reply on: Peter Thiel on the Apocalypse, the Antichrist, and Modern Technology \ stacker news ~podcasts

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20 sats \ 7 replies \ @TNStacker 11 Jan \ on: Peter Thiel on the Apocalypse, the Antichrist, and Modern Technology podcasts

I'm no atheist, although I called myself that once long ago. I suppose I'm agnostic with an intelligent design leaning. I'm culturally Christian and grew up in the fundamentalist Church of Christ. Having said that I find the following insulting and condescending.

Thinking and un-triggered atheists should be able to entertain the ideas that Thiel pulls from Christianity. And also, I imagine, be able to appreciate that some of the most surviving ideas, stories, and traditions, contain wisdom about the trajectory, nature, and psyches of humans and groups of humans.

It seems you feel the need to guide someone's thought process as opposed to just presenting the information. Am I misreading your language? Your intent to influence is strong from my perspective.

78 sats \ 6 replies \ @k00b OP 11 Jan

It seems you feel the need to guide someone's thought process as opposed to just presenting the information.

I did feel that need. I didn't mean to insult or condescend and I'm sorry if I did.

I've met many atheists that scoff at anything bible or religious. I just wanted to help them reserve judgment - not patronize them.

I didn't grow up religious myself and I don't actively practice, so that context may help you see my intent. I'm not trying to judge atheists which is what I feel you're accusing me of.

16 sats \ 2 replies \ @TNStacker 11 Jan

It didn't come across as intentional judgement, but more of what they might call unconscious bias. I think you mean well. This is just how the language you chose struck me. If you have to tell someone to be open-minded, are you communicating with the right folks?

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @k00b OP 11 Jan

If you have to tell someone to be open-minded, are you communicating with the right folks?

I've met very smart and otherwise open-minded people who've entirely closed themselves off to religion. One friend who works on flying cars is probably who I was holding in my mind when I wrote this - he was raised very religious and resents religion as an adult, so I'd often have to defuse his defenses to discuss things like this with them.

20 sats \ 0 replies \ @TNStacker 11 Jan

I get that. People will respond with their trauma responses.

33 sats \ 1 reply \ @kepford 11 Jan

I've met many atheists that scoff at anything bible or religious. I just wanted to help them reserve judgment - not patronize them.

THIS

As a Christian that finds value in the knowledge of philosophy of any sort I find it odd how some can be so closed to value in the philosophical aspects of Christianity.

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @kepford 11 Jan

It seems like a sort of bigotry. Only a fool would claim that Christians haven't been guilty of the same thing but bigotry is a the base level doing harm to one's self. For this reason alone we should seek it out in ourselves and destroy it.

42 sats \ 0 replies \ @k00b OP 11 Jan

As I explore my feelings further, you probably detected my seethe in "thinking and un-triggered." I do find people that dismiss religion out of hand upsetting and maybe I shouldn't.

As I said, I haven't had much of a religious arc myself, and was mostly steered far away from it, so perhaps I'm engaging with the ideas and sensitivities more naively than someone more experienced would.