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ThomasdelVasto

Κύριε, ποίησόν με ὄργανον τῆς ἀγάπης σου

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joined 2025 May 20 19:37:18 UTC

Blogger, Christian convert, general strange one. https://shapesinthefog.substack.com/


				
User ID: 3709


				
				
				

			

		

	














	


		


			



	

		

			

			

				

					

						

							
						

						

							
							

								
ThomasdelVasto


								

								

								
								
								

								
							
					
 
				


				
Κύριε, ποίησόν με ὄργανον τῆς ἀγάπης σου

				
				
				

				

					0 followers  

					follows 0 users  

					joined 2025 May 20 19:37:18 UTC
				


				
					

					
Blogger, Christian convert, general strange one. https://shapesinthefog.substack.com/



				

				

				

				

				

					

					

					
					
					

					
User ID: 3709


					
					
					
				

			


					

						
					



		

	

 











			
			

			
			

			




	


		

			
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	 Hot Bump Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
	



		

	






	

		
		

		
		
	

	

  







		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for May 3, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Yeahhhhhh I have worked in sales and marketing my whole career and I think that is a big contributor. How did you get out of that situation?


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for May 3, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Don't ruin it for me. I'm gonna ride it out and do my best to ignore the redditor side of things.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for May 3, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Just started the Mage Errant series and I've blasted through three books. It's a light, fun read, though a bit too redditor for me to truly love it.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for May 3, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Perhaps not a small question, but I'm curious if folks here have dealt with depression/anxiety and if so, how have they turned it around or alleviated symptoms?


Looking mostly for success stories.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Wellness Wednesday for April 29, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Fair man. I wish you well either way, just want to let people know what I’ve experienced. Hope the shoulder gets better.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Wellness Wednesday for April 29, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
What makes you think I'm not talking about "Yoga, rehab, etc." when it comes to managing chronic pain?


I'd also advise him to see a shoulder specialist, but again remind him that surgery for this sort of thing is often unnecessary and leads to bad outcomes.


I can see why you'd pattern-match me to being dumb, but you're wrong.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Wellness Wednesday for April 29, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Please man I'm telling you, don't get surgery from a muscle you pulled while yawning and stretching. It's a complete scam, most chronic injury heals much better over time without surgery.


If you're curious to look more into this sort of thing, I put together a list of resources here: https://shapesinthefog.substack.com/p/chronic-pain-resources-research


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Wellness Wednesday for April 29, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Dude, avoid surgery for that sort of injury at all costs. They are often not better than placebo, and orthos and PTs have huge incentives to push them. Seriously, surgery is probably not worth it 95% of the time from my research.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for April 24, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Man, I want Chinese food now. Sounds delicious.


Avatar the Last Airbender, while a show, is awesome. Another great kids movie is the Pokemon Movie with Mewtoo, the first one I believe.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for April 26, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Utopian! What makes you think they're dystopian?


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of April 20, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I'm definitely in favor of more hardcore sentencing for violent criminals, at least repeat offenders. Three strike laws for instance, when it comes to violent crime, are totally fine for me. Definitely not woke myself in other areas.


That doesn't mean that I think black people are inferior, subhuman, or deserve to be treated overall with less dignity than white people.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Ahh thanks my friend. I appreciate ya! Yeah I figure I'll get flack I often do when writing about religion online, but hey that's just how it goes.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of April 20, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Men clap each other on the back and are extremely warm with each other. Black people gas each other up all the time. There's a physical vitality and liveliness that I don't see celebrated as much in white culture. A focus on athleticism, and physical strength.


There's also a general rootedness, less of a willingness to just pick up and leave your entire family on a whim for a better social scene or career prospects. All of these are good things, imo.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Converting to Catholicism
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Hey glad to see more Motte folks joining in. I have to say for myself I'm much more "vibes-based" so to speak than hardcore theology focused, but it's definitely a rich area for folks converting to Catholicism. Overall I'd say when it comes to salvation at least, I'm a (hopeful) universalist, or in other words I'd like to believe that in the fullness of Eternity, God will draw all souls back to Himself. David Bentley Hart writes powerfully on this subject, and Orthodox theology more generally, if you're ever curious to check some of that out.


Also, I feel obligated to say you might want to check out Orthodoxy as well, especially if Papal infallibility bothers you. ;)


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
As I’ve asked fellow rats before, it’s a good question worth investigating. I was an atheist for many years myself. You may find yourself surprised like I was.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Yeah the problem of evil is notoriously the biggest challenge to any conception of a good God. I definitely agree. That's why I said I haven't found a convincing argument against it, and I don't know if it's even possible. Evil is pretty brutal.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					


I think it has a lot to do with how trash information sells well while the actual quality information is more hidden away and gets fewer eyes.




Yeah, part of why I opted for a more provocative title, heh. Also I just thought it would be fun.


I think a huge part of the issue is that the initial proselytizers of Buddhism to the West were, uhh, perhaps not the best examples. Folks like D.T. Suzuki, Alan Watts, and other teachers who had various moral failures when coming over. Perhaps it selected for people who didn't have the real good stuff, or whatever.


Either way, seems to me like Westernized Buddhism has been a pretty botched move so far, though there are bright spots. Then again, it's not like the West in general has done good at keeping our own religious traditions to the righteous road. In general modernity seems to have a lot of difficulty working with the ancient wisdom traditions.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of April 20, 2026
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
For what it's worth, I think the HBD folks are usually obsessed with IQ in an unhealthy way. Black culture, despite the bad parts, has some really lovely vitality and openess and warmth that a lot of more standardized western culture lacks. I for one think HBD, while true in some narrow sense, doesn't even come close to justifying bringing back slavery.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					


I believe omnibenelovence is an interpretation added by later theologians. God, going by the Bible, and the reality of the world, can cause suffering when He musts.




Yeah all of the omni stuff is.... not exactly fully supported historically from what I've read. Or at least, the words didn't mean the same thing that we think they mean now.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					


Why must God be subject to our conception of good and evil? Humans think of pain and suffering and death as “evil”, but why must God? Maybe He has purposes and intentions that we could not possibly fathom.




God is not subjection to our conception of good and evil. I agree, He is so far beyond us we can't possibly understand it.


There's a great video here on twitter talking about how a superaligned AI would not do things we like, showing people holding down a struggling seal and cutting a plastic net off of it's neck. I think God's relationship to us might be at least somewhat similar.


That being said, I expect God to care because, you know, of Christ. The fact that God told us He cares, directly, and gave His life for us.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Sigh. See my response to TowardsPanna. I have written quite a lot about my problems with western buddhism, and thought I was beyond clear in the article that I didn’t take it seriously. Not sure why you two are taking so much umbrage at that fact.


https://www.themotte.org/post/3699/when-the-buddha-failed-me/435516?context=8#context


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I’m surprised you’re so mad, where is your equanimity my friend? Usually we get along.


I didn’t write this to appeal to anyone in particular, I wrote this because it is my experience, and a lot of people have asked me questions about it. On Twitter I actually tend to interact with more Buddhists than Christians, and get along with them better.


I wasn’t trying to attack the Buddha or Buddhism - I thought I made it perfectly clear, as you point out, that I failed to engage with Buddhism properly. I’m not sure why it makes you so angry? It’s not as if I said anywhere in the article “Buddhism sucks and the Buddha is evil.” I tried quite hard to avoid that language, as I don’t think it’s true in the slightest.  I have a lot of fondness for the Buddha and his teachings.


Sure the title is a bit spicy, but hey it’s the age we live in!


If you actually read the article without such a strong emotional response, I’d be curious for your thoughts and your take on western Buddhism, and how young people might get such bad misapprehensions of what the Buddha taught.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Disagree with this framing of belief. It’s certainly more of an action than a proposition though, and something you can work on.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Good question. Do I have a satisfying answer for why people die and why death exists in the first place? Not really. Ultimately I have come to accept that it was my dad's time to go, though. That death exists in the world for some reason beyond my ken.


The official church answer of course is that it's because Adam and Even chose sin, and so death entered the world. I find that unpersuasive, given that God had to have known that this was at least a possible outcome when He created them. So I choose to believe that whatever happens after this mortal existence, in the fullness of Eternity, is worth it. I try my best to trust Him. Perhaps we'll all be reunited in our current bodies in a plane of Paradise; perhaps there will be something even stranger and harder to fathom that happens after death. Either way, I'm slowly coming to trust more and more that God is truly good, and wouldn't allow an evil like death unless there was a greater goodness it necessitated.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				When the Buddha Failed Me
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Thank you! Yeah as I mention in the post, I know that I did not necessarily do the 'correct' Buddhist path. Also though, Pure Land seems quite different from most Western Buddhism anyway. From what I have heard it's much more deity focused and less uhhh personal enlightenment.