MK forum

I agree with Threewillows, there is much wisdom in many ancient texts and modern writings too. We can learn much from others wisdom, if we look at what they say without the bias of ignoring their wisdom purely because of their religous background.

If we close our minds to the wisdom of those who are different from us, we soon only listen to a very few people who tell us only what we want to hear. And as you correctly point out this thread is "Sayings of the Wise", with no restrictions on the origin of the wisdom.

I am married to a very wise woman, she has no particular religous beliefs but finds most religous sanity in the Buddhist teachings. I personally find the simple wisdom of Jesus inspiring. We live in harmony despite our widely different backgrounds, we view our different paths as complimentray not confrontational.

My past is littered with self appointed "christian gurus", bigots and those who have no tolerance but for their own narrow minded group of friends. I've found a better way, in the words of Glen Campbell, "you've got to try a little kindness, and overlook the blindness of the narrow minded people and their narrow minded way . . . "

And now back to the quotes:


"Never argue with a fool, onlookers might not be able to tell the difference"- Mark Twain

"Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional" - Buddhist Proverb

Oh, no, not again!
What I meant was---here is a re-statement of the same thing you are quoting.
I'm sure many wise people have come to this conclusion over time.
I did not mean to disparage what you think is great wisdom.
Because it IS pretty wise.
No matter WHO says it.

I believe Einstein said "Never argue with an idiot. They always bring you down to their level and their experience wins every time."

"Throughout the ages believers have been persecuted - usually for believing in the "wrong" God. So have non-believers who have denied the existence of God as superstitious rubbish.
Today it is the agnostics who are given a hard time. They are scorned by believers for their failure to find faith and by atheists for being hopelessly wishy-washy and weak minded. Doubt is not the easy option. But for the millions who can find no easy answers to the most profound questions it is the only possible one." - John Humphrys who wrote the book "In God We Doubt"

"Doubt is not the easy option. But for the millions who can find no easy answers to the most profound questions it is the only possible one."

Very profound. Thanks for making us think, Bemused.

When I was a child, I thought missionaries were brave people who went to live in wild remote places. Then our family became the brave people living in wild remote places. But an element of doubt crept in as I witnessed the strange behaviour of a few of our fellow missionaries. This was counterbalanced by the many good people I came into contact with.

For decades I admired my father, for his fervour in going to the ends of the earth to share what he believed in. I had doubts in what he believed, but I did admire his courage.

Now I find myself in a strange surreal world. I don't admire what our family did, because there were too many lies, half truths and cover ups. I'm not even sure if it was all done for the right reason, more to satisfy the ego of the patriach, than to bring a "Loving God" to those who had not heard.
And as I contact those from my past to either see if they survived the experience intact or to ask what there part in this scandal of abuse was, I read the replies that do come back and wonder. Too many just don't want to know, or plain lie about their whereabouts or involvement. Balancing this is the replies from those who also want to rectify the wrongs of the past.
Too many missionaries have tainted their reputation by hiding or trying to defend the indefensible, for me to ever attain again the childhood admiration that I had of missionaries and their sacrifices.
On the other hand, I look at those who have at considerable personal cost, battle endlessly for justice and fairness, while maintaining their faith. They are now for me the brave Christians who venture into the unknown for a cause that is often forgotten and downplayed.

Thank you. Without such good examples of the Christian Faith, the Downunder Sympathetic Agnostic, would be just the Downunder Agnositc.

As the old saying goes, "You can't judge a book by its cover".
In my little Library of "Books" I look at them all sitting on shelves and have come to realise that the "lifestories" that I appreciate most are the stories of hero's who went out of their way to make this world a better and fairer place for others. They come with all sorts of covers, but it is the content of their pages that distinguishes them.

If you say, "But we knew nothing about this,"
does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?
Does not he who guards your life know it?
Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?

From a very wise man: Proverbs 24: 12