Reopen Threads: Is It Possible?

[Lisa!]

Is it possible to reopen some of the close threads by editting the original post or deleting the irrelevant replies?
I noticed that some of threads in philosophy forum were closed just because in one of the replies, someone's said something about religion.

 

[Bladibla]

Talks about specific religion are not welcome on this forum.

 

[Daminc]

Which is weird because religion & philosophy are part of each other.

 

[arildno]

Which is weird because religion & philosophy are part of each other.

Not really...

 

[Bladibla]

Which is weird because religion & philosophy are part of each other.

No, I'm afraid not.

 

[Daminc]

Ok. Personally I think my statement to be true. The fact that you disagree is ok. Do you guys have religious beliefs?

I don't. I like to try and keep an open mind so I read and discuss a variety of religions which is why I see similarities between religion and philosophy:

Definitions of philosophy on the Web:

1) doctrine: a belief (or system of beliefs) accepted as authoritative by some group or school
2) the rational investigation of questions about existence and knowledge and ethics
3) any personal belief about how to live or how to deal with a situation
4) Philosophy (a combination of the Greek words philos and sophia) is understood in different ways historically and by different philosophers. It, therefore, requires a meta-philosophy to adjudicate. Although it can be conceded that philosophy aims at some kind of understanding, knowledge or wisdom about fundamental matters such as reality, knowledge, meaning, value, being and truth, it is not clear whether these pursuits require a dialectical, i.e., dialogical, approach.

I would say there are a number of similaries. I would be interested to understand why you don't think so (I'm not baiting. I really am curious).

 

[Lisa!]

Talks about specific religion are not welcome on this forum.

I thought the same, but I didn't talk about any specific religion and it's closed now.

 

[Math Is Hard]

I would say there are a number of similaries. I would be interested to understand why you don't think so (I'm not baiting. I really am curious).

Philosophy is based on logic. Religion is based on faith. I see that as the main difference. As a similiarity, both try to explain things that are unobservable or unknowable.

There are courses in philosophy of religion, but these usually explore classical arguments for or against a creator (cosmological argument, design argument, the problem of evil, etc) and not the doctrines/mythology of specific religions. Anything more specific, I think, would be getting into the realm of theology, but I have only taken courses at the undergrad level.

 

[Bladibla]

'doctrine: a belief (or system of beliefs) accepted as authoritative by some group or school'

That is true for religion, but not for philosophy.

'the rational investigation of questions about existence and knowledge and ethics '

'intelligent design' often cited by dogmatic religious people is not rational at all, considering the amount of evidence against it.

'any personal belief about how to live or how to deal with a situation'

Oh, i thought it was authorative by some school or group? Don't be ambiguous in your own post.

 

[Kerrie]

Sorry, the thread will remain closed. We have had too many issues with the Relgious debate, plus we maintain respect for all members here who have their own faiths. Lisa, please read the sticky "Before you post that religious topic". We can discuss "god" philosophically without getting into denominations or sects of religions. If you are not okay with that, pm me, and I can suggest other forums for you to carry on discussions of it specifically.

 

[Lisa!]

Sorry, the thread will remain closed. We have had too many issues with the Relgious debate, plus we maintain respect for all members here who have their own faiths. Lisa, please read the sticky "Before you post that religious topic". We can discuss "god" philosophically without getting into denominations or sects of religions. If you are not okay with that, pm me, and I can suggest other forums for you to carry on discussions of it specifically.

Thanks Kerrie. Actually I support your policy and I had read the sticky before posting. I thought we were allowed to discuss religion in general, and of course my question wasn't that at all. I just wanted to know if there was anything else wrong with my thread except asking what atheist think of God and religion. And well I ask this question for other forums too like GD.

Regards

 

[honestrosewater]

Lisa!,
If you want to ask a question but aren't sure how to keep it within the rules, you can PM me anytime, and I'll be glad to offer suggestions.

 

[JamesU]

yeah, me too. :uhh:

 

[honestrosewater]

yeah, me too. :uhh:

Yeah, I know when I want suggestions about rules, I turn first to the buttface guy. :tongue2:

 

[Lisa!]

Lisa!,
If you want to ask a question but aren't sure how to keep it within the rules, you can PM me anytime, and I'll be glad to offer suggestions.

Thank you. You know I almost knew my question would end up with closing the thread, but that was too tempting to avoid asking!

yeah, me too. :uhh:

You want I would be banned like you?

 

[Daminc]

'doctrine: a belief (or system of beliefs) accepted as authoritative by some group or school'

That is true for religion, but not for philosophy.

'the rational investigation of questions about existence and knowledge and ethics '

'intelligent design' often cited by dogmatic religious people is not rational at all, considering the amount of evidence against it.

'any personal belief about how to live or how to deal with a situation'

Oh, i thought it was authorative by some school or group? Don't be ambiguous in your own post.

I posted several definitions of Philosophy from the web to illustrate a point.
I class myself as agnostic and so I probably see a lot more similarities between philosophy and religion than a person who is a devout believer, for example.

Oh, i thought it was authorative by some school or group? Don't be ambiguous in your own post.[/

I'm not sure what you mean by this?

 

[loseyourname]

Philosophy is based on logic. Religion is based on faith. I see that as the main difference. As a similiarity, both try to explain things that are unobservable or unknowable.

This should probably be qualified. Although western philosophy (Aristotle through the modernists to today's continental and analytic traditions) is founded upon principles of rational argumentation that require formalized systems of logic, many other world philosophies are not. These are simply based on mysticism or even epiphany/revelation, which isn't so different from the religious methodology.

If you guys want to get really technical with word roots, the Greek philo-sophia just means 'friend/lover of knowledge/wisdom.' That is very broadly encompassing. As originally conceived by Aristotle, philosophy encompassed all enquiry into the nature of things, with subjects as diverse as physics, politics, and asthetics. Modern academic philosophy, as taught in western universities, is the true topic of the forums here. This (narrowly speaking) includes the study of metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and asthetics. It uses a form of enquiry based upon logical argumentation and indeed includes the study of logic itself. Rational theology is included, but revealed theology is not (i.e. specific religious doctrines as laid out in scriptures). More broadly interpreted, academic philosophy includes any rational enquiry whatsoever. It can have as its subject anything that any science can investigate (although philosophy generally restricts itself to the domains of the social sciences: politics, linguistics, etc.), with the distinction being that science investigates these topics empirically, through experimentation, whereas philosophy is pure theorizing, informed, of course, by the experimentation and data-collecting of the sciences.