Category — Alternative Lifestyle

Religions are all over the earth. We have book-based religions (such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam and cultic versions such as Mormonism, Armstrongism etc.), man-based (such as ideological belief systems, not necessarily claiming religious authority but perhaps a more mental reason – many self-help ideologies are centered around this) and others are nature-based. There are numerous sub-groups to these major groups.

What is it about religion that attracts us? Many of them are isolationist in nature. Christians don’t like Jews, and others don’t like Muslims. Some can’t stand buddhists – and on and on it goes. People drive one another to hate and division in the name of religion. They want to be “in the right”, and for them to be that they have to isolate people out of their “in club.”

Religion Was Supposed to Unite

Many believe religion was supposed to unite people, yet religions have caused the exact opposite to happen [Read more →]

I know that this article as well as this subject is going to touch the chord of so many people both positive and negative, both mothers and fathers. I recently posed a question to both men and women and to my astonishment; both favored and concurred with it. So, what is it? Child support! Did you know that child support is determined on the income of the noncustodial parent? Yes, I’m sure most of you know that. However, do most of you agree that child support laws are antiquated and biased and needs to be changed?

If support payment is based on a noncustodial parent income, then what happens to the excess of the money that is received by the custodial parent once the child’s needs are taken care of? [Read more →]

“The soul is a circle.” -Plato

Plato made this statement many centuries ago, but its significance is just as profound today when you think of it in relation to the wedding ring. Probably no other ring ever created has been surrounded with as much folklore and tradition as the ring that unites the hearts of two people. Gay marriages and wedding rings both represent the magic of love and freedom. Once this magical spark has been lit, love naturally evolves into commitment pledged with a wedding ring.

For two people who want to exchange vows of devotion [Read more →]

We all know of the great divide between gays and lesbians versus the huge number of people who are opposed to gay/lesbian marriages. I think that the gay world did a lousy job of selling the idea of g/l marriage. Little recognition was taken of the centuries of hallowed tradition behind the word marriage. A hornet’s nest was stirred up because the word marriage carries with it so many levels of sanctity, religiosity, mythology, [Read more →]

Buddhism is a teaching which has spread worldwide absorbing the culture of each country it arrived in, which has resulted in many expressions of Buddhism. Each strand, no matter how varied in nature and practice, holds a common emphasis on the impermanence of human life. The worldwide spread of Buddhism means that it is now practiced by over three hundred million people worldwide, and thus, is generally considered to be a world religion. However, its authenticity as a religion has often come under scrutiny by intellectuals in the Western world. To explore whether Buddhism can in fact be counted as a religion we must acknowledge that the main problems arise when looking for a definition of what a religion is. Either, definitions have proved too narrow excluding many belief systems which people believe are religious, or [Read more →]

It’s all the rage, you know. Down with “religion”, up with Jesus. I understand the concept, but I’m beginning to question the premise. In fact, I have a lot of questions for religion-bashers.
You who despise “religion”, could you tell me which Biblical apostle you are quoting in your anger? Which Bible writer actually condemned religion? If the Bible does not condemn it, what is your basis? Do you know where the word religion is found in your Bible, and do you know what it means?

May I answer? The Greek threskeia means “a ceremonial observance.” A form of worship. The King James translates the word into “religion” a few times, and into “worshipping” once. In none of the “religion” passages is anything negative connotated. In Colossians 2:18, however, where the word is “worshipping”, the apostle rebukes angel religion.

He warns believers that there are false teachers out there who are puffed up with pride because of their supposed relationship [Read more →]

A study has recently came out that shows how unilateral divorce laws make divorce more frequent. The empirical research shows what any sensible person would already guess — easy divorce laws make for more divorces. This is only magnified by the fact the divorcing party usually has great incentives to divorce and few incentives to stay (independent of whatever marital problems may exist). The fact that this is even a debate in academia shows how politicized and irrational the academy has become. Sure, there are plenty of other reasons to divorce that also drive the high rate of marriage failures, but government incentivizes failure, not success. That certainly doesn’t help.

Add into this debate on divorce law the current debate on gay marriage. With easy divorce, marriage has been demoted to the status of a contract. If it’s [Read more →]