Askville Posts #6: Atheism (continued)

More from the discussion thread for the question "God is more interested in you listening to God, than talking to God. Can you explain this?"

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[A user said that Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ had changed many people's lives, and she believe that God had blessed Mel Gibson for that by making the movie an unprecedented success]

Well, [user], I have to admit that you made me snicker with that one.

Mel apparently hates God's chosen people, and after the "Passion" his drunken antisemitic slurs pretty much torpedoed his Hollywood career. He gets a few roles these days, I think, but he's nowhere near the box office god that he was. Mostly he does voice-acting now.

And frankly, the whole idea of the creator of the universe "blessing" somebody because of a movie, well...it's as silly as football teams praying for victory. It's very hard to take that sort of thing seriously.

If God spends all his time dealing with that sort of issue instead of healing children with cancer, for example (which he does not seem to do), then I, for one, would have to question His priorities.

"Forget those 10,000 kids with leukemia, but make sure that Mel's box office is boffo!" - God

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Anyway, given all that, option #4 seems by far the most reasonable explanation to me. But that's just my opinion, and I've already acknowledged that if someone wants to believe that God healed them, I am not going to convince them otherwise. Actually, I don't think I'd want to! Why should I take someone's comfort away from them?

Askville Posts #6: Atheism (continued)

More from the discussion thread for the question "God is more interested in you listening to God, than talking to God. Can you explain this?"

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[A user said that Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ had changed many people's lives, and she believe that God had blessed Mel Gibson for that by making the movie an unprecedented success]

Well, [user], I have to admit that you made me snicker with that one.

Mel apparently hates God's chosen people, and after the "Passion" his drunken antisemitic slurs pretty much torpedoed his Hollywood career. He gets a few roles these days, I think, but he's nowhere near the box office god that he was. Mostly he does voice-acting now.

And frankly, the whole idea of the creator of the universe "blessing" somebody because of a movie, well...it's as silly as football teams praying for victory. It's very hard to take that sort of thing seriously.

If God spends all his time dealing with that sort of issue instead of healing children with cancer, for example (which he does not seem to do), then I, for one, would have to question His priorities.

"Forget those 10,000 kids with leukemia, but make sure that Mel's box office is boffo!" - God

---

( Read more... )

Anyway, given all that, option #4 seems by far the most reasonable explanation to me. But that's just my opinion, and I've already acknowledged that if someone wants to believe that God healed them, I am not going to convince them otherwise. Actually, I don't think I'd want to! Why should I take someone's comfort away from them?

Askville Posts #7: Dating

[A 45 year old man whose wife recently died asked how to meet people. This was my answer:]

I am sorry for your loss.

It’s difficult to know how to answer your question without knowing more about you - and in particular, your dating style. How you met your wife, for example, and how you used to date. If you were comfortable in the bar scene, for example, my answer would be quite different than it would be if you were of a more shy and retiring nature - or if you just didn’t like bars, for that matter!

But if you were comfortable in the bar scene, I don’t think you’d have asked this question here. You’d already know what to do.

While I’m at it, I’ll include the obvious caveat: depending on how recently you lost your spouse, it may be too soon for you to begin dating again. But that’s for you to judge.

I have two different approaches for you. Either one should work well, and there’s certainly no reason that you couldn’t try both simultaneously.
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There are other options, of course. Speed dating, for one. You may find speed dating events in your area by Googling for them (i.e. "speed dating" and [your home town]). There may also be matchmaking services available in your area, if you want to spend the money. These are very personalized; the matchmaker meets you and gets to know your interests, and then matches you up with someone that they feel might be compatible. It’s a new take on an old tradition. Again, Google would be the place to start looking.

As I mentioned before, I met my wife on an online service. We’ve been happily married for years, and have a wonderful little boy. So I’m living proof that online dating works.

Good luck!

Askville Posts #7: Dating

[A 45 year old man whose wife recently died asked how to meet people. This was my answer:]

I am sorry for your loss.

It’s difficult to know how to answer your question without knowing more about you - and in particular, your dating style. How you met your wife, for example, and how you used to date. If you were comfortable in the bar scene, for example, my answer would be quite different than it would be if you were of a more shy and retiring nature - or if you just didn’t like bars, for that matter!

But if you were comfortable in the bar scene, I don’t think you’d have asked this question here. You’d already know what to do.

While I’m at it, I’ll include the obvious caveat: depending on how recently you lost your spouse, it may be too soon for you to begin dating again. But that’s for you to judge.

I have two different approaches for you. Either one should work well, and there’s certainly no reason that you couldn’t try both simultaneously.
( Read more... )

There are other options, of course. Speed dating, for one. You may find speed dating events in your area by Googling for them (i.e. "speed dating" and [your home town]). There may also be matchmaking services available in your area, if you want to spend the money. These are very personalized; the matchmaker meets you and gets to know your interests, and then matches you up with someone that they feel might be compatible. It’s a new take on an old tradition. Again, Google would be the place to start looking.

As I mentioned before, I met my wife on an online service. We’ve been happily married for years, and have a wonderful little boy. So I’m living proof that online dating works.

Good luck!