You believe in God because...

But there is ample evidence that Allah has never proven that he does in fact exist. It's up to gods to prove that they exist. Until they do they are imaginary beings dreamt up to amuse and to entertain superstitious people. So let any god of any kind come forth in all its reported majesty to convince humanity that it's real. That will never, ever, happen because such things as gods are imaginary. People used to believe in all kinds of gods. Such gods died off when people stopped believing in them. The same thing will eventually happen to the Jewish, Arabian, and Indian gods. They too will be tossed into the dustbin of wasted beliefs.

 

It is rather tough to disprove a negative. There is no scientific evidence that proves the core of some distant planet floating around a distant sun is not made of green cheese .. but this is no reason to govern my life on the basis that it is made of green cheese.

 

You are correct. However, generally in debate the burden of proof rests with the party holding the affirmative position.

 

Let me know if you ever discover the sour cream and onion planet--I have got some giant potato chips just looking to be dipped!

 

Let me know if you ever discover the sour cream and onion planet--I have got some giant potato chips just looking to be dipped!

 

Point the first: exactly how do you work out those probabilities?
Point the second: exactly how many times did you roll those 3 dice, compared to the number of planets that have or will ever exist in the universe at all points through their lifespan?

 

A suggestion this is the Religion forum, if you want to discuss politics please take your discussion to the Political section. Please stay on topic.

Have a good day.

 

The probability is small. The possibility is near infinity.

 

Is there scientific evidence that shows how he/she/it/they came into existance?

 

No, some here claim to have had an experience that caused them to believe. So it is not all brainwashing from youth. Some is due to unexplained things that happen in their life. Usually some type of near death experience?

 

We do raise the next generation to believe that there is a power higher than mom and dad, which is authoritative in regard to certain behaviors.

And, thoughtful people will agree this is true.
We KNOW we can not put or hand in the fire without getting burnt.

There ARE certain "facts-of-life" associated with the almighty Reality within which we are all both trapped and nurtured.

It is reasonable to bow down to certain limitations in our behavior based uppn nothing more tangible that cultural norms and various social mores that actually institutionalized "advisory" forces long observed and in place from generations preceding or own.

 

Actually (since you don't know me) I would like to clarify that. Eternal punishment is not something I fear. If thats something I deserve then I deserve it. But for now I'm going to live my life how I want to with no regrets. I feel happy in my heart and mind and if God decides that is wrong in his book than I suppose I will get what he feels I deserve.

 

Perhaps it is a form of social control, but again, where would we be without it?

 

No. Science is currently incapable of proving or disproving the existence or non-existence of any deity. Even the possibility of a Theory of Everything is insufficient.

 

Your logic is faulty and does nothing to dismiss what The Wyrd of Gawd said. Without being taught about their favorite God they would not be able to use it as an answer for those unexplained things.

Indeed this is one of the many major problems with religion. If it wasn't for the God answer they might learn something true about the nature of the world we live in.

"God did it" doesn't explain anything, it simply leaves things unexplained.

Just another reason science is superior to religion.

 

Can science prove the non existance of bigfoot?

 

Of course not, and any attempts to prove the existence of big-foot have not had any merit whatsoever.

 

Neither of us can answer that question. But my point is that religion is but one form of social control. I would like to suggest that the law be the ultimate form of social control and that it only act when the natural rights of one citizen are threatened by another, as informed by the Jefferson quotation in my sig line. But I digress...

 

I can't answer for those people who claim to believe because of an experience. I don't know what their knowledge of God was prior to that experience. I just know, some said they believe because they had this experience.

 

So big-foot exists. So does Santa, etc etc.

 

Exactly. So how is it any different from proving or disproving the existance of God?

We don't give those claiming bigfoot exists any credence specifically because there is no proof that he does.

Why is the existance of God given special treatment?

 

Because many men including most of the Apostles documented the words and actions of our Lord the Savior Jesus Christ into an easy or sometimes difficult to understand tome called the Bible. No one suggests that atheists and or agnostics would or should believe the word of our messiah, but for the majority of people worldwide who do believe in HIM, we say....so be it, and let the cards fall where they may.

 

Well sure you can. If someone has an experience and they attribute it to a specific God there are only two options; either they had an experience and during that experience they were given some secret truth making them aware of that God for the first time in their life having never heard of them before or they had an experience and attributed it to that specific God of which they had prior knowledge.

Bigfoot works here as well. If someone is in the woods and they see something large and hairy they may say just that, I seen something large and hairy but couldn't make it out. However if that person has prior knowledge of Bigfoot they may simply say they saw Bigfoot. Indeed their knowledge of Bigfoot would taint the very experience contaminating their perspective.

During those experiences one does not discover proof of God, they subconsciously create it.

We do this on many levels all the time for different things.

Positive and negative things happen to us all the time and how we perceive them depends on our knowledge of the situation and our current emotional state.

A car that won’t start may be expected based on your knowledge of the condition of the car or that same car in that same condition not starting may for some reason have something to do with whether or not you’re in a hurry and can’t be late. “Why now!? Why does this always happen too ME?”

Now apply that to those times when something that is perfectly natural but rare happens to someone. We have a natural desire to explain our experiences and in the absence of knowledge we will simply make something up.

 

There is no difference between what you said here and "Because I say so."

Hard to argue with such a strong argument.

 

Say what? Stop speaking gobbylygook. You either believe the written words of the Bible, or you remain an atheistic/agnostic skeptic or outright disbeliever. There is no middle ground here.