Religion in Alaska (house, education, atheist)

[RayinAK]

Originally Posted by bongo

I took into account that some of these have duplicates, but I still count 65 churches up in the Mat-Su:

Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

That's a lot of churches!

Amazing!

And look at this (30 churches in North Pole):
North Pole (Alaska) Churches / Temples / Synagogues / Mosques - Religion in North Pole, Alaska

Too many to count in Fairbanks:
http://fairbanks-alaska.com/churches-of-fairbanks.htm

[rwjoyak]

Originally Posted by max.b

So the Pilgrims leave their lives in Britain and settle in a highly inhospitable and very dangerous country, and you call them "groupthinkers". Modern Alaskans leave the lower 48 to settle in a less hospitable, but probably not as dangerous place, and you call them fiercely independent, individualistic risk-takers. Sounds like a self-congratulatory double standard to me.

The Pilgrims were a combined group of Puritans that agreed to come to America together to establish a community where they could put their ideals into practice. See Pilgrims and Puritans, Part II. They very much thought alike, definitely group thinkers.

In comparison, from gold rush times people have mostly come to Alaska on their own, although in recent years there have been some immigrant groups (e.g., Russians in Delta) that have come more en mass. But they are the exception. Don't think anyone that knows anything about Alaskans would call them group thinkers.

The Pilgrims were definitely tough, but that doesn't mean that they were individualistic. And since IndianaMatt was only describing what the Pilgrims were like, I sure don't see how your "self-congratulatory double standard" applies at all. Who/what is he supposed to be self-congratulating? I don't get it.

[IndianaMatt]

Originally Posted by rwjoyak

The Pilgrims were a combined group of Puritans that agreed to come to America together to establish a community where they could put their ideals into practice. See Pilgrims and Puritans, Part II. They very much thought alike, definitely group thinkers.

In comparison, from gold rush times people have mostly come to Alaska on their own, although in recent years there have been some immigrant groups (e.g., Russians in Delta) that have come more en mass. But they are the exception. Don't think anyone that knows anything about Alaskans would call them group thinkers.

The Pilgrims were definitely tough, but that doesn't mean that they were individualistic. And since IndianaMatt was only describing what the Pilgrims were like, I sure don't see how your "self-congratulatory double standard" applies at all. Who/what is he supposed to be self-congratulating? I don't get it.

My thoughts exactly and thank you for clarifying so well what I wrote earlier!

[max.b]

Originally Posted by rwjoyak

The Pilgrims were a combined group of Puritans that agreed to come to America together to establish a community where they could put their ideals into practice. See Pilgrims and Puritans, Part II. They very much thought alike, definitely group thinkers.

They were a minority in the old country, so how are they "group thinkers"? Wouldn't group thinkers be those who conform to the views of the majority?

(Anyways, this discussion is kind of boring to me. I won't follow up)

[green_mariner]

Historically, there has been a Russian Orthodox Church presence in Alaska, from a long time ago. It is still there now, along with a small number of Old Believers.

[IndianaMatt]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

Historically, there has been a Russian Orthodox Church presence in Alaska, from a long time ago. It is still there now, along with a small number of Old Believers.

Indeed, a very small number.

[stiffnecked]

Originally Posted by IndianaMatt

Indeed, a very small number.

Based on the numbers of them I see with my own eyes I'd have to say that number is much larger then you think. And it tends to be growing as well.

[starlite9]

You know, there is a lot of people that claim in the comfort of their front room sitting on the couch, there is no God.

But when they are looking at eminent extinction, such as a oncoming car in the same lane, a charging bear or other scary events.... They always seem to change their mind.

Course on airplane voice recorders, the pilot's last word befor impact is normally "S**T!"

I think it was General Patton that said "There is no Atheists in a fox hole!"

Go figure...

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by starlite9

You know, there is a lot of people that claim in the comfort of their front room sitting on the couch, there is no God.

But when they are looking at eminent extinction, such as a oncoming car in the same lane, a charging bear or other scary events.... They always seem to change their mind.

Course on airplane voice recorders, the pilot's last word befor impact is normally "S**T!"

I think it was General Patton that said "There is no Atheists in a fox hole!"

Go figure...

Patton was wrong.

[Glitch]

There are two kinds of atheists. Neither believe in a divine being, but there is one group that are anti-theists, or anti-religion, and the other group that has no animosity toward any religion. I fall into the latter group. I understand that the vast majority believe in some form of divine being. I would not like to be derided for my lack of belief, any more than someone else wants to be demeaned for their belief. Therefore, I do not belittle anyone's faith in the hope that they return the same courtesy.