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So...denigrate one means to an end because you use another?
That's a good point and thank you for pointing it out. I'm not trying to denigrate, just trying to point out what has helped me, especially if one feels far superior to others.
So how would you explain to say an evangelical fundamentalist or hardcore atheist, try to keep an open mind and see where the other is coming from? Or do you not bother because you realize the effort is futile?
That's a good point and thank you for pointing it out. I'm not trying to denigrate, just trying to point out what has helped me, especially if one feels far superior to others. So how would you explain to say an evangelical fundamentalist or hardcore atheist, try to keep an open mind and see where the other is coming from? Or do you not bother because you realize the effort is futile?
To inject some science into this issue, When human perceptions and attitudes become Gestalt, they literally can NOT be changed. So the question is how ingrained are the perceptions and attitudes. Gestalts are learned and an excellent example of how ingrained they become is the use of the written word. Once you learn literacy in your language you can not stop seeing words as words and inferring whatever meanings they convey. Try NOT to see the words in this post as words and the meaning they evoke to understand the truth and power of Gestalts. Pretend they are just black marks on a white background with no meaning whatsoever. How did that go?
Now, if you have not learned to read Hebrew or Chinese, for example, you would have no trouble doing that with a post typed entirely in Hebrew or in Chinese characters. Once we have learned something so thoroughly, whether it is language or attitudes or perceptions of various human beings, we are stuck with those perceptual Gestalts, whatever they are. Our only options are to learn to react differently to the way we see things because we can NOT change how we see them.
I started valuing other people more, improved the quality of friendships and relationships, started listening more to others (not just listening to myself), started appreciating life and the gift of each day, started appreciating nature and the complexity of the universe, valued "more" and possibilities (rather than less and limitations), gained peace, learned to understand time and timing from a higher perspective (what I see as God's timing, which is utterly different from man's standard way of looking at time). Those are just a few that come to mind right away. In a very general sense, opening oneself to a higher plain of thinking and existence seems to open the door to seeing life and the world from many different angles. If it's available, and freely given, I'd prefer to access it.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I also came to this sixth sense. But first I had to let go of my religion which was directly tied to God faith. So I had to let go of God. I actually asked for permission from him. LOL. Crazy. But that was what my life felt like being tied down to religion and god. I needed to be independent.
So...denigrate one means to an end because you use another?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jumbo10
That's a good point and thank you for pointing it out. I'm not trying to denigrate, just trying to point out what has helped me, especially if one feels far superior to others.
So how would you explain to say an evangelical fundamentalist or hardcore atheist, try to keep an open mind and see where the other is coming from? Or do you not bother because you realize the effort is futile?
I DO try to explain, less because I think the other particular party might be open (I don't share Gaylenwoof's nearly unbounded faith in people to recognize and use reason) but so that any who may have a crack open will have a chance to see what I see. I would (and have) say that there is no PROOF in any particular stance on the existence of ANY concept of God, so the only rational approach is to evaluate the value in terms of social interaction of any particular perception and the resulting attitudes and actions. For instance, I am perfectly happy to work alongside any secular humanist and work to determine the best course of action for everyone in any particular situation.
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