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jreise
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what exactly is it…what are their beliefs…now i’m not talking like wiccan pagans…just pagans
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Byzantine_Wolf
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FaithJoy
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It amazes me to no end that many smart Hindus are pagans. Many Hindu doctors and such believe in these blue babies, 4 armed women , and elephant trunk people. Just goes to show, a smart person isn’t necessarily a wise one.
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Byzantine_Wolf
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There is nothing wrong with someone who studies the natural believing the supernatural. The nature of the supernatural is another matter.
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VetA
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pagans can worship, zuse, odin, thor, aphrodite, mars, jupiter, its such a wide range of beliefes heck they can worship thier own god named eerbgiubggkiwdbfuibwjhbwkjjebhuabs mnw rkjgbbwejfoerjntrkghsdfnwkehniejrngjherghsod if they want to.
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Byzantine_Wolf
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OK, that’s not cool. If you’re going to say eerbgiubggkiwdbfuibwjhbwkjjebhuabs mnw rkjgbbwejfoerjntrkghsdfnwkehniejrngjherghsod’s name, at least say eerbgiubggkiwdbfuibwjhbwkjjebhuabs mnw rkjgbbwejfoerjntrkghsdfnwkehniejrngjherghsod, blessings and peace be upon him.
Please show some respect.
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Nine_Two
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No sillier than what I believe. I believe some all powerful guy created everything from nothing, and I also believe that one day he had a child with one of his creations, and then that child is going to lead to salvation those who eat him and drink his blood.
That’s not even the craziest. I also believe that after we all die the guy who created everything is going to bring his followers back to life.
The fact is any belief system can be easily ridiculed, especially if you make generalizations. It certainly doesn’t make a persuasive argument. Read Christopher Hitchens book, “Good is not Great”, he spends most of his book doing just that, which is kind of sad since such polemics only serve to cover up good arguments the are worthy of discussion.
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Byzantine_Wolf
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That’s the gist of most popular atheistic debates, which is unfortunate. Mockery does nothing but preach to the choir and make those who agree with you feel good. As Voltaire once said, “A witty saying proves nothing.”
EDIT: BTW, I think you meant “God is Not Great.” I edited your text in my quote, hope you don’t mind.
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seeker57
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Actually, Hinduism is far older than Christianity, and in fact, older than all of the Abrahamic traditions.
It is also much more complex than you, and your friends here, are giving it credit for.
Regarding Paganism, it is diverse, as others have said. Some traditions, such as Wicca, are based on the beliefs of ancient Celtic peoples, as are Druidic beliefs. Those following Norse traditions are different from their Celtic and Druidic brethren, while Eastern Europe and the Slavic nations have completely different traditions.
There are a fair number of people who practice the religion of the ancient Egypt, particularly the worship of Isis. Interestingly, that faith, as recorded by ancient Egyptian scribes, also involves a resurrection, that of Osiris, although in a somewhat different fashion.
In the Americas, the worship of ancient Aztec and Mayan deities still takes place in some areas. In North American, some Native Americans still practice traditional religions, including sacred dances, the use of herbs, corn pollen, etc., and, of course, recreating their own creation stories during appropriate religious observances.
In Asia, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Shinto, and of course, Hinduism, are all still practiced, as is traditional Chinese religion. All of these would be considered Pagan.
Before casting judgment on the wisdom of anyone’s beliefs, you should perhaps take into account how others see your beliefs.
One example would be transubstantiation, which, I believe, Catholics and perhaps some other Christian sects believe in.
While Catholics view it as a part of a sacrament, that of communion, others view it as symbolic cannibalism, or even actual cannibalism.
Yet many well educated Catholics believe in this. I could easily paste your comment regarding smart people not being wise here, and it would apply, at least for those who don’t believe in transubstantiation.
Just thought I would point that out.
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Nine_Two
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Oops. Yes, God is not Great. Thank you for that correction.That’s the gist of most popular atheistic debates, which is unfortunate. Mockery does nothing but preach to the choir and make those who agree with you feel good. As Voltaire once said, “A witty saying proves nothing.”
EDIT: BTW, I think you meant “God is Not Great.” I edited your text in my quote, hope you don’t mind.
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VetA
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benidict
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a religion of the earth? i do like their gardening tips… Peace
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Publisher
Guest
No more strange than the “four holy creatures” in Revelation…or the description of the cheribim and serephim…or “high and lifted up and his train filled the temple”…or any of the religious images many faiths use to enhance their devotion to the Divine.
I have a beautiful cast bronze statue of Ganesh sitting on my end table a good friend gave me one year.
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kenofken
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This is one of those threads which is so open and unfocused that there’s almost no point. It helps to at least look at a wikipedia article or something and then form a question about something specific. It’s sort of like posting a thread which merely says “what’s with Christianity, anyway?” It’s a very very big topic, as is paganism.
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mflorence
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Wo there - Easy now Maties!
Hindus are monotheistic. They believe in one God expressed throughout creation. Four armed women (Lakshmi), and boys with elephant heads (Ganesha) represent aspects of God’s nature and are generally taken as such. They are reverent toward them because they do represent certain qualities of God. To them, everything is sacred. Long before there was Jesus, Hindus believed that God took on human form and visited them just like Jesus in the form of Rama and Krishna. This was long before Jesus, so Christians don’t have a copyright on God in human form. Many of them also believe in Jesus, but to them, He is just God visiting again in human form. These are called Avatars, and that is the original meaning of that word, which is an ancient Sanskrit word. Jesus is another Avatar to them. There have been many of these Avatars and the great ones like Rama, Krishna and Jesus are called Mahavatars, Mah, meaning great, so Great Avatars. Rama and Krishna are often depicted as blue like the sky, as you mentioned, to emphasize the vastness of God throughout creation. I hope this explains something of what you are puzzled about. Also, please know that Hinduism takes a lot more than casual conversation to understand.The Hindu scriptures such as the Mahabharata, Upanishads and Vedas dwarf the Old and New Testaments in size and scope, and take years of study. Once you do understand it, it could enhance your experience as a Catholic, but I would caution you to stick with what you have, because once you have read the Hindu Scriptures, the practices of actually gaining union with God make Catholicism look like a cakewalk. If you want to study their beliefs, I can lead you to some authoritative sources. If you do not, then you should probably avoid the subject. Anyway, there is nothing wrong with the religion you have.- Status