Jesus, God, Christianity, etc

[HUGECOOL]

I haven't found a major religion yet (or even a minor one) that isn't wacky. Hey, you can't sell me on your religion. They all suck.

While we're on this, a few years ago I made this claim in the off.ramp newsgroup that I used to hang out in: God is a *******. I offered Nevada and the Moon as proof. Guess what? No one ever was able to prove me wrong. At minimum I believe that God — if she exists — drinks cheap whiskey. That'd explain why things go to hell once in a while.

[Tash.]

I don't believe in God or anything like that as a "higher being". I prefer only to believe in what I can see or can be proved to me with evidence. I can see why some people would with things like miracles, answered prayers, numinous' etc but i really sometimes feel that people who have apparently experienced these are grasping onto them, because something bad has happened in their life + they need to believe that someone or thing is trying to help.. even if they actually arent + its a major coincidence. I was told that not believing in God would get me somewhere bad + i really used to believe it.. now I dont actually believe there is anything after death but death.. so I dont mind. Sorta off the topic but i felt like a rant.

[iluvben]

I don't mind peoples opinions on my religion , I just don't like it when they mock it like a thread when people were posted pictures taking the mic out of Jesus and God for their own amusment.

[Flap]

Nope I don't believe in it at all, I have no idea what happens what happens when you die, I guess i'll just have to wait and find out ;p I respect people who do believe though

[FlyingJesus]

Before anyone skim reads and gets the wrong idea, I'm an agnostic, which means basically that I have no religion but do some research into religions to try to pick at any truths there might be.

To those who don't believe because they cannot see God:

Set something in front of you. Look at it, touch it, smell it, put your ear up against it to find out if it makes noises, and if it isn't anything dangerous, you can even taste it. Leave it there, and move to another room where you cannot see, hear, taste, touch or smell the object. You can no longer sense it, does that mean that it no longer exists? Does the fact that you sensed it before even prove its existence? Your senses simply tell your brain something, and your brain takes that information to let you know what it's found. Without any of your senses you would have no knowledge of it, and so it is only because of your senses that you can believe that it exists - and then it is only your belief in the object's existence that proves it to you, so really belief is the only factor to take into account when you talk about things existing or not.


To those who don't believe because bad things happen:

Who says a god (no need of capital letter unless you're talking specifically about the Christian diety "God") has to be good? In many polytheist religions where more than one god exists, there are "bad" gods, styled from disaster, masters of fire and death. Even if there's just the one god, if he/she/it truly is our creator, why would they have to care about our wellbeing? Surely at some point in your life you've made something and then destroyed it, just to feel some sort of power over something, for your own amusement. Who says that a god even has the power to intervene, in a good or bad way? You could "create" a model car that runs on electricity (an RC model for example), and you made it yourself, but you still cannot change the forces that control it. You have limited control (movement in this case, and the power to destroy it) but you still don't control everything.

[Revis]

'God' does bad things because of fear. If the church no longer makes people fearfull of the repercussions of sinning or not being a good christian then they will lose followers, people will ditch the religion in search of something different.

I really do respect people who are religious, I wish I was able to believe and take comfort from a higher being but my skeptical nature and rough past just makes it difficult for me to believe.

[FlyingJesus]

I envy people who have "blind faith" as it were, a few months back I went on a school trip to a nearby cathedral for art, and the feeling inside the building was fantastic - there were no more than 5 people in there at the time (not including our group of course) and it just felt so peaceful and so happy. The sad truth is that people think they'll be happy if they know more, but as the saying goes, "ignorance is bliss".

[HUGECOOL]

To those who don't believe because bad things happen:

Who says a god (no need of capital letter unless you're talking specifically about the Christian diety "God") has to be good? In many polytheist religions where more than one god exists, there are "bad" gods, styled from disaster, masters of fire and death. Even if there's just the one god, if he/she/it truly is our creator, why would they have to care about our wellbeing? Surely at some point in your life you've made something and then destroyed it, just to feel some sort of power over something, for your own amusement. Who says that a god even has the power to intervene, in a good or bad way? You could "create" a model car that runs on electricity (an RC model for example), and you made it yourself, but you still cannot change the forces that control it. You have limited control (movement in this case, and the power to destroy it) but you still don't control everything.

The god we're talking about though is the Christian god. Since Christianity is not polytheist, the only god there is to know is one that is described by the media as good, loving, and forgiving.

The theory could be true for the same argument against polytheist religions, but not Christianity since its based on monotheism.

I envy people who have "blind faith" as it were, a few months back I went on a school trip to a nearby cathedral for art, and the feeling inside the building was fantastic - there were no more than 5 people in there at the time (not including our group of course) and it just felt so peaceful and so happy. The sad truth is that people think they'll be happy if they know more, but as the saying goes, "ignorance is bliss".

I'm writing a report on happiness (lol) and this basically supports my belief. People want to be happy because it makes them feel closer to God, but in reality, its just bringing them farther and farther away from that state they want to be in. I'll post the report later.

[FlyingJesus]

There is of course one argument which overrules any logic that you can throw at Christianity - the fact that the Christian/Jewish God is omnipotent. This means He can do anything. He could even do something pure evil and still be pure good, simply because he has omnipotency, He could lay the world to waste and scream hatred into the ears of all humans and still be benevolent and loving, because it's possible for Him to do anything He likes. It does rather follow "it's right because I say so", but it does make sense if you take time to think it over.

[HUGECOOL]

There is of course one argument which overrules any logic that you can throw at Christianity - the fact that the Christian/Jewish God is omnipotent. This means He can do anything. He could even do something pure evil and still be pure good, simply because he has omnipotency, He could lay the world to waste and scream hatred into the ears of all humans and still be benevolent and loving, because it's possible for Him to do anything He likes. It does rather follow "it's right because I say so", but it does make sense if you take time to think it over.

Sounds like a really bad acid trip, lol.