Are false religions and conspiracy theories inherently hazardous?

cloudyday2

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Are false religions and conspiracy theories inherently hazardous?

Of course there are many thoughts on the meaning of "truth", but here is one from Wikipedia attributed to William James:
William James's version of pragmatic theory, while complex, is often summarized by his statement that "the 'true' is only the expedient in our way of thinking, just as the 'right' is only the expedient in our way of behaving."[32] By this, James meant that truth is a quality, the value of which is confirmed by its effectiveness when applying concepts to practice (thus, "pragmatic").
Truth - Wikipedia

Do you agree that false religions and false conspiracy theories are inherently hazardous? Maybe these false beliefs will not always lead to negative results, but as a rule-of-thumb they increase that probability?

Then we might ask if society should try to discourage these false beliefs and by what means.
 
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yeshuaslavejeff

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Are false religions and conspiracy theories inherently hazardous?

Of course there are many thoughts on the meaning of "truth", but here is one from Wikipedia attributed to William James:

Truth - Wikipedia

Do you agree that false religions and false conspiracy theories are inherently hazardous? Maybe these false beliefs will not always lead to negative results, but as a rule-of-thumb they increase that probability?

Then we might ask if society should try to discourage these false beliefs and by what means.
False beliefs are an indicator that someone has not learned the truth about something yet.
False religions , false gospels, false ideas, are not from the Father in heaven,
and are the common ground of mankind - mankind is false, doomed, on the road to destruction as written.

When anything is brought out into the LIGHT, it is seen for what it is. The Heavenly Father reveals everything in the LIGHT (in JESUS).
 
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cloudyday2

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False beliefs are an indicator that someone has not learned the truth about something yet.
False religions , false gospels, false ideas, are not from the Father in heaven,
and are the common ground of mankind - mankind is false, doomed, on the road to destruction as written.

When anything is brought out into the LIGHT, it is seen for what it is. The Heavenly Father reveals everything in the LIGHT (in JESUS).
So do you think Christians should passively ignore and tolerate non-Christian ignorance of the Christian truth?
 
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Of the Kingdom

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So do you think Christians should passively ignore and tolerate non-Christian ignorance of the Christian truth?

We should not ignore the fact that others are in error, and certainly not passively. But it is important that we respect the free will of others. We have seen what happens when falsehood is dealt with by persecution and execution, and we certainly do not want to go there.

We should pray, and seek opportunities to explain the truth. In general I think we should encourage morality within society, but not by coercive means except as necessary for protection against criminal acts. We need to always be kind to people, even in cases where we warn them that their behavior is unacceptable.

We should always have a high degree of tolerance for people, but in some cases we must let them know that their actions are intolerable.
 
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ananda

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Are false religions and conspiracy theories inherently hazardous?

Of course there are many thoughts on the meaning of "truth", but here is one from Wikipedia attributed to William James:

Truth - Wikipedia

Do you agree that false religions and false conspiracy theories are inherently hazardous? Maybe these false beliefs will not always lead to negative results, but as a rule-of-thumb they increase that probability?

Then we might ask if society should try to discourage these false beliefs and by what means.
Wrong views leads to wrong intentions, then wrong actions, then wrong efforts, then wrong knowledge & thus, more ignorance (views).
 
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yeshuaslavejeff

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So do you think Christians should passively ignore and tolerate non-Christian ignorance of the Christian truth?
If you yourself saw someone drowning and chose to "passibely ignore" them when a life preserver was in sight, would that be okay ?
 
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cloudyday2

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If you yourself saw someone drowning and chose to "passibely ignore" them when a life preserver was in sight, would that be okay ?
No, that wouldn't be o.k., but the topic of this thread is whether believing in false religions and false conspiracy theories IS hazardous (like "drowning" in your analogy above). The standard view is that we should live and let live. If your coworker believes that aliens live inside the core of the Earth or that Noah built an ark to survive a global flood or whatever then you are supposed to politely nod your head. That is the standard view. It isn't polite to challenge another person's religious beliefs according to this view. ... On the other hand, if those religious beliefs are hazardous (like "drowning") then maybe it is our duty to challenge them.

One of the reasons for the militancy of the "new atheists" was a feeling that religions are hazardous after seeing what happened on 9/11. That isn't exactly what I am suggesting. I am suggesting that "true" and "false" are inherently beneficial and hazardous respectively. So any "false" belief is at least somewhat harmful. The question is whether false religious beliefs and conspiracy theories are potentially dangerous enough to deserve some correction.
 
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yeshuaslavejeff

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The standard view is that we should live and let live.
This is not God's view, in Scripture, nor His People's view, in Faith in Jesus.

He never indicates nor says that view, does He ? (except for instance, we don't go try to help 10,000 homeless people in L.A. if we do not have HIS TELLING US TO, but rather we do as HE SAYS - obeying the Father in heaven, and not our own feelings or emotions NOR man's ways as a rule to live by)
It isn't polite to challenge another person's religious beliefs according to this view. ... On the other hand, if those religious beliefs are hazardous (like "drowning") then maybe it is our duty to challenge them.
Jesus and the disciples, and the Ekklesia in the Old Testament, were anything but polite!

The view as if to be polite/ nice in all circumstances is wrong, sinful, and directly against God's Plan.
Open rebuke is necessary, and is more important than hidden ("quiet") love or acceptance.
Remember being quiet may (and does) lead to people remaining on the way to death/ destruction/ on the wide road.
"WE" may be the only one with a "life preserver" possibility for someone, IF we tell them what GOD SAYS TO US (in HIS WORD AND SPIRIT) TO TELL THEM.
 
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cloudyday2

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This is not God's view, in Scripture, nor His People's view, in Faith in Jesus.

He never indicates nor says that view, does He ? (except for instance, we don't go try to help 10,000 homeless people in L.A. if we do not have HIS TELLING US TO, but rather we do as HE SAYS - obeying the Father in heaven, and not our own feelings or emotions NOR man's ways as a rule to live by)

Jesus and the disciples, and the Ekklesia in the Old Testament, were anything but polite!

The view as if to be polite/ nice in all circumstances is wrong, sinful, and directly against God's Plan.
Open rebuke is necessary, and is more important than hidden ("quiet") love or acceptance.
Remember being quiet may (and does) lead to people remaining on the way to death/ destruction/ on the wide road.
"WE" may be the only one with a "life preserver" possibility for someone, IF we tell them what GOD SAYS TO US (in HIS WORD AND SPIRIT) TO TELL THEM.
One attitude I have heard from Christians is that rebuking and preaching is less persuasive than living as a Christian and letting your light shine to the world. Of course that might be an excuse for being polite and letting others drown.
 
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yeshuaslavejeff

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One attitude I have heard from Christians is that rebuking and preaching is less persuasive than living as a Christian and letting your light shine to the world. Of course that might be an excuse for being polite and letting others drown.

Perhaps you are referring to what others identified as "cheap grace", or some such, in the false gospel category ?
 
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cloudyday2

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Perhaps you are referring to what others identified as "cheap grace", or some such, in the false gospel category ?
The concept is probably that a Christian should gradually become an image of Christ. So a Christian who strives for this sanctification or theosis begins to draw people to Christ through righteous behavior rather than through words.
 
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yeshuaslavejeff

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The concept is probably that a Christian should gradually become an image of Christ. So a Christian who strives for this sanctification or theosis begins to draw people to Christ through righteous behavior rather than through words.
No.
 
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ananda

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The concept is probably that a Christian should gradually become an image of Christ. So a Christian who strives for this sanctification or theosis begins to draw people to Christ through righteous behavior rather than through words.
This is essentially the perspective of early Buddhism - just substitute "Buddha" for "Christ".
 
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yeshuaslavejeff

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It remains a false religion.
When a baby is born, as soon as it is born, it looks exactly human ... it does not wait and gradually look human. (not the best analogy , but it will do for now) ...
If anyone follows, let alone starts to look like any false god, that is not a good thing at all ! ! !
 
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