Up@dawn 2.0

Monday, September 9, 2013

The A-Team - Section 16

Today's small group discussion was actually quite interesting, we first brought up the post I posted a week ago about my own personal philosophy of pacifism and discussed in depth what everyone's opinion on the matter was. Then we transitioned the topic into Christianity as a whole, discussing "what faith actually is" and "whether we believe what we believe because we were brought up that way". The conversation then became very interesting when Jordan asked who all was a devout Christian in the group, myself and another boy raised our hands. Jordan then asked us what our takes were on gay marriage and that became a heated topic of discussion for our group.

15 comments:

  1. Anonymous12:01 AM CDT

    I think that many people are Christians because that is how they were brought up by their parents. In comparison to that large number, I think only a few people really try to make their faith their own by learning and growing, not just because that is what they grew up learning.

    Abigail Jones (16,3)

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  2. Jordan Cornelius10:18 AM CDT

    It sounds like that Jordan guy is a real asshole! Our discussion yesterday was awesome. I love debating and having open talks like we do in class. Gay marriage is a hot topic right now, especially for a philosophy class.
    FQ: What impact has the APA had on American society so far?
    DQ: What will happen to the Bible Belt if gay marriage is legalized nationwide?
    Here's an article about Hawaii making a step towards legalization of same-sex marriage http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/09/hawaii-neil-abercrombia-gay-marriage-vote/2790501/

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  3. Anonymous1:33 PM CDT

    Ricky: Section 16 Group 3

    Many people are brought up learning the religion of their parents but as children progress through life, they have the ultimate decision as to whether or not to stay faithful in their beliefs or just drop religion as a whole and focus on their own personal life. I know many people who say they're Christian but if I were to question them, they would be dumbfounded in their own beliefs. In my group's discussion we talked about luck/karma and how many people believe in it as a 'coping mechanism.' I don't mean to insult anyone or anyone's beliefs but the main point I'm trying to make is that be it luck/karma/religion we as humans like to put our faith into something.

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  4. Jonathan Bogasky2:30 PM CDT

    Too often you see people that live by blind faith, which may not be a bad thing in it's own right, but its counter intuitive, especially in the context of philosophy. Glad it seems like we don't have anyone like that in our group. Not that faith is a bad thing, but blind, unexamined faith is a sign of ignorance.

    FQ: Who was the philosopher that lived his lie by way of skepticism? (pyyrho)
    DQ: Why do most people find death frightening?

    Youtube video entitled, "Why do we fear death, heights, and predators?"
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukRZfNJVtB0

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  5. unique-section16/group33:15 PM CDT

    1st let me say that i should have been in your group during this discussion. haha.
    Truthfully, i am one who still believes in what i was brought up believing. my religion is my religion because that is what my family taught me. i think you may find that in most people. However, that is not to say that i do not see other people's sides, stories, and beliefs and understand them. I for one am a Christian and i am completely fine with gay marriage. i think it is every person's right to love who they love. i also believe it is highly unfair to strip homosexual's of the same rights that heterosexuals recieve because they dont follow society's status quo.
    you shouldn't let the "rules" of whatever it is you follow to limit your ability to think for yourselves and form your own opinion that may go against what everyone else believes.

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  6. Our group discussion was very interesting this time. I find it interesting to hear what Christians have to say about the gay marriage topic. Not as many people claimed Christianity as I thought would when Jordan asked that question though. I for one think that people should study different religions before sticking to a specific one even if you were raised in a certain religion. I personally want to study Buddhism, Hinduism, and the Muslim faith before I claim any religion. I would say that I am probably more spiritual than anything.
    FQ: Why did Pyrrho never write anything down?
    DQ: How does everyone feel about studying other religions that might not be in one's comfort zone?
    Here is a link to upcoming states to legalize gay marriage http://www.policymic.com/articles/29294/12-states-that-will-probably-legalize-gay-marriage-in-2013-2014

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  7. Austin Duke7:42 PM CDT

    (16-1) I wouldn't say our discussion was heated as much as opinionated. I think our conversation was civil and respectful, which is necessary for any serious philosophical discussion. No matter what your personal beliefs are, it is important to listen to what others say and try to be polite, even if you think they are completely wrong.

    FQ- Which philosopher said "Death is not an event in life"? (Epicurus)

    DQ- Does the inevitability make it easier or harder to enjoy life?

    And to lighten the mood, here is a link to some philosophy jokes: http://consc.net/misc/lightbulb.html

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    Replies
    1. (16-2)I believe the inevitability "can" make life easier if you take life one day at a time and enjoy the simple things we take for granted in our daily lives.

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  8. I would think it is safe to say that very few people were raised on Religion A and switched to Religion B. Of course, there are people that do that, but very few. Most people raised Religion A that had the ability or desire to research or experience other cultures, religions, facts, etc. begin to have numerous issues with Religion A. They then either denounce it altogether, use their new knowledge and understanding to strengthen their beliefs, or turn their cheek and carry on.

    FQ) What did Epicurus regard as the unacknowledged fear?
    DQ) Did Pyrrho have 'common sense'?

    A great thing about a philosophy class is being able to discuss things that at our core we are curious about. We live in a society that makes people ignore most of these 'sensitive' subjects for fear of social backlash or disappointing/disrespecting another by in the religious example being blasphemous.

    Regardless of stance, my opinion is the only opinion that matters is your own. Enjoy life, it's just a ride.

    Bill Hicks
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMUiwTubYu0

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  9. Ben Nguyen 16-19:53 PM CDT

    Dr. Oliver wanted me to post something because I was a floater, but he forgot to give me author status...so I will just round the bases for now.

    I basically just shared and discussed my topic with the groups that I visited: Is luck a supernatural force, or just a visage of unquantifiable statistics? I argued the latter. We mostly agreed, with some of the group still believing in some supernatural forces.

    I was also asked if I was an atheist, to which I said, "no, I am a Christian." And then the person followed up with, "So, do you believe in science?"

    Christians can believe in science! I don't understand this misconception of Christians rejecting science. My aunt is an actual scientist and also very devout! The was that I explained it was that the world is kind of a machine to which God had created. Each cog and nut a work of his.

    FQ: What was Epicurus's school of philosophy commonly known as? (The Garden)

    DQ: Epicurus claimed that a god would not care enough about his creation's affairs to condemn them to a hell-type afterlife. Do you think he is right?

    Here is more on Epicurus:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tddSSnBIilo

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  10. Anonymous11:22 PM CDT

    I consider myself to be of christian faith, however I am a support of gay marriage. Although the bible says it is an abomination, just as people have the right to believe what they want, people have the right to be with who they want to be with. Let's face how many professed Christian lives my every rule/command of God? No one because if they did, there would not be a cause for repentence

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  11. 16-2

    I agree with Ricky, many of us have acquired the religious views of our parents.If someone was to questions them they would indeed not know many answers. Which makes me wonder if they believe in something why havent they researched more about it and formed they own opinions.

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  12. Andrew 16-1 A-Team11:05 AM CDT

    FQ- What does APA stand for according to the readings 36-56(AP)
    (American Philosophical Association)
    DQ- Do you think anyone can be a philosopher if they chose to? Or would you agree more with this statement "To be a real American philosopher, meant that you belonged to the APA" (Romano 39)

    Yea it was nice to finally get into groups and start an actual discussion.

    http://joyreactor.com/tag/plato
    since we were talking about Plato and Socrates

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  13. i went to church, occasionally, when i was younger. i knew the basics and what not and didnt really think much of it untill i joined a nondenominational (contemporary yet with Pentecostal founding ... no skirts.. alot of blue jeans and piercings and tattoos) I went because i though i believed in god and wanted to make friends but the longer i stayed i realized all of their beliefs werent mine i was constantly in a limbo of " i believe that... i guess, but that's kinda fucked up so why is that okay". eventually researching was necessary when i couldnt make logical sense of what the preacher was saying or of how he was running the church. i realized that i went to church for friends for a place to fit in and a place of comfort (Groupthink theory), but even those promises fell though. when those did it was like the whole curtain came down and i saw it all from my perspective. i thought for myself (what i encourage all of you to do. Im not saying you have to denounce your faith but i want YOU to honestly and LOGICALLY think about why you believe what you do. As long as you fully and whole heartily believe and can make logical sense of it for yourself I dont care what you believe.

    DQ) what do YOU think happens after you die?
    FQ) what were the 3 questions Pyrrho thought you should ask yourself if you want to be happy?

    (What are things really like?
    What attitude should we adopt to them?
    what will happen to someone who does adopt them?)

    heres a video about Groupthink theory to maybe shed some light on the things we talked about in class on monday.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wocHu0sR_eU

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  14. Chelsea 16-1 A-team12:22 PM CDT

    I think our discussion was really interesting. It made me think about the word "faith" in relation to religion. To be open minded and to keep asking questions about religion can you really have faith in any religion?

    FQ: What is the name of the philosopher who was most well known as an extreme skeptic?
    (Pyrrho)

    DQ: After reading the thoughts of Epicurus in LH, do you feel any different about death ?

    Link : http://www.philosophybasics.com/philosophers_pyrrho.html




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