Quote:Amadd, of course you can pick from Judaism, Buddhism, science, satanism et al. If you have an interest in these things, it's unavoidable. If you're a fundamentalist, however, you'll place limits on what you learn. It's up to you.
freewill, you see?
Well, isn't it Christianity that we're talking about?
Ergo, most Christians will not be open to truths from other religions - and by "truths", I am meaning poignant facts concerning the human condition, not mumbo jumbo superstitions which are aimed soley at increasing business.
Quote:Exactly, but it highlights the sectarian theology of atheists.
..And once again I hear this rubbish oxymoron "theistic atheists".
To my knowledge, there are no "atheist scriptures". Even if there were, I think that it would be more likely that atheists would find religious scriptures far more interesting as these religious scriptures do tell a story of history (mumbo jumbo aside) and the "zeitgeist" of particular cultures.
Personally, my own definition of "an atheist" is one who will not feel threatened by the so-called word of God.
Most atheists will understand that these are merely the words of men. And yes, historically, they
are but the words of men, not women...and certainly not some supernatural being.
IMO, an atheist does not fear the written or spoken threats of "historical or present time men or women" concerning supernatural forces which may or may not exist. An atheist acts as if these threats are non-existent, ie: those threats hold no power or control over the mind in the realistic world of an atheist.
However, all of that stuff about wanting to control your fellow being belies to a great extent the word "spirituality".
IMO, spirituality involves something that can be learned from various religions when reading with the right attitude, or it can be devalued if reading with the wrong attitude.
Similarly, an atheist can also fall into the same trap (or be in the same trap to begin with) of devaluing spirituality.