tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10856048.post8388931839743164318..comments2024-03-12T12:23:10.033-04:00Comments on Secular Perspectives: Arguing about Historical Generalizations and ConclusionsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10856048.post-29333808946910494182011-06-08T09:43:45.713-04:002011-06-08T09:43:45.713-04:00There are probably several uses of a word like &qu...There are probably several uses of a word like "God" in conversation or in textual passages. Sometimes you get an idea of what is in the mind of a speaker from the context, but sometimes you have to know more than the linguistic context. The historical context might be important. An example is how the Founders talked about the relation of State and Religion given that they objected to the role of the Church of England in the Colonies.Gary Berg-Crosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00104267265989624672noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10856048.post-91191555738406931092011-06-08T00:17:14.421-04:002011-06-08T00:17:14.421-04:00Not believing in hell does not make you an atheist...Not believing in hell does not make you an atheist. I think that the Universalists (one of the "U"s in "UU") don't believe in hell. Where is it declared that one must believe in hell?lucettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00030477404014229609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10856048.post-48373144095991879092011-06-07T20:30:41.401-04:002011-06-07T20:30:41.401-04:00I find that people protest when I say that "G...I find that people protest when I say that "God" has no implicit meaning. Any meaning must be derived from the linguistic context in the same way that a value of x in an equation must be derived from the other terms in the equation.<br /><br />Yes Christianity itself also has no real meaning. I am increasingly convinced that many Christians are de facto atheists. I can't prove it but we do have polls saying that 30% of Americans do not believe in Hell.<br /><br />Reality is complex and our understandings must reflect that complexity.Don Whartonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11874733311091724239noreply@blogger.com