Geminize Wrote:An interesting question to me in a discussion like this is, how do we know what's real or true? And when I say 'know' I don't mean 'feel'.
I agree with you, Odi, that everyone is entitled to their own opinions. But we are not entitled to our own facts or truth. Religious people may have very strong feelings about their own divine being: Yaweh, Muhammad, Jesus, etc. Many think that they know their god is real, but it is really a feeling based on their culture, family and community. A matter of faith, not fact.
I disagree that the claimed abilities of mediums are not paranormal. Claiming to be able to communicate with the dead is not freakin normal.
A bit of basic science here; you can't prove a negative. I can't prove there's not an invisible pink unicorn on the roof of my house. Until someone offers up some proof that there is one, I'm not interested in giving it any more consideration. (Not that I don't like the idea.) I feel the same way about mediums.
What's really interesting is that there are people who apparently think they are real mediums, and people who certainly believe that others are real mediums. I understand that people have had very convincing experiences which lead them to believe in such abilities. Convincing experiences and proof are two different things. That's where science comes in handy.
The reason for proof, debate, etc is so we can come to agreement and understanding about aspects of this awesome and puzzling world we live in.
One's beliefs are subjective and are subjective to change, so therefore Religion is touch and go.
As for Talking to the dead, I never said that was normal, merely the hightened level of sensitivity Mediums have, which allows the to have senses outside their 5 internal ones, is normal. Because people have different variations of sensitivity, so just because you can't feel or see something, doesn't mean someone else can't or that it's not real.
My nana always told me, and she's always supportive of my sensitivity to Emotions, because she and her Twin have had many experiences together, and have even gotten the same ailments over the course of their lives, but always mirrored; that when you open your mind, you can then see.
Because if you doubt something or disbelieve, than you won't see or feel it. Although there are cases when extreme skeptics moved into a very haunted house and became believers. You have to be willing to allow it in, but don't leave the door open, because they will overwhelm you.
I am a Spiritual Agnostic*, so I believe in nature and spirits and things typically beyond the realm of tangibilty and for some, conceptuality.
I suppose in someone else's perspective, it would make sense to want proof...so I can agree to disagree
.
A good example of such, is Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter, who was able to commune easily with nature and spirits, due to her unwavering belief in the things she could see and knew about. Even though the movie is fictional, it's a decent example.
Not saying I see fairies and Thestrals, but when and if I do, I won't be too alarmed...
*- About
A philosophy that underscores the moral similarities of all religions and rejects the divisive differences between religions It doesn't matter what religion you call yourself a follower of, nor does it matter whether or not you believe in God.
Description:
What matters is what you do, not what you believe!Spiritual agnosticism claims that God's existence is irrelevent to life on earth, for even if there is a Supreme Being, it would not demand belief in its existence. Spiritual agnosticism condemns the "believe-or-burn" attitudes of conservative religious ideologies that demand belief in God in order to reach eternal peace.Morality, by definition, is inate in all human beings. It can be repressed or accepted by the individual, but it is inate. Not surprisingly, the ethics of every single major religion are built on similar moral values, i.e. not killing, stealing, lying, etc. Rather than following the ethics of religion out of a fear of God, spiritual agnostics follow the same moral values for the purpose of reaping, giving, and sharing the rewards in this life time.It should be noted that even if there is a God, there would be no way to tell which religious belief in divinity God would favor. Spiritual agnosticism shows that if there is a God, then he would favor those who truly follow the basic moral values that the religions of the world (as well as the conscience of the mind) agree on, no matter what religion, if any, those individuals choose to follow. This concept by and large allows for the sheer inclusivity of spiritual agnosticism as well as its accpeptance, whether concious or unconcious, by those who already have a liberal and/or loose allegience to a*religion.