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Do you believe in a higher power? (God, etc.)
- Thread starter BAD
- Start date
Nope used to read a lot of space text books as a kid and sat down with my religious parents at the age of 12 and had a real good conversation about it and that's when I realized I didn't believe and they've been cool with it ever since .
Read it again and this time remove yourself from the equation.
No. I can't see everything that's going on in the world and think there's some benevolent being out there. Then watch some athlete score a touchdown and thank god for it like they would give a shit about that.
I guess that would file under my problem with organized religion though. There's too many holes in most of their beliefs, stories and lessons that someone with a basic level of intellect could see through.
I guess that would file under my problem with organized religion though. There's too many holes in most of their beliefs, stories and lessons that someone with a basic level of intellect could see through.
I believe in a higher power. A Creator.
I believe in Intelligent Design. Most living things all have eyes, mouths, brains, nerves.
I believe our reality adheres to certain laws unknown. I call it the Universal Creator.
Im sure I could be just as wrong but I have faith in something. I feel a presence and energy in life that cant be discounted.
I believe in Intelligent Design. Most living things all have eyes, mouths, brains, nerves.
I believe our reality adheres to certain laws unknown. I call it the Universal Creator.
Im sure I could be just as wrong but I have faith in something. I feel a presence and energy in life that cant be discounted.
I wouldn't hold countries where 85-70% of the people identify as believers as doing fine without religion
Well some theories state that religion (imagined reality) was the ability in humans that allowed us to progress from hunter gatherers to where we are now so it might the only reason we aren't still fighting with lions.
And I am from Finland, religion is still present here in most peoples lives. Even atheists still belong to a concregation and get married in churches and get their kids christened.
But this is lutherism which allows progressive ideas inside religion.
I did, nothing changed. You don't get to just say something like that in a forum and not expect an answer, better luck next time.
I believe in a higher order. Doesn't matter if it's an entity, or just a command propagated through waves that makes everything take shape and function according to some plan. It doesn't even have to have a purpose, even if I like to believe "it" wants to have as much variety as possible in the universe.
I'm a Buddhist, so I don't believe in a universal ground of being (which is usually how God is presented in philosophy). That would be engaging in a kind of essentialism, and if there is one common ontological theme permeating Buddhist philosophy, it's a kind of thoroughgoing anti-essentialism.
Whether nibbana is some kind of 'theological' doctrine is up for debate. As a non-enlightened being, enlightenment is something purely notional, and placing so much importance on what is only a notion isn't something totally unlike faith, I suppose.
Whether nibbana is some kind of 'theological' doctrine is up for debate. As a non-enlightened being, enlightenment is something purely notional, and placing so much importance on what is only a notion isn't something totally unlike faith, I suppose.
Yes, in the sense that I don't think we'll ever be able to fully take control of the natural order of things -- the universe itself is a much larger process than ourselves. I believe we can come to an understanding of it, I just don't think we'll ever actually wield.
FUCK NO to the idea of a sapient being having been responsible and continuing monitoring over our lives with what seems to be the same pitfalls and traps of our own petty emotional trappings, though. I do not believe in a god that we reflect or that reflects us and our qualities as a species.
I know that sounds like I'm a rationalist and that I attribute rationality to the highest form of thought, but I want to assure readers that isn't quite true. I think we need to have our emotions to guide us in our every day lives as they ground us to reality in ways that stark rationality can't -- I think stark, bleak, emotionless rationality probably makes us more destructive and unable to manage our own existence. Emotion determines moralism, and I still have a strong belief in moralism, even if its not figureheaded or guided by the notion of god. But I refuse to believe that some sapient, omnipotent god was responsible for something as vast and complicated as the universe. I think if you were a living being responsible for such a thing, your scope of mind would have to extend far beyond the reaches of our comprehension, and I think the idea of god is just a reflection of our scope of comprehension and not a tangible or even admissible being within our reality. The way god is typically figured is basically just us with a control over natural forces that we hadn't quite been able to define or identify at the time the idea of those gods was introduced, in an attempt to fantasize ourselves as being the most pivotal "creation" in existence. I think as we have a more comprehensive idea of the universe and the workings of nature, god is no longer a feasible explanation for its vastness -- it's simply a means of trying to apply a relevancy to our existence as more important than it actually is.
FUCK NO to the idea of a sapient being having been responsible and continuing monitoring over our lives with what seems to be the same pitfalls and traps of our own petty emotional trappings, though. I do not believe in a god that we reflect or that reflects us and our qualities as a species.
I know that sounds like I'm a rationalist and that I attribute rationality to the highest form of thought, but I want to assure readers that isn't quite true. I think we need to have our emotions to guide us in our every day lives as they ground us to reality in ways that stark rationality can't -- I think stark, bleak, emotionless rationality probably makes us more destructive and unable to manage our own existence. Emotion determines moralism, and I still have a strong belief in moralism, even if its not figureheaded or guided by the notion of god. But I refuse to believe that some sapient, omnipotent god was responsible for something as vast and complicated as the universe. I think if you were a living being responsible for such a thing, your scope of mind would have to extend far beyond the reaches of our comprehension, and I think the idea of god is just a reflection of our scope of comprehension and not a tangible or even admissible being within our reality. The way god is typically figured is basically just us with a control over natural forces that we hadn't quite been able to define or identify at the time the idea of those gods was introduced, in an attempt to fantasize ourselves as being the most pivotal "creation" in existence. I think as we have a more comprehensive idea of the universe and the workings of nature, god is no longer a feasible explanation for its vastness -- it's simply a means of trying to apply a relevancy to our existence as more important than it actually is.
I'm not waiting for next time. I'm right here. I responded to OP with a personal take on my own beliefs (one of which any person of faith would understand the context of) and you have a problem with it.
If you don't get what I meant, that isn't on me. You don't get to dictate the terms of how I frame responses.
how do you know there ever truly was nothing? perhaps "true nothingness" is an impossibility and there always has to be some quantum fluctuations and other fancy shit i don't pretend to understand.
"Hope" that all the world has not shut out that which it cant see. That in a place like ERA, faith still has a voice.
I don't care what you believe in as long as its true in your heart. "Sooner or later we'll all see who the prophet is"
You said it would be self-centered of you to not believe in a god, I disagree(and others did) and we told you how that's something that can be said about believe in a god as well so it's really silly to say so.
You can say that you were just talking about yourself but even saying that there's something self-centered about not believing in god is pretty damn ignorant. Of course I have a problem with it.
No I haven't believed since I was around fifteen. I was raised in a nominally Catholic family. My parents have a vague belief in the afterlife but never discouraged us thinking for ourselves. I believed in a weird kind of deism up untilI I was teenager but I woke up one day and it just wasn't there anymore.
I've always loved the philosopher Colin McGinn's theory on why we're religious. He thinks its a kind of cosmic loneliness. They we can never truly commune with each other directly.
I've always loved the philosopher Colin McGinn's theory on why we're religious. He thinks its a kind of cosmic loneliness. They we can never truly commune with each other directly.
DiZ said:
Come on man. You implied that those that don't believe in a god are self-centered. There was bound to be tons of people on a primarily left-leaning discussion forum who lack a belief in a god, therefore, the vast majority of the people in this thread, if not this forum, was generalized in your statement.
What's even worse is that belief in a god implies self-centeredness more than lack of a belief in a god could, because it implies that humanity, in the grand scheme of the universe is somehow special. That you're a unique and important part of something greater than yourself thanks to divine intervention. That we are the "chosen ones", so to speak.
I don't think there are any climate scientists that believe Earth will become like a hot Venus. At least not in the next few billion years until the sun becomes a red giant.
I cant pull up any papers at the moment while at work but you can search it up easy enough. Not downplaying the effects climate change will have on us and life on earth but Hawkings was wrong in his claim that Earth will turn into a Venus like environment from man made climate change in the near future.
Art, culture, love and many other aspects of life that cannot be made into an equation or science don't require religion or faith in a higher being. An atheist/agnostic can still feel all the same profound experiences as any devout believer, they just don't try to explain those phenomena with fairy tales.
You literally just pointed out that I was referring to myself. What are you doing?
I'm not gonna hold anyone's hand thru the obvious. Sorry. There is no way to speak on these topics in places like this. There is no personal experience that can be shared without someone making it about their experience and highjacking whatever you present for their own purpose.
"believing in things without evidence" has a voice.
I don't think that's a good thing, lol.
Saying "I was only talking about myself" is such a BS answer lmao, not even worth addressing.
Like come on.
There's no god or gods.
But, if the idea of believing in a god or gods brings you comfort personally and as long as your belief doesn't infringe on the rights of others, you are free to believe whatever you want to believe and I will never stop someone or question them for that.
But, if the idea of believing in a god or gods brings you comfort personally and as long as your belief doesn't infringe on the rights of others, you are free to believe whatever you want to believe and I will never stop someone or question them for that.
Yeah McMahon already revealed he was the higher power.Why yes I do.
Also.
If every physical cell in our body is different than it was 7 years ago, what makes us, us? What defines the you that exist if the physical is completely changed?
If every physical cell in our body is different than it was 7 years ago, what makes us, us? What defines the you that exist if the physical is completely changed?
Depends on what the definition of a higher power is. If it's a universal order that keeps everything in check, then yes I do. If it's some invisible dude telling me that all people that don't worship him are wrong, than no I don't.
You keep responding and saying nothing about my actual beliefs (not once even asked me what I meant or what faith I have), but you sure are bent on proving a point.
I believe in nature.
I have respect for the beliefs of other people, though. I understand how important faith and a belief in a god can be for some people, especially those going through difficult phases of their life.
I have respect for the beliefs of other people, though. I understand how important faith and a belief in a god can be for some people, especially those going through difficult phases of their life.
Yep nothing is permanent and life is constant growth and change. It's wonderful and beautiful.
You said you believe in a higher power, why would I ask something when you already said it. I don't care about what specifics there are to it, the only problem I had is calling it self-centered.
This isn't rocket science.
I do. Never really seen a reason not to. Believing's never had a negative impact on my life and not believing doesn't seem like it would improve it in any way...
Your problem. Not mine. I could say that phrase again a different way for the third time.