Late nights often get me wondering about life, death, faith and hope. This just happens to be my thoughts for the night. I hope that there may be one person it could touch. We just never know what is to come in our lives but I think that if we all have something for us to believe in, hope and faith will show you clarity of your beliefs.
I use to think that faith was enough- that if I had enough faith, I could accomplish anything. Faith is something that I think can lead us into the belief of being able to have a stronghold on life. When the tough gets going, we start to see that cloud of darkness roll in. I have always been known to be a Christian, but the closer I get to thinking I know who I am, or what I am and believe in- things change. One minute I am feeling this complete satisfaction of life as if some light of clarity has suddenly turned on inside of me. The next moment I am wondering how I am able to even survive another day on this earth.
There are nights that I have trouble sleeping; I'm just staring up at the ceiling with my mind going a mile a minute. I'm sure there are many other people who do this as well. I just start thinking about things in life. One thought always crosses my mind: I am going to die. We all know it's coming, there is no escaping the reality of what human life becomes. We exist, we live and we die. It's something no one really wants to talk about, yet we are all swimming in the same ocean of life. I try to wrap my mind around the concept of death but it's hard. I see death often since I work in the medical field. It's not that shocking to be doing the final preparing of a body before the funeral home straps the body to the gurney to be prepared for the last viewing before the body is buried six feet under. Sounds kind of morbid, doesn't it? What happens to our souls after we die? There are so many different religions, so many different beliefs. How do we know that our religion, our belief- is the "right" one?
I grew up going to a Methodist church- so from a young age, I was told I was a Christian because I believed in God and sang all the church hymnals, was baptized and did all the things that a young christian person should do. The older I got, the more I thought about how my faith never really started until I lost my faith. I had gone through the phase of depression and lost what faith I had in life. It was much easier to just stay in that dark depression and not feel anything toward life (like a numbness)- but the deeper I got, the harder it was for me to feel anything toward life. I don't really remember how my faith came back, but I knew that I needed to find some kind of happiness in life.
I'm sure most people know about God and the story of Jesus, Noah's arc, etc. As a kid, I remember reading from the children's bible- seeing all these colorful pictures of the arc, the cross where Jesus had died for our sins, the heavenly angels playing the harps on this big white puffy clouds. The more I think of it as an adult, the more it seems all that stuff was written like a fairy tale. We don't want to think of what is -next- after our death so we want to fill it up with something that seems too good to be true.
I don't believe there are coincidences in life. I believe there is a purpose for everything that happens. We may not know it until after our hindsight of the experience, but I think there is a reason for all the good and bad things of the world. After my father's death at the age of 59, I tried to close my eyes and pray. It was hard...I was angry that my dad had died so young, and maybe I just wasn't in the right state of mind to pray when I was angry. I eventually overcame the anger and was in that accepting stage. A few different times I had dreams of my father- almost like I could touch him. It brought a lot of emotions- knowing that he is only as far away as I let him be. We are stuck in these bodies for a long while- these awful, hard to maintain at times- bodies. My dad had a lot of stuff wrong with his heart and lungs- it just caused him an early death. But death isn't as negative as it sounds- it's kind of like putting a beloved pet down because you don't want to see them suffer anymore. God knows the person is suffering, the person's body isn't responding the way it should so he puts the body to rest and their soul lives on in the dimension of the universe for which we can't see with our humanly eyes. There is not a doubt in my mind that there is something "more" ...there are too many miracles, too many things to think we were all created from some "big bang" ...the simplicities of a blooming flower, the sounds of birds chirping, the way the stars shine brightly in a clear midnight sky. That is where my faith comes in. There is just too many beautiful things in the world to think that we humans could make it all up. The miracle of birth- how we all are so different and yet we all have two eyes, ten toes, ten fingers, etc. How awesome is it to see a child born to this world- and life to begin once again.
I may not be the picture perfect Christian. I know I'm not even a good enough human to deserve this life; to be able to see what life brings forward. I know that I am, however, full of faith. Faith has taught me that no matter how hard life gets, no matter the good from the worse things that happen in life, faith will carry me through. I've heard the saying that someone has faith the size of a mustard seed; althought that's a very small amount of faith- it's something that can carry you through. We all need faith- I hope that wherever the wind may blow, no matter how difficult life comes- faith can reach us all. I have faith there has to be a better tomorrow; why? Because without it, there's no use in living. I'd say faith is enough- enough to give us Hope.
Phil, I could do this all week. :) I love committed atheists...they're so much fun!
God bless you (honestly) for being willing to don your mac and pull on the wellies to drag roof-guy to safety; because that's God--working through YOU! Surprise! Human beings, like all social animals, from ants to elephants, are supposed to engage in altruistic acts from time to time. But you and I both know that not all people give a rip about some dumb shmuck who won't come down off his roof. Lots of people would say, "The heck with him--he's too stupid to come down, he deserves to die." They aren't heeding the voice of God (so to speak). When I see human altruism, human goodness, I see God at work because I see God as the source of the altruistic impulse. I don't see omens. And critter guts really gross me out--whoever came up with stirring entrails as a method of divination was all kinds of twisted.
And, yes, ignorant is the right word. Ignorant isn't the same thing as stupid or uneducated. Ignorant is not knowing things that you probably should know; there is a reason these people are called extremists--the vast majority of their co-religionists do not support the murder of innocent civilians. All beliefs are valid; not all beliefs are OK. Murder is not OK, and most human beings know this. To not know something so basic is, I think, definitely ignorant. Many Islamic extremists who advocate the wholesale slaughter of innocent infidels know the Koran, yes. What they often do not know is how to separate their religion from their politics. Several of the 9/11 hijackers spent their last night on Earth partying, not praying. One of them had an "infidel" girlfriend. They were cherry-picking their literal interpretations of the religion to suit their socio-political views. As for their being psychopaths--I don't happen to care that there isn't a defined diagnosis for what terrorists do: People who can murder fellow human beings they've never met in the service of an idea or to make a political point are sick. Their behavioral choices are based on an unacceptable belief structure, such as: I read in a book dictated by an angel of God to an illiterate man that I should kill infidels wherever I meet them just because they're infidels. (Incidentally, I find it strange that an atheist doesn't consider this a slam-dunk in the "yup, he's a Froot-Loop" department.) And I can say the belief structure is unacceptable because no society anywhere considers murder OK. I think this is why most Muslims draw the line at random bombing and beheading--it's maladaptive, it tends to upset people, and it's...messy. Besides, every culture decides what is "normal" and what is "abnormal." I hope we can all agree that acts of mass murder tend to fall on the side of crazy.
And I have to confess I'm confused as to why so many people want to blame the ills of the world on religion. Or even just terrorism. The IRA killed innocent people, but Catholicism had precious little to do with it. The Red Brigade were communists. The suicide bombers at Pearl Harbor were at war, but their faith (Buddhist or Shinto, most likely) was probably far less important than honor and service to the emperor. People do bad things for a multitude of reasons, but I think being angry, selfish, and greedy are the most common.
Of course color-blind people have to take it on faith that there IS a color called red and there IS a color called green, even though they will never be able to see them. They put their faith in the evidence of billions of people who would all tell them the same thing: There IS such a thing as a color you can't see. Trust us--we all see it, and we are the majority. The weight of evidence is on our side (apocryphal as it must seem to you, who cannot see).
And finally: Oh, yeah. The suicide bombers of the world DEFINITELY hear stuff I don't. And the stuff they hear is wrong. Like, totally.
I appreciate the congratulations about roof-guy, thanks... but you'll have to join the queue to pat my back.
See, I've got a Zoroastrian here telling me that it was Ahura Mazda - working through ME!
And a Sikh, telling me it was Ik Onkar - working through ME!
And behind them... Shintoists, Taoists, Buddhists, (Eastern Animist and Zen) Muslims(Sunni, Shi'a and Sufi), and a whole slew of Variegated Christian denominations.
(there was a lot of coal in that sack!)
They're all terribly happy to see the Gods at work through my actions, although none of them would be so crass as to call such confirmation an "omen"... after all, when you put it like that, it sounds so primitive and superstitious!
And of course, they all see confirmation of what they already believed anyway!
The Amerindian Animist, for example, sees the hand of Gitchi Manitou - but of course, he's holding coal.
You see God. Of course you do - after all, you're holding the diamond.
Yeah, the hijackers partied.
Newsflash - they belonged to one of the many religions which posit the idea that sin can be washed away!
By confession and repentance, by baptism, or specifically in their case, by martyrdom.
If that's crazy, it's no crazier than any of the other varieties of redemptionism.
More messy, more noisy, more violent, but no more out of touch with reality.
Yes, they cherry-picked their interpretation of their religion.
Don't all religious believers?
I don't want to be one of those tiresome bible quote-miners. (Seriously, they're unbearable.)
Suffice to say that if you know your scripture, you know exactly what I mean.
I don't consider killing in the name of religion a 'slam-dunk in the froot-loop department' (although I love the phrase!) and here's why: it's a cop-out.
It's lazy-minded avoidance of a huge issue - that rational, functionally well-adjusted human beings can commit horrendous acts, and successfully rationalise their commission.
More often than not - that rationalisation involves religion.
Its hard to deal with the implications of ordinary people operating gas chambers.
Way easier just to label them 'monsters' - after all, monsters are beyond all understanding, and that excuses us a lot of difficult questions.
Suicide bombers at Pearl Harbor? There weren't any. Pearl: 1941. Kamikazes: 1944/5.
A damaged aircraft crashed into the airfield at Kaneohe during the raid there at the same time as the Pearl attack, but those guys were there to drop their bombs, turn round and fly back.
(Yeah - massive history nerd, here!)
As for 'putting faith in the evidence' ? That... that's hurting my poor little brain.
The entire concept of religious faith is 'belief without evidence'.
If you have evidence, then whatever degree of trust you place in that evidence... it's not 'faith'. Not in the religious sense of the word.
Again, the hostility of atheists to believers, no matter HOW compelling the argument, is a continual mystery to me. Because, most likely, I'm on your side, in any other way than belief in something higher than ourselves.
I do apologize, because I know the question will anger you, but, what are you so angry about?
And no, although most of the people operating the gas chambers probable weren't true believers (although some of them undoubtedly were), the fact that they were terrified of the evil regime they knew they were subject to, and understood the consequences of disobedience, is reason enough--I think--to give them, if not a pass, at least a grudging "OK, I understand"?
Can you not deal with the argument as it was intended without concerning yourself with petty details? You understand what was being said even if the facts weren't totally accurate? (And I'll have to look into it, no doubt, although, really, to the people who died at Pearl Harbor it really doesn't matter whether the Japanese pilots were bombers or suicide bombers--random murder is random murder no matter how it's done) Who CARES if the attack at Pearl Harbor didn't include kamikaze pilots? (And if you weren't there, how do you know for sure that it didn't? Not trying to make a point, but seriously--were you there?) They (Japanese suicide bombers) existed. Do you dispute that? The argument that their faith had little if nothing to do with their actions still stands. Whether you like it or not.
Do you really not accept that mass-murders are abnormal? Or do you think that they're sometimes justified? I happen to think war is wrong, no matter what the supposed justification. You?
This isn't the debate team, where stuff is completely theoretical. This is reality, where caring more about whether the method of murder is suicide bombing or just plain bombing is just beside the point. Whether you want it to be or not.
I'm sorry, Phil. I'm not angry...just disappointed.
And me, I don't volunteer anywhere--but my dog was the puppy of an abandoned pregnant female, my cat was a stray living behind the prison where I worked, and my horse was a badly abused (he still isn't able to tolerate men after 16 years) rescue. Thank you, though, for your service to the animals--they so need friends in this world!
I had to add, I really am not the sort of person to push an argument. But I like your style, Phil, and it just kind of bothers me that you can't deal with the substance of the argument rather than trying to lawyer the particulars. Prove me wrong--give me something meaningful. Please!
I may have to break the 'no text-speak' rule long enough to say... LOOOOL!
Attack ad hominem ? So early? From someone who reckoned they could 'do this all week'?
Heheheh... never mind that my tone has been civil, amiable... jocular even. That I slipped in subtle hints like "chewing the topic over in a (here's the clue) friendly way".
No... I disagree with you, therefore I must be angry. It's the only possible conclusion. Priceless!
Here's a little reality check for you: it is possible for someone to examine the same information as you - and draw a different conclusion from it - without getting worked up about it.
Anyway, moving on:
I did indeed deal with the substance of the argument, as intended, in the first statement of my first post:
"Is faith enough? Far from it, in my view."
Which I went on to state my rationale for.
That's... y'know... how it's done. Fairly basic, I thought. Not too hard to get a handle on.
The 'gas chambers' example is a broad and troubling one. It's a tar-pit for believers and non-believers alike, and the only certainty is that there are no easy answers.
My feelings, though?
We're considering a situation in which one group of people whose motto is "God With Us" is herding another group of people wearing yellow stars onto cattle trucks.
When a rational person tries to tell me, straight-faced, that it had nothing to do with religion, my instinct is to sit back and let that person keep digging.
Who cares about "Petty details" re. Pearl Harbor? Well, my post makes it kind of obvious that I do.
If you don't, then what the heck, let it go.
But no... instead, you present not one, but two strawman arguments!
(Ah, the strawman - your posts are like an 'I-spy' of spurious debate techniques. Have you even done this before?)
For the uninitiated: a strawman argument is when somebody can't answer, or wishes to avoid, what you actually said, so sets up an argument based on something which sounds similar to what you said, But, crucially, is a bit easier to refute.
Here we have "were you at Pearl Harbor?" and "do you dispute that there were Japanese suicide bombers?"
Not biting. Flimsy strawmen, clumsily presented.
Suffice to say that everybody sees what you did, there.
"This isn't the debate team, where stuff is purely theoretical"
LOL again! We're talking religion! My whole point is that it is entirely theoretical!
(In fact, I'm being generous with the definition of 'theory' there.)
"I could do this all week" and "I'm not the sort of person to push an argument"?
What?! Make your mind up - which is it?
In conclusion: you appear to be out of your depth here.
You are demonstrably unfamiliar with basic religious terminology such as the concept of faith.
You have resorted to personal attack and attempted to present strawmen.
Speaking as someone who has an actual grounding in theology and who enjoys "chewing the topic over in a friendly way", I feel let-down in all departments here.
Awww...don't be like that! I'm the menopausal one here!
First: About the kamikazes, etc.--rebuke accepted. You're right, of course--the fact that a statement seems maddeningly irrelevant to me does not make it so. I now see the insensitivity of my remarks. Thank you for educating me. As for the hysterical screeching, I can only plead temporary insanity. I truly apologize.
Second: I must say, in my own defense, that the accusation of ad hominem attack is a bit odd coming from one who asserted that the "kind of person" who sees "omens" in ordinary events (in reference to me) makes him think of "medieval peasants" right out of the gate!
Third: I have also tried to keep this light. I really am sorry I hurt your feelings, but it doesn't necessarily follow that I'm not playing fair. I don't use straw men--they make my hands itch; and also because I don't have to--the arguments stand on their own. We differ in opinion, that's all.
So, if you choose to pick the mic back up, I'll be thrilled. If not, then peace out!
Awww...don't be like that! I'm the menopausal one here!
First: About the kamikazes, etc.--rebuke accepted. You're right, of course--the fact that a statement seems maddeningly irrelevant to me does not make it so. I now see the insensitivity of my remarks. Thank you for educating me. As for the hysterical screeching, I can only plead temporary insanity. I truly apologize.
Second: I must say, in my own defense, that the accusation of ad hominem attack is a bit odd coming from one who asserted that the "kind of person" who sees "omens" in ordinary events (in reference to me) makes him think of "medieval peasants" right out of the gate!
Third: I have also tried to keep this light. I really am sorry I hurt your feelings, but it doesn't necessarily follow that I'm not playing fair. I don't use straw men--they make my hands itch; and also because I don't have to--the arguments stand on their own. We differ in opinion, that's all.
So, if you choose to pick the mic back up, I'll be thrilled. If not, then peace out!
Whoa.....Back up there.
You were abusive - "Kool Ade?" Yes it was an Ad Hominem attack
You went straight to abuse of Phil who it appears is British so that particular insult is wasted.
He very politely took apart your arguments and told you why. You are now talking menopausal - are you looking for special treatment because you are female or because you are older or both?
Medieval peasants - I would have gone further back, stone age man looking around and seeing tree gods, water sprites etc. all the stuff that has hindered us for years.
I personally find it offensive that I cannot do something good or right unless some magic sky person is doing it through me - utter contemptible nonsense.
You have demanded Phil "prove" things but you are the one making claims (Russell's Teapot?).
"What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence."
For me, THAT is the essence of faith. It's not about "sky-gods," or flawed mathematical sums.
I had the "When injury or illness strike, the faithful may well pray...but they also seek medical treatment" idea explained to me thus: There was a great storm, followed by a terrible flood. One man climbed up on his roof to escape the waters. After a day, a man in a rowboat came by; "Come down, and get into my boat! The waters are still rising!" "No," said the man on the roof. "God will save me." The waters continued to rise. On the second day, a woman in a motorboat roared up to the house: "Quick, climb down and get in--you can't stay here! I'll get you to safety!" she cried. "No, thanks," said the man on the roof. "God will save me." Still the waters climbed higher. On the third day, with the water lapping at his feet, the man on the roof heard a helicopter approaching. Over the loudspeaker he heard, "Grab this rope and get in the basket, or you will drown!" "Nope," said the man, "I know God will save me!" On the fourth day, the man drowned. When he got to heaven, he cried out to God, "Why didn't you save me?" God shrugged and said, "I tried--I sent the rowboat, the motorboat, and the helicopter, but you wouldn't get off that %#@&ing roof!" Life isn't a movie, where miracles happen by magic; this is reality, and God works miracles through people.
Like the OP, I too wonder whether I believe the "right" things. I don't see this as a weakness, but rather as a strength; humility is almost always good, arrogance almost always bad. When I reach into that bag and pull out my lump of coal, my tendency isn't to pretend it's a diamond: I tend to look for other people who also have a lump of coal so we can combine them and grill something tasty! Or maybe just stay warm. Faith isn't supposed to be a glowing jewel jealously guarded; it's meant to be shared.
And I must respectfully disagree that it is faith in the minds of the devout that justifies flying airliners into skyscrapers; it is ignorance and hatred in the minds of psychopaths that justifies such actions.
I'm a believer, but I'm also a rational person! Please don't call faith irrational--it's simply a matter of perspective. Those who are red-green color blind have to take it "on faith" that such colors actually exist. How many other colors are there that humans simply can't perceive? My dog can hear a dog whistle, but I can't; does that make me less rational than my dog? He definitely hears something--the fact that I don't hear it is not de facto evidence that his hearing is more or less "right" than mine...it just encompasses a wider range.
Food for thought?
According to Christians, if people call out to Jesus, they will be saved from eternal damnation. If they don't accept Jesus, they will be suffered in the lake of fire for eternity. Regardless of one's characters, they would be burned over and over forever if they don't profess their love in Yahweh and Jesus.
This is the faith that you want to share with your patients?
I don't discuss my faith with my patients unless they specifically ask, and even then in only general terms. Boundaries!
Personal faith is another matter. There is a range of interpretations regarding the meaning of hell, whether it is literal or figurative, so you needn't take the smoke-and-brimstone talk of Christian fundamentalists seriously. Unless you want to, of course.
You don't have to fear God. God is good. I know the Bible is confusing, because so many Christians thump the Old Testament. But Christians live under grace, which is God's love and forgiveness. You are free to reject it--that's OK. God is bigger than we are. He has room for all kinds of people in His house. Even atheists, I think. :) Peace.
I don't discuss my faith with my patients unless they specifically ask, and even then in only general terms. Boundaries!
Personal faith is another matter. There is a range of interpretations regarding the meaning of hell, whether it is literal or figurative, so you needn't take the smoke-and-brimstone talk of Christian fundamentalists seriously. Unless you want to, of course.
You don't have to fear God. God is good. I know the Bible is confusing, because so many Christians thump the Old Testament. But Christians live under grace, which is God's love and forgiveness. You are free to reject it--that's OK. God is bigger than we are. He has room for all kinds of people in His house. Even atheists, I think. :) Peace.
Well, I don't want to engage in a religious conversation with Christian fundamentalists. They initiated it, and they actually believed that non believers would suffer for eternity simply for not believing in Jesus.
Their action doesn't come out of nowhere. Thanks to these people that I educate myself more about the Bible. It does have verses that specifically condemn non Christians. The book of Revelation is such a book.
This is the reason I wonder if it is possible for a Christian nurse to put her belief aside and try to walk in her patients' shoes. Empathy is a human trait, but it can be clouded by dogmas. Until Christian nurses sort that out, I really feel uncomfortable being under their care.
Well, I don't want to engage in a religious conversation with Christian fundamentalists. They initiated it, and they actually believed that non believers would suffer for eternity simply for not believing in Jesus.
Their action doesn't come out of nowhere. Thanks to these people that I educate myself more about the Bible. It does have verses that specifically condemn non Christians. The book of Revelation is such a book.
This is the reason I wonder if it is possible for a Christian nurse to put her belief aside and try to walk in her patients' shoes. Empathy is a human trait, but it can be clouded by dogmas. Until Christian nurses sort that out, I really feel uncomfortable being under their care.
I'm sorry you feel so uncomfortable with Christians. They should not be making you feel uncomfortable. Christ taught that all who are not against us are with us. This is significant for atheists and pagans--whoever is not anti-Christian is under grace as well, and is not counted as an enemy of God.
However, there is no need to try to draw people away from God--if you do not believe in God, that is OK. We Christians need not force our belief on you, and you need not force your beliefs on us. Atheism is OK, but you should not push it on others, just as you would not wish religion of any stripe (I'm assuming) pushed on you.
This is something that many are unwilling to confront--pushing religious beliefs is wrong, but pushing atheism is perfectly OK. Double standards? Be fair. That's all I ask.
ChryssyD
149 Posts
Phil, I could do this all week. :) I love committed atheists...they're so much fun!
God bless you (honestly) for being willing to don your mac and pull on the wellies to drag roof-guy to safety; because that's God--working through YOU! Surprise! Human beings, like all social animals, from ants to elephants, are supposed to engage in altruistic acts from time to time. But you and I both know that not all people give a rip about some dumb shmuck who won't come down off his roof. Lots of people would say, "The heck with him--he's too stupid to come down, he deserves to die." They aren't heeding the voice of God (so to speak). When I see human altruism, human goodness, I see God at work because I see God as the source of the altruistic impulse. I don't see omens. And critter guts really gross me out--whoever came up with stirring entrails as a method of divination was all kinds of twisted.
And, yes, ignorant is the right word. Ignorant isn't the same thing as stupid or uneducated. Ignorant is not knowing things that you probably should know; there is a reason these people are called extremists--the vast majority of their co-religionists do not support the murder of innocent civilians. All beliefs are valid; not all beliefs are OK. Murder is not OK, and most human beings know this. To not know something so basic is, I think, definitely ignorant. Many Islamic extremists who advocate the wholesale slaughter of innocent infidels know the Koran, yes. What they often do not know is how to separate their religion from their politics. Several of the 9/11 hijackers spent their last night on Earth partying, not praying. One of them had an "infidel" girlfriend. They were cherry-picking their literal interpretations of the religion to suit their socio-political views. As for their being psychopaths--I don't happen to care that there isn't a defined diagnosis for what terrorists do: People who can murder fellow human beings they've never met in the service of an idea or to make a political point are sick. Their behavioral choices are based on an unacceptable belief structure, such as: I read in a book dictated by an angel of God to an illiterate man that I should kill infidels wherever I meet them just because they're infidels. (Incidentally, I find it strange that an atheist doesn't consider this a slam-dunk in the "yup, he's a Froot-Loop" department.) And I can say the belief structure is unacceptable because no society anywhere considers murder OK. I think this is why most Muslims draw the line at random bombing and beheading--it's maladaptive, it tends to upset people, and it's...messy. Besides, every culture decides what is "normal" and what is "abnormal." I hope we can all agree that acts of mass murder tend to fall on the side of crazy.
And I have to confess I'm confused as to why so many people want to blame the ills of the world on religion. Or even just terrorism. The IRA killed innocent people, but Catholicism had precious little to do with it. The Red Brigade were communists. The suicide bombers at Pearl Harbor were at war, but their faith (Buddhist or Shinto, most likely) was probably far less important than honor and service to the emperor. People do bad things for a multitude of reasons, but I think being angry, selfish, and greedy are the most common.
Of course color-blind people have to take it on faith that there IS a color called red and there IS a color called green, even though they will never be able to see them. They put their faith in the evidence of billions of people who would all tell them the same thing: There IS such a thing as a color you can't see. Trust us--we all see it, and we are the majority. The weight of evidence is on our side (apocryphal as it must seem to you, who cannot see).
And finally: Oh, yeah. The suicide bombers of the world DEFINITELY hear stuff I don't. And the stuff they hear is wrong. Like, totally.
The doggie loved the nose boop, by the way!