PhillieG said:

T&C
"People are permitted to express their method of dealing and fighting cancer regardless of who disagrees. I have to ask, who are you sticking up for anyway when you reply on a religious themed post and say these posts are offensive to people" IF people read the Terms & Conditions of the site it would be a moot point Chris. They don't. I am more bothered than offended by reading the scriptures that are posted in specific cancer forums. I would also be bothered if in every forum people posted their sexual preference or political affiliation. It's got NOTHING to do with the cancer. I don't care what someone's religious, sexual, or political preferences are at all.

It's not a B&W issue at all which is why it's one of those topics that is best to not be discussed at parties. There are so many opinions on it and it's not an argument that can won or lost. No one knows who created the universe and what happens after we die and all of those great questions of life. People may think they know and maybe they're right and maybe they're wrong.

You're right, my even responding to those who post scripture is off the topic of fighting cancer. There have been times when I have not responded and things snowball into topics such as "Prayers for the week of xxx-xxx". As a person who has access to this public site I am not going to sit back and be silent and let the cancer specific areas become religious forums. Being quiet does not seem to help and flagging has only gotten people to start threads about censorship and/or freedom of speech. Not posts about "Opps, I violated the T&C of the site"

I do disagree with you Chris on this being similar to the diet/nutrition debate. I don't think that saying that one should eat only healthy vegetables is the same as being told that if one does not accept Jesus as their savior that they deserve hell. Or that God gave you cancer because a person was naughty.

I do agree with the respect issue too although you may not think that I do. I respect people enough to not start posts that I know would be offensive to people dealing with their cancer in the specific cancer sections. I'm sure on THIS forum I've offended many so as far as that goes, I am no better than the others.

On another note, the colon cancer forum is second in posts only to the breast cancer forum which is probably why you see so many CC people here. It's all about T's & A's...
Also, the main "blow up" started on there.

be well
-p
PS: just one last thought on this. You say Chris that I could just ignore this (what I feel are overly religious posts) and not respond to them. You could have easily done the same with my post here but you felt strongly enough about the topic to voice your opinion on what I had to say. As you see, it's more easily said than done.
Have a great weekend.

The difference here Phil is
The difference here Phil is that you started this post with a question which is asking for replies. The religious post I think you are reffering too openly stated it was a religious topic so as to give the reader the choice of reading it or not. No one was forced to read it and I don't believe it greatly reduced the amount of available space on the website. I for one have been on here for about a year and this is the first time i've read the "spiritual, religious forum" so I can see how someone could post in a specific forum first. Just saying.... Phil, you don't have to ignore it just flag it and move on without the conflict....
Chris

herdizziness said:

Hi Chris
First all, love your posts.
Secondly, well, hmmm, I've tried to reflect on my words, so they aren't offensive to you, I enjoy seeing you, your thoughts, etc.
I though, believe that when I see posts that are strictly religious, continuously religious in nature, that I get, well, I get sort of ticked off. Why is this? Because prayer did not save my first born, yes, I was deeply religious, yes I prayed fervently, yes, I believed that he would not die, all this before they put me to sleep, I awoke, to know he took his first and last breath and I was not there. They buried him while I was still in the hospital, only the Priest and the mortician were there to stand at his grave.
You see the power of prayer didn't save him, no one prayed more then I when I knew he was in distress and needed to be born. Did my prayers save him? Simply, no.
Did this turn me away from God? No.
Did this turn me away from the power of prayer? No.
But I refuse to listen to someone come on the colon network and tell me, that only God can save me. Heck I'm a worthless human being, compared to my innocent son, for whom the most powerful prayers were said for, so I KNOW the power of prayer isn't going to save my sorry arse. And that is why I have objection to it, why, I don't want to just see Bible verses spouted, why I don't want to be told, only God and God alone can save me, because just maybe he doesn't want to save me that day, so I've got to rely on something else to do so.
I want to hear how you are doing, you ask for a prayer, by golly I'm going to say one for you, you didn't ask for a prayer, but you'll get one anyway, but that's doesn't mean I'm going to spout my belief's on to you. Not in my DNA anymore. I was a Bible toting 14 year old, believing every word, even becoming a minister, ministering to the homeless and the poor, now, well, now I'm just me. I pray to a higher being, I'll offer a prayer or two and hope they do some good. I'll take a prayer or two, heck some lady came to my house today and gave one heck of a prayer for me, did I deny her that? Nope, I closed my eyes, I let her pray to her God, and I hoped that a word or two from her might of helped. Did I totally believe in it? Nope. But I won't crush or play lightly with anothers beliefs, to each their own.
But does it bother me to see it on the colon board. Simply, yes.
Winter Marie

Hope and Faith
Hey Marie, I know we've had our differences before but I too enjoy reading your posts and feel you have alot to offer. First let me say how sorry I am for your loss no matter how long ago it may have been. To lose a loved one is a difficult thing and can devestate some people. I know first hand that some people carry on afterward and some don't. Second let me say that I do believe in God, always have and always will. I have faith and knowledge that I will continue to exist beyond what my physical body will allow. This type of faith allows people to continue living after horrible,sad and traumatic events in our lives like the death of a loved one. Some may call this ignorant bliss but it's better than intelligent depression. Some of the smartest people i've ever known suffer badly from depression. (too smart for their own good???) Faith and hope go together like this and hope is the greatest gift one person can give to another. Hope is like a blank check someone gives you for "emergencies only". Knowing you have it there makes getting through anything easier. A foolish person tries to cash it at the first sign of adversity.(my brother, a raging alcoholic, used to buy a lottery ticket and not look at it for a year waking up every day thinking "I might be a millionaire". He'd have 364 days of hope). I have seen someone with hope pass away and it is actually a beautifull thing. I have likewise seen someone without hope and it is a scary, dark ride. Anyway Marie, I have to ask, why do you think any religious post would be directed at you? You say you "refuse to come on the colon network and someone tell YOU that only God can save YOU". If it doesn't have YOUR name on it, why would you or anyone take that personal? If someone says they hate white people I don't think they hate ME personally so I'm not offended at that. If someone spouts off on cancer victims being jerks I don't take that personal unless I think I've been a jerk to someone and I may have caused that person to feel that way. I have punched in the face trying to break up a fight (when I was younger) and I did not retaliate on that person because I knew it was not directed at me "personally". (I've also kicked someone's a$$ just because they needed it and was thanked for it afterward). I think many people take things too seriously in life. Going into what you said about people praying for you and what this post is about I think most of us know the following. People tend to post on these forums for themselves. It makes them feel better to share something or to offer help to another person. When one gives to charity it makes the giver feel better about themselves. The most unselfish acts are deeply selfish in nature because, as anyone knows, it truly feels better to give than to receive and to help rather than receive help. So, knowing this, if someone offers a well intentioned post on here, regardless of it's content, I believe that person feels the need to do so and I would allow it. By showing that tolerance I feel better about myself and any small amount of sufferance I may experience is outweighed by the peace that comes with tolerance. Now, if someone's post is obtrusive or demeaning or insulting then I feel the need to voice my own opinion to counter that which I feel is intentionaly divicive. Also, you should know that while you may not want or need to hear about being "saved" I am sure you would agree that someone on here probably does and if it might "help" just one person and it doesn't "hurt" you then YOU have helped that one person by allowing it. Just like you did with the woman who prayed for you. She may have prayed for you but she did it for herself and you know that and by showing tolerance toward her YOU in turn felt better for it. It's a vicious circle of good feelings.... One more thing Marie, (also my Grandmother's first, my Mom's middle and my Daughter's middle name by the way), I know this is very personal and you can choose not to answer but why do you still have faith in medicine and doctors who could not save your son but lost faith in prayer for the same failure? You are obviously a caring and "spirited" individual that remembers how that 14 year old girl felt after "ministering" to believers or non-believers. Just the feeling of trying to help someone, a total stranger, for no apperent reason feels good so when you see a religious post why intentionally take that away from someone else. Of course in life there are some zealots and they can be annoying and sometimes dangerous and their intentions are what sepperates them and I agree with Phil in that ill intentioned ,threatening zealots should not be tolerated but all religious posts are not like that and to blindly prohibit all of them is wrong. Hope is a big part of healing and faith (in doctors or God)is a big part of hope and relgion is a big part of faith so it is all about healing and surviving which is what we are all here for.
Here's "hoping" our "faith" in whatever has kept us here this long will continue into the new year.
Best wishes to all,
Chris