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M. Scott Peck wrote a book about euthanasia long ago. I wonder if people still read Peck. “Denial of the soul,” that was the title. The foundational belief for

M. Scott Peck wrote a book about euthanasia long ago. I wonder if people still read Peck. “Denial of the soul,” that was the title. The foundational belief for euthanasia must be that there is no soul.

eru 2y ago
That sounds like a pretty wild leap of faith to me.
throwanem 2y ago
I hope the book makes a better argument than you present here for that claim, which on its face makes nothing obviously resembling sense.
throwaway78665 2y ago
You mean the belief in Christian fundamentalist version of the soul? U my view it doesn't say anything about not believing in soul, but it can be interpreted as lack of belief that somebody can control their soul.
freddie_mercury 2y ago
Why can't the foundational belief be that we have a soul that has been sundered from our Creator by The Enemy during a primordial Manichean duel and keeping it separate is the highest sin and only by returning it to where it properly belongs are doing good? It isn't like the only two options are "the Christian conception of a soul" and "the atheists rejection of the conception of a soul".
- nprateem 2y ago
  We keep ourselves separate by thinking instead of just being :(
- Mikhail_Edoshin 2y ago
  Imagine you walk down a road and see a small forest ahead and a group of people before that forest. They all talk about what is beyond the forest. They all tell different things. But this does not mean they are all equally right or equally wrong or that one may simply choose the version one likes best. There is something specific behind the forest and if everyone tells their own incompatible versions, then everyone is wrong or everyone but one. (Or maybe some of the versions are not that incompatible.) If you sneak away, go through the forest and come back, you will see a very nuanced picture of who is saying what. For example you found a stream. Someone may not mention a stream, but from his tale you will see that he indeed was there, but in winter and missed the stream just a bit. Or someone may loudly claim there is a stream, but you will clearly see that the person never was there and is only trying to persuade you to buy a flask. But if you never was there all these tales will look same to you. This guy says this and that guys says that; how to decide? Logically? But is it clearly impossible to merely take all those words, somehow analyze them and get a correct answer. The clues one should look for are not in the contents of the tale.
munchler 2y ago
As someone who just had to put down a beloved pet to prevent unspeakable suffering, I find that claim both stupid and insulting. If souls are real, I very much look forward to a reunion upon my own death.
echoangle 2y ago
Is it just me or has denial used in contexts like this a negative connotation? It sounds like there’s overwhelming evidence and people just ignore it. Am I denying that aliens exist? I’m not a native speaker but it sounds weird to me.
nprateem 2y ago
It's so sad how religions are based on ending suffering but come up with so many reasons that prevent them from actually doing so. This "foundational belief" is nonsensical. How about the belief in self-determination and responsibility for one's own actions?

eru 2y ago

That sounds like a pretty wild leap of faith to me.

throwanem 2y ago

I hope the book makes a better argument than you present here for that claim, which on its face makes nothing obviously resembling sense.

throwaway78665 2y ago

You mean the belief in Christian fundamentalist version of the soul? U my view it doesn't say anything about not believing in soul, but it can be interpreted as lack of belief that somebody can control their soul.

freddie_mercury 2y ago

Why can't the foundational belief be that we have a soul that has been sundered from our Creator by The Enemy during a primordial Manichean duel and keeping it separate is the highest sin and only by returning it to where it properly belongs are doing good? It isn't like the only two options are "the Christian conception of a soul" and "the atheists rejection of the conception of a soul".

nprateem 2y ago
We keep ourselves separate by thinking instead of just being :(
Mikhail_Edoshin 2y ago
Imagine you walk down a road and see a small forest ahead and a group of people before that forest. They all talk about what is beyond the forest. They all tell different things. But this does not mean they are all equally right or equally wrong or that one may simply choose the version one likes best. There is something specific behind the forest and if everyone tells their own incompatible versions, then everyone is wrong or everyone but one. (Or maybe some of the versions are not that incompatible.) If you sneak away, go through the forest and come back, you will see a very nuanced picture of who is saying what. For example you found a stream. Someone may not mention a stream, but from his tale you will see that he indeed was there, but in winter and missed the stream just a bit. Or someone may loudly claim there is a stream, but you will clearly see that the person never was there and is only trying to persuade you to buy a flask. But if you never was there all these tales will look same to you. This guy says this and that guys says that; how to decide? Logically? But is it clearly impossible to merely take all those words, somehow analyze them and get a correct answer. The clues one should look for are not in the contents of the tale.

munchler 2y ago

As someone who just had to put down a beloved pet to prevent unspeakable suffering, I find that claim both stupid and insulting. If souls are real, I very much look forward to a reunion upon my own death.

echoangle 2y ago

Is it just me or has denial used in contexts like this a negative connotation? It sounds like there’s overwhelming evidence and people just ignore it. Am I denying that aliens exist? I’m not a native speaker but it sounds weird to me.

nprateem 2y ago

It's so sad how religions are based on ending suffering but come up with so many reasons that prevent them from actually doing so. This "foundational belief" is nonsensical. How about the belief in self-determination and responsibility for one's own actions?