I want YOU!

We discussed in class what it means to be patriotic. The issue of what it means to "support our troops" came up during this discussion. Is there a certain extend to which we should show support? Throwing around the phrase "support the troops" can mean different things. Do you slap on a bumper sticker and call it a day or do you participate in programs that send food and other materials overseas? Which one of these is more patriotic? Can you even put that judgement on either? A person has their own reasons for how much "support" they show. I don't think you can label someone as unpatriotic just because they don't go over and beyond for out soldiers.


The class also discussed one of the "criteria" for being patriotic as seen by some. This is the willingness to sacrifice for ones country.  By sacrifice, this mean the ultimate sacrifice of giving your life or smaller scale things like your tax dollars to fund wars. I feel that sacrificing your life is something not everyone can fathom. Some soldiers know that it might come to that and they can accept it. They are willing to die for their country. This takes a special and incredibly strong person. Not everyone is cut out for this kind of life. There is nothing wrong with that, some people are born to be soldiers because they want it and know they can do it. Others are not, they can still show support and still be a patriot. I think of the draft and I can not imagine what it was like to be that young being forced to go to war, ready or not. Throughout history there was so much propaganda to fight for your country. This makes everyone feel like they should fight, when in reality not every person can mentally and or physically handle that sort of lifestyle. Today joining the armed forces is voluntary, so we can assume our soldiers today know they are where they should be and want to be there.


(My question is in italics in the first paragraph)


Check out these pieces of military propaganda from US history, they are something..

             "If you fight women will want you"

Peer pressure, basically.

              "We are fighting gorillas?"

In response to Julia's question about changing beliefs

Do you think it is possible for people to change their views about religion completely, or do they always still slightly hold onto the ideas that they were raised with, even if such a thing seems unconscious?


I love that Julia shared her personal experience. It really illustrated what we talked about in class regarding what it takes for a person to alter their beliefs. The reason is different for each individual. To explain where I am coming from when responding to her question, I will share some personal experiences too. I have also grown up in a close church community and I have come to form close bonds with these people, many of which were at my baptism. I have grown up in my church and have gone through many forms of experiences. I come from a family, as I believe I have mentioned before on my blog, where my father is not religious and my mother is. I grew up going to church with my mother and gradually formed my own path, even though I am still working on that one. I always struggled with accepting everything I heard from the services as well as my mother. I have always believed in God and when it comes down to it, I always will. This is where Julia's question hit me. I thought about myself personally. I know I will always believe in God because I have grown in to a person who came from a religious background and who now is comfortable with their faith. This too is a personal decision, that will vary from person to person. I have had times in the past where I felt that going to church was just an act that I had to put on. When I was younger I could not wait for it to be over and I often would skip out on Sunday school accompanied by my best friend and partner in crime. I had a much better time playing Xena Warrior Princess in the church costume closet in the basement, while my mother (unaware that I was not in the classroom) sat in the choir loft. Since then I have grown a lot as a person, especially regarding my religious views. I have met people who have changed how I look at my faith. I am figuring out who I am and what I believe. I still struggle at times and I still have questions that I want answered or at least want to understand better. These thoughts bring me to the question I will raise.


Question: Do you think kids should be "forced" to attend church? What age do you think a person can truly begin to understand religion and develop their own thoughts about what they want to believe? 

Waiting for a sign

   People who find religion do so at various points in their life. Some are raised following a certain sect and they remain that way for their entire life. Others come to incorporate religion in their lives in their teens, young adulthood, or adult life. This is how I see agnosticism, people who consider themselves as such are waiting to choose their religious path. They feel they need more evidence than way they have to fully commit. Evidence does not have to be in the form of solid proof, if could be through something such as witnessing a miracle or a life changing experience. Many people turn to religion after they experience a traumatic event because they find comfort in knowing that a higher power can help them confront and get through their pain. Humans are skeptical and curious creatures so it makes sense that a large amount of us can not dedicate ourselves to religion without having proof, in what ever form it may come in. There are also people who go through smaller experiences that can grow their faith. This could be through meeting a person who shows you a glimpse into how they live their life religiously and then you feel moved to do the same. People can have this effect on others, there are so many things that can affect a persons faith and beliefs throughout their life. I wonder how many people who at one time considered them self to be agnostic now have found a religion that they have come to follow. 

Question: Have you, or someone you know gone through an experience that has changed their religious views? This can be that they found religion or strayed away from it. Why do you think they decided to that?

Views of Atheism

                                    
                                   Which one of these people might be an atheist?

   Who did your mind pick at the very first glance? Why? A negative stereotype is placed on atheism by many people. I have often heard people think if you do not believe in a god then you are evil and some kind of black wearing devil worshiper. This of course is ridiculous, but so many people jump to that conclusion. It is often seen as negative term, especially to people who consider religion a large part of their life. Personal appearances have nothing to do with what ones religious background is. Even just the word agnostic sounds "better." People do not take it nearly as negatively as atheism. I have not heard any stereotypes put onto agnostic people. They believe in some sort of higher power, is that seen as good enough? At least they believe in something right? Is this the right way to think? If agnostics do not believe in any specific god they are not so different from atheists. This problem is based on stereotypes just like many other issues in todays society. 


Question: Do you think only people who are religious and believe in a god tend to put this negative stereotype on atheists or is it anyone including? 

In response to Julia’s question about the truth behind Biblical stories

Many would argue that this "game of telephone" with regards to religious experiences incredibly unreliable...but is it? 

I have questioned the stories I heard during Sunday school and while at church all my life. I do believe that there is truth behind them, but not word for word. Think of all the hands that wrote the Bible and how many people have changed and shaped it since those stories were originally written. There are many Christians that take the Bible literally and live by what it says, this seems irrational because those words are so old, and they can be filled with wisdom but many are outdated and should not apply to today’s modern society. What I take to heart are the messages the stories are trying to get across, this is what we should take away. Those stories of whatever Religion you follow teach you how to life your life while keeping faith in it. They should not be taken literally in my opinion. As time moves forward, people change and our way of life does as well. We need to understand those changes to fit them into our own lives. This does not mean our beliefs have to change; we just have to be able to understand what is relevant and what is not.

Question: Do you agree with my idea that people should not take religious stories word for word?

Truth is: there used to be no truth.

What is truth? Today in class we defined it as only existing through sentences. Professor Johnson stated that, “it is a property of a sentence, not the world.” We discussed if we though truth could exist before language. According to our definition, no it cannot. How could there be truth before people could say it was so and write it was so? How we can make truth before this time is to refer back. We can now say that the Grand Canyon was formed by a river or dinosaur once lived on the earth. We now can place truths into the past before there were people.  Truth is something created by humans, it is a concept that only the human brain can comprehend because of our use of language.

Question: Is there another way of defining truth where language does not have to be implemented? 

“Religion is wack”

  Since coming to college I have encountered many people who stand by lots of different beliefs. I saw this in high school obviously too, but I have noticed that in college people start to become more set in their beliefs. What I have noticed that is what surprises me the most is the majority of people I have met seem to not be religious at all. At least this is how they carry themselves. I know there are “holiday Christians” as I have heard people referred to as calls them, these are people who decide that showing up at church on Christmas and Easter are enough to consider themselves a practicing Christian. Many people are this way, including many of my close friends. There is nothing wrong with this, as long as you understand who you are. Some people do not like attending church on a regular basis and in turn do not tend to live their lives with a strong attention to religion. This could be what I am seeing with many people I have met since coming to college. Maybe other people my age do not choose to express their spirituality because they feel they do not have to. Maybe they were brought up in a household that forced them to go to church or maybe not. Whatever the reason, it seems that now a day’s young adults live their lives with no spiritual guidance at all. I wonder why this is, is it more than just a result of a “church-forced” childhood? Are we a generation of people who do not see religion as an important part of a person’s life? There are many ways to have faith and people express that faith in various ways and to different degrees, but I have noticed that there is a large number of young adults who take no part of religion at all, they say they do not believe in any kind of God. Our parent’s generation was not brought up like this. This leads me to my question…

 Is it just a generational occurrence that a large amount of today’s young adults tend to not follow any spiritual path? 

"But I don't wanna!"

I work at a summer camp for young children. I have heard it all when it comes to one of my little four year olds not wanting to do something, "I don't wanna!" "no, I hate it outside!" "I don't like crafts!" "It's too hot outside!" "It's cold out!" The funny part is I usually can persuade them to reconsider, at that age if their whole environment is not fun and exciting constantly they get bored and want to move onto something else (once they are "ready" of course, which can cause problems to rise). Then if you have a child who has obviously been spoiled excessively it gets even worse. Usually the excuses are not said because they genuinely do not want to do something, they just don't know if they will like it or they are bored at the moment and have another idea in mind of what they know will be fun for them or they are happy enough with what they are doing at the time. So in this case "want" means something else. They do not "not want" to go play outside, they just do not want to give in after they have decided to do something else. This is what I have observed at least. I have seen children cry and scream because they do not want to stop what ever game we are playing or craft we are making, then once we actually move onto something else they are fine. So is this a matter of what they truly want or not want to do? Or are they just trying to mess with me and see how far they can push my buttons. I think that deep down they do have a curiosity and a want to try new activities with the hopes that it will be exciting and fun, even if they don't want to admit it.


Question: Do children as well as adults apply to the statement, "you want to do everything you do?" Do you think a child's actions are more linked to "want" than an adults?

In response to Samantha's question about music and emotion

 Q: Why does music generate or invoke certain emotions in the listener?

Music is one of the most important aspects of my life. I come from a musical family and I have been singing for most of my life. I find music to move me in many different ways. The degree of emotion a person feels from listening to a piece of music depends on how important they view it in their life. Personally what makes me react to a song with lyrics is the story it tells, I connect to what the artist is saying through their music and I try and feel what they experienced that made them write down the song. Instrumental pieces move me simply by the mood of the music and how it is arranged. Even if there are no words, your mind paints a picture in your head of what you see in the music. Not everyone can do this, or I should say not everyone feels like they have to do this which is fine. Not all people take music as seriously as I do, and there is nothing wrong with that. Music moves people in many different ways. Samantha said how Hallelujah, a song originally done by Leonard Cohen, is an emotional song for her and I agree completely. That is my favorite song, to sing as well as listen too. I love how much power is in the song, every line pulls you deeper and deeper into the music. I often get emotional while singing it because it is a song that I have connected to much with. Music is a wonderful part of the world, people listen to it for various reasons and get different things out of it, it will always move you in some way. 

Listen to Hallelujah if you have not heard it, this is Jeff Buckley's version which I like best!


Here is the link Hallelujah performed by Jeff Buckley

                                                                                                                         

Question: Are there certain pieces of music that can make you happier?

                

Why do we donate?

     Someone brought up the situation in class today where you are asked to donate to a charity at the checkout of a store. I have had many of these experiences, as I am sure every one else has as well. I hate these moments, they are in a rushed setting because there is usually a line behind you and half of the time you do not even know what the charity represents. You just want your purchased items bagged and to leave. I always say no, because I feel like if I do donate it was for the wrong reason or I just want to get out of there. Should me being unaware of the motive behind the organization really matter though? I would still be giving to a good cause, even if I have no idea what it is. I still feel bad saying "no." That's the worst part, I leave thinking "should I have given at least a dollar?" This is not what charity should be about, you should be able to think about how much you can and are willing to give and why you are doing it.
     I try to give to the salvation army people with the bell because, well I feel bad for them and they usually smile when you donate and that makes me, and them, feel better. It's also easy because I usually have change I don't need. See what the problem is though? I just said I donated just because I "wanted to get rid of my change." That should not be my motive. The Salvation Army situation is a difficult one, but again why does it matter what the reason is behind throwing change into the pot, at least it goes to them. This is such a difficult topic to deal with, what do we side with and does it really matter in the end?




Question: Should we only donate if we mean it and know where the money is going? Or does the motive not matter?

We always get something our of helping others, and that's alright

       There are many motives behind why people help others. They could be to make ourself feel better or to simply not think about ourself for once and put our energy towards another. I feel like it is usually a combination of both. I put myself in this situation and thought, why do I donate to charities or pick up something that I see someone has dropped and give it back to them? Yes I feel better about myself for doing it, but maybe that is alright. I still wanted to help them out, why does it matter if I get something back in return? I feel that we would never do these types of things if we got nothing in return, not even a good feeling for doing the right thing. What would be our motivation? We are self-centered beings, but I do not see that as a bad quality all of the time.
         I am involved closely with an organization that works with victims of human trafficking and sex slavery in India. The organization is called The Emancipation Network. I got involved because I have met the founder and I know many people who have traveled to Calcutta to the shelters run by TEN to work with the young girls and women who are starting a new life after being free of living in that horrible forced lifestyle. This is why I am so heavily involved, I have personal connections. Yes, I feel like I am becoming a better person by donating and holding events to raise money for this cause, but that is not a bad thing. Don't we all want to be people who make a positive difference in the world? I feel like I can help to do that by working with TEN. I donate my time and money because I want to help the survivors have a better life. It makes me feel good to do so as well and I see nothing wrong with that. I believe I would not be as happy with my life as I am if I did not care about any organizations that help others and if I never participated in some action that was to benefit another person.


Here is the link to Made by Survivors,which is a project where the girls make wonderful products that they sell to make money after being rescued. I have bought many items and they are all wonderful. Check it out!!
www.madebysurvivors.com


On that site you can also learn more about The Emancipation Network in general. 






Question: Who is more inclined to donate money, people who have a lot of it or people who have just enough to get by?

Response to Julia's question regarding God and ghosts

Are people who believe in a god more inclined to believe in entities like ghosts?


This is an intriguing question, it makes sense to say this would be true because God as well as ghosts is a supernatural concept. Although there is a difference. Ghosts are seen in varying ways, some view it as energy left behind when someone dies and others see the idea of people remaining on Earth after they have died something evil. The idea of ghosts and spirits has been around as long as religion but where religion is seen as something that is good and right in the world, spirits are seen as mysterious and dangerous. There are certain religions that believe strongly in spirits existing and some that do not. So in some cases people who believe in a god do also believe in ghosts. Voodooism is one such religion that strongly believes in that sort of thing, it is built into their religious practices. Christianity on the other hand not does support the idea of ghosts existing. The people of that religion are more inclined not to support the idea that those sort of supernatural beings exist. So it really depends on what religion a person follows regarding their belief in ghosts.


Question: Is ghosts were proven to exist would that be a step towards proving that gods exists?

Should the theory evolution be taught in school?

  I have experienced a lot relating to this question in my own life. In high school I remember my science teacher saying that we would not have a lesson on evolution but it would be brought up at various points. She made a whole speech about how she was not trying to push her beliefs on anyone and that she was not saying that evolution was right or wrong. I remember thinking that it was not necessary to say all that, would people really be offended is we talked about evolution in a science class? It is a scientific theory and there should be no problem with discussing it in an academic setting. I have heard that the majority of schools no not touch upon the subject at all, or just very little. I feel like children should be exposed to all the theory's that are present about how our world and ourselves as humans began. Then they are free to make their own decisions. What their family believes is going to have a larger impact on them in the end anyway.

   I know someone who went to a Christian middle school and they did not even teach science at all. That's right, nothing. I see that as ridiculous. How can a human being become a knowledgeable and functioning member of society without learning anything in the sciences? I can understand why they do not implement this into their school system, but I am a Christian and I would not be OK with my child getting that kind of sheltered and suppressed education. A school setting is somewhere where religion should be put aside and the knowledge and understanding of the world for a child should be the only focus. 

Question: Are there subjects that you feel should be discussed in schools that are not because of fear of offending people?

"It's like I have ESPN or something.."

People spend their hard earned money to see psychics and in return feel that what they have learned is a glimpse into their own future. Do these people really looked into people minds? I have never visited one of these people before, but I am quite curious about the experience. If it were not so expensive to have a person drenched in scarves and incense tell you your future, I might try it out just to see what they say. There are many people in the world who claim to have extrasensory perception or "ESP." They say that they are able to read further into people than most other humans. They can see into their mind and read their thoughts or futures. Is this supernatural? There have been tests that have indicated that some people are much more attune to reading peoples expressions and body language and this has resulted in these people seeming to be able to read minds. So if this has been proven to occur in people, how can it be unnatural? If humans are capable of it, it can not be the result of a supernatural force. I suppose someone could argue that they are receiving their information from a "higher power" but that is a different story. The studies show that human beings can read further into other people, so a form of ESP is proven to be possible without any kind of supernatural assistance. 


Question: How do you think psychics work?