Advice for true philosophers (the wisdom seekers):
Skip the baklava—not in the morning, and definitely not at night.
I don't know which cosmic matrix this comes from (personally, I'm an agnostic), but that stuff is just a massive sugar bomb. You’re way more likely to end up with diabetes than you are to experience the *dolce vita*. We all know life is usually pretty bitter (that's probably part of the buddhin matrix), but trust me, baklava isn't the cure. 😉
Balkanijan Pig said:Planting season is right around the corner, the fields aren't even tilled yet, and here we are debating the perfect hoe length and whether digging is even worth it.😂 Honestly, if we had spent our time on this forum actually working instead of chatting, we could have finished everything with a simple hand trowel by now.
Man, you've got a point, but you're forgetting about those of us into organic farming who don't rely on hoes or heavy digging at all.😉
It feels to me like we’re missing a dedicated corner for humor—maybe even a casual lounge area—since we seem to have an endless supply of "heavy" topics reserved only for the intellectuals. I'm starting this thread as a little oasis for those of us who don't claim to hold a monopoly on Truth, nor feel the need to graciously bestow it upon everyone else.
I suggest we adopt the classic rule from Shakespeare: Brevity is the soul of wit, because if someone needs a thousand words just to state something incredibly simple, their thoughts are probably too cluttered to express themselves clearly. If you can't say it concisely, it likely isn't worth saying in the first place.😉
QUESTION: What is it that keeps me from finding peace? Answer: Desire. Q: But I only desire peace. A: Let go of even that desire. Q: Then what brings peace to the soul? A: Love. Q: Love for whom? A: Can you ask a candle to cast its light only in one direction instead of another? Who does the light shine for, if not for everyone? Q: Does peace lie within the burning? A: Or does it lie in extinguishing the flame? No, peace waits at the very center of the light that burns.
Love is vital in its own right—that innate capacity to love, regardless of who the object of that love may be. If you lose the ability to love anyone, you cease to truly be alive. The heart dies when it loses its power to love.
. 🙂 . 🙂 . 🙂 Ivan Grubišić in The New York Times from April 20, 2001, page 6
"When raising the next generation, we should focus on spirituality rather than just religious ritual. In America, a sense of duty and ethics—the things that actually lead to true spirituality—ought to take center stage over organized religion. I suspect the Catholic Church will find that idea quite hard to swallow. It reminds me of how the Dalai Lama views spirituality: simply as a positive way of relating to one another. Right now, the moral crisis in America is so deep that it feels like we're living in an amoral society, and frankly, a nation without a baseline of ethics has no future. If America wants to pull itself out of this slump, it can happen through our institutions, or it can rise from the bottom up through grassroots movements centered on this new spirituality. Because you can live without religion, but you absolutely cannot live without spirituality. " 😉
Back in 1990, atheists and agnostics made up about 8.0% of the population, but by 2001, that number climbed to 14.2%. If anyone wants to dive into the rest of the data, you can check it out here.
Elysium said:If someone lays down their life out of love—making a true "sacrifice" because they are giving up their existence rather than yours—does that finally strip away their pretenses and make them a genuine person?
Is it even possible for someone to actually give their life for another?😕 I would argue that it simply isn't possible.
Do you all agree with pesičin’s view that sacrifice is just a form of transaction?
I’m sticking to my guns: sacrifice means letting go of what is false or inauthentic. It can only truly happen once we realize that what we are casting aside is nothing more than an illusion.😉
Jason Johnson4 said:... The spirit is everywhere. Sometimes it reveals itself through a living creature, a bird, the trees, or even a rolling hill. Other times, it speaks through the prairie, the stones, or even the water. ... ... ...
driftingcanyon38 said:A psychology professor likely has the knack for reading people quickly and easily—even if it's just a surface-level read—based on nothing more than a few sentences exchanged with them...D
Like I mentioned before, we are talking about an anonymous participant from a survey. That makes your interpretation (as a possibility) completely wide of the mark.
I've noticed that on both of our research forums, everyone keeps using the term "faith," yet they are clearly discussing something else entirely. How can someone even "offend my faith"? 😕 😕 😕 It just doesn't make any sense at all.👋
driftingcanyon38 said:A person’s understanding of their own faith is only as deep as their understanding of themselves.
👍
That logic holds up, doesn't it? It makes you wonder if a psychoanalyst or a priest might actually understand someone better than they understand themselves. I suspect the answer to that is almost always a resounding "no," but that wasn't really the point here. The issue is this: A certain professor (a psychology professor, no less!) looked at a complete stranger and claimed they "don't know their own faith." From a professional standpoint, I find that absolutely nonsensical. As a public statement, it feels incredibly offensive and quite frankly, unacceptable. 🙂
Alexander Watson said:But if you label doctrine as an enemy of human freedom, wouldn't you also have to say the Ten Commandments are nothing more than a way to stifle our liberty?
Simone said:True faith can't exist without doctrine.
Besides, your average believer isn't exactly sweating the small stuff when it comes to precise definitions...
I honestly can't tell if you're joking or being dead serious here. Personally, I see it the exact opposite way. Real faith only begins once a person breaks free from all those doctrines that were used to program them while they were growing up. Every single doctrine is a lie—and a direct threat to human freedom.
The "average believer" (whatever that even means? 😕 ) believes what they believe, and it’s incredibly rude to suggest they "don't truly know their own faith." 😉
I was listening to a radio "dialogue" yesterday between Vjerana Zupa and a psychology professor from the Jesuit School of Theology. When asked why some self-proclaimed Catholics don't believe in an afterlife, the professor gave the answer found in this headline. If I recall correctly, the sentiment expressed was quite simple: "Because they don't truly know their own faith."
I haven't had the chance to get to know them personally yet. I am truly committed to my own path. To me, faith feels like a total absurdity—complete nonsense. It’s almost like being told not to breathe through your own lungs or to deny your own native tongue.
I assume his point was this: they don't have a deep enough grasp of the Catholic Church's doctrine. Even if we consider that this teaching serves as the foundation for someone's faith, the statement still feels completely absurd to me. At the end of the day, everyone understands what faith means on a personal level. I am truly committed to my own path. At the end of the day, nobody can truly understand her quite like she does. I learned that early on during my time studying at the Jesuit School of Theology—you just have to trust your own intuition.
I don't believe this is some accidental misunderstanding. This is being done intentionally and systematically. They present their doctrine as absolute truth, which creates this heavy sense of guilt in people—making them feel like they don't possess the "correct" knowledge. It's a way to make them feel they've been believing incorrectly, forcing them to repent and eventually align themselves with "their" faith, which isn't even ours. 😉
illegale said:...I've witnessed it myself, and I'd be happy to show you 😉.
Has anyone else crossed paths with the Truth in the meantime (assuming Eli isn't being kept in a cage)? Do you believe in fairy tales, lost islands, or God? 🤔
Essence said:The system that fits Plato's ideal state most accurately is actually totalitarianism. You can see all the hallmarks right there—a rigid class hierarchy where the fate of the nation is tied entirely to the ruling elite, constant surveillance and vetting of those in power, strict regulations over education and resources, heavy censorship of intellectual life, state-sponsored propaganda, systemic lying, and even violence if it serves the government's interests. It’s all right there in the blueprint.