Let's Examine Faith

Let’s examine faith. The definition of faith is hope for a circumstance or thing that is not proven to be true. There is no virtue in accepting something on faith, since it may very well be false, and it is clearly not virtuous to believe the false. Faith has also been proven through out history, time and again, that it is equivalent to massive hysteria: Crusades, Burning Times, Inquisitions, Holy Wars, flying a plane into a building, etc. On a grand scale faith, thus far, has only proven to be an intellectual weakness, and a significant barrier to scientific and moral progress. With all of this in mind, how can God possibly expect us to view faith as the greatest way to glorify him, let alone demand this of us? Most importantly, the point to remember here is that if we don’t believe in him, we go to Hell, and this is a greater evil than a lack of the “virtue” of faith or a stunting of science, or anything else conceivable. If God is truly concerned about the good, he will do what he can to keep us from Hell, and withholding vital information from us is the exact opposite of this. But look at the history of the world from the 5th to the 15th century: every single man, woman, and child believed and had great faith in God. Historians refer to it as the DARK AGES! Indeed, the truth hurts, but lies are far more damaging and can last for a thousand years! In the meantime, when one man suffers from a delusion, it is called "insanity." When, however, millions suffer from the same delusion, like in the Philippines, it is called "Christianity." Poch Suzara

We Never Speak of Faith that - - -

How come we never speak of faith that 2 plus 2 equals 4; or we have faith that the world is round; or that we have faith in a triangle has only 3 sides? No, we only speak of faith when we do NOT know; and, we need to have faith in Christianity in order to remedy the ills of our sick society as generated perpetually by biblical stupidity historically! Poch Suzara

Who were the Apostles? What were their laat names?

As we must all die, sooner or later, whether we like it or not, who cares about the death of the Apostles? Well, if we must care, the least we should do is to find out what were their last names? So we know that Judas was Judas Ascariot; but what about the rest of the apostles - who were they; where were they born; what were their real names as baptized by Jesus? Poch Suzara

The Worst of Tragedies

Self-deception is the worst tragedy of the Filipinos as a people. Teodoro A. Agoncillo This was during the 20th, 19th, 18th, 17th, and 16th century. Today in the already 21st century - the ignorance of the scientific way of thinking is the worst tragedy of the Philippines as a nation - the victim of a sick system of education. Bertrand Russell said it: The scientific attitude of mind involves a sweeping away of all other desires in the interest of the desire to know. Carl Sagan said it: "There is no other species on the Earth that does science. It is, so far, entirely a human invention, evolved by natural selection in the cerebral cortex for one simple reason: it works. It is not perfect. It can be misused. It is only a tool. But it is by far the best tool we have, self-correcting, ongoing, applicable to everything. It has two rules. First: there are no sacred truths; all assumptions must be critically examined; arguments from authority are worthless. Second: whatever is inconsistent with the facts must be discarded or revised. We must understand the Cosmos as it is and not confuse how it is with how we wish it to be." Poch Suzara Twitter# Facebook# Google#

The Sun Rising and Setting is Like the Illusion of Health

The day we are born is the day we begin to live in a dying body. The belief in Health therefore in an illusion. Just like the belief that the sun sets or the sun rises. It is all but a grand illusion. In the meantime I am fully aware of faith Healers, specially in the Philippines, like the famous Fr. Fernando Suarez. He is making tons of money off frightened sick old men and intimidated sick old women, and yet these people like me will be dead sooner or later. Oh yes, most people squander their health in search of wealth. They sweat and toil and saved. Then they squander their wealth in search of health - only to find the grave. Poch Suzara

Something or Nothing - the Similarity

Theologian: WHY IS THERE SOMETHING RATHER THAN NOTHING? Philosopher: WHY NOT? In the meantime, what is the similarity between NOTHING and SOMETHING? Answer: A NOTHING can always end up to be a SOMETHING; a SOMETHING can always end up to be a NOTHING. Poch Suzara

Oh Jesus, My Dear Jesus

Jesus says, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.(John 14:6) Oh Jesus, My dear Jesus, this is all fine and dandy. But how come you TOLD your followers nothing about your Father? How come all of your followers then and followers now, specially in the Philippines, the only Jesus Freak country in Asia, still find the existence of God, your Father, as an endless mystery? Deut 4:29 Really Jesus, if your Father God were already existing here, existing there, and existing everywhere - why do we have to seek and to find Him? Hasn't this been and still is an exercise in futility at best, insanity at worst? Poch Suzara

God Works In Mysterious Ways

"God works in mysterious ways." A useful dodge when the speaker doesn't understand the conflict between what the Bible SAYS and what they WISH it said; or, to know this or to know that but hardly know what "knowing" means. In the meantime, isn't it rather silly for God to work in mysterious ways? Isn't it enough that God is already existing here, existing there, and is existing everywhere? To impress whom? To accomplish what while endlessly hiding?? To become not a reality but only to prove himself perpetually as a silly mystery? Poch Suzara

Why I do Not Believe in the Existence of God

Indeed, I do not believe in the God of the Christians; in the God of the Muslims; in the God of the Jews; in the God of the crackpots on these pages. There are far more important things to do in life than just to believe. There is to think! I refuse to believe that the purpose of life is to be frightened, silenced, useless, selfish, greedy, stupid, and insane. I think the purpose of life is to be useful, responsible, compassionate, and helpful. It is above all to matter: to count, to stand up for a humanitarian principle, to have made a difference. That we have lived not only for something spiritual, but more so for something intellectual! In the meantime, I do not believe in the existence of God because I already believe in the existence of something higher, better, bigger, and greater than God: My country. My family. Indeed, I'd rather believe in the whole of mankind - not for what she is at present, but for what, with the power of thought, mankind can become in the future generations to come. Especially with knowledge - with the power of science and technology! Why should I give a hoot for the silly existence of a silly divinity? After I am dead,I do not care to meet such a Being in heaven; nor do I care to meet with such a Being in hell! Especially, as I must first go through purgatorial fires! To begin with, such beings and such places have no justification whatsoever to exist for a reason. For millions of years before I was born, I was existing as a nothing without a God; now why should it bother me to realize that after I am dead, for millions of years, I shall, again, be existing as a nothing without a God? Happily, in the meantime, I have no need to love my enemies. I don't care to have enemies. I do love, however, my daily struggles against religious lies and political deceptions! I am having fun hating such horrors! In this connection, I defy any one who says that the power of thought is dangerous! Dangerous to whom? To what? Because with the power of thought we might discover that the nature of human stupidity and the nature of divine infinity are one and the same old holy baloney inextricably mixed with holy salami? Poch Suzara

Lies and Deceptions

I said it before, I say it again: "Blessed is the season that engages the whole of mankind in a conspiracy of love - to unite humanity; and not divide it for the sake of big business more known as the love of God - big business, and fear the devil - big business." In the meantime, the history of our world has hardly been about GOOD verses EVIL. On the contrary, it has always been about EVIL versus EVIL and EVIL always won. Look at our sick world today. Half of it is ruled by lies. The other half is dominated by deceptions. Mix the two evils together and they both add up to the EVIL that daily characterizes our sick world. Happily, only the atheists give a hoot. Never do they ever stop mocking such lies and deceptions! Indeed, who would you rather love and respect - the lies from a politician? Or, the deception from a theologian? Or, the thoughts to provoke your thoughts by a pochologian - one who is not a Believer but a Thinker! Poch Suzara

Election 2013 or Deception

Feb. 1, 2013 Philippine Daily Inquirer Letter to the Editors, Dear Sirs: Election 2013 or Deception Election season is here again. We, the people, will vote for candidates not because of their ambitions for the good of our country; but because of the financial power hidden behind general election - the 4 Lords: Jueteng Lord, Gambling Lord, Drug Lord, and Praise the Lord. Not to mention their cohorts - the 3 Gs - Guns, Goons, and Gold. The General Election will be held on May 13, 2013. In total, there will be 18,022 national and local positions decided: 12 senators, 229 district members of the House of Representatives, 80 provincial governors, 80 provincial vice governors, 766 members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (provincial legislature), 138 city mayors, 138 city vice mayors, 1,532 members of the city council, 1,496 municipal mayors, 1,496 municipal vice mayors, and 11,972 members of the Sangguniang Bayan (municipal council In Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), there will be elected one regional governor, one regional vice governor, and 24 regional assemblymen. Party-list representative will also be elected. It is traditional. We, the people, know nothing about these candidates running for office - where they stand on nutrition for the nation; health and sanitation for our cities, towns, and barrios; especially as they should reflect love of country; law and order. What are their plans for us, the people, to have more sense as a nation and not just wait for the arrival of foreign corporations. Indeed, the arrival of our employers; while, we are educated enough to be their employees. Our national election is also about the approval of political dynasty growing and expanding steadily in our sick society. Especially where civil service eligibility does not matter. What counts is the relativity of influence, wealth, power, and glory. All that we know of these candidates is what they all share something in common together - They are all MAKA-DIOS. Indeed, we all have been raised and educated to believe in the existence of a divinity that is higher and greater than our country, or far more important than the Filipino family. A divinity always available with the power to forgive not only sins, crimes, and deceptions; but also to forgive graft and corruption. In the meantime, working for the government is a not a career of public service in our country. It is great opportunities to make money. And why not? Money made is the accepted measure of decadence in our country! Jose Rizal said it: "Corruption is the major cause of our economic backwardness." Indeed, corruption as the reflection of a corrupt system of education. Especially during our formative years in school. It is where we learn how to forgive the sins of our politicians; how to forgive law-makers as they are among the first law-breakers; how to forgive our church leaders, and the self-appointed prophets of big-business bible-thumpers! Thus, instead of more freedom and democracy - we only have more of the same old mediocrity more known as political dynasty in our poor and backward country. We hardly have the intellect to ask: where are our thinkers, writers, innovators, inventors, reformers, and the promoters of constructive evolution? How come we only have more of the same old destructive revelation? Indeed, instead of challenging ourselves with the task of generating new ideas for the new year, we only find ourselves celebrating the old ways of the old year! Oh yes, the historical struggle in the Philippines has never been about GOOD versus EVIL; but only about EVIL versus EVIL; and EVIL has always been wining! In the meantime, we have yet to find and then elect a collection of educated men courageous enough to run efficiently our government of the people, by the people, and for the people! We are told that the Philippines is one of richest countries in natural resources. Name it; we have it; except diamonds. Our educators, however, have yet, to discover the greatest and the most powerful of natural resources in our country: the Filipino mind and heart. Its precious potentials are wasted away yearly inside commercial establishments own and operated by our former colonial masters. They are still here, but no longer referred to as our colonial masters. They are more known today as schools, colleges, and universities. They are the deadliest of destroyers of Filipino minds and hearts. Such evils operate not as educational institutions; but as commercial enterprises. Tax free. Indeed, we are all born ignorant, not corrupt; we are made corrupt by education. Foremost historian - Teodoro A. Agoncillo - in his HISTORY OF THE FILIPINO PEOPLE, published some 50 years ago, wrote a simple truth still truthful today: "Self-deception is the worst tragedy of the Filipinos as a people." Sincerely, Poch Suzara, San Lorenzo Village, Makati city

Jesus had Acquired no Education

Jesus had No need to acquire education in grade school, High School, and college - He had no need to acquire knowledge in order to get Himself Crucified on a Cross The Miracles of Jesus - In Biblical Order A miracle is defined in current dictionaries as a phenomenal or supernatural event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers, more often than not incapable of being explained by the laws of nature. God never operates contrary to His Word or to the laws of nature which He has established, but He has the prerogative to supersede them. Jesus Christ was not the first to do miracles. There were many miracles of God in the Old Testament. The ten plagues in Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, the manna from heaven, the water from a rock, Aaron’s rod that budded, the ground that opened up and swallowed Korah and the rebels, the sun and moon standing still, the three Judeans in Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace, Daniel in the lion’s den, and many others. But Jesus’ miracles were distinctive. They were signs and mighty works which authenticated His divinity and His mission. People had heard the stories of the God of miracles, and His awesome and astonishing power, but the miracles of Jesus elicited unique responses. “…they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion. And they were astonished with a great astonishment. …and they were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered. And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well.” (Mark 2:12, 5:42, 6:51, 7:37 KJV) “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” (Acts 10:38) Following is a listing of the miracles of Jesus with corresponding Scriptures. “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:30, 31) Control of Nature 1. Calming the storm – Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:37-41; Luke 8:22-25 2. Feeding 5,000 - Matthew 14:14-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-14 3. Walking on water - Matthew 14:22-32; Mark 6:47-52; John 6:16-21 4. Feeding 4,000 – Matthew 15:32-39; Mark 8:1-9 5. Fish with coin – Matthew 17:24-27 6. Fig tree withers – Matthew 21:18-22; Mark 11:12-14, 20-25 7. Huge catch of fish – Luke 5:4-11; John 21:1-11 8. Water into wine – John 2:1-11 Healing of Individuals 1. Man with leprosy – Matthew 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-44; Luke 5:12-14 2. Roman centurion’s servant – Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10 3. Peter’s mother-in-law – Matthew 8:14-15; Mark 1:30-31; Luke 4:38-39 4. Two men possessed with devils – Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-15; Luke 8:27-39 5. Man with palsy – Matthew 9:2-7; Mark 2:3-12; Luke 5:18-26 6. Woman with bleeding – Matthew 9:20-22; Mark 5:25-34; Luke 8:43-48 7. Two blind men – Matthew 9:27-31 8. Dumb, devil-possessed man - Matthew 9:32-33 9. Canaanite woman’s daughter – Matthew 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30 10. Boy with devil - Matthew 17:14-21; Mark 9:17-29; Luke 9:38-43 11. Two blind men – including Bartimaeus - Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43 12. Demon-possessed man in synagogue – Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37 13. Blind man at Bethsaida – Mark 8:22-26 14. Crippled woman – Luke 13:10-17 15. Man with dropsy – Luke 14:1-4 16. Ten men with leprosy – Luke 17:11-19 17. The high priest’s servant – Luke 22:50-51 18. Nobleman’s son at Capernaum – John 4:46-54 9. Sick man at the pool of Bethsaida – John 5:1-15 20. Man born blind – John 9:1-41 Raising the Dead 1. Jairus’ daughter – Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56 2. Widow’s son at Nain – Luke 7:11-17 3. Lazarus – John 11:1-44 note: Jesus could save the world, but he could save himself nailed to a CROSS as the greatest of his miracle? Poch Suzara

Certainly, Poch is Not Alone

Certainly Poch is not alone. The "masa" Christians have been taught to be watchful of the evils men do, how to face such men and what they need to do to get even or justice. But they were not taught how to bravely face evil men belonging to the ruling elite and find ways to stop the evils they do. Instead they were made to understand that they must fear them and stay away from their guns and be subservient, to beg for their due and to die defending their rights, properties and health. Many of their brightest are made scholars only to serve the interest of the rich - by joining them or staying away from harm's way in another country. [Please don't ever think that the first class Filipino progressives who abandoned their Philippines were not allowed to leave in peace, with prayers to boot. Hey, it greatly pleases them to no end to see them go! Let them go, the more talents leaving the easier for exploitation and the safer entrenched the powerful elite are.] The powerful ruling elite are not powerful enough to create jobs for the fast growing "masa," so their sons and daughters are sent abroad to work. When they are abroad and send back home dollars, the elites, perched snugly on top of their lofty condos and sprawling malls with all the comforts in life, smile with satisfaction from ear to ear. Many of those sent away think like Poch but only a few can be loud, clear, persistent and emotionally charged in exposing the anomalous wrongs our evil ruling elite do. Nooo, Poch is not alone but his kind is hard to find in a confused believing people, meticulously cared for from birth to death by their churches. The meticulous care guarantees a captive people to serve the Lords - the unseen Lord in heaven, the drug Lords, the gambling Lords, gang Lords, the media Lords, the survey Lords, thetrapo Lords and the election Lords. Oh, yes they still have to serve the Law Lords of lawyers and judges. How I wish Poch can find the very means to make his advocacy heard and acted. Good luck, Poch. Good luck my Philippines! Ogie

All Children are Born as Unbelievers of the Faith

Anyone who understands the definition of atheism must acknowledge that all children are born atheists, including those born to Christian parents. Atheism is nothing more than the lack of acceptance of the theistic belief claim (i.e., some god or gods exist). A theist is one who believes that god(s) exist; an atheist is one who does not share this belief. The newborn child cannot even entertain such possibilities and thus lacks theistic belief. Atheism is the default position, and this is where we all begin. In order for Christians to argue against the reality that all children are born atheists, they must distort the meaning of atheism. They must convince themselves and their audience that atheism is a religion, a philosophy, or a worldview. They claim that atheism is an explicit repudiation of religion and that it involves faith that no gods exist. Such distortions in the meaning of atheism allow them to claim that children cannot be born atheist because atheism requires the same sort of deliberate choice required by religious belief. Atheism is not a belief system but lack of acceptance of one particular belief. It requires no faith; it is the absence of faith. It is the null hypothesis, the default condition, the natural starting point for each of us. But why must Christians distort the meaning of atheism at all? Why should they even care if their children are born atheists, especially when it is likely that they will begin brainwashing them at an early age? There are many reasons, ranging from a need to see the child as connected to them through the manner they consider most important (i.e., religion) to the harsh implications of infant mortality to their belief system. To expand on this latter point, consider the Christian parent whose child dies before the child is capable of forming the cognitions necessary to comprehend theistic belief. According to this parent's own Christian doctrine, this child is likely destined for hell. This is where non-believers go, and this child is clearly a non-believer. The Catholics toyed with limbo as a way out, but the evangelical Protestants now engaging in America's "culture wars" never really warmed to this idea. Even theism will be insufficient for such a parent, as a personal relationship with Jesus is thought to be the only vehicle for salvation. It should be remembered that Christians have created this doctrine for themselves and should be solely responsible for unraveling the many conundrums it presents. Distorting atheism is not an acceptable way out of the mess. It only makes the theists, the silly believers, look ridiculous. Poch Suzara

Every Child is Born with a Tragedy, NOT original sin

“Every human being on this earth is born with a tragedy, and it isn’t original sin. He’s born with the tragedy that he has to grow up. That he has to leave the nest, the security, and go out to do battle. He has to lose everything that is lovely and fight for a new loveliness of his own making, and it’s a tragedy. A lot of people don’t have the courage to do it.” Helen Hayes Most people believe in God because they have been taught from early infancy to do it, and that is the main reason. Then I think that the next most powerful reason is the wish for safety. Bertrand Russell Give me the storm and tempest of thought and action, rather than the dead calm of ignorance and faith. Banish me from Eden when you will; but first let me eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. Robert G. Ingersoll The greatest failures in life are those who live with the right answers to wrong questions. The greatest success, however, are those who question everything as the answers, with a few exceptions, become, in time, obsolete. Only the few have the courage to question what has always been taken for granted. Indeed, they have been taught to hate the power of thought. What they love is fear and ignorance more known as faith. Faith has the power to make people feel safe mindlessly, if not to feel lazy thoughtlessly. In the Philippines, however, faith has been and still is quite a success. Faith is the engine that generates the failure of our values and beliefs. Such failures promote nothing but the great success of our being famous as the Sick Man of Asia! Poch Suzara

George Bush and Bin Laden

“Bush and bin Laden are really on the same side: the side of faith and violence against the side of reason and discussion. Both have implacable faith that they are right and the other isevil. Each believes that when he dies he is going to heaven.Each believes that if he could kill the other, his path to paradise in the next world would be even swifter. The delusional "next world" is welcome to both of them. This world would be a much better place without either of them. ” Richard Dawkins, Scientist/Atheist Think about it: Both Bush and Bin Laden were never known to be indecent, atheistic, or used vulgar language. Bush or Bin Laden never got expelled out of high school; in fact both attained college education. Poch Suzara, High school Expelled/Atheist

Letter to TIME June 15, 2005

President Gloria Arroyo repeated the same words past presidents of the Philippines have faithfully declared again and again. Have “faith and trust in divine providence” during hard times. Indeed, democracy without education means hypocrisy without limitation; it means the degradation of high office into cheap prayers in order to serve the rulers and deceive the ruled. Meanwhile, growth as a people and development as a nation have yet to take roots. Unfortunately, our government officials are just waiting for divine providence to provide. Indeed, we Filipinos have been taught to believe that God will solve our problems for as long as we never lose faith. History, however, fails to prove that the creation of human decency throughout the land has ever been a priority with divinity. Corruption is the privilege of our elected officials and prayer rallies are organized if there were any proposal to alter the patriotic tradition. Our democratic failure is due to the popularity of ignorance. A Filipino has a better chance at winning high government position if he or she has achieved a reputation in mediocrity. Is there hope for the Philippines? Yes, there is. As soon as we begin to become the intelligent masters rather than the stupid victims of religion. Golly, even the daily prayers addressed to God in this country are as similar in form and content of letters children write to Santa Claus. But if God would rather fulfill the needs of the devil rather than save the Philippines away from the same old evil – why should the leaders of this Republic continue to have faith and trust in divine providence? Where is our science and the scientific way of thinking to remedy the religious mess that is keeping us Filipinos spiritually poor as a people and morally corrupt as a nation?

Who Knows

"God created the universe" is a silly statement. First, nobody knows God. Second, nobody knows the universe. Third, nobody knows what "knowing" means. Indeed, nobody even knows who we are? Where we come from? Where we are going? In the meantime, the question: "why is there something rather than nothing?" The answer" "Why not?" Poch Suzara

Education or Indoctrinatiion

We are all born ignorant, not stupid. We are made stupid by education. - Bertrand Russell In the Philippines, however, during our formativeyears in schools run by the Jesuits, we are made stupid by indoctrination. Look how, in this already 21st century, we still know not how to generate a happy new year with science and technology; we only know how to celebrate the ways of the old year with the same old stupid prayers under a theology. - Poch Suzara

IT IS MORE FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES

For the growth and development of tourism in our country - we declare to the whole wide world that - IT IS MORE FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES. Indeed, more fun for the tourists to enjoy not only our style of making whoopies, but also to enjoy other forms of patooties in our poor and backward country. Sadly, however, our tourist industry does not mean growth and development for the economy of our country. It only means making more babies. Indeed, 3 babies are born every minute of the day and night, or 1.5 Million babies are born yearly in the Philippines. Meanwhile, according to government statistics we now have more than 20 million single mothers. Many of them are trying to look for a husband or employment here, there, or anywhere in the world in order to support their children - not due to, or because of nationalism, but simply because mostly of tourism. May I, however, suggest for our tourists to come and visit the land where our Jose Rizal was born. Indeed, he was one of the greatest and brightest of men that mankind has ever produced. Courageously, by writing two books - to awaken us Filipinos to realize that we have a country to love, and a people to care. Jose Rizal shook the foundation of Catholicism in the Philippines. The Catholic church therefore had him arrested, incarcerated, and publicly executed. Indeed, in order to protect and defend Catholic trade and commerce and industry more known saving the "souls of Filipinos." The Catholic church is still here in this already 21st century. Profitably well-established as owners of schools, colleges, and universities; not to mention owners also of prime properties and other vast commercial enterprises in the Philippines - the only Catholic country in Asia since the 16th century! The Catholic church is one of major stock investors or players in the Makati Stock Stock Exchange Wouldn't it be great too see our tourists putting two and two together; and, for the glory of eternal salvation - come to the explanation why we are poor, dirty and backward, messy, and misguided as a nation? Cheers! Poch Suzara Twitter# Facebook# Google#