Do you belive in god?

[Jason00S2000]

Originally Posted by The7even

Why do you give humanity so much credit? As if we would all of sudden stop the division and violence that plagues us to this day if religion were to not exist.

If religion were not the problem, it would have been race. If we were all the same race it would have been war and turmoil between blond's and brunettes
and redheads.

We fail because we're human and we will always find a little difference and fight over it. It's who we are.
Remember how in preschool kids pick on that one kid because he's smarter than them and they call him a nerd? Religion isn't the cause of all our problems, it's us.

We're evolving to be more tolerant and peaceful, but religion is one of the roadblocks to removing old school hatred from our narrow world views.


As long as religion exists, there will be hatred and division.

[observer]

"God the almighty, sacrificed his one and only son". Never understood how almighty power and scarcity can coexist.

God by definition could impregnate infinite number of virgins in a split second, yet we are supposed to feel grateful he sent the "one and only Jesus" to us.

I say it was part of the plan, God knew Adam would sleep with Eve when he planted the apple. Adam and Eve may feel they had a choice, but God, by definition, made it happen.

Speaking of which, the concept of inherited sin is equally absurd. Why should a little baby suffer because of the wrongdoings of Adam and Eve? And we're supposed to believe Adam and Eve, and their little incest practicing group created the 6.7 billion people?

Of course, I find this so called "God's love giving us freedom to choose" most utterly unfair. If you believe in God, you go to heaven, if not, eternal hell. But you have a choice!

Reminds me of a robber pointing a gun at you, your money or your life.

Personally, I'm glad to see most people here having elevated and are enlightened to be non-religious.

[rslater]

So their are some people here who TRULY believe in a talking snake. Not believing in evolution, but creationism is foolish. Common sense should dictate a higher moral standing then religion.

[Presto]

I believe in God. I also believe in the Holy Spirit and Jesus. All I know is that they rock, and I love them all. If you don't like that, then up yours.

[welfare]

Originally Posted by Corey Darling

^^ Then why believe at all? Gods come and go like tv shows. They are made up by man, and used by man for his bidding.

What has god accomplished, if anything, that man hasn't with science.

We can replicate the beginnings of life in a test tube using the same theorized condition of the earth from 4 billion years ago. I think that is amazing.

you are trying to compare humans with something that humans can not possibly understand? where did the electricity come from? where did the puddle come from? did we "make" those too? did we "make" us to "make" us? you give the human race far too much credit. we don't "create" anything. if we rub 2 sticks together, we don't create fire. we only unleash the elements that were always there to begin with. there is so SO much we don't know
in the grand scheme we are no more important than a rock, a grain of sand, a cat, etc..and they are no more important than us. we/they all just exist

[bengy]

Originally Posted by AzNightmare

Well, simply put, I've accepted the fact we humans are not smart enough to understand how the universe works, and never will be. Just because our brains weren't designed to be able to do it. I say design, because I'm biased towards God and creation.

LOL speak for yourself!

[ghosty]

Originally Posted by bengy

LOL speak for yourself!

hey if God where big enough for our minds he wouldn't be big enough for this world!

[Synarchist]

hasnt science already answered all these questions?
the term god was created to define the miracles/powers that exist in our lives/reality
believing in god is basically having faith in yourself and the one thing greater than you: the world (and everything in it including that hot girl next door)
so do i believe in god?
YES I DO

[observer]

It's the attempt to try to understand this world that matters. Science helps us greatly in this respect, and has excellent track record extending people's lives, improving our general qualify of life.

Religion however, is a dogmatic system encouraging faith over reasoning. It has proven to be a powerful tool favoured by leaders to condition and control their followers.

In the grand scheme of things, what it important depends on how you see this world. Philosophically speaking, what are we other than a conscious mind? When we speak of a rock or a grain of sand, what do we know besides our perception of them?

There will always be those who are so afraid of the unknown who will hold onto anything that makes them feel better, from lucky numbers to astrologists to fortune tellers to religion.

Proper education, especially in the field of physics, biology, chemistry will only save the ignorant from being victimized by manipulative leaders with their ghost stories.

The many things we do not know in the world make it more important for us to use a reliable system to expand our horizon, not stopping at believing in the words from the wise old lady up in the mountains or the sacred book (be it the Bible, Koran or I Ching) claiming to know the future.

[+Kardboard+]

Originally Posted by rslater

So their are some people here who TRULY believe in a talking snake. Not believing in evolution, but creationism is foolish. Common sense should dictate a higher moral standing then religion.

Yeah, so? I've stated already that evolution could very well be a tool for God to create the world, but that's a moot point as it's who dictates the process that's the main thing.

Religion doesn't equal faith. Besides, plenty of people have the wrong idea of what a religion is, and I agree that religions have trashed the world quite badly. Common sense ain't so common any more, and from what I see it changes quite a bit and has taken a frightening turn for the worse. Not much of a moral standing if you ask me, but then the question becomes, what is a moral standing? Who gets to set that?

Food for thought.

[toyota86]

We should acknowledge in the existence of god(s) as a creation of man. Afterall, we did make him/her/it/them up. We (humans) created god(s) in our own image and let them loose. Think about it, which god(s) out there do not in some way look human?

Then, let me ask you this. If our imagination was powerful enough to create and immortalize the idea, the symbol of god(s), does that not make us humans gods ourselves as creators of such a life?

Aside from the philosophical, human kind has progressed a long way in science and technology that would make it possible for us to replicate many if not all of the miracles or wonders discribed in various religious texts across various religions. If we were not gods before, we are now.

Humans are still constantly evolving as well as our technology. How far we will progress is still a mystery. I believe the idea of god(s) that many all love and fear is actually a byproduct for us to explain a lot of the unexplainable. Humans are curious creatures and want answers to everything. On this planet, we are already the gods. we are all knowing and most powerful compared to all the other beings on this earth.

I believe god(s) in general, or rather all knowing, all powerful, omnipotent beings, is/are a standard we as humans created, idolize and decided for ourselves a long time ago to be our next evolutionary milestone.

Technology has helped us come a long way. It has fed our curiosity to explain everything. I believe that one day, when humans develop the technology and science to finally and definitively answer the why we are here and what is the universe questions, we will no longer need to cling on the idea of god(s) out there watching us as we will finally realize what we have become and who god really is. It is us, humankind, ourselves.

so, short answer is no. i dont believe in god or gods. but i believe in mankind and human potential to eventually sort ourselves out.

[[j]nBk]

i don't know what i believe. i was raised catholic. then i started asking myself some questions. either way, god or no god, there are certain things that don't make sense. the people who have their solid beliefs on both ends of the spectrum, in my opinion, are equally ignorant.

if you are a staunch atheist who calls a "my way or the highway" religious faithful an idiot for their beliefs, or vice versa, please stop the endless debates because you are both equally stupid.

richard dawkins and billy graham can equally kiss my ass. richard gets the right cheek and billy gets the left.

we humans don't know shit. not long ago, in our relatively short time of existence, we thought the world was flat. or that the first humans were really named adam and eve. the proof that the world is actually round and that we actually evolved from monkeys is JUST THAT: the world is flat and we came from monkeys! what the hell does this have to do with god's existence? absolutely nothing. maybe god is actually a monkey and he made us in his likeness. i don't know. and you don't either.

so the bible is wrong about the origin of human beings? so what? is this proof that there is no god? not at all. who said the bible was correct to begin with anyway? even if one day the bible, torah, quran and all other holy scriptures out there were debunked, this is still no proof that there is no supreme being.

an atheist claiming there is no god because jesus never really existed is the same damn thing as a christian saying there is a god because they had a near-death experience. it's all irrelevant to the fact. one approach is just as narrow minded as the other. there is no proof either way and let's leave it at that.

[observer]

I have a fairly open mind but do not believe in God because it seems self-contradictory. It's not about proof but about reasonableness.

Inheriting a sin from an unrelated individual does not seem fair, yet God is supposed to be kind, loving and fair. "My way or the highway" justice doesn't seem loving either, what kind of religious freedom is God giving us, if we don't believe in him and we will be forever damned?

A world population created through incest seems utterly absurd, virgin conception seems ridiculous, and so does a talking snake.

One cannot easily prove that there is no flying elephants either, yet one does not believe in them, based on common sense.

Of course, I will be the first to admit that common sense is entirely subjective, based on ones intelligence, experience, and education.

The more we realize we don't know, the more we need science, or a scientific approach to guide us. If we leave all matters in the hands of religious priests, scientists such as Galileo Galilei will continue to be banned, as his findings contradict with religious teachings.

Science will always push the boundary creating heated confrontation with religion; in Galileo's time, it was the centre of the world debate, and currently it is of course creationism versus evolutionism.

[Grandmaster TSE]

Originally Posted by Corey Darling

^^ Then why believe at all? Gods come and go like tv shows. They are made up by man, and used by man for his bidding.

What has god accomplished, if anything, that man hasn't with science.

We can replicate the beginnings of life in a test tube using the same theorized condition of the earth from 4 billion years ago. I think that is amazing.

i believe they exist, but that doesn't mean i believe in all the bullshit that preach about
i believe there is a god, but doesn't mean i have to follow his teachings

its like how i believe in ghost and such

[Nightwalker]

Originally Posted by welfare

you are trying to compare humans with something that humans can not possibly understand? where did the electricity come from? where did the puddle come from? did we "make" those too? did we "make" us to "make" us? . we don't "create" anything. if we rub 2 sticks together, we don't create fire. we only unleash the elements that were always there to begin with. there is so SO much we don't know
in the grand scheme we are no more important than a rock, a grain of sand, a cat, etc..and they are no more important than us. we/they all just exist

Name any other species in the known universe that can make a fire.

Oh shit, you can't.

It is true that we're no more important to anything else, but it depends on perspective. Since we're self-aware, and being that I'm human, I have a vested interest in the state of our species and I think all the stuff we've accomplished is pretty rad.

We still cause a lot of conflict, but that's how we conquered the globe and became top of the food chain in the first place. You can't expect those traits to disappear overnight.

[welfare]

Originally Posted by Nightwalker

Name any other species in the known universe that can make a fire.

Oh shit, you can't.

It is true that we're no more important to anything else, but it depends on perspective. Since we're self-aware, and being that I'm human, I have a vested interest in the state of our species and I think all the stuff we've accomplished is pretty rad.

We still cause a lot of conflict, but that's how we conquered the globe and became top of the food chain in the first place. You can't expect those traits to disappear overnight.

well, sure it is. of course. all i was saying was that our accomplishments did not warrant his comparison. we are at the top of the food chain because our environment evolved us this way. if there were/is another planet with the exact same environment as earth it would be inhabited eventually, if not already, by a species exactly the same as our own.

Originally Posted by [j]nBk

i don't know what i believe. i was raised catholic. then i started asking myself some questions. either way, god or no god, there are certain things that don't make sense. the people who have their solid beliefs on both ends of the spectrum, in my opinion, are equally ignorant.

if you are a staunch atheist who calls a "my way or the highway" religious faithful an idiot for their beliefs, or vice versa, please stop the endless debates because you are both equally stupid.

richard dawkins and billy graham can equally kiss my ass. richard gets the right cheek and billy gets the left.

we humans don't know shit. not long ago, in our relatively short time of existence, we thought the world was flat. or that the first humans were really named adam and eve. the proof that the world is actually round and that we actually evolved from monkeys is JUST THAT: the world is flat and we came from monkeys! what the hell does this have to do with god's existence? absolutely nothing. maybe god is actually a monkey and he made us in his likeness. i don't know. and you don't either.

so the bible is wrong about the origin of human beings? so what? is this proof that there is no god? not at all. who said the bible was correct to begin with anyway? even if one day the bible, torah, quran and all other holy scriptures out there were debunked, this is still no proof that there is no supreme being.

an atheist claiming there is no god because jesus never really existed is the same damn thing as a christian saying there is a god because they had a near-death experience. it's all irrelevant to the fact. one approach is just as narrow minded as the other. there is no proof either way and let's leave it at that.

it's apes, not monkeys. more specifically, chimpanzees. and we did not evolve from them. we both share a common descendant ancestor

[Nightwalker]

^ I understand your argument now, your other post threw me way off.

The law of conservation of mass shows how we don't "create" anything so far, just rearrange it.

[The7even]

Originally Posted by Jason00S2000

We're evolving to be more tolerant and peaceful, but religion is one of the roadblocks to removing old school hatred from our narrow world views.


As long as religion exists, there will be hatred and division.

What's to stop me from saying that as long as different races of humans exist, there will be hatred and division? Kill of all races.

We're evolving to be more tolerant? We're the same as we were 5,000 years ago.

Maybe it brings you comfort believing such a lie but I can't bring my self to do it.

Edit: Saying it to your self over and over won't help.

[SlowRider]

Originally Posted by Ulic Qel-Droma

when i'm on my death bed, or laying in the middle of the streets bleeding to death cuz i got shot outside atlantis, or some shit".

hehe

[AzNightmare]

Originally Posted by observer

I have a fairly open mind but do not believe in God because it seems self-contradictory. It's not about proof but about reasonableness.

Inheriting a sin from an unrelated individual does not seem fair, yet God is supposed to be kind, loving and fair. "My way or the highway" justice doesn't seem loving either, what kind of religious freedom is God giving us, if we don't believe in him and we will be forever damned?

A world population created through incest seems utterly absurd, virgin conception seems ridiculous, and so does a talking snake.

One cannot easily prove that there is no flying elephants either, yet one does not believe in them, based on common sense.

Of course, I will be the first to admit that common sense is entirely subjective, based on ones intelligence, experience, and education.

The more we realize we don't know, the more we need science, or a scientific approach to guide us. If we leave all matters in the hands of religious priests, scientists such as Galileo Galilei will continue to be banned, as his findings contradict with religious teachings.

Science will always push the boundary creating heated confrontation with religion; in Galileo's time, it was the centre of the world debate, and currently it is of course creationism versus evolutionism.

Everything has consequences. It's just how things are. Canada is considered a free country. Yet we still have a law. So does that mean Canada isn't really a free country? How do you define freedom?

Many things will seem absurd if it's involving with the supernatural. That's what makes it supernatural. There are a lot of unexplained things in this world. For example, science hasn't been able to explain miracles. But of course, that depends if you believe in miracles in the first place.

No one believes in flying elephants simply because there is nothing to support their existence from either sides.

You are right, common sense is subjective. One can say it's common sense that there is no greater power, yet someone else can say it's common sense that things don't happen by random chance. You could even think outside of the box, and wonder who or what created "science" in the first place.

I believe certain things involving God and science do coexist. But using evolution as a tool, more specifically apes evolving to human, did not happen.

[Vansterdam]

i beleive in buddha.

however.


JESUS IS A FRIEND OF MINE

I HAVE A FRIEND IN JESUS

[Jason00S2000]

Originally Posted by The7even

What's to stop me from saying that as long as different races of humans exist, there will be hatred and division? Kill of all races.

We're evolving to be more tolerant? We're the same as we were 5,000 years ago.

Maybe it brings you comfort believing such a lie but I can't bring my self to do it.

Edit: Saying it to your self over and over won't help.

If I may borrow from Zeitgeist...


A huge reason why there has been so much conflict is because of the need to secure land, food, and shelter. Once these things become available to everyone, for free, conflict will take a backseat to human progression.

I know, I know, not in our lifetime, but in another few hundred years, I could see humanity casting off the shackles of religion and becoming a more advanced society.

( If we haven't nuked the planet to hell, Fallout 3 style, haha )

[Great68]

I was raised Catholic, but as I got older I realized I don't need religion to tell me what I should believe and what I shouldn't believe.

[RTS]

All I see in this thread is a lot of immature children acting up against an authority they know to be true.

Kind of like how most teenagers rebel against their parents.

With age, some of you will get wiser. Others are just doomed to permanent wilful ignorance (Jason and Great68 etc.)

[Great68]

Originally Posted by RTS

With age, some of you will get wiser. Others are just doomed to permanent wilful ignorance (Jason and Great68 etc.)

And the fires of hell shall burn my SOUL!

Fucking bible thumpers.