Subject: JESUS AND THE BURGLER
_____

Jesus Knows You're Here


A burglar broke into a house one night.

He shined his flashlight around, looking for valuables when

a voice in the dark said, 'Jesus knows you're here.'


He nearly jumped out of his skin, clicked his flashlight off,

and froze.


When he heard nothing more, he shook his head and continued.Just as he
pulled the stereo out so he could disconnect the wires, clear as a bell he
heard 'Jesus is watching you.'


Freaked out, he shined his light around frantically, looking for the source
of the voice...................................


Finally, in the corner of the room, his flashlight beam came to rest on a
parrot.


'Did you say that?' he hissed

at the parrot.


'Yep', the parrot confessed, then squawked,

'I'm just trying to warn you that he is watching you.'


The burglar relaxed. 'Warn me,

huh? Who in the world are you ?'


'Moses,'

replied the bird.

'Moses?' the burglar laughed.

'What kind of people would name a bird Moses?'


'The same kind of people that would name a

Rottweiler Jesus.'

It seems that most of the people who have posted comments on this thread agree in concept, we are just splitting thin hairs.
I would still classify Religion as imaginary (existing only in the imagination, in our minds, made up)...but the trappings are real: Pope, bible (just another book), church buildings, etc....

How can a person who has a "personal relationship with Jesus" not be imagining this ???

The following is a well written list of 50 reasons why god is imaginary.

http://godisimaginary.com/index.htm


People are waking up !!!!
Evangelicals constitute not 25 percent of the U.S. population – as they have claimed – but at most 7 percent, and their numbers are falling, not rising. All these numbers come from the churches themselves. (Wicker, p. 67)
From 1980 to 2005 in the Southern Baptist Church, baptisms of people between eighteen and thirty four – in other words, their next generation of leaders – fell 40 percent, from 100,000 in 1980 to 60,000 in 2005.[3]
But the U.S. population grew by 27% during those 25 years, so the Baptists would have had to baptize 127,000 in 2005 just to stay even; they really fell by 52%.[4] In 2006, the Southern Baptists – who claim almost six times more members than any other white evangelical church – made a concerted effort to baptize one million people. Not only did they fall over two-thirds short, they actually baptized even fewer than they had the year before.[5]
You might think that some faith group must have grown during the last thirty years, and you’d be right: atheists and nonbelievers more than doubled in the eleven years between 1990 and 2001, from 14 million to 29 million: from 8% of the country to 14%. There are more than twice as many atheists and nonbelievers as there are evangelical Christians.[6] And since it’s hard to believe that all atheists/nonbelievers would be willing to confess that to pollsters, the number is probably much higher. From 2000 to 2005, church attendance fell in all fifty states.[7]

“There’s no longer evidence for a need of God, even less of Christ. The so-called traditional churches look like they are dying.”
The author of this quote was Pope Benedict XVI.

"Man is the only animal that has the true religion--several of them" Mark Twain

"The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason" Benjamin Franklin

Mikhail Aleksandrovich Bakunin (1814-1876)wrote:
People go to church for the same reasons they go to a tavern: to stupefy themselves, to forget their misery, to imagine themselves, for a few minutes anyway, free and happy.

Satan, like Jesus, is imaginary.. we make this stuff up in our minds as we go.....
I would define myself as a Humanist, believing in science, logic and basic kindness over blind faith. "My religion is to live and die without regret" (Milarepa). That one quote sums up my belief system.

The prior posts in this thread all have one thing in common....
each person knows the truth about what god was thinking and what actions he did and why he did them.....
Each religious person creates his own beliefs....
Religion should be classified as a Psychosis....
an entire imaginary, delusional belief system
We can call it Religious Belief Syndrome… an acronym could be… Religious B S

Religion being totally imaginary seems like such an obvious concept..... Today's religions are true, yesterday's religions were false (mythology etc....) it is all the same...

> 1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and
> female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A
> friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not
> Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?
>
> 2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in
> Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair
> price for her?
>
> 3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in
> her period of Menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15:19-24. The problem is
> how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.
>
> 4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates
> a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors.
> They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?
>
> 5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus
> 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated
> to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?
>
> 6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an
> abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than
> homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there
> 'degrees' of abomination? Should I smite him?
>
> 7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I
> have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading
> glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some
> wiggle-room here?
>
> 8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair
> around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev.
> 19:27. How should they die?
>
> 9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes
> me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?
>
> 10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two
> different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing
> garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester
> blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really
> necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town
> together to stone them? Lev.24:10-16. Couldn't we just burn them to
> death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep
> with their in-laws? (Lev.20:14)

> remember that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Interesting what Christians grasp onto….

In a book written 1500 years ago by primitive hut dwellers…
(500 years and approximately 25 generations of verbal passed down myth-stories after Jesus may or may not have lived)
God tells man not to eat an apple, but a talking snake tells man to eat it, so.. man listens to the talking snake…. God is upset (a loving, forgiving god ??), so he immaculately inseminates a woman (if not by her choice–rape ??, if she was married to Joseph at the time—adultery ??) and she gives birth to him/his son so he can suffer and die for us (Jesus chooses to die for us–suicide ??) because we sinned when we listened to the talking snake and ate an apple.. what a strange story…

I contend that we are all atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than religious people do. When religious “believers” understand why they dismiss all possible gods and religions except for their one “true” god , they will understand why I dismiss theirs.

The day people lose the fear of the threat of burning in hell will be the first intellectually free day of their life. Christianity and its rules and threats and prejudices was created by hut-dwellers thousands of years ago in order to gain power over their fellow human beings. New religions continue to crop up constantly in much the same way Christianity originally did- look at the Mormons, Scientologists and other less-successful religions. Christianity actually is like many religions, resurrection, virgin birth, god lives in heaven, etc….

The basis of religion and believing in Jesus is fear…. fear of going to hell (another man made myth–hell)
fear of what happens to us when we die. fear of God punishing us… (many examples especially in the old testament)
all of the stories, myths, fairytales about Jesus, including Jesus is God, were written hundreds of years after his death by primitive hut dwellers….

look at the big picture, Jesus is just another God in a long line of man-made Gods… during Jesus time, mankind was moving from polytheism to monotheism…. there were many “messiahs” ( 7 or 8 major ones) during Jesus life… Constantine helped Christianity become the big religion by making it the official religion of Rome.
Again, think about how ridiculous and unbelievable all of the other gods and religions are to you, and you will see why the Jesus myth is just another imaginary… (another word for faith) belief system.


Two things are needed to become a religious person….

1) exposure to religion… you are a Christian because you are surrounded by it, if you lived in a Hindu community you would gravitate toward.. I think you get my drift
2) a personal need and weakness…. religious people are less responsible for their actions and consequences, they lean on religion to help them deal with life, and use it as an excuse for their actions (religion is imaginary, a delusion, therefore actually a type of psychosis)

The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud

Interesting what we grasp onto….
In a book written 1500 years ago by primitive hut dwellers…
(500 years and approximately 25 generations of verbal passed down myth-stories after Jesus may or may not have lived)
God tells man not to eat an apple, but a talking snake tells man to eat it, so.. man listens to the talking snake…. God is upset (a loving, forgiving god ??), so he immaculately inseminates a woman (if not by her choice–rape ??, if she was married to Joseph at the time—adultery ??) and she gives birth to him/his son so he can suffer and die for us (Jesus chooses to die for us–suicide ??) because we sinned when we listened to the talking snake and ate an apple.. what a strange story…

I contend that we are all atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than religious people do. When religious “believers” understand why they dismiss all possible gods and religions except for their one “true” god , they will understand why I dismiss theirs.

The day people lose the fear of the threat of burning in hell will be the first intellectually free day of their life. Christianity and its rules and threats and prejudices was created by hut-dwellers thousands of years ago in order to gain power over their fellow human beings. New religions continue to crop up constantly in much the same way Christianity originally did- look at the Mormons, Scientologists and other less-successful religions. Christianity actually is like many religions, resurrection, virgin birth, god lives in heaven, etc….

The basis of religion and believing in Jesus is fear…. fear of going to hell (another man made myth–hell)
fear of what happens to us when we die. fear of God punishing us… (many examples especially in the old testament)
all of the stories, myths, fairytales about Jesus, including Jesus is God, were written hundreds of years after his death by primitive hut dwellers….
look at the big picture, Jesus is just another God in a long line of man-made Gods… during Jesus time, mankind was moving from polytheism to monotheism…. there were many “messiahs” ( 7 or 8 major ones) during Jesus life… Constantine helped Christianity become the big religion by making it the official religion of Rome.

Again, think about how ridiculous and unbelievable all of the other gods and religions are to you, and you will see why the Jesus myth is just another imaginary… (another word for faith) belief system.

Two things are needed to become a religious person….
1) exposure to religion… you are a Christian because you are surrounded by it, if you lived in a Hindu community you would gravitate toward.. I think you get my drift
2) a personal need and weakness…. religious people are less responsible for their actions and consequences, they lean on religion to help them deal with life, and use it as an excuse for their actions (religion is imaginary, a delusion, therefore actually a type of psychosis)
The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud

prayer is simply ... self hypnosis, the power of positive thinking... nothing more or less.

Think about it, by praying, you will cause the forward motion of the universe to change, you will alter time-space relationships... what a naive and selfish concept... prayer :(

it is interesting that there are exactly as many religions in the world as there are religious people.....no two religious people believe the exact same thing, they all pick and choose what they want to believe, ignoring some doctrines and beliefs, grasping on to others..... and all of it is "true".. in their minds, imaginary... a delusion. Just because we, mankind, do not have all of the answers, religious people would rather grasp onto an answer, than to accept that there is a great deal we do not understand...

Mankind will need to let go of these primitive delusions before we can truly advance.

Interesting what we grasp onto….
In a book written 1500 years ago by primitive hut dwellers…
(500 years and approximately 25 generations of verbal passed down myth-stories after Jesus may or may not have lived)
God tells man not to eat an apple, but a talking snake tells man to eat it, so.. man listens to the talking snake…. God is upset (a loving, forgiving god ??), so he immaculately inseminates a woman (if not by her choice–rape ??, if she was married to Joseph at the time—adultery ??) and she gives birth to him/his son so he can suffer and die for us (Jesus chooses to die for us–suicide ??) because we sinned when we listened to the talking snake and ate an apple.. what a strange story…

I contend that we are all atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than religious people do. When religious “believers” understand why they dismiss all possible gods and religions except for their one “true” god , they will understand why I dismiss theirs.

The day people lose the fear of the threat of burning in hell will be the first intellectually free day of their life. Christianity and its rules and threats and prejudices was created by hut-dwellers thousands of years ago in order to gain power over their fellow human beings. New religions continue to crop up constantly in much the same way Christianity originally did- look at the Mormons, Scientologists and other less-successful religions. Christianity actually is like many religions, resurrection, virgin birth, god lives in heaven, etc….

The basis of religion and believing in Jesus is fear…. fear of going to hell (another man made myth–hell)
fear of what happens to us when we die. fear of God punishing us… (many examples especially in the old testament)
all of the stories, myths, fairytales about Jesus, including Jesus is God, were written hundreds of years after his death by primitive hut dwellers….

look at the big picture, Jesus is just another God in a long line of man-made Gods… during Jesus time, mankind was moving from polytheism to monotheism…. there were many “messiahs” ( 7 or 8 major ones) during Jesus life… Constantine helped Christianity become the big religion by making it the official religion of Rome.
Again, think about how ridiculous and unbelievable all of the other gods and religions are to you, and you will see why the Jesus myth is just another imaginary… (another word for faith) belief system.

Two things are needed to become a religious person….
1) exposure to religion… you are a Christian because you are surrounded by it, if you lived in a Hindu community you would gravitate toward.. I think you get my drift
2) a personal need and weakness…. religious people are less responsible for their actions and consequences, they lean on religion to help them deal with life, and use it as an excuse for their actions (religion is imaginary, a delusion, therefore actually a type of psychosis)

The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud

The real question is why do so many people throughout the ages have such a need to have an answer for comfort, based upon faith, not upon truth ??

Interesting what we grasp onto….
In a book written 1500 years ago by primitive hut dwellers…
(500 years and approximately 25 generations of verbal passed down myth-stories after Jesus may or may not have lived)
God tells man not to eat an apple, but a talking snake tells man to eat it, so.. man listens to the talking snake…. God is upset (a loving, forgiving god ??), so he immaculately inseminates a woman (if not by her choice–rape ??, if she was married to Joseph at the time—adultery ??) and she gives birth to him/his son so he can suffer and die for us (Jesus chooses to die for us–suicide ??) because we sinned when we listened to the talking snake and ate an apple.. what a strange story…

I contend that we are all atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than religious people do. When religious “believers” understand why they dismiss all possible gods and religions except for their one “true” god , they will understand why I dismiss theirs.
The day people lose the fear of the threat of burning in hell will be the first intellectually free day of their life. Christianity and its rules and threats and prejudices was created by hut-dwellers thousands of years ago in order to gain power over their fellow human beings. New religions continue to crop up constantly in much the same way Christianity originally did- look at the Mormons, Scientologists and other less-successful religions. Christianity actually is like many religions, resurrection, virgin birth, god lives in heaven, etc….
The basis of religion and believing in Jesus is fear…. fear of going to hell (another man made myth–hell)
fear of what happens to us when we die. fear of God punishing us… (many examples especially in the old testament)
all of the stories, myths, fairytales about Jesus, including Jesus is God, were written hundreds of years after his death by primitive hut dwellers….
look at the big picture, Jesus is just another God in a long line of man-made Gods… during Jesus time, mankind was moving from polytheism to monotheism…. there were many “messiahs” ( 7 or 8 major ones) during Jesus life… Constantine helped Christianity become the big religion by making it the official religion of Rome.
Again, think about how ridiculous and unbelievable all of the other gods and religions are to you, and you will see why the Jesus myth is just another imaginary… (another word for faith) belief system.

Two things are needed to become a religious person….
1) exposure to religion… you are a Christian because you are surrounded by it, if you lived in a Hindu community you would gravitate toward.. I think you get my drift
2) a personal need and weakness…. religious people are less responsible for their actions and consequences, they lean on religion to help them deal with life, and use it as an excuse for their actions (religion is imaginary, a delusion, therefore actually a type of psychosis)

The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud

i agree !!
we are definitely in the bible belt in Houston..
I live in North-east Houston..
any ideas where free thinking Houstonians meet ???

Religion should be classified as a Psychosis....
an entire imaginary, delusional belief system
We can call it Religious Belief Syndrome… an acronym could be… Religious B S 

Faith by definition is a complete trust or reliance in something we know isn't true (can't prove)

Interesting what we grasp onto....
God tells man not to eat an apple, but a talking snake tells men to eat it, so.. man listens to the talking snake.... God is upset, so he immaculately rapes a woman and she gives birth to him/his son so he can suffer and die for us because we sinned when we listened to the talking snake and ate an apple..
what a strange story...

a retired Episcopalian Bishop said it well "religion is about comfort and not about the truth"

"Man is the only animal that has the true religion--several if them" Mark Twain

"The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason" Benjamin Franklin

"It is said that men may not be the dreams of the Gods, but rather that the Gods are the dreams of men" Carl Sagen

"It may be that our role on this planet is not to worship God, but to create him" Arthur C. Clarke

this is a very good link ... :)
http://godisimaginary.com/index.htm


Mankind would be so much better off if we would take responsibility for our own actions and
not use religion as a crutch for our weaknesses and shortcomings......
just take responsibility for yourself and your actions :)

Hi :)
A friend sent me this and it is a well written list of 50 reasons why god is imaginary.

http://godisimaginary.com/index.htm

I love this quote from a retired Episcopalian bishop "religion is about comfort, not about the truth"

we could go on and on...
god told man not to eat an apple, then a talking snake told him to, so he did, then god immaculately raped a woman so he could be born here and suffer and die for us because we ate the apple ????? not even a good story.

on a good note, I read an AOL poll last night, and it asked "do you believe in god", several years age 10% said no, yesterday 20% said no.

I really think most Americans are non-believers, they just don't speak up... "spiritual but not religious" sounds like an atheist who is shy about admitting so :)

"all religious believers are atheists except for the current religion they believe in today"

have a fun day, ed in Houston (actually Crosby texas) :)