While the wisdom of the Cimmerians is deep and profound, perhaps a more *ahem* orthodox reference is needed?

THEN TO HELL WITH YOU! 

We wouldn't necessarily need to limit teachings to religious works either. I can see incorporating statements from our founding fathers and the teachings of great military minds like Sun Tzu and Frederick the Great and many other "Prophets".

True... as a religion, we do get to name our own prophets!

Miyamoto Musashi can be the sword sage.

Eyeeatingfish, are these the "freedom fighters" you refer to?

J,

Don't know where you found this, thanks for it. Makes a point I think has fallen on deaf ears.

People are always trying to use the Big Guy to justify whatever they want. It's just another way of avoiding responsibility for their actions. Conan's religion makes more sense because it's not tied to a civilization, and therefore is not under any sort of pressure to justify things that civilizations need justifying. An amoral code based on self-realization  is inherently more honest while morality codes are a method of control and subjugation. Free men ponder the "riddle of steel". Slaves let the masters do the thinking for them. 

People are always trying to use the Big Guy to justify whatever they want. It's just another way of avoiding responsibility for their actions. Conan's religion makes more sense because it's not tied to a civilization, and therefore is not under any sort of pressure to justify things that civilizations need justifying. An amoral code based on self-realization  is inherently more honest while morality codes are a method of control and subjugation. Free men ponder the "riddle of steel". Slaves let the masters do the thinking for them. 

I nominate HvyBarrels for the inaugural sermon!

People are always trying to use the Big Guy to justify whatever they want. It's just another way of avoiding responsibility for their actions. Conan's religion makes more sense because it's not tied to a civilization, and therefore is not under any sort of pressure to justify things that civilizations need justifying. An amoral code based on self-realization  is inherently more honest while morality codes are a method of control and subjugation. Free men ponder the "riddle of steel". Slaves let the masters do the thinking for them.

Yeah, that's just a shame how so many people give "The Big Guy" credit for all those things they should take responsibility for. 

Like:

Kicking their drug habits,
overpowering their alcoholism,
living their lives responsibly so they can support themselves and their families,
taking care of the sick,
living as missionaries in underdeveloped countries to improve other's ability to survive,
donating to charities,
working in soup kitchens to feed the hungry,
heading up Winter blanket donation drives for the homeless,
volunteering to be foster parents,
rescuing abused animals,
and so on, and so on.

It just irritates me how some people say their imaginary friend called on them or gave then the strength to do all that, when we all know they are just avoiding taking responsibility!

 

People are always trying to use the Big Guy to justify whatever they want. It's just another way of avoiding responsibility for their actions. Conan's religion makes more sense because it's not tied to a civilization, and therefore is not under any sort of pressure to justify things that civilizations need justifying. An amoral code based on self-realization  is inherently more honest while morality codes are a method of control and subjugation. Free men ponder the "riddle of steel". Slaves let the masters do the thinking for them.

CROM!

I don't see any problem. 

Terrorism is any act intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population or compelling a government or an international organization to do or abstain from doing any act.

Regardless of who you happen to be pulling for, terrorism describes the tactic, not what the stated objective or enemy is.  The fact that they are attacking civilians makes them terrorists.  Period.

Good points. I certainly wouldnt consider islamic terrorists to be freedom fighters but sometimes the label or terrorist is misused just to galvanize people.

J,

Don't know where you found this, thanks for it. Makes a point I think has fallen on deaf ears.

I should save that one. Didnt notice the backpack on the Palestinian at first....

Yeah, that's just a shame how so many people give "The Big Guy" credit for all those things they should take responsibility for. 
 

No argument about the possibility of unlocking human potential. A lot of drug and alcohol recovery programs are specifically geared towards calling a higher power to come "help" because psychologically damaged people have a difficult time finding those resources on their own. There are many ways to tap into those resources, and it ranges from focused meditation to studying martial arts to the placebo effect. There's nothing wrong with putting a name on it if that helps you focus your energy, but there is also a very real dark side of the force and people who are more than willing to use that power to enslave others and create much suffering and disaster. One example that comes to mind is the project to ship a bunch of Eastern European immigrants to the Middle East and steal a bunch of land from the residents there, bulldoze their houses, lock them up in a giant apartheid prison, starve them, and continue operations to Mow The Lawn which includes the indiscriminate targeting of civilian populations. Without the whole idea of Manifest Destiny convincing them it's okay to be a-holes it's a lot harder to get normal people to participate in such a project, and more importantly they are blinded to the consequences of their actions.