That was funny pariah

Its pretty hard to forgive someone for something they won't even acknowledge doing though, would you agree?

Surely they have to acknowledge and repent themselves first?

Maybe your wife felt this way too?

Since you can define your own morality why can't she define hers?

Don't we all get to define "My morality"? Obviously you feel that you do.

6YL,

Do you think your wife who cheated on you was a believer?

Do you think on average a Christian woman is more likely to cheat than an agnostic or athesist, or that the guilt will make the sex better.

Some south Pacific cultures seems to have had few taboos about sex wonder if it was still as good, if we only had time machines.

Actually I've always thought that a atheist and an theist have more in common with each other, they both have faith, than either has with an agnostic.

Is an agnostic who goes to church to look at women still an agnostic or just a desperate husband?

NJ

iam,

I doubt she felt this way since she conducted a lengthy affair.

Essentially we all get to define our own morality. We could do that by joining a religion or by carefully looking at moral systems and deciding what works. She is certainly entitled to define her own morality, but not to define mine. We have seen many terrible things done, see the inquisition, when people decide to force their beliefs and morality on others. Thankfully, christians in the modern world do not do this, if they did I would actively oppose them and see them as evil.

NJ,

Wife was not religious but I'm not sure she was firmly atheist like me. She may be catholic now since she has been in Italy.

I don't know who is more likely to cheat, seems to be pretty evenly spread around. Oh and I'm peeved that you say I have faith, how insulting.

I have no idea what the point of claiming to be Christian is. Maybe too often it's a coping mechanism for the WS to live with himself. Or it may be that the WS/FWS is just putting it our there because being a Christian is part of their resume and just an FYI. Depends on the mindset of the person but it could be brought up for many reasons.

I'm Catholic and have been to Italy. Don't worry she won't become Catholic. I think the Pope is the only Catholic in Italy.

What I meant was that in "her morality" it was OK to cheat. That's the trick of defining our own moralities. There is no yardstick, anything goes.

iam,

she can be catholic if she wants, i don't care. Italy always seems so catholic to me when I visit, I guess I'm not able to tell very well.

Iam,

I am not saying that all moral systems are equivalent, in fact, I believe that systems that condone fraud and physical force are evil and should be opposed. I'm just saying all people ultimately choose a system.

btw, I'm not some pacifist, I would use and have used violence to defend life, limb and property.

Agreed.

Nope.

Their repentance is between them and God. Your releasing them for Him to deal with (forgiving them) is fulfilling your requirements.

Must be all the cathedrals!

Next time ask where you can get an abortion and you'll find one on every corner!

In other words cutting off your nose to spite your face?


Wanna bet?

6YL,


I'm peeved that you say I have faith, how insulting.

I was just joking I wanted to say you were an empty automaton who is a result of deterministic chemical and electrical processes and as a result has no true free will, and who will die a meaningless death without ever having been truly loved or understood, in a universe that dosen't care about him or anyone else.

But I thought it would be too cliche.

Kinda like that scene in Mad Men when Don tell the beatniks that
"the universe dosen't care about any one of us" and it bummed them out.

NJ

You are probably right. I should be atheist - I am a scientist by trade. But I was raised in a Christian household and it became clear to me many years ago that I probably couldn't accept a close relationship with someone whose belief is something else - Muslim, Jewish, Buddhism - whatever. This is not a racist statement by any means - I just don't have the same background and don't instictively understand their traditions. Instead, I question why? And by extension, I question why the way I was raise was so.

I have read the Bible. Both cover to cover and in more depth in various parts. I tend to take a sociological/anthropological view towards much of it. But as you say, there is wisdom there as well. In either case, some man, or group of men, compiled the books that we, today, call the Bible. What motivated them? Were they pure? They have no counterparts today who could be entrusted with such a task. How can we be sure they were different? I'm not saying that great religious leaders are not great men but they are still influenced by "earthly" matters.

So for myself, my moral structure is based on Christianity, primarily because of my upbringing, but I don't believe in any popular Christian church and some of the stickly points that get raised. (as an example, I have nothing against homosexuals and find persecuting them to be horrific while allowing priests to sexually abuse young children which seems to be a-ok with the RCC)

My job requires that I read what you wrote and give you no benefit of the doubt. It has been, for years, my job to make decisions based on what people tell me.

I grew up in a society where I have been laughed at and mocked for my faith.

The wink indicated, to me, that you were mocking Christians.

NJ,

I was joking, and not offended.

I'm fine with just being a set of chemical reactions if that is what I truly am. I'm still me even if that is the truth. Believing something else to be true will not make it be the truth. I'm a happy contented, not empty or hopeless or bitter, atheist, sorry if that doesn't fit the stereotype.

Tabby,

I see most of these ancient texts as something that was refined over time, through many iterations. So only the enduring lessons and touching stories tend to make it. I think that is the reason that so many of the mythologies contain similar stories - like virgin births, dying for our sins, a god born of man, magical powers ... These stories are easy to understand and remember.

However just because the message is packaged in a mystical story does not mean that the lesson is invalid. I'm sure you could learn things from Lord of the Rings as well. I have nothing against people of any religion unless they try to convert me by force or coercion. I'm sure most of the followers of all of the religions are decent people.