I'm kind to strangers i.e holding doors, I always give people my cart at Aldi's and never take their quarter, and general nice behavior. My family, I am very kind and loving to. My lack of spirituality has no bearing on it. Maybe it is easier for me to be kind because I don't have the burden of spirituality or religion in the back of my mind. There is nothing driving me but me.
You think spirituality is a demotivator to kindness?
define 'spirituality'.
How can people reach a conclusion if they dont even agree on the terms.
If you mean all the current variations on religion and its psychological bases well, I find sanity suits me.
But then again it's all , processes we use everyday. A little bit of assuming the world's structure emerge from an essentially similar process by which ppl act in the world, a little bit of trying to find patterns and using most available\instinctive shapes\concepts (most modern science though based on observed phenomena is counter instinctive for perfectly reasonable evolutionary reasons) and all that wrapped in the imperatives of bounded rationality.
People can choose to see phenomena in themselves and their environment in that anthropocentric light, personally I find I prefer to take a step back. Especially when it comes to defining morals based on a 'spirituality' inspired vision of the world. But that is a very large question and set of answers as spirituality itself is too vague and multiple a concept.
If we're talking about belief well, I believe in a lot of things. I believe a door is solid, I believe you are also consciously experiencing life when i'm talking to you, I am assuming my perceptions are correlated with the rest of the system I am part of. I assume that if it seems like we are speaking the same language my meaning will be translated correctly in your own brain.
Is that spirituality?
In a sense yes. In the sense of essentialism at least, the sense of spirituality being structurally different from 'the mere physical'. That there is more to a star than alot of atoms, and to a person than alot of cells. In a sense there is, but I find spirituality often takes the easy way out by drawing a new picture rather than trying to assemble the puzzle.
I act on my personal, evolving opinions of what is warranted toward myself and others. Basing my behaviors on a preexisting, external, fixed mandate is at odds with mine and other humans' individuality and would negate our need to reason for ourselves.
We were born with free will. I use mine to love, hate, befriend, vilify, learn, teach, accept, reject, experience, withdraw, take, give, bestow, receive, eat, sleep and live like everyone else.
I was religious in my youth. I am now agnostic. Differences? I am more cautious, thoughtful, compassionate, confident, straightforward, and tolerant. I believe this is the result of maturity and fastidious introspection. The only things I'm sure I can attribute to a change in self-mandate from foreign-mandate is the reduced guilt I experience for not meeting others expectations as they relate to religious doctrine. Now I only experience guilt for not meeting my own expectations as it relates to my personal judgment of fair and just self-conduct.
Why dont you define it for the purposes of your reply post?
There's no trap here, its a discussion and I'm interested in everyones individual conclusions. I'm not interested in the rightness or wrongness or the ethics involved, I'm interested in the connections people make "I believe this, so I behave like that" sort of thing.
People believe stuff but dont act on it every day, that's a wider topic than spirituality.
Some people believe they shouldnt eat burgers, but still eat them etc.
Because we are not only communicating with other people, we are also communicating within ourselves, and this communication isn't perfect, not do the part always agree.
We fool ourselves because our self esteem and ego is linked to the emotional value we attach to tags rather than their content.
Because its not kosher or hallal?
Symbolic Interactionism?
I am thinking principally of your behaviour towards others, are you more or less kind than you believe you otherwise would be?
How is that related to spirituality ? Secular spirituality maybe? But I feel like it's an oxymoron. The term is used for secular stuff but it's often to cover up the lack of coherence of one's vague feelings by wrapping them up into a life style or practices which don't necessarily have any connection what so ever with 'spirituality' except in that they are expression of a person trying to reconcile a gut feeling/pivotal point in one's perception of self worth and ego with observed reality:I'm spiritual. I am not religiously inclined, especially with regard to Christianity. (I find most Christian traditions I've interacted with to be quite soul-crushing). I'm very considerate of others. I feel compassion for most and I like to cultivate that.
Yes, because heterosexual is so much better. It's actually a quite neutral way to describe sexual orientation.homosexuals, (gosh, even that term, blech)
up to you. We aren't contractually linked , I mean except to the informal extent that we share and use a common logosphere\language (so there is a sense that miscommunication should be avoided and information sometimes has to be provided to that end but it's of course purely on a voluntary basis in the absence of agreed upon obligations which language certainly is notI was just explaining how I operate without going into too much detail. We can take it to PM if you'd like as I feel uncomfortable talking about myself in a way that might seem like grandstanding. I'm uncomfortable talking about very personal experiences for the sake of providing proofs to someone.