On Fri, Sep 16, 2011 at 6:29 AM, rigsy03 <[email protected]> wrote: > http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/14/atheism-scientific-versus-humanist > > I read this late yesterday and a few reader comments which stressed a > child's lack of choice in matters of religious denomination and > practice so I feel I was on the "beam". I thought further- but did not > post- that we judge a religion by the behavior of its followers/ > believers and if that is negative it cannot help but color our > attitude about that religion.
That is an explanation for the distribution and correlation of belief systems with geographic regions, cultures, ethnicity. However as a topic of cultural anthropology it need not carry a derogatory connotation. This is what happens to all children by exposure to any environment and the symbols their people use to communicate/represent. It is one piece of knowledge used to counter zealous assertions of authority and ownership of truth regarding spiritual matters, a farce if ever there were one considering the subjectivity of the topic and prevalence of confirmation bias as a basis. My stance would be to press onward, pushing humanity forward and dragging some kicking and screaming if necessary like a three year old throwing a fit in the dept store. > My experience with Notre Dame leaves a great deal to be desired, as > well. So why should I trust Gary Gutting? My irritation is grounded in the lack of openly available resource links, easily explainable, but still throws up my motive screening radar.
