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Post by notbob on Apr 20, 2017 13:19:19 GMT -5
I am not gay, but homosexuality is considered "normal" by the APA. It is a normal occurrence with both men and women and is not a "disease" or abnormality to be treated. No sex with any woman not being one's wife? That would mean no sex out of wedlock. No oral sex? No masturbation? I can't speak to anal sex other than there seem to be many consenting adults who enjoy it. No sex in the mountain air? No sex during pregnancy, while nursing, or while fasting?
In my opinion, the best sex is with wild abandon - anything goes between consenting adults, and if two (or more) people choose what is considered a form of sexual misconduct, no one else has a right to sit in judgment. If sex were meant purely for the purpose of procreation, it wouldn't be so pleasurable for both parties. Bonobo chimps engage in all sorts of deviant behavior, but since they're chimps, they're held to a lesser standard. That may seem funny. It seems funny to me despite my feelings that we are no better than they are. We are basically just chimps who have evolved to a higher intellectual level - in my opinion.
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Post by highlandannie on Apr 20, 2017 14:13:57 GMT -5
From Buddhanet:
To know what 'sexual misconduct' means you look at the other precepts. 'Sexual misconduct', in the spirit of the precepts as a job lot, means any sexual conduct involving violence, manipulation or deceit - conduct that therefore leads to suffering and trouble. By contrast good sexual conduct is based on loving kindness, generosity, honesty, and mental and emotional clarity - conduct that has good results.
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Post by highlandannie on Apr 20, 2017 14:31:43 GMT -5
When I started looking at Buddhism in 2006 I ran across these podcasts - A Quiet Mind - and found them extremely helpful. I looked at people differently and found myself not getting angry or annoyed with them - especially bad drivers. I learned to look at myself and my reactions to things as if by remote camera. A Quiet Mind
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Post by notbob on Apr 20, 2017 14:43:45 GMT -5
Hey...thank you to all who have indulged me in this conversation. I tend to question much more than I accept. I admire much of what I believe Buddhism to be about and I try to live my life according to similar principles. As I said, I am an atheist and as an atheist, I have no structure to live up to other than my own. I believe life overall is as simple as it can be. I do my best to live by the Golden Rule where everything is concerned. I wouldn't stand for someone pissing oil in my backyard. I wouldn't do it to anyone else, so I am against oil pipelines. I would be offended if someone came into my yard and decided to chisel out a sculpture on a rock in my garden, so I am against humans carving out large monuments in the wilderness. I find Mt. Rushmore deeply offensive. I wouldn't tolerate a woman I'm not intimately involved with grabbing me by the balls so I wouldn't grab a woman by the . It's simply a matter of respect, and understanding that we are all insignificant, yet we are part of something awe inspiring. When I die, the Universe will not notice and it will not miss me, yet while I'm here, miniscule as it may be, I have actually influenced everything. With that in mind, I hope my influence is positive. If so, I have fulfilled what I believe is my purpose.
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Post by becca on May 10, 2017 22:54:15 GMT -5
....other than your own (pretend your religion doesn't exist), which religion would you likely choose and why?
Interesting...well I was raised Roman Catholic so if that didn't exist and I had to choose one I think I would become Jewish. I would miss bacon for sure since I would go all the way and be kosher too. I figure no hell and they have a holiday where you are required if of age to get drink and be merry I think I could handle that.
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Post by birdgal on Jun 16, 2017 23:55:29 GMT -5
Like Notbob, if I had to choose a religion, I'm an Atheist also, it would be one that believes we are all connected. That this Earth is ours to preserve for all Living Beings. Not to destroy with wars or pesticides. To be stewards instead of warriors. To build it up instead of tearing it down. To have respect for all Living Things.
I'd be a Pagan/Wiccan. They're very good at making a beautiful May Pole too! lol.
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Post by notbob on Jun 17, 2017 1:43:13 GMT -5
Some here have talked about the goodness and purity of being Pagan or Buddhist. Much of that goodness and purity comes from being free, or at least relatively free from the control of money or material things. I'm pretty sure there is no right or wrong answer to this but, at what point in the financial or economic spectrum does one become greedy or gluttonous? If you lived in an old refrigerator box, and your neighbor lived in an old stove box (obviously smaller than your refrigerator box), and you both spot a nice, new refrigerator box at the same time, and you raced with your neighbor to lay claims on that box before he/she did, and you got there first and took possession of the box, are you greedy? No? When there are people living in cardboard boxes, if you lived in a tiny, one room cabin with no power, are you greedy then? Still no? How 'bout a modest two bedroom home with what most of us would consider "normal" amenities? Probably not? What about a four bedroom home...plus a lakeside retreat? What about a handful of homes scattered around the country...plus a main, 32 room house...on the coast...? All of these things become magnified as the human population grows and expands, so in light of the continuing increase in world population, how 'bout the family that has six kids? Are they greedy or gluttonous? At what point are we greedy, or gluttonous? Like I said, I don't think there's a correct answer because both greed and gluttony are subjective terms. There's no way to quantify greed so it's extremely difficult to say when someone is taking more than their share to the extent of harming others - something that could not exist in a perfect Pagan or Buddhist world where each of us takes responsibility for the betterment of the Universe through our daily actions based on everything being connected. That requires compassion - something it seems, too many humans don't have, often despite religious beliefs.
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Post by birdgal on Jun 23, 2017 17:01:55 GMT -5
"the Path must be understood for each moment"
I had a good Friend that recently died. Instead of saying have a nice day, she'd wish me meaningful moments. She'd say when you have many meaningful moments in your life you'll have a meaningful life. I loved that woman and my life feels empty without her.
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Post by Sunkist on Oct 4, 2017 11:54:43 GMT -5
....other than your own (pretend your religion doesn't exist), which religion would you likely choose and why? Methodist, because I am Catholic, they read something in their Hymnal that states we believe in the Holy Catholic Church. My daddy's mom was Methodist. Also I've gone to the Methodist Church a lot before becoming Catholic and I love it, but not as much as being Catholic.
I got this far in this thread but need to comment: not sure if you're joking or not, but where the Apostle's Creed says "THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH," the word 'Catholic' means 'Universal,' they're not referring to the Catholic denomination. (plus Methodists are not the only Protestants who recite this)
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Post by Warrigal on Oct 7, 2017 6:44:01 GMT -5
My grandmother, who died the year before I was born, was an Australian Roman Catholic of Irish descent but she fell in love with a Methodist, who became my grandfather. When they married she was excommunicated (long story) and the family was raised Methodist. She found Methodism too simplified for her liking and missed going to Mass until the day she died.
Interestingly, in each succeeding generation one member of her children and grandchildren has married a Roman Catholic and converted. I taught in a catholic school for 25 years and was considered to be an informal catholic by the nuns. I taught religion classes and received communion at school masses.
In truth, there is only one universal catholic church that encompasses all those who confess that Christ is Lord but traditions and cultures are everywhere very different. My congregation is very Australian but if I were to find myself overseas looking a new church I would look for a group of kindly people who were accepting of a stranger in their midst.
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Post by rjhangover on Oct 7, 2017 13:34:11 GMT -5
....other than your own (pretend your religion doesn't exist), which religion would you likely choose and why? I joined this forum just to answer this.....I had an epiphany because I read this link....God is a hologram....nothing exists outside the God hologram....and the "God particle" is what gives every atom its mass....they found the "God particle" also known as the "Higgs Boson particle" because they are the ones that found it by smashing atoms together....So everything is in God, and God is in everything..... link
link
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Post by nkat on Dec 17, 2017 12:38:16 GMT -5
I would take a sentence from the Bible and form my own religion! Lol
NKat
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