Wanna see something unbelievably beautiful?
And if you think it looks good, you should feel it.
It’s soooo soft! This is the stuff I dyed. I dyed it 4 different colors, in four different batches, and had to dye each batch at least 4 times because I couldn’t get the color saturation the way I wanted it. It still isn’t exactly how I intended it to be, but it’s lovely.
I thought that since the mohair I bought at Black Sheep was just picked open, it would be enough to fluff the locks I dyed before spinning them. But I it looks like I’ll get a nicer yarn if I card them to open them up a little more first.
I hardly mind. It’s heavenly, having my hands in this stuff.
*Thanks for the comments. I’ve removed this part of my post because I’m over my irritation from that particular conversation and am ready to move on.*
October 27th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
I believe that without our God, without our belief in Him, we would be without direction, without peace, without hope. Here is the trick, though. Not all religions are created equal. If you believe in the wrong thing, you are no better off then believing in nothing. Believing in the wrong thing does not change the truth. I am not religious, I am a Christian.
October 27th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
I don’t consider myself very religious, but I am spiritual and I have my beliefs in God. That being said – I don’t think the world would be a better place without people believing in a Higher Power. I think the bigger issue here is respect. Your brother needs to respect your beliefs – religion is personal – and you have the freedom to feel and practice and believe as you want. Without THAT, this country would be a horrible place. I feel very comfortable in my beliefs and how I practice them – and that is how it should be. I believe that the biggest issue the world has right now is that people don’t respect each other, their countries, their rights and their right to freely practice what they want.
October 27th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Hmmm… I consider myself pretty smart and I chose Christianity as an adult. I do see how religion causes problems, but I do not see that those problems would go away if religion was gone. I think that hatred and intolerance comes in too many forms for religion to be the sole (or even main) culprit.
October 27th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
I am probably considered biased, and as I have a brother-in-law who bounces around from anti-anything to eastern religions to the next wack cult idea, the family is a bit familiar with being slightly offended by the rhetoric… That being said, and simply put, I do believe the answer is no. Religion is not the problem cause what have you, but people. Just as there are both good, bad, and in between in each person, and the balance skewed in one way or the other most times, causing there to be good, bad, and in between in every religion or group so goes it with the world in general. If it weren’t religion we would find something else to fight over. The inherent individuality and struggle to control our worlds outside ourselves creates enough discontent to divide all on its own. In fact it may be worse without a creed or belief to hold ourselves to. Government or religious based.
October 27th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Respectfully, I don’t think that asking this question on your blog is going to result in answers from a variety of people. And I feel like you’ve already made up your mind. But if you are interested in exploring the issue, I hope you seek out information from all sides of the issue.
I don’t know what choices your brother has made, but I would be offended if anyone thought my choices were reprehensible just because they are made without religion. I am not religious, and I am a good person. Those two things are not mutually exclusive, just as being Muslim doesn’t automatically make you a bad person.
Religion is definitely a large part of many wars, but I don’t see a point in speculating on what a world with no religion would be like, because it’s not going to happen any time soon. I would prefer a world full of respect for people’s diversity. I would also prefer that religion stay out of my government, my bedroom, and my body.
I believe the planet is too big to have no governments or borders, and there will always be people (religious and not) who do bad things. We need rules and laws and enforcement. Culture, tradition, and social mores are also important.
October 27th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Thanks for the comments.
To ABC-
I have, of course, made up my mind. I’m not looking to be swayed, I was curious to hear what others thought, though I agree that I’d most likely get a lot of people agreeing with me that religion is not responsible for the horrible things people do.
I was afraid that “religionless” statement might be misunderstood, and I’m sorry to have given offense. What I’m saying there is that if my brother thinks that believing in God is what causes people to do bad things and hurt other people, doesn’t it negate his entire argument when he, being without God, does things that hurt people?
I can’t be more specific about his actions, that would be inappropriate.
One of my closest friends is atheist. She’s the most generous, fair, ethical, and decent minded person I know. I’m in complete agreement that you don’t have to adopt a religion to be a good person.
October 27th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Additionally, I totally agree that it’s a ridiculous question, because it will never happen, but he won’t let it drop and it’s irritating. I’d like to show him what other people, besides his “brainwashed” sister have to say about it. I’d say your comment will hold more weight with him because you aren’t religious. Thanks for writing.
October 27th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Hey La,
The fleece looks great; I love the colors and it looks very soft and fluffy. Also, Clark looks very cute standing next to it. The fleece reminds me of cotton candy.
As for your brother’s question/comment, I don’t think that we’d be better off if there was no religion. While it’s true that some people/cultures/religions wage war because of their religions/religious beliefs, I think people would wage war without religion. People waged war over property lines, skin color, taxes… It’d just be different wars.
I also think that having religion gives people a code to live by; granted people can live by the same/very similar code without religion, but I think having religion makes it, well, easier, for lack of a better word. (Sorry, I’ve worked nine hours with no lunch. I’m brain dead right now.)
October 27th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
I believe we all need spirituality in our lives.. it is what makes us humble, what makes us have hope when there is darkness in our lives, it helps us strive to grow into more moral/ethical/healthy beings. The miraculous birth of a child is all I needed to be certain that there is a higher power than myself. I have great comfort in that. And I will train up my children in the way they shall go, by modeling my own spiritual beliefs, and showing them their importance to my life. But I will let them choose their actual path.
ON the other hand, I think when spiritual beliefs are taken to extremes that they counteract the very claims they make: extremists often do not love everyone as their neighbor, nor do they hold life sacred. There are many, many types of religion, and when they are taken to their extremes, bad things happen. Even within my own religion, some of the most religious can have the biggest falls from grace, and do great damage in the name of the creator I believe in. I do not believe it is the religion itself, but somehow the religion becomes the idol – the power of it, the glory of it, rather than the humble living by it.
As for the brain washing.. do you chew with your mouth closed? Make your bed? Cover your mouth when you cough? Set the table with the fork on the left, knife on the right? I think we are all trained to certain standards so we can grow to be civilized humans, and we are trained in every aspect, religious and otherwise. None of it would I call brainwashing. But I do think we should be allowed to question, to explore and develop a path of our own. Not to question and wrestle with the bigger picture makes our faith weak.
October 27th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Delurking to say, i have to agree with those that have said that without religion wars would be waged for different reasons. Haters/ warmongers are going to find a reason to fight no matter what. I’m sorry that your brother keeps bringing up the same old comments. It sound like he is trying to justify his own choices while condeming you for yours. Hopefully if you show him your comments he will drop it, his repetitive attacks will only cause tension in your relationship.
October 28th, 2008 at 3:16 am
I am not religious but have to admit that i have a hard time imagining the world without religion because every culture seems to believe in something and it is probably buried deep within us as an explanation of what was inexplainable before science, and I know it is a big and important part of the life of many people.
BUT I also think that religion has destoyed and made life difficult for maybe even more people, and especially women, in many cultures and through many times, not less so today, not even in our western culture. And I think religion and politics is a dangerous combination because you can’t argue with belief. So yes, I think many people would have had better lives without religion but I’m sure humanity would have fought over something else instead.
October 28th, 2008 at 5:29 am
Hmm. tough one. I agree with whomever stated that it appears your mind is set. I will say, however, that this has been a point of conversation in my life for many years. I was raised Catholic and still practice. My live-in boyfriend was raised Baptist and is now atheist. I think that religion is used as an excuse for not liking a particular ‘brand’ of people. In case point, the realities of Islamic and Judaic conflict is largely a land-ownership matter that religion has been dragged into. Also, in some areas of the world, religion is so much a part of the everyday government and culture, that yes, organized government could fail if religion was removed.
The Communist ideal is one without religion. And even in a Communist planned community, religion rose up. Pope John II rose up from a Communist government.
My biggest complaint with organized religion right now is this notion of ‘recruitment’ that I find so morally offensive. I believe that I have the right to my beliefs and you have the right to yours. You may not think that my confession every Friday and attendance at Mass on Sunday is the right way to express my faith. You might not like that my Bible isn’t the same version as yours. But, I respect your right to practice your faith; I expect the same respect. In the area I live in, this method of ‘recruitment’ (a la door-to-door salesman) is creating a type of hostility that I abhor. And I think a large amount of conflict over religion is b/c one group is trying to make another “like me”. We like people to look like us, act like us, talk like us and pray like us. We seek similarity and shun difference as humans. A little respect and acceptance of religious differences would be best.
October 28th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
I like Clark’s little hand pointing at the pretty locks in the first picture 🙂
October 28th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Hmm, looks like I missed an interesting discussion! In our theology book group, we’ve been discussing the power of the language we use to describe God and how it permeates and shapes our society. I think spirituality and religion are important tools to help us experience wholeness, and connect to the part of God that is within us and throughout all creation… The trouble comes when we try to put God in a box because really our language is completely inadequate – this leads to exclusivity and ultimately idolatry. People have been fighting over who has the correct description of God since they were able to verbalize it – but this is not the only cause of war. There is greed, and the struggles over power, money, and land. It just seems to non-religious people that religion is the sole cause because religious people keep trying to justify war or greed by making the excuse that it is “the Will of God” and therefore no one should question it. I think that having no religion would only create new problems – Yes, it sometimes gives individuals (or whole countries) a reason to do some pretty horrible things but for most it gives them a responsibility to care for one another and a sense of meaning and wholeness in their own lives. We are all on the same journey… It’s up to us as individuals to choose our spiritual path and decide whether we are going to be the person who steps on or pushes others out of the way, the one who drags others against their will, or the one who helps or encourages others along. Peace! BTW, your fiber is lovely. 🙂