Oprah speaks for atheists rather than listen.

[SGOS]

I'm quite sure that Oprah does not speak for me.  I'm quite sure that she is speaking for theists.  What she presumes to be doing, I'm not sure, but she does not speak for me, and from what I can see, has little understanding of what most atheists are saying.

[Brian37]

GrinningYMIR wrote:
Even in this modern day and age, people are astounded that atheists exist and that we aren't blood thirsty murderers or communists.

josephpallazo wrote:
We aren't??!!? #-o

Not on Tuesdays, we have to get a day off you know.

No no no, the "atheist Sabbath" is not Tuesday, but any day of the week we don't go to work.

My "sabbath" is Sunday during the fall when I pray to chance that my Redskins won't suck donkey balls. I worship beer and football.

[stromboli]

Jesus fucking christ. This woman is worth a billion dollars and is clueless. She needs to first of all know the definition of religion. Spirituality is a state of mind of an individual. I consider myself spiritual at times because I enjoy nature and am uplifted by it, but that has nothing to do with religion. These are the people that seriously need to STFU.

[Brian37]

I'm quite sure that Oprah does not speak for me.  I'm quite sure that she is speaking for theists.  What she presumes to be doing, I'm not sure, but she does not speak for me, and from what I can see, has little understanding of what most atheists are saying.

No she is projecting. When you have facts, you don't have to project.

"Atheists cant" is her presuming first without demonstrating even the plausibility of what she swallowed blindly first.

Yes we can and do see reality without a god, so it is a bullshit claim for her to say we cant. It is merely her wishing we drank the same Kool Aid.

[stromboli]

This is the same woman who has pushed spiritual beliefs like having positive thoughts can make you rich, shit like that there. She lost me years ago. This is the problem with our media. Like 60 Minutes giving air time to a politician to gripe about social welfare and no rebuttal by opponents, Oprah blowing her bullshit on tv and no atheists there to tell her to STFU. Gag me. The level playing field does not exist.

[FrankDK]

Matthew 19:21: "If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor."  [Jesus speaking.]

Oprah isn't a Christian.  Besides that, she's bearing false witness against atheists.  They don't call them the "Ten Suggestion."

Frank

Um since when?

Since when what?  Since when does Matthew say that?  For a long time.  Since when is Oprah not a Christian?  Since she doesn't follow any of the tenets stated in the New Testament.  Since when is she bearing false witness?  For some time now.  Since when don't they call them the "Ten Suggestions"?  A little over three thousand years.

This  is as stupid as when conspiracy nuts claim Obama isn't.

Isn't what?

You do realize I have also argued with atheists who have used the "true atheist" argument.

How could I have realized that?  What difference would it make?  Who cares?

How you wish others would behave does not change the actually positions they view in their own head.

I made no statement about how I wish others would behave.  I only observed that Oprah doesn't follow the tenets of the one she claims to worship.

Your quote may demonstrate cherry picking, but that is it.

I suspect you don't understand the term "cherry picking."  There isn't a single quote of Jesus in the New Testament in which he advocates being rich or doing things that would make one rich.  There are many quotes that advocate giving up riches and sharing all that you have with others.  The overwhelming preponderance of the New Testament is against material wealth.  That isn't "cherry picking."

In reality I think humans stupidly fall for everything being "either/or" propositions when reality is mixed and overlapping.

So?

Do the wealthy in the west need to do a better job taking care of those who make them rich? YES. But ridding a society of personal wealth would simply shift that money to an oppressive nationalistic state like the Soviet Union, or shift that wealth to a theocracy like Saudi Arabia.

There's no question that is true.  I never advocated otherwise; Jesus did.  No one who claims to be a Christian and is rich is telling the truth.

I will take her at her word if she says she is a Christian just like I would Jerry Falwell. At their core, despite their different interpretation, they both have the same holy book, and same cast of characters they believe to be real.

Do you take Adolph Hitler at his word that he was a Christian?  If I said I was the starting quarterback for the NY Giants, would you take me at my word?  Why not?  Just because the evidence doesn't support that?

According to the Bible, the only source for information about Jesus, there are many behaviors and signs that should be expected of Christians.  If Oprah believes, then everything she asks for in prayer should happen (Matthew 21:22).  She should be able to heal the sick by laying on of hands (Mark 16:17,18).  The New Testament records only one time when Jesus was asked point blank "What must I do to follow you," and he answered unequivocally, "Sell all that you have and give alms."  I suggest you read the book before you cry, "Cherry picking."  If she can't heal the sick, if everything she asks for in prayer doesn't happen, and if she doesn't sell all that she has, then by the Bible's definition, she isn't a Christian.  If that's cherry picking, find a place in the Bible where it says those things aren't true.

Same with atheists. Our only common core is the "off" position on the claims of god/s. But our political views and degrees of education are just as varied.

Non sequitur and irrelevant.  We weren't discussing her political views.  I merely pointed out that she cherry picks the New Testament.  She believes the parts that say she will be saved, but ignores the parts that tell her what she must do to be saved.

You are committing the "true Scotsman" fallacy.

Hardly.  The point is, Christians believe absolute nonsense because it is in the Bible.  But they ignore the parts of the Bible they don't like.  If Oprah (or anyone else) were really a Christian and really believed, they would follow all the tenets of the Bible.  She doesn't.

Frank

[AllPurposeAtheist]

I gotta be honest.. I don't much care what Opra says or thinks.'.most of the time.
The fact she believes in the big spook doesn't bother me, but the only person who speaks for me is..well..me. :-?

[Jason78]

GrinningYMIR wrote:
Even in this modern day and age, people are astounded that atheists exist and that we aren't blood thirsty murderers or communists.

josephpallazo wrote:
We aren't??!!? #-o

Not on Tuesdays, we have to get a day off you know.

No no no, the "atheist Sabbath" is not Tuesday, but any day of the week we don't go to work.

My "sabbath" is Sunday during the fall when I pray to chance that my Redskins won't suck donkey balls. I worship beer and football.

This as I see it, is the only real downside of being an atheist.

A severe lack of holidays.

[SGOS]

This as I see it, is the only real downside of being an atheist.

A severe lack of holidays.

When I was in grade school, my Catholic friends told me I should become a Catholic and go to Catholic school because they got more holidays off.  So, I told my grandmother that I was thinking of becoming a Catholic, but she became horrified and told me I would go to Hell.  So much for that idea.

[josephpalazzo]

I gotta be honest.. I don't much care what Opra says or thinks.'.most of the time.
The fact she believes in the big spook doesn't bother me, but the only person who speaks for me is..well..me. :-?

Yeah, but that's just a theory...

[Solitary]

:rollin:  :rollin: Solitary

[Brian37]

I gotta be honest.. I don't much care what Opra says or thinks.'.most of the time.
The fact she believes in the big spook doesn't bother me, but the only person who speaks for me is..well..me. :-?

Yeah, but that's just a theory...

DUH,

Of course she doesn't speak for you, and that is the point, which makes "atheists cant have a sense of awe and not believe". You can and do.

[PickelledEggs]

Oprah...


I think my teacher said it best.

The more someone thinks he knows about something, the more they think they know about other things.

Basically, Oprah is an arrogant jerk-wad. Just because she had a talk show and can recommend a book and single handedly put it on the best sellers list makes her think she is the authority in other things. Same thing with that whole "The Secret" crap.

[Brian37]

Jesus fucking christ. This woman is worth a billion dollars and is clueless. She needs to first of all know the definition of religion. Spirituality is a state of mind of an individual. I consider myself spiritual at times because I enjoy nature and am uplifted by it, but that has nothing to do with religion. These are the people that seriously need to STFU.

Clueless how?

She cannot be considered clueless as far as the ability to market herself and make money.

If I wanted to be a billionaire like her (which I don't)  I would listen to her advice.

Ignorance is not a matter of being dumb on all subjects, ignorance is a matter of not being aware of data other people are aware of.

I agree that religion nor god belief are required to appreciate the "WOW" in nature.

"Spirituality" is not a "state of mind" it is merely a placebo word to describe our natural "WOW THAT IS NEAT".

I have intense feelings when hugging my mother, or playing with my extremely loyal and trusting cat. I got that same intense feeling when my X wife said yes when I asked her to marry me.

I hate that Sam Harris, one of my heros likes that stupid woo word "spiritual". I was cheering every page of "Letter To a Christian Nation", but when he himself claims "spiritual" can also be an atheist word.

BULL FUCKING SHIT.

All someone is saying when they use that word is " the pleasure chemicals and part of my brain were on steroids"

Wow is normal and it can even be on steroids, but it is not "spiritual".

[Colanth]

Oprah's not a brilliant woman, she's a moron with a lot of book learning.  She's the typical "Christian" who knows almost nothing about the religion she professes to follow, and can't conceive of anyone not being in it or against it.