think the RCC is going south, not just in the sense of going down but also in it's hope for survival in under-developed countries. He has just been in Ireland and had nothing of any real value to offer to believers. His whole contribution to marriage harmony was rooted in Ephesians 4:26  "Be angry, yet do not sin." Do not let the sun set while you are still angry. Sad to think he comes from Italy to Ireland with one verse to offer. He had nothing solid to offer about controlling clerical sexual abuse. He refused to comment on the charge that he had facilitated Cardinal Theodore McCarrick to continue his career despite being told about his activities. "Trust me", he said to the journalist. Well, no.

What do you think intellectual history means?"

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

The word meta is used a lot to convey the idea of something going on at a level above the normal. Everybody knows that in a technical way, it usually means 'data about the data' like in HTML. So I see intellectualism in that way. The latest person in that category who I listen to is Jordon Peterson.

Love in today's age

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

I have no idea what the stats are. I think being unfaithful is a common theme through history. In the Shakespeare plays, men are portrayed as having a chronic fear of being cuckolded, which meant being cheated on by their wives. That's odd, because we usually think of men being the cheaters.

My ex is trying to claim divorce costs from me, my solicitor and I are asking him to drop the claim ...

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Is it possible to put a legal price on adultery? I'm tempted to joke about the PlayStation being 'for the players' but I'm sure this is not the time. I hope you guys can work it out.

Some eye candy for the beginning of the week.

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Hey. Get off my property!

Once emotion is involved in cognition (and emotionless cognition is quite rare), our mental system ...

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

The next book I'm going to read is called The Master And His Emissary. It's about how the two sides of the brain work together to understand the world outside us. The main idea is that one side deals with the big picture while the other focuses on necessary features. I think the master is the right-brain and the emissary the left. If I understand it correctly, the master uses the emissary to focus on the finer details which are then transferred to the big picture, amending it. This is an edit. I forgot to conclude that somehow or other, the emissary's information is not transferred back objectively, or else the master refuses to deal with it honestly and that might allow for the continuance of bias in some situations. I'll know better after I've read the book.

OK, I answered all the stuff people posted and messaged. Is that all ya got?

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Ok, but don't be gone long!

Hello, new to here, looking for friends and more. As well as intellectual discussions.

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Welcome to the forum!

here is a heartbreakingly beautiful rendition of Lascia ch'io panga by Joyce DiDonato [youtu.

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

Very nice. I was sure I had seen her somewhere before. I was confusing her with Danielle De Niese, who I had seen in The Enchanted Island. It turns out Joyce DiDonato was in the same opera.

Denouement - noun: From the French - Day-noo-mong; 1 The end of a story in which everything is...

brentan comments on Aug 27, 2018:

I'm excited already! The thought of a woman in denoued!

Would you say there are a list of cryteria for creating anything?

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

I guess it's about the Prime Mover. If we think we know who or what that is, then we move to supposed laws the Prime Mover initiated. After that, I think you're asking can the law, or the will, of the Prime Mover be changed by free will.

Funambulist - noun ; a tightrope walker

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

Walking for fun. Aaaaaaaaaaghh!

I'm slowly beginning to learn the difference between solitude and loneliness.

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

That’s very good to hear. I can only guess at what has happened based on my own experience, and that is you have managed to fill the hole that’s left behind when normal social life has gone or lessened. In my situation, my oddity was the root of my isolation and it is also the cure for my situation. In other words, among other things, I’m a Shakespeare fan. Who wants to talk about Shakespeare? Nobody. But I spend many happy hours working out what his plays are saying and in that way experience more solitude than loneliness. I see you put a lot of time into poetry and I’m sure that’s a big help, both therapeutically and in passing away the hours.

What's one thing you like and dislike about agnostic.com

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

I like the scope of the discussions. I don't like it being used as a venting room.

What types of music makes you flow?

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

All sorts!

[patheos.

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

Pope Francis has just left Ireland after asking forgiveness for all the abuses of the Church. About half a million people attended and applauded. I guess he is hoping that an apology is enough. There was no talk about the legal necessity to refer abusers to the police. They appear to be adamant about keeping their abuse cases in-house.

You guys must stop drinking please ! EWN: Alcohol kills 2.

brentan comments on Aug 26, 2018:

It is a question of length of life and quality of life. I'll happily trade off time for happiness to a reasonable extent. I believe, though, that many people in this stressful world self-medicate with alcohol which is clearly not the healthy option, even if it is understandable.

Religion what is it good for. Hypocrites.

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

The Irish PM told the Pope this morning that it is time for action now, not just words. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjZqFXBICDE.

What the rich are doing to the world & why.

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

If we can't beat them, should we join them? Or is that already happening?

I have created a group for parents with teenagers.

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

Bummer - mine are gone! Wait, what the hell am I saying?

I've heard the stories of your empty world Devoid of soft touches And the rare souls that cross ...

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

That's very well expressed. I have thought for a long time now that a lot of the responsibility for being lonely lies with ourselves.

It’s Saturday, what are you doing today?

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

I'm bored.

Looking for like minded friends

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

Hello and welcome!

As promised, Aida Garifullina and Dmitri Hvorostovsky in concert singing song composed by Igor ...

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

That's very nice. Big difference there between his bass and her treble!

Jesus said that he would return in his disciples lifetime. 2000 years on and...........

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

It seems pretty clear to me that Jesus spoke about the end coming in the lietime of the people then living. Many people don't believe that and cite the Book of Daniel to place the end time far in the future. But the great thing about a lot of what Jesus is quoted as saying is it's simplicity. If he is simply stating that the end will come within one generation, then surely the Book of Daniel needs to be reinterpreted?

Jesus said that he would return in his disciples lifetime. 2000 years on and...........

brentan comments on Aug 25, 2018:

When I was a Jehovah's Witness, the most common word used about the return of Jesus was 'soon'. Giving dates for his return had turned out bad for them so 'soon' was a much safer word.