This is not intended to spur a debate over God’s existence. That has been done here and everywhere else a million times before.
All I want to know is, do you believe in God? YES or NO, and a reason if you want to provide one.
Seems to me that the whole concept of God is derived from the Judeo-Christian tradition. Modern culture has kind of taken that God and changed him into something more universally appealing, but the original idea of God clearly came from the Bible. So if you don’t believe the Bible, but still believe in God, then you’re basically inventing your own God, which is silly. And I don’t believe the Bible, so…
I have several instances which lead me to subjectively believe, not necessarily in the Christian conception (which I am shying away from) but in my subjective experience. Of course, being subjective, the validity of such events is non-falsifiable.
My wife and son were driving on a very curvy road and I was behind them. Suddenly, her van’s engine died and about 2 seconds later, another van shot across the curve in front of my wife. That van crashed. If the engine had not died, my wife and son would have been t-boned.
My wife’s van had never done that before and never did it again (for 6 years).
[quote]iflyboats wrote:
Modern culture has kind of taken that God and changed him into something more universally appealing, but the original idea of God clearly came from the Bible.
[/quote]
Nope. Not even a little. I am perfectly content in my belief that everything that has occurred to date, or will occur, is merely the result of chance.
Sixty-six percent of the people currently on earth might disagree that the “idea of god clearly came from the bible”.
No. I have never had faith in a “higher power”. I started questioning it when I was 10 and was forced to attend an Episcopalian church with my cousin. He was the first atheist I had ever met who was also an alter boy.
My disbelief could probably be called faith since it isn’t based on anything more than emotion.
Sorry, I guess that’s not really something to get excited about.
I was raised in a church, and I even went to a private university (Harding) where bible classes and worship were both mandatory. I grew up, got all rebellious and cynical, and quit. I wish I hadn’t now, but I still haven’t figured out exactly where I stand on belief in G-d.
I feel confident that my existence is more than an accident of evolution, but I have to admit that my ego may well be getting in the way.
I want to believe that there is more to life than what can be seen and measured, but I’m pretty sure that if there is a Higher Power, then he/she/it has better things to worry about than wether I live or die at any given moment.
I have a sneaking suspicion that all the various religions are worshipping some facet of the same being. I believe that if such a being/force really exists, then I am poorly equipped or perhaps entirely incapable of understanding it. Thus, I suppose that I would qualify as an Optimistic Agnostic.
[quote]Loose Tool wrote:
Sixty-six percent of the people currently on earth might disagree that the “idea of god clearly came from the bible”.
[/quote]
woth the exception of islam, none of those other religions are based on God. and islam sucks so i dont care about that one anyway
I’m happy to say I believe in my Higher Power, or GOD or whatever you wish to call it. This belief has done wonders for me so far and just confirms my belief. I do not prescribe to any specific religion.
However, I’m still going to burn in hell according to some faiths.
[quote]iflyboats wrote:
oh here’s another one… how many of you think that evolution is compatible with Judaism and Christianity?[/quote]
I think evolution is a fine theory and is compatible with Christianity. I don’t know enough about Judaism to say, but I reckon so. Really that’d be another thread though.
I can relate another experience, if any one is interested:
My fiance died 2 days before her 24th birthday. That evening, while lying on my bed, a voice said to me: “The Spirit” in a voice like I’ve never heard before. To call it ‘oceanic’ would be an understatement. An imaginary experience caused by grief? Possibly.
I’ve never heard voices before and only twice after. Once again, subjective and not open to experiment (hence not falsifiable). Conclude what you will.
I dont believe in the mainstream Christian conception of God as a sort of “Moral Cop in the Sky”. I do believe that there is a higher power though and other dimensions all around us.
I do belive the only ones who will be LEFT BEHIND are the readers of the “Left Behind” series. Fundamentalism (Christian, Hindu, Islamic, Judaic) is DUMB.
[quote]iflyboats wrote:
oh here’s another one… how many of you think that evolution is compatible with Judaism and Christianity?[/quote]
If you read them literally, they are not. If you read the scriptures as mythologically (I dont mean that as a slight) then they are compatible up to a point. As Thunderbolt says little “e” is compatible. Evolution in extremis is not compatible. It would pluck transcendent meaning from the universe. I dont believe that is the case.
Break out the
balloons and noise makers. Thunderbolt and I have finally agreed on something!!!
Not exactly God but I do find the Eastern religions to be appealing.
Taoism/Buddhism etc…
As far as I know they are among the rare group that actually addresses various philosophical questions that most religions ignore.
I have no idea if they are “right” however they make the most sense to me(they seem to share various beliefs with modern science although both come at the issues from a different perspective)
[quote]Ren wrote:
no. But I don’t discredit others for what they believe in, to each their own.[/quote]
That’s how I feel tried when I was younger, 12yrs private school, nothing.
I don’t think though it has anything to do with hubris though as one person mentioned, in fact that could be turned around and said the same about orginized religion.
