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Author | Topic: What Does Critical Thinking Mean To You? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0
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I have a licensed counselor. He is on the state board of problem gambling.
Through talking with him in sessions, I learn much of the research done and the methods such as The Stages Of Change Model and Rational Recovery. He is a good therapist, but I am a stubborn old coot. I often go around the same mountain several dozen times before I realize that i'm not getting anywhere. My therapist explained the addictive pattern in the brain and much of the stuff that I share here at EvC. He even suggested medications, which I have tried in the past but reject overall--they cause harm as well as good.
Theodoric writes: Thanks for your input. I believe now that I am turning the corner on my problems.(many of them, anyway) The evidence is being gathered and quantified and is not yet in, however. Barring any relapse or other addictive behavior, my brain should begin changing back to how it is supposed to be. I need patience, accountability to health professionals, and good friends and relationships rather than just my internet ones. Thanks for your critique, though. I would suggest getting some professional help to help you back to reality. I know religion helps you in many ways, but it can lack in dealing with persistent behavioral and mental health issues. Seeking professional help is not a weakness, it is a sign of strength. Saying, "I don't know," is the same as saying, "Maybe."~ZombieRingo It's easy to see the speck in somebody else's ideas - unless it's blocked by the beam in your own.~Ringo If a savage stops believing in his wooden god, it does not mean that there is no God only that God is not wooden. (Leo Tolstoy)
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
Cat Sci writes: It is wise to be cautious about "still small voices". Especially if you hear them while sober. Oh, man, I've tripped my balls off!One time, I was sober, I was woken up in the middle of the night by some deep raspy voice speaking some weird foreign language. After I woke up, I could still hear the voice. It was coming from right above me. I sounded like some demonic spell or something. Like an incantation. Scared the shit out of me. I sat up in bed and looked around for the source, but couldn't find one. It eventually stopped talking and that was that. Like I said, I've tripped plenty of times. I know hallucinations that are happening "in my head". And this voice was convincingly not in my head. I heard it from outside with my ears (as opposed to that voice we all hear in our heads).Saying, "I don't know," is the same as saying, "Maybe."~ZombieRingo It's easy to see the speck in somebody else's ideas - unless it's blocked by the beam in your own.~Ringo If a savage stops believing in his wooden god, it does not mean that there is no God only that God is not wooden. (Leo Tolstoy)
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
How would you apply critical thinking to scripture? Is there any evidence that scripture has errors? (NT only,please)
Coyote writes:
Must it be so? Faith is based on a conclusion, however...so you may have a point.
Perhaps it could be said that critical thinking is the opposite of faith?NosyNed writes: Critical thinking is based on the inputs and process never on the conclusion. The process leads where it leads and isn't defined by the end point. Well...God gave us brains for a reason, I suppose.Chance as a real force is a myth. It has no basis in reality and no place in scientific inquiry. For science and philosophy to continue to advance in knowledge, chance must be demythologized once and for all. —RC Sproul "A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." —Mark Twain " ~"If that's not sufficient for you go soak your head."~Faith Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.~Proverbs 28:26
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
Here it is two years later and my brain still has not changed yet. I am getting close, however and I do see a counselor. As I have said in several other threads, the change will happen beginning in roughly 60 more days and continue through the first of the year. Science tells us that a subject only changes when they want recovery and when they feel safe.
I dont have a job at this time, so I hope that I feel safe enough. I am taking responsibility and looking for a job, however. Chance as a real force is a myth. It has no basis in reality and no place in scientific inquiry. For science and philosophy to continue to advance in knowledge, chance must be demythologized once and for all. —RC Sproul "A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." —Mark Twain " ~"If that's not sufficient for you go soak your head."~Faith Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.~Proverbs 28:26
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
I started this topic way back in 2014.
I have found that my time here has been a learning experience in some ways, and a soapbox to attempt to teach others. On the one hand, I have been exposed to dialogue with some very intelligent people. On the other, I have tried time and time again to show why my belief is not in vain. My question to myself---as well as those of you who choose to dialogue with me in this topic----is whether my critical thinking skills have improved here at EvC or whether I have, in fact, merely confirmed that I am still (and forever more) a dogmatic Christian believer.
The reason that led me to peruse the archives for this topic were primarily that I saw Juvenissun engaging in the following exchange:
I also ask all of you what critical thinking means to you and whether or not your basic beliefs have changed since you came to this forum. Forum: Geology and the Great Flood
Topic: Did the Flood really happen? RE: Message 2087 kjsimons writes:
A world wide flood has never happened in all of the planet Earths history as far as we know. If you have evidence to the contrary, please present it. Note that I stipulated that you must present "evidence".juvenissun writes: I give you evidence, a very very strong evidence. However, you may not understand the evidence. The evidence is: the earth has vast amount of ocean water in contrast to the mass of land. Can you "reason" on my evidence? I don't believe you can. Should not critical thinking be the primary tool in a science forum with which to arrive at an agreeable methodology and consensus for further testing and examination?"A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." ~Mark Twain " *** We must realize that the Reformation world view leads in the direction of government freedom. But the humanist world view with inevitable certainty leads in the direction of statism. This is so because humanists, having no god, must put something at the center, and it is inevitably society, government, or the state.- Francis A. Schaeffer The whole war between the atheist and the theist comes down to this: the atheist believes a 'what' created the universe; the theist believes a 'who' created the universe.- Criss Jami, Killosophy
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
I think that your public response to him is unwarranted. Forum Guidelines specifically state to ovoid personal attacks. At least let the guy post a few months before attacking his character. Which is and of itself not very Christian of you.
But getting back to this specific thread, let me go back and reread our exchanges here and comment farther.
jar writes: But then you take evidence-based Critical Thinking too far when you use it to define a belief. As an example, what importance to you attach to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ to your definition of whats important within your particular chapter of Club: Christian?
Even within Christianity neither a Young Earth of literal Biblical Flood are common beliefs nor are either (as well as many other similar ideas) a requirement for belief in most Christian chapters. jar writes: But again, religion is far more complex than even those examples. Religions have sets of rules and guidelines, histories like any other organization, mythos. Religious mythos can be every bit as significant as national mythos or racial mythos or any cultural mythos. Many things accepted on Faith may well turn out to have been false but equally may well serve a valuable purpose even when not confirmed. What critical thinking led you to the following assertions:
jar writes: I would imagine that we are not required to park our brains at the door. I disagree that evidence should bee the default standard in regards to spiritual claims. If it is, I will be quite satisfied with subjective evidence. I need only convince myself beyond a reasonable doubt. I have no burning need to prove to the scientific community that I am relatively of sound mind (except for that belief in the supernatural ) When it comes to the supernatural are there any other options than accepting things on Faith? In other areas do all religions ask people to shut off reasoning? Edited by Phat, : No reason given."A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." ~Mark Twain " *** We must realize that the Reformation world view leads in the direction of government freedom. But the humanist world view with inevitable certainty leads in the direction of statism. This is so because humanists, having no god, must put something at the center, and it is inevitably society, government, or the state.- Francis A. Schaeffer The whole war between the atheist and the theist comes down to this: the atheist believes a 'what' created the universe; the theist believes a 'who' created the universe.- Criss Jami, Killosophy
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
jar writes: You are talking about quite a large group of people. Might I just say that it is quite as likely that you yourself are (perhaps unknowingly) a liar and a conman. You drive people away from a relationship with Jesus Christ.
No one has ever presented any evidence or a reasoned argument to show that some or any of the Apologists are not liars and conmen. I have never asserted the second of your bullets and in fact have said quite the opposite. You have said that even if Jesus never existed and was simply a story told around a campfire the message still has value. Value to whom? Do you or do you not believe that God could care less if we even believed in "Her"? Is that not the same thing as throwing away all of the stories, apologetic marketing books and videos, human opinions, and church denominational propaganda and simply doing for the least of these?
Just another example of you misrepresenting what people tell you and showing you are willfully incapable of understanding what they tell you. Again with the insults. You need the Holy Spirit, old man. You know darn well that I understand you better than anyone else at EvC (at least in regards to Christian beliefs) and if I am being willfully ignorant, it is simply resistance to what you teach. I think there is more to the story."A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." ~Mark Twain " *** We must realize that the Reformation world view leads in the direction of government freedom. But the humanist world view with inevitable certainty leads in the direction of statism. This is so because humanists, having no god, must put something at the center, and it is inevitably society, government, or the state.- Francis A. Schaeffer The whole war between the atheist and the theist comes down to this: the atheist believes a 'what' created the universe; the theist believes a 'who' created the universe.- Criss Jami, Killosophy
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Phat Member Posts: 18343 From: Denver,Colorado USA Joined: Member Rating: 1.0 |
jar writes: This is your opinion and is why you will forever be a questioning and doubting believer. Granted evidence is nearly impossible according to your standards but the fact that you see no reasoned argumentation from myself or other apologists simply shows your bias as to how YOU see Christianity within your own chosen world view.
You may say anything you want but just as with the Apologists you have NEVER provided any evidence or reasoned argument to support what you say. Phat writes: You have said that even if Jesus never existed and was simply a story told around a campfire the message still has value. Value to whom? jar writes: So in other words if you do the best you can for the least of these and follow the message, it is irrelevant whether or not you can have a relationship with God. And you justify it by knowing that nobody can tell you how such a relationship is even possible, much less yourself. The deceiving spirits worked their magic well through the Socratic teachers who got you to question and doubt the party line. Value to those who fo0llow Jesus message and to those who have no clothes but are clothed, are hungry and get fed, are homeless and are sheltered, are sick and get healed, are sorrowful but get comforted ... I don't yet know what caused you to despise *all* of the apologists, though. Many of them are quite good and I never read them to learn how to think yet find that I arrived at the same conclusions that they did without knowing what they were going to say. To me, this is a confirmation of truth within Biblical Christianity that we can all arrive at similar truths independently. And they make sense too. They just sit well with us. We will claim that it is the Holy Spirit. You will claim that we lie to ourselves and engage in fanciful thinking.
Phat writes: Do you or do you not believe that God could care less if we even believed in "Her"? Absolutely! GOD, if GOD exists is not such a pitiful insecure critter as to need or care if anyone believes in Her. In fact that is key to understanding why you should throw all the God(s) and god(s) away. They only exist in the minds of their believers and as soon and they lose believers they are no longer gods. Look at all the evidence about all the God(s) and god(s) you don't believe in. The god you try to market is the same; existing only in your mind. This is the lie that you believe. You don't think its possible to even know God and defend your logic by rhetorically asking yourself how you would even know which God you were talking to (or made up).
jar writes: I have told you before that I have no problem with this aspect of your belief. The Holy Spirit impresses on my heart the charge. When I obey it, He moves through me into the lives of others. When I ignore it (Him) I feel like crap.
I have no idea but the message of Jesus repeated throughout the Red Letter New Testament writings is that we are charged to simply do for the least of these. Phat writes: You know darn well that I understand you better than anyone else at EvC (at least in regards to Christian beliefs) and if I am being willfully ignorant, it is simply resistance to what you teach. jar writes: Reality is not what you think. It is not confined to what science can measure and objectify. I still have a little hope that you will put aside your bias and hatred for what apologetics teaches and open your mind enough to see the evidence for yourself. It's not an insult Phat but rather fact; fact you do not want to here but what you want to hear does not change reality. The difference is I still have a liitle hope that you are willing and capable of learning how to think. Why cant you just accept that we might be right? What would you do if the God we "made up" actually turns out to be real? What is so threatening and distasteful about the basic apologetic message?"A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." ~Mark Twain " *** We must realize that the Reformation world view leads in the direction of government freedom. But the humanist world view with inevitable certainty leads in the direction of statism. This is so because humanists, having no god, must put something at the center, and it is inevitably society, government, or the state.- Francis A. Schaeffer The whole war between the atheist and the theist comes down to this: the atheist believes a 'what' created the universe; the theist believes a 'who' created the universe.- Criss Jami, Killosophy
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