What are some religious phrases you hate?

[majingojira]

The utter lack of imagination or thought put into arguments. Reading an tract or an article or a story written by a Christian explaining some aspect of his belief, and it will be constructed of about 75% Bible quotes. Yeah I know that's what the Bible says (and BTW there are an equal number of verses that contradict those you mentioned), but I want to hear YOUR opinion, what do YOU think? You think you're going to be the next C.S Lewis by just padding your essay or story with 75% quotes? That will get you a D if you try that in community college. I think this trait might be a symptom of a larger problem of not being able to think about a subject, and instead plugging in a Bible verse.

The phrases "Repent!" or "Accept Christ," which is basically code for "submit" "admit that I'm right" or "see the world as I do or else!" Also "Salvation is a free gift." No, it isn't. As soon as you join a church you're going to be told what to do in the interest of "Serving Christ." If service is required, then isn't free!

Bringing the topic of abortion into every discussion, and acting like it is an inherently christian belief when the Bible says NOTHING against abortion (unless you really, really twist some verse), but has many, many sections describing men of god killing children and babies.

Any time they bring up God feeling offended or saddened by the sinful acts of our times. If he is omnipotent then he wouldn't need to wring his hands in helpless frustration. Clearly if he exists and he is omnipotent and he is not stupid or insane, then this world is exactly the way he wants it. Otherwise he could just snap his fingers and eliminate homosexuality, stop all abortions, fill everyone's mind with knowledge of him, turn the devil good, stop all the killings and wars, etc. Even Christians admit that he will eventually do this, but only after brutally annihilating the world twice sometime in the future if Revelations to be believed. But my question was what was stopping him just making his creation however he wanted it from the beginning if he was omnipotent?

"God is fed up with these sinful times." or "God's patience is running out." Infinite beings don't run out of patience, you moron! You ascribe very human frailties to your supposedly perfect god.   

"God have mercy on us." A meaningles statement. If one is a believer than God will still inflict terrible things on them if the Book of Job is any indication. If one is a nobeliever, then no mercy will be extended to them anyway. If they become a believer, see the first point.

[R. U. Sirius]

One issue that I've run into multiple conflicts with other Buddhists over is the fact that I still eat meat.

Generally, when someone takes umbrage with it, I point out that
A) the Buddha never stated that everyone who follows his teachings needs to become vegetarians,
B) the Buddha explicitly DID say that people should avoid dogmatism, and
C) when a butcher asked the Buddha how he could become enlightened without giving up the only work he knew to keep his family fed, the Buddha replied, "Let it be." For context, butchery is one of the professions that the Buddha specifically condemned.

All this being said, I only recently started on this path, and I do intend to give vegetarianism a shot once I've educated myself enough to be reasonably sure of my health. I know that you can get most of the nutrients found in meat from various vegetables, but I don't know enough about the subject yet to make educated choices about the veggies I would need. If there are any vegetarians here who could point me toward any good resources, I would appreciate it.

[Cerim Treascair]

One issue that I've run into multiple conflicts with other Buddhists over is the fact that I still eat meat.

Generally, when someone takes umbrage with it, I point out that
A) the Buddha never stated that everyone who follows his teachings needs to become vegetarians,
B) the Buddha explicitly DID say that people should avoid dogmatism, and
C) when a butcher asked the Buddha how he could become enlightened without giving up the only work he knew to keep his family fed, the Buddha replied, "Let it be." For context, butchery is one of the professions that the Buddha specifically condemned.

All this being said, I only recently started on this path, and I do intend to give vegetarianism a shot once I've educated myself enough to be reasonably sure of my health. I know that you can get most of the nutrients found in meat from various vegetables, but I don't know enough about the subject yet to make educated choices about the veggies I would need. If there are any vegetarians here who could point me toward any good resources, I would appreciate it.

I will warn you (having looked into ovo-lacto-vegetarianism as a change of pace) that there are some enzymes and vital nutrients you can really only get in the needed doses from muscle tissue.  As in meat.  Humans are omnivores, that means leafy greens in one hand and raw, bloody steak in the other.

[Alehksunos]

"The United States was founded on Christian principles" (or related)

No, it's not, and it never was and never should be. While I'm at it, I also want to say that my family really honestly has no clue about stuff like Separation of Church and State, the Treaty of Tripoli, etc.

(I also believe someone argued about that claim before once, but this claim in particular really pisses me off.)

[TheUnknown]

This one has probably been done to death everywhere on this site, but goddamn:

"Homosexuals have the same rights as heterosexuals; they're free to marry whomever they wish of the opposite sex, like everyone else."

This one is thrown around a lot, and doesn't hold merit.  Giving gays the right to marry eachother is not adding a special right, because by the same argument, if it passes, straights are free to marry anyone they want of the same sex.  Also, it ignores the fact that this means that straights have the right to marry and receive benefits with someone they love and are attracted to, while gays don't have that right, so no, gays don't have the same rights as "everyone else."  Oh, what, it doesn't count because straights wouldn't want to get married to the same sex?  Well, it can't be all that bad.  After all, you're expecting the same thing from gays.

[Meshakhad]

"If you don't follow Jesus, you will burn in Hell!" or any other use of the threat of eternal damnation. I'm not a Christian. I don't believe in Hell. First, you'll need to CONVINCE me that Hell exists.

Also, question: if defying G-d = going to Hell forever, then why did He never mention this in the Old Testament? To my memory, at no point in the Old Testament did G-d threaten anyone with eternal damnation. He was more like "Do what I say, or I will kick your ass". There are only oblique references to any sort of Hell.

This gets back to my whole beef with the concept of eternal damnation. Eternal damnation is an infinite punishment. But sin is finite. The Jewish afterlife - Gehenna - works differently. Nearly everyone goes there, and suffers a period of spiritual torment proportional to whatever sins they have committed and not properly atoned or suffered for, with an absolute maximum of twelve months. Those who either never got the chance to sin (like children) or who atoned/suffered for all their sins in life (like Holocaust survivors) get to skip Gehenna and go straight to Olam Haba (the post-Messiah world). A few who are truly evil and incapable of atonement receive karet, which is basically the divine death penalty. They don't suffer - they cease to exist.

Oh, and anyone who uses religious rhetoric to justify banning abortions even to save the life of the mother will have hard time finding a rabbi to agree with them. The current interpretation is that since the fetus is the threat to the mother's life, it is not an innocent life, and therefore the mother's life takes precedent.

[Mechtaur]

"If you don't follow Jesus, you will burn in Hell!" or any other use of the threat of eternal damnation. I'm not a Christian. I don't believe in Hell. First, you'll need to CONVINCE me that Hell exists.

Also, question: if defying G-d = going to Hell forever, then why did He never mention this in the Old Testament? To my memory, at no point in the Old Testament did G-d threaten anyone with eternal damnation. He was more like "Do what I say, or I will kick your ass". There are only oblique references to any sort of Hell.

This gets back to my whole beef with the concept of eternal damnation. Eternal damnation is an infinite punishment. But sin is finite. The Jewish afterlife - Gehenna - works differently. Nearly everyone goes there, and suffers a period of spiritual torment proportional to whatever sins they have committed and not properly atoned or suffered for, with an absolute maximum of twelve months. Those who either never got the chance to sin (like children) or who atoned/suffered for all their sins in life (like Holocaust survivors) get to skip Gehenna and go straight to Olam Haba (the post-Messiah world). A few who are truly evil and incapable of atonement receive karet, which is basically the divine death penalty. They don't suffer - they cease to exist.

Oh, and anyone who uses religious rhetoric to justify banning abortions even to save the life of the mother will have hard time finding a rabbi to agree with them. The current interpretation is that since the fetus is the threat to the mother's life, it is not an innocent life, and therefore the mother's life takes precedent.

This is one reason I like Judaism a lot.

On the subject of Christians adding things. The people who go on and on about how they know Heaven exists because of a near death experience or some bullshit like Don Piper. Now, remind me, but I distinctly recall a part in the Tanakh about how the dead can have no memory because they are, say it with me... Dead. This kinda makes it hard to believe near death experiences because it is saying that someone is contradicting a phrase that they usually say is infallible. Doesn't help that being near death still doesn't count as dying.

[MadCatTLX]

"If you don't follow Jesus, you will burn in Hell!" or any other use of the threat of eternal damnation. I'm not a Christian. I don't believe in Hell. First, you'll need to CONVINCE me that Hell exists.

Also, question: if defying G-d = going to Hell forever, then why did He never mention this in the Old Testament? To my memory, at no point in the Old Testament did G-d threaten anyone with eternal damnation. He was more like "Do what I say, or I will kick your ass". There are only oblique references to any sort of Hell.

This gets back to my whole beef with the concept of eternal damnation. Eternal damnation is an infinite punishment. But sin is finite. The Jewish afterlife - Gehenna - works differently. Nearly everyone goes there, and suffers a period of spiritual torment proportional to whatever sins they have committed and not properly atoned or suffered for, with an absolute maximum of twelve months. Those who either never got the chance to sin (like children) or who atoned/suffered for all their sins in life (like Holocaust survivors) get to skip Gehenna and go straight to Olam Haba (the post-Messiah world). A few who are truly evil and incapable of atonement receive karet, which is basically the divine death penalty. They don't suffer - they cease to exist.

Oh, and anyone who uses religious rhetoric to justify banning abortions even to save the life of the mother will have hard time finding a rabbi to agree with them. The current interpretation is that since the fetus is the threat to the mother's life, it is not an innocent life, and therefore the mother's life takes precedent.

This is one reason I like Judaism a lot.

On the subject of Christians adding things. The people who go on and on about how they know Heaven exists because of a near death experience or some bullshit like Don Piper. Now, remind me, but I distinctly recall a part in the Tanakh about how the dead can have no memory because they are, say it with me... Dead. This kinda makes it hard to believe near death experiences because it is saying that someone is contradicting a phrase that they usually say is infallible. Doesn't help that being near death still doesn't count as dying.

There's also the people that have added the whole rapture thing, which has no basis anywhere if I remember right.

[Mechtaur]

"If you don't follow Jesus, you will burn in Hell!" or any other use of the threat of eternal damnation. I'm not a Christian. I don't believe in Hell. First, you'll need to CONVINCE me that Hell exists.

Also, question: if defying G-d = going to Hell forever, then why did He never mention this in the Old Testament? To my memory, at no point in the Old Testament did G-d threaten anyone with eternal damnation. He was more like "Do what I say, or I will kick your ass". There are only oblique references to any sort of Hell.

This gets back to my whole beef with the concept of eternal damnation. Eternal damnation is an infinite punishment. But sin is finite. The Jewish afterlife - Gehenna - works differently. Nearly everyone goes there, and suffers a period of spiritual torment proportional to whatever sins they have committed and not properly atoned or suffered for, with an absolute maximum of twelve months. Those who either never got the chance to sin (like children) or who atoned/suffered for all their sins in life (like Holocaust survivors) get to skip Gehenna and go straight to Olam Haba (the post-Messiah world). A few who are truly evil and incapable of atonement receive karet, which is basically the divine death penalty. They don't suffer - they cease to exist.

Oh, and anyone who uses religious rhetoric to justify banning abortions even to save the life of the mother will have hard time finding a rabbi to agree with them. The current interpretation is that since the fetus is the threat to the mother's life, it is not an innocent life, and therefore the mother's life takes precedent.

This is one reason I like Judaism a lot.

On the subject of Christians adding things. The people who go on and on about how they know Heaven exists because of a near death experience or some bullshit like Don Piper. Now, remind me, but I distinctly recall a part in the Tanakh about how the dead can have no memory because they are, say it with me... Dead. This kinda makes it hard to believe near death experiences because it is saying that someone is contradicting a phrase that they usually say is infallible. Doesn't help that being near death still doesn't count as dying.

There's also the people that have added the whole rapture thing, which has no basis anywhere if I remember right.

It gets mentioned in 1 Thessalonians, once.

[czechmate]

"If you don't follow Jesus, you will burn in Hell!" or any other use of the threat of eternal damnation. I'm not a Christian. I don't believe in Hell. First, you'll need to CONVINCE me that Hell exists.

Also, question: if defying G-d = going to Hell forever, then why did He never mention this in the Old Testament? To my memory, at no point in the Old Testament did G-d threaten anyone with eternal damnation. He was more like "Do what I say, or I will kick your ass". There are only oblique references to any sort of Hell.

This gets back to my whole beef with the concept of eternal damnation. Eternal damnation is an infinite punishment. But sin is finite. The Jewish afterlife - Gehenna - works differently. Nearly everyone goes there, and suffers a period of spiritual torment proportional to whatever sins they have committed and not properly atoned or suffered for, with an absolute maximum of twelve months. Those who either never got the chance to sin (like children) or who atoned/suffered for all their sins in life (like Holocaust survivors) get to skip Gehenna and go straight to Olam Haba (the post-Messiah world). A few who are truly evil and incapable of atonement receive karet, which is basically the divine death penalty. They don't suffer - they cease to exist.

Oh, and anyone who uses religious rhetoric to justify banning abortions even to save the life of the mother will have hard time finding a rabbi to agree with them. The current interpretation is that since the fetus is the threat to the mother's life, it is not an innocent life, and therefore the mother's life takes precedent.

This is one reason I like Judaism a lot.

On the subject of Christians adding things. The people who go on and on about how they know Heaven exists because of a near death experience or some bullshit like Don Piper. Now, remind me, but I distinctly recall a part in the Tanakh about how the dead can have no memory because they are, say it with me... Dead. This kinda makes it hard to believe near death experiences because it is saying that someone is contradicting a phrase that they usually say is infallible. Doesn't help that being near death still doesn't count as dying.

Having been declared clinically dead TWICE in my 8+ decades on this planet, my atheism has been reinforced considerably on each occasion.
To clarify other points, I have been a DSc in Theology since 1949 and have studied many beliefs, finding Christianity the very worst in using the Bible as a means of justifying the most appaling episodes in written human history, claiming their 1 billion+ victims (since 325 AD) were "saved", with the survivors being brainwashed with the biggest literal man-made bullshit ever written by man.
Bhuddism is a religion only if you choose it to be so. As for the vegetarian aspect, you can't apply that to the Northern climes were literally nothing edible grows! It is a philosophy that teaches that all life forms are part of this world and are to be respected as such. I have yet to hear of a Bhuddist terrorist.
There have been several thousand Gods throughout human history, each and every one being the "one-true" beleive or die, each and every one having been enforced upon us, each and evey one being man-made delusions.
All the Abahamic religions stem from one region which consists of around 0.12% of the global landmass and maintain their existance by fear and punishment.
What about the history of the other 99.88% of the world deliberatly ignored.
Their histories preceed any of the Abrahamics by several thousand years and are branded as Pagans.

[Art Vandelay]

I have yet to hear of a Bhuddist terrorist.

Shoko Asahara and friends.

[KZN02]

I have yet to hear of a Bhuddist terrorist.

Shoko Asahara and friends.

Dare I ask if there are more?

[Art Vandelay]

I have yet to hear of a Bhuddist terrorist.

Shoko Asahara and friends.

Dare I ask if there are more?

None that I can recall, no.

[kefkaownsall]

I have yet to hear of a Bhuddist terrorist.

Shoko Asahara and friends.

Dare I ask if there are more?

None that I can recall, no.

What I find bizarre about that cult is that they really didn't need to do the attacks as they were gaining enough influence to do well in elections .

[Art Vandelay]

What I find bizarre about that cult is that they really didn't need to do the attacks as they were gaining enough influence to do well in elections .

You really can't expect rational thinking from people who decided that they could take on the entire Japanese military single-handedly. That said, it's extremely unlikely that they'd ever get anything more than niche support from the general population. Most normal folks aren't too thrilled with the idea of a cult running the government (at least I should hope not).