2011/8/21 Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:

----- Original Message -----
INTERESTING CONVERSATION

An Atheist Professor of Philosophy was speaking to his Class on the Problem Science has
with GOD, the ALMIGHTY. He asked one of his New Students to stand and . . .

Professor : You Believe in GOD ?
Student : Absolutely, sir.
Professor : Is GOD Good ?
Student : Sure.
Professor : Is GOD ALL - POWERFUL ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : My Brother died of Cancer even though he Prayed to GOD to Heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But GOD didn't. How is this GOD good then? Hmm?

(Student was silent )

Professor : You can't answer, can you ? Let's start again, Young Fella. Is GOD Good?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Is Satan good ?
Student : No.
Professor : Where does Satan come from ?
Student : From . . . GOD . . .
Professor : That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this World?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Evil is everywhere, isn't it ? And GOD did make everything. Correct?
Student : Yes.
Professor : So who created evil ?

(Student did not answer)

Professor : Is there Sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the World, don't they?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So, who Created them ?

(Student had no answer)

Professor : Science says you have 5 Senses you use to Identify and Observe the World around you. Tell me, son . . . Have you ever Seen GOD?
Student : No, sir.
Professor : Tell us if you have ever Heard your GOD?
Student : No , sir.
Professor : Have you ever Felt your GOD, Tasted your GOD, Smelt your GOD? Have you ever had any Sensory Perception of GOD for that matter?
Student : No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.
Professor : Yet you still Believe in HIM?
Student : Yes.
Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?
Student : Nothing. I only have my Faith.
Professor : Yes, Faith. And that is the Problem Science has.

Student : Professor, is there such a thing as Heat?
Professor : Yes.
Student : And is there such a thing as Cold?
Professor : Yes.
Student : No, sir. There isn't.

(The Lecture Theatre became very quiet with this turn of events )

Student : Sir, you can have Lots of Heat, even More Heat, Superheat, Mega Heat, White Heat, a Little Heat or No Heat.
But we don't have anything called Cold. We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is No Heat, but we can't go any further after that.

There is no such thing as Cold. Cold is only a Word we use to describe the Absence of Heat. We cannot Measure Cold.
Heat is Energy. Cold is Not the Opposite of Heat, sir, just the Absence of it.

(There was Pin-Drop Silence in the Lecture Theatre )

Student : What about Darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as Darkness?
Professor : Yes. What is Night if there isn't Darkness?
Student : You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the Absence of Something. You can have Low Light, Normal Light, Bright Light, Flashing Light . . .

But if you have No Light constantly, you have nothing and its called Darkness, isn't it? In reality, Darkness isn't. If it is, where you would be able to make Darkness Darker, wouldn't you?
Professor : So what is the point you are making, Young Man ?
Student : Sir, my point is your Philosophical Premise is flawed.
Professor : Flawed ? Can you explain how?
Student : Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality.
You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a Good GOD and a Bad GOD. You are viewing the Concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure.

Sir, Science can't even explain a Thought. It uses Electricity and Magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one.

To view Death as the Opposite of Life is to be ignorant of the fact that Death cannot exist as a Substantive Thing.
Death is Not the Opposite of Life: just the Absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your Students that they evolved from a Monkey?
Professor : If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes, of course, I do.
Student : Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir?

(The Professor shook his head with a Smile, beginning to realize where the Argument was going )

Student : Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and Cannot even prove that this Process is an
On-Going Endeavor. Are you not teaching your Opinion, sir?

Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher?

(The Class was in Uproar )

Student : Is there anyone in the Class who has ever seen the Professor's Brain?

(The Class broke out into Laughter )

Student : Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's Brain, Felt it, touched or Smelt it? . . .

No one appears to have done so. So, according to the Established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that You have No Brain, sir.

With all due respect, sir, how do we then Trust your Lectures, sir?

(The Room was Silent. The Professor stared at the Student, his face unfathomable)

Professor : I guess you'll have to take them on Faith, son.
Student : That is it sir . . . Exactly ! The Link between Man & GOD is FAITH. That is all that Keeps Things Alive and Moving.

NB:

I believe you have enjoyed the Conversation . . . and if so .. .
You'll probably want your Friends / Colleagues to enjoy the same . . . won't you?
Forward them to Increase their Knowledge . . . or FAITH.

That student was Albert Einstein




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On Sun, Aug 21, 2011 at 4:07 PM, Dave R wrote:

The thing is, of course, that Science does not operate from faith, nor does it accept faith as a valid argument in support of a proposed theory or solution. On the flip side, Faith does not require science.

I continue to be mystified by this ridiculous desire to reconcile the two. It is unnecessary, and utterly contrary to the root concept of each.

(and btw, there is no such thing as a satan - and Einstein would have known this :).
---D.




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On Sun, Aug 21, 2011 at 6:21 PM, Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:

Personally, I consider lots of the Bible happenings and personalities symbolically, standing for ideas rather than actual facts and realities...so Faith, I guess, takes over, in my case...May be Einstein, while still a Student in this story, had similar thoughts!

I know, you are probably more on the side of a Scientist...

No matter where you stand, I love you anyway and always! You are quite an original thinker!
As for me, I have to borrow other thinker's ideas and then work through them, I hate to confess...(not very original).

MOM
(Hugs!)




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On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 11:48 AM, Dave R wrote:

I see the bible also as symbolic, whose intent is to help us learn how to live as good human beings.

And still I don't see this as something where I have to be on 'one side' or 'the other' of Science .vs. Faith. Of course, I can see conflict between the two should they be brought into comparison with each other. But that would be like comparing a Buick to Psychiatry - how much sense does that make, they're totally different things.

As for me in such an invalid comparison, Science takes over - but that is only because by making the comparison, qualities of Science are being attributed to Faith. And Faith can't win that contest (because it's not supposed to). - Science certainly isn't going to take on attributes of Faith.

The two coexist easily (for me at least). As long as Faith-cosmology is accepted as intended to be symbolic, as you say, and we hold a sufficiently abstract conception of what God is, there is no conflict :).

And if I remember correctly, Einstein was a rather spiritual man - even late in his life.
He apparently found that these two un-comparable concepts can coexist. :)
Love you!
---Dave.




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On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 12:29 PM, Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:

Well said!

LOL, MOM

On Sun, Jul 3, 2011 at 3:01 PM, Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:

Julie's beautiful creation - Tuna Salad!!! Very artistic as well as delish!

On God

On Tue, Jun 28, 2011 at 9:30 AM, Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:


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THOUGHT OF THE DAY:
"God has no religion." - Mahatma Gandhi

Praying at the Western Wall

On Thu, Jun 23, 2011 at 2:45 PM, Julie Ruden wrote:

J xoxoxoxoxo

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A female CNN journalist heard about a very old Jewish man who had been going to the Western Wall to pray, twice a day, every day, for a long, long time.

So she went to check it out. She went to the Western Wall and there he was, walking slowly up to the holy site.

She watched him pray and after about 45 minutes, when he turned to leave, using a cane and moving very slowly, she approached him for an interview.

"Pardon me, sir, I'm Rebecca Smith from CNN. What's your name?
"Morris Feinberg," he replied.

"Sir, how long have you been coming to the Western Wall and praying?"
"For about 60 years."

"60 years! That's amazing! What do you pray for?"
"I pray for peace between the Christians, Jews and the Muslims."
"I pray for all the wars and all the hatred to stop."
"I pray for all our children to grow up safely as responsible adults, and to love their fellow man."

"How do you feel after doing this for 60 years?"
"Like I'm talking to a fucking wall."

Thought Of The Day - Nietzsche

On Wed, Jun 22, 2011 at 12:44 PM, Dr. Lisa Earle wote:
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THOUGHT OF THE DAY:

"You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist." - Friedrich Nietzsche

...Philosophy 101?

On Fri, Jun 17, 2011 at 8:48 AM, Dave Ruden wrote:
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This is hillarious.
(I could learn some things from this Moishe!)
---D.



On Thu, Jun 16, 2011 at 9:05 AM, Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:
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FW: A Yiddishe Kop

A Yiddishe Kop !

Moishe says to his son:
"I want you to marry a girl of my choice."
The son says:
"I will choose my own bride."
Moishe says:
"But the girl is Bill Gates' daughter."
The son answers:
"Well, in that case, yes, OK."

Moishe then approaches Bill Gates and says:
"I have a husband for your daughter."
Bill Gates answers:
"But my daughter is too young to get married!"
Moishe says:
"But this young man is a vice-president of the World Bank."
Bill Gates answers:
"Ah, in that case, yes, OK."

Finally, Moishe goes to see the president of the World Bank..Moishe says:
"I have a young man to be recommended as a vice-president."
The president answers:
"But I already have more vice-presidents than I need."
Moishe says:
"But this young man is Bill Gates' son-in-law."
The President answers:
"Ah, in that case, yes, OK."


And that is how successfully Jews do business.

On Tue, May 24, 2011 at 10:46 AM, Dr. Lisa Earle wrote:

...quoting John Haggee:
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The 1967 borders are totally indefensible! The enemies of Israel would have the ability to destroy the nation of Israel for the first time. A Peace Treaty with 1967 borders would be a Certificate of Death for the State of Israel.

The New York Times is attempting to rewrite history concerning the '67 war.

Fact 1: The '67 war was started by the Arabs and miraculously the Israeli Defense Forces defeated the Arabs and Israel was saved. Israel kept the territory their blood had purchased which is the right of every democracy attacked by its enemies.

Fact 2: The borders of 1967 are absolutely indefensible! It would only be 8 miles across Israel from the Mediterranean Sea to the Palestinian State.

Fact 3: The Palestinians are ruled by Hamas which is an internationally recognized terrorist organization funded and trained by Iran. Think of it! The President is asking Israel to make peace with people who have a written covenant calling for the death of every Jew on the earth.

Fact 4: The beginning of any peace process must contain the Palestinian confession that Israel has the right to exist, the right to defensible borders, and the right to attack those that attack them. Without that, all that comes out of the White House is political propaganda.

If there was ever a time to pray for the peace of Jerusalem it's now!





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On Tue, May 24, 2011 at 6:14 PM, Dave Ruden wrote:

Well, it is true that Hamas is a terrorist group with an agenda to destroy Israel.
And it is true that Hamas has Iranian Shiia connections (although not as strong as this John Haggee suggests - this is one reason why the PLO was ejected from Lebanon. They didn't really get along with Hezbollah, which is heavily dominated by Iran and Syria.

A really good book on the entire thing is Thomas Freedman's "From Beirut to Jerusalem". Difficult, complicated, nearly impossible for an outsider to remember all the nuances. But it lays out the players and their positions wrt each other.

However it is not true that the Palestinians are led by Hamas - and it is misleading to say so. The Gaza Palestinians are led by Hamas, while the West Bank Palestinians are led by Fatah. Neither group likes the other - in spite of their recent reconciliation.

And Fatah has accepted, publicly, and in writing, Israel's right to exist. Israeli policy though (the right-wing) continues to be one of dehumanization, and disenfranchisement. You do this long enough to a generally secular population, and they will eventually turn to the only thing left to them - religious fanaticism. Case in point - Hamas. I consider the rise in Hamas' political popularity and power to be the fault (generally) of Israeli policy to intentionally do just that. Arafat also has major blame here as well (he was too stupid and paranoid to accept peace when it was there in his hands). But that's my opinion on it.

I will say, though, that I did not anticipate this blatant Israeli policy to result in a somewhat permanent rift in the Palestinian populace. Even more brilliant an outcome than I thought it would be simply turning a secular population into sectarian extremists. Not that I like it, not that I agree with it. But I see the strategy of it.

So note that just because I hold Israeli policy on this issue to blame for Hamas, it doesn't mean I like Hamas. I don't find them very useful at all. I just think having a 2-state peace is the only way to go. And now with Palestinians partly represented by a sectarian extremist Hamas instead of simply the secular Fatah, it's just way harder to get there. Great short term gain for Israeli sympathy. Long term failure. Folly.


My 2 cents :).
---D.