Your Opinion About GOD

[ben_at_work]

[quote][i]Originally posted by waldnorm[/i]
<br>
(I know that sounds too Star Wars which is not what I intend). The difficulty is trying to personify it and explain it.
[/quote]

There actually was a book that came out shortly after the release of the first Star Wars (around the late 70's).

It actually compared almost every aspect of the movie to religion and the battle between Heaven and Hell. Complete with scripture that pertained to each scene.

Of coarse I didn't realize this til I got it home and started reading. I just wanted it because it had cool pictures in it.

[Spaz]

[quote][i]Originally posted by hutter[/i]
<br>[quote][i]Originally posted by Spaz[/i]
<br>
I know that this may sound weird, but God is someone I will continue to believe in...[/quote]
Why should that sound weird?
[/quote]

Hi Hutter

What I mean by weird (and I admit I didn't state my point well...sorry 'bout that) is that I tend to believe (in God or whatever) until proven wrong, where as many people I know tend to believe only when the proof is there in front of them.

I believe in GOOD as well as God. I believe that everyone and everything is good until they show me that they aren't. This has hurt me more than helped me, but it never shakes my faith in my fellow man (or NW fan). Perhaps this is my way of retaining the innocence of youth without letting the corrupt realities of life sink too deep under the skin...

SPAZ
Born of innocence. Free of ignorance.

[hutter]

[quote][i]Originally posted by Spaz[/i]
...many people I know tend to believe only when the proof is there in front of them.
[/quote]
If there was undeniable proof in front of them, then there would be no need for faith.

Anyhoo, some people, even when you have all the proof in the world, would still choose to believe whatever they want. Look at the Israelites during the exodus from Egypt. They lived through the plagues and the parting of the Red Sea, more than enough proof needed to show God's existance, and yet many of them still turned to idolatry. Selfishness is a powerful thing. It can make you deny the truth to the point of wanting to destroy proof of it's existence.

[ben_at_work]

"There is just enough religion in this world to make man hate but not enough to make him love."

I wonder who said that. I heard it somewhere and have always remembered it.

[i_like_lectric_motors]

“We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another.” - Jonathan Swift



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[MARV]

I would like to pose a philosophical question: Why does man have this need for faith based religion?

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[i_like_lectric_motors]

[quote][i]Originally posted by marvymarv[/i]
<br>I would like to pose a philosophical question: Why does man have this need for faith based religion?

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[/quote]

Weakness.

You're welcome.


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[MARV]

Could you elaborate?

When you say "weakness", do you mean an inability to cope with the unknown? Not being "strong enough" to live with the fact that there are questions that science cannot answer?

Or do you mean "weakness" as in not being strong enough to deal with the harsher realities of life like say, death, pain and suffering?

Could you mean "weakness" as succumbing to the pressure a society might place on it's people to conform to it's belief system? The subtle conditioning that happens when part of any society?

Or is there something else?

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[abacab66]

[quote][i]Originally posted by marvymarv[/i]
<br>I would like to pose a philosophical question: Why does man have this need for faith based religion?
</a>
[/quote]I'll try from a spiritual angle.

The animals, eat, sleep and reproduce and so do we humans. But we are different in that most of us are not content with just those things. We want to know why we are here. We seek meaning in our lives. We also desire a hope for the future. These deeper needs point to a quality that is unique to humankind—spirituality, or the need and capacity for spiritual things.

The Bible explains the reason for the spiritual side of man’s nature, saying: “God proceeded to create the man in his image, in God’s image he created him; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27) Our being formed “in God’s image” means that even though we have been tarnished by sin and imperfection, we have the ability to mirror certain qualities of God. (Romans 5:12) For example, we can be creative. We also have a measure of wisdom, a sense of justice, and the ability to show self-sacrificing love for one another. Furthermore, we can reflect on the past and plan for the future.—Proverbs 4:7; Ecclesiastes 3:1, 11; Micah 6:8; John 13:34; 1 John 4:8.

Our spiritual capacity is most clearly demonstrated in our innate desire to worship God. Unless we properly satisfy the need to be in touch with our Creator, we cannot find true and lasting happiness. “Happy are those conscious of their spiritual need,” Jesus said. (Matthew 5:3) We must be careful, however, to satisfy that need with spiritual truth—facts about God, his standards, and his purpose for mankind.

Here's where the divergence in religious teachings come in. Most people are innately selfish and desire to do what they want to do. And God warns those who want to do it their way and not his way. “There will be a period of time when they will not put up with the healthful teaching, but, in accord with their own desires, they will accumulate teachers for themselves to have their ears tickled; and they will turn their ears away from the truth.”—2 Timothy 4:3, 4.

It takes courage to live by Bible standards, especially in the face of ridicule, but it can be done.

[Spit]

[quote][i]Originally posted by God[/i]
<br>[quote][i]Originally posted by Blir[/i]
<br>Of course he/she exists, being an NWO member and all.
[/quote]

Thy prayer is answered . . . .


<img src="http://raneyt.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/.pond/funny_sign_13.jpg.w180h180.jpg">
[/quote]

Well I'm glad that's all cleared up. I was starting to think that Blir was referring to himself. [:p]

[i_like_lectric_motors]

[quote][i]Originally posted by marvymarv[/i]
<br>Could you elaborate?

When you say "weakness", do you mean an inability to cope with the unknown? Not being "strong enough" to live with the fact that there are questions that science cannot answer?

Or do you mean "weakness" as in not being strong enough to deal with the harsher realities of life like say, death, pain and suffering?

Could you mean "weakness" as succumbing to the pressure a society might place on it's people to conform to it's belief system? The subtle conditioning that happens when part of any society?

Or is there something else?

<a href="http://marvymarv.multiply.com/">[i]You on the guestlist?[/i]</a>
[/quote]

That pretty much covers it, and in a much kinder, gentler way than it deserves. Very nicely done.



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[MARV]

Fair enough, Motors. I see Abacab posted a thoughtful reply as well. Any other comments? Do we think there will always be religion? If so, will it evolve?

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[i_like_lectric_motors]

[quote][i]Originally posted by marvymarv[/i]
<br>Fair enough, Motors. I see Abacab posted a thoughtful reply as well. Any other comments? Do we think there will always be religion? If so, will it evolve?

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[/quote]


There will always be religion no matter how much evidence science uncovers to disprove the existence of god(s). People in general are fearful, superstitious and needy. You also need to take into account the ongoing dumbing down of the populace. As humanity gets stupider, the susceptibility to religion increases.



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[abacab66]

Here are some stupid people who believed in God or some higher power.

Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543)
Sir Fancis Bacon (1561-1627)
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
Rene Descartes (1596-1650)
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Robert Boyle (1791-1867)
Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
Gregor Mendel (1822-1884)
William Thomson Kelvin (1824-1907)
Max Planck (1858-1947)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

[i_like_lectric_motors]

[quote][i]Originally posted by abacab66[/i]
<br>Here are some stupid people who believed in God or some higher power.

Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543)
Sir Fancis Bacon (1561-1627)
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
Rene Descartes (1596-1650)
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Robert Boyle (1791-1867)
Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
Gregor Mendel (1822-1884)
William Thomson Kelvin (1824-1907)
Max Planck (1858-1947)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
[/quote]

And it's safe to say that had the majority of them been alive during our lifetimes, they'd have been atheists.

Edit: Here are some quotes from Einstein -

"I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religion than it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it."

"I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation, whose purposes are modeled after our own -- a God, in short, who is but a reflection of human frailty. Neither can I believe that the individual survives the death of his body, although feeble souls harbor such thoughts through fear or ridiculous egotism."

"I do not believe in the immortality of the individual, and I consider ethics to be an exclusively human concern with no superhuman authority behind it."

"If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for a reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed."

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