Do you believe in God?

:popcorn:

Dogs for dyslexics.

Personally, I call him/her by his/her Christian name, but that makes him/her no less the God of Muslims, Jews and others.

NGU.

I believe in God, which is what Christians call the Divine. Other people have other names for the Divine.

dg

Many names.

Many aspects.

Many believers.

Many interpretations.

(And, sadly, many people who are fanatical about their
oh-so-microscopically-defined *interpretation* rather
than thinking beyond the petty limits imposed by proud
spiteful yet ignorant men.)

Goddess, yes.

I believe in the power of persuasion...

(I have it on authority - I studied at seminary!)

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The real question is whether or not you believe the universe was created by a giant pile of spaghetti.

so yeah...

:thumbsup:

imo. that's why this being is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent.
this being giving a rat's ass about me personally? i just don't see, or feel, that.

when people are brandishing their "gods" here and there.

If God is really God, then God is not some partial or separate entity outside of which something can exist.

If you create god.

--imm

If god is just the universe and everything in it, then that is a natural condition. God by definition is supernatural and therefore somehow apart from the universe.

and its power to inspire humans to purse aims which are really wonderful, and really despicable.

both within and without us.

there's a big difference between faith and belief--I actively entertain the possibility that I'm wrong.

Generation
Organization
Death

G eneration and
O rganization of
D irt

There is generation and then organization and then a return to dirt.
Then the dirt is regenerated, organized and then becomes dirt again.

Round and round we go, where it stops nobody knows. <grin>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeYsTmIzjkw

:P

I get it that some people just don't get it.

Is 'other' no? Anyway, to answer your question, no, but I do believe in a light within each of us.

It seems that's what a majority of people here think. Oddly, most are not as pushy and willing to put it out there as the religious people.

I used to claim atheism.
After some serious contemplation and careful reading of the definitions of 'atheist' and 'agnostic', I've decided that I'm an agnostic after all.

I don't 'believe' in a god, but I can't absolutely 'know' that one doesn't exist in some form or another.

Hence, agnostic.
:-)

You don't go around calling yourself a Santa agnostic now do you? I mean, after all, Santa might just exist, right? :eyes:

a- theist = no belief

a- gnostic = no knowledge

But I still don't have to go to church or feel guilty about not going.
:-)

It is (or at least was back then) a fairly liberal denomination.
Not Bible thumpers or fundies.
Just kind of middle-of-the-road, whitebread Protestant church.
Drinkin', smokin', and dancin' were OK.
:-)

In my mid and late teens I began to ask questions like 'How do we really know that...(fill in the blank).
And my peers, kids in my Sunday school class, said I shouldn't ask those questions.
Oddly, my Sunday school teacher, a pretty laid back and cool young attorney, just let our round-table discussions run their course.
He was a smart fella.
Oh, his name wasn't 'Oddly', but, nearing 70, my mind can't recall his name.
Probably in 2 hours, when I'm thinking about what to have for dinner, it will come to me.
;-)

Anyway, I still more-or-less believe in a Christian philosophy as a good way to live your life.
Nothing at all wrong with The Golden Rule, helping those less fortunate when you are able.
The 10 commandments are pretty good, up to a certain point.

I've just been absolutely turned off by so-called 'organized' religion and the fundies, Televangelists, moral majorities, and the our-way or the highway 'Christians'.
If Jesus does have a second coming, those will be the first ones he would cast out.

I have absolutely zero belief in all the Jesus 'miraculous' crap.
Resurrection, loaves and fishes, walking on water, raising the dead, etc.

Ditto for the bible.
Hell, just read Leviticus and tell me THAT'S right.

And don't even get me started on the Catholic church's hierarchy.

Sorry for the rant.
Peace and love.
:-)

meaningless, the 5th is debatable and the others
are common sense.

:hi:

I feel there's "Something" but I don't know what, and neither does anyone else.

Atheist Man will be very happy to hear this news, although he may not believe me, he's such a skeptic.

I realize I don't know jack shit about the higher power our much about the whole achebe of things No one does. It would however be absurd to think we are at the top of the ladder. Quite egotistical and closed minded.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” Nelson Mandela

Why can't we be equal to all?

All living things contribute to the well being of dung beetles. They are the epitome of creation.

--imm

... and I certainly wouldn't want to argue with Kheper (the big bugger who
pushes the sun around every day) ...

:hide:

Mind you, given the sheer number of species and the variety of shapes & sizes
(not to mention their stunning beauty), maybe Coleoptera were the creatures
that were "Created In His Image" after all?

:shrug:

If you don't know anything about this higher power, how can you believe there is one. It's a bit circular, don't you think.

There's no ladder. That idea is a construct based on human, authoritarian thinking.

There is no God.

Because he is an asshole?

If God is love why does he allow so much suffering?

It's answered in Esphesians 6:12

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

We are in an evil world and demonic forces are at work to destoy you whether you're Christian or non-Christian. There are wars waged in the heavenlies for your soul as we speak. Once we are in heaven, these powers have no access to us. For those in hell, the demonic realm can do whatever they desire as the angelic beings are not there to defend off the demonic forces.

When God first created the world, it was a perfect paradise. God never intended for us to live in so much suffering.

i'm sure this all sounds like comic book material, but if you study the Bible, it's all there.

...is that it's never been satisfactorily answered. This includes your non-answer.

to million of Chritians who read and study their Bibles or listen to ministers. Not trying to sound smug, just this truth has been known for thousands of years.

It has problems with accuracy, documented embellishment, and authenticity issues. Not to mention a lack of corroboration. You'll need extra-Biblical sources to convince people who aren't in the circle.

Not trying to convince anyone of anything.

Whether you're trying to be convincing or just offering your opinion, bear in mind that people who don't already share your view will never agree with you that all of the answers can be found in the Bible. You need 3rd party resources.

then they can search for them. I'm just stating my beliefs, I'm not asking anyone to convince me of theirs.

Do you approach all your belief systems like that?

What's the point of debate on a public discussion board, if not to try to convince others of your point-of-view?

I'm here to learn and hear other people's perspectives. Why are you here?

Let me know when a million Christians agree on the *exact* answer. When you can convince your brethren like Fred Phelps, Pat Robertson, David Duke, and all the rest, THEN you can talk about "truth" and "answers."

and all those guys, huh? Same basic philosophy, they just add their own little touches to it to make it their own.

in God. I do know that I don't like what religions have done. I have been made to feel 'less' because I don't follow the trappings. I look at religion as a business, number one, and then as an age old political tool. Somewhere in my mind I like to believe we're spiritually connected. I wish I had never been introduced to religion; I'm actually angry about that. I regard the hours of religious indoctrination I underwent during a time my education should have been elsewhere as life altering.

A firm handshake to the one who knows the source of that sexy, sexy quote.

As to a deity, I do believe in a monotheistic one (the one pallin' around with Moses), but I don't depend on its actual existence for that belief. The religious sheep around me tend to treat me like an atheist. But I pray & argue with "God" even while I'm rolling my eyes at claims of miracles and conversations with angels. I am against proselytizing to the point where I want to call it child abuse if children are involved; assault if adults are. And I find it disgusting when people try to trick or force people to believe in their religious concepts.

imagine. :hippie:

but to personify it feels wrong. Much less claim that it loves me, or that it is obsessed with the minute details of my life.

I believe in something that feels relatively absolute, but I don't name it or bring it indoors for milk.

Its funny to see people look confused when I tell them that Im a Hindu Atheist :))
Shows how much mainstream media distorts the perceptions of world religions in the minds of the people.

in that we center our thinking and speaking and acting around them

Frequently, the way we "order" our lives seems so justified and natural and obvious to us, that we may not recognize how we actually think or speak or act: it can be difficult to step back from our immersion in our own culture and instincts and habits

But "the gods" that we actually "worship" (usually without recognizing that we worship them) are typically "false gods" -- we are misled; we hope for and work towards the wrong results; we unreasonably expect our "rituals" to produce what it cannot possibly produce

Our universe is complex and hazardous: we, who have no claws and no great teeth, are nevertheless among the most dangerous of animals -- easily careless or cruel, slow to remember the great debts we owe others and slow to forget the small debts others owe us, often naturally enjoying our malice or vengeance unless we make a real effort to do otherwise

It does not really matter whether the false gods "really" exist in some measurable scientific sense: they premeate our natures, and if we allow them to control our lives they may be "more real" to us psychologically than the most concrete objects we encounter in the material world. What could it possibly mean to say They are not real! -- if we still listen their lies? Of course, most of us today do not listen to Moloch or Mars or Tezcatlipoca: but with ease we certainly listen to other lying false gods, that would spur us down similarly disastrous paths

So I "believe" in the gods -- though I consider almost all of them essentially "false" and "unreal," though I do not want to put my "faith" in most of them, and though I hope that I might escape them if I walk as alertly and carefully as someone crossing an icy stream in midwinter

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cec17v-XtPw

I love the thoughts and wonders of Buddhism, and exploring other parts of of Buddhism, for example Zen. My ancestors were also Shinto. I am fascinated with Shinto because of the traditions of Japan, and the people I came from. Its why I studied the culture, and the language. My blood is Japanese, it is Kansai blood. All of it fascinates me.

:rofl:

Some Constant Posters are certainly notable by their absence in this thread.

Maybe because for once, they're in the minority?

I don't believe in "God" in the conventional sense.

I don't believe in any all powerful entity out there watching my every move.