Why are there religious people?

[bhsmte]

Lucifer denied Jesus was a "God" or "of God."


2/3 of the world's population, would agree with him.

 

[Colter]

It would appear, you find it difficult to accept others may disagree with your faith and that causes a level of anxiety for you and maybe even a little fear, so you need to label those who disagree, to ease this anxiety.

I don't mind people disagreeing with my faith, it happens often. We've been talking about Atheist that deny they are any more than neutral.

 

[bhsmte]

I don't mind people disagreeing with my faith, it happens often. We've been talking about Atheist that deny they are any more than neutral.

You have no issue then, with people who have a different faith and do not believe Jesus was God?

 

[Colter]

Lucifer denied Jesus was a "God" or "of God."


2/3 of the world's population, would agree with him.

I vaguely remember remember you saying something about majority opinion doesn't make something true.

 

[Colter]

You have no issue then, with people who have a different faith and do not believe Jesus was God?

Not an issue in the sense that they don't have a right to their sincere beliefs no.

 

[bhsmte]

I vaguely remember remember you saying something about majority opinion doesn't make something true.

I never said it did. I simply made a factual statement in regards to faith beliefs.

Evidence tends to make things factually true to me personally.

 

[Colter]

I never said it did. I simply made a factual statement in regards to faith beliefs.

Evidence tends to make things factually true to me personally.

I agree, I consider the evidence of the material sciences as well as the spiritual.

 

[TheBarrd]

So says the name

Just so.

You may not find it striking, but I do. Did you just call me childish? I AM NOT!

ARE TOO!!

Also I'm not trying to scare you nor have I attempted to. I had concerns of using my main name on a heavy religion forum. Whether these concerns register with you doesn't concern me, but I do take in consideration the name I choose to present myself with. I felt GKG was less of an alarming name.

That's why you left the signature as it is? Cuz you didn't want to frighten those poor li'l Christians?

Gonna get my mom on you if you don't stop.

TATTLE TALE!!

And me alluding to DaG is just fun for me. Again how does that make me childish if I entertain myself?

I'm editing here, because I do not wish to offend anyone. I do like to kid around, but I don't want to be taken the wrong way.

Smashboards? No, I'm absent there.

Ahh...it's the only site I pulled up. Sorry.

Future is unpredictable, but I'm capable of handling my mind.

I'm sure. Still, life continues to happen...people continue to do despicable things, people continue to get sick and die...
Handling your mind when someone you or someone you love has been brutally raped, for instance, or has been diagnosed with a terminal disease, or has committed some unspeakable crime...or even when momma nature has caused some horrible things to happen, like a hurricane or a tsunami...well, it can be hard.

Darn you've figured me out. I did believe in abra-kadabra but because things didn't just poof and become flowers and roses I realized that Abra-Kadabra doesn't work. Now I sad.

You toy with someone who enjoys being entertained.

That's why I'm here.
I also enjoy being entertained.
Sarcasm is one of my favorite forms of entertainment, and you seem very intelligent, which is a major requisite for doing sarcasm right.
You make me giggle.

Um. I guess?

S'true.

Sweltering where I live.

We've had a lot of rain this spring, but it's finally clearing up. Helios, get on the ball, and warm up my pool!

Exactly how does that make a difference in reality? The same circumstances exist.

You wouldn't be terribly popular as a Muslim where I live. I guess it depends on your view of "reality".

Correct. And religion was the reason. Not the means.

I think that was the whole point. Religion causes people to do things they would not ordinarily do.

Man does that too. And religion was the reason. Not the means.

Exactly. People do things because of their beliefs.
Even atheists do things because of their beliefs. Thus we have people getting all offended when they see a cross in a public place, as if it were hurting anyone. And please, don't whine to me about tax dollars when the thing was already there, and had stood there for decades.

You don't understand that?

I do. I don't think you do.

But he can't make me see him?

What, you want pictures of Him sitting around the Christmas tree with the family, or in His swimming shorts at the beach during vacation?
If He showed Himself to everyone who wants to see Him, what would happen to faith?
We already agreed that forced faith is not real faith, remember? Sudden "goodness" because you have now seen God and know that He is real would be kinda like that.
He'll show Himself when the time comes...

Tampering with "free will" is something he's done before, isn't it?

What, exactly, is "free will"?

You don't know this for sure.

Are you a relative or something? I'm pretty sure you are nowhere near old enough to have known him personally...heck, I'm nearly 65, and he was an item in the Encyclopedia when I was a kid....

Yea, which one of those scenarios actually happens?

Actually, like many people, I have dealt with skin cancer from over exposure to the kindly Helios.
Those 42 bears tore up a bunch of young men who thought it would be fun to mock an old man who was a prophet. Perhaps they would have assaulted him? We don't know...God handled the situation.
You may not like the way He handled it, but I'd bet His method was pretty effective...
I never said a single word against Helios...and I'd be willing to bet that none of the other thousands of victims had cursed him, either. He's just that way..

 

[PsychoSarah]

Exactly. People do things because of their beliefs.
Even atheists do things because of their beliefs. Thus we have people getting all offended when they see a cross in a public place, as if it were hurting anyone. And please, don't whine to me about tax dollars when the thing was already there, and had stood there for decades.

Oh please, most atheists couldn't give less of a crap about crosses in public. Those would be crap stirring antitheists and overly sensitive butthurt people who should stick to Tumblr for their nonsense. Now religion in school, on the other hand, is definitely an issue, for not just atheists though, but also for any religion that isn't the one being taught.

Just because something is there for decades doesn't justify its existence, that is fallacy. Slavery is a practice that had existed for centuries before it was abolished in many nations, does the "tradition of slavery" justify it? Also, it isn't about removing the churches, but about the separation of church and state, and how it seems to violate that in churches getting special treatment.

 

[GrimKingGrim]

ARE TOO!!

I know you are but what am I?

That's why you left the signature as it is? Cuz you didn't want to frighten those poor li'l Christians?

I only recently changed it. I always like the name to be present when I'm not using it. I do it on other forums where if the name isn't present literally, it's present in another way.

TATTLE TALE!!

YOU BROUGHT IT ON YOURSELF!

I'm sure. Still, life continues to happen...people continue to do despicable things, people continue to get sick and die...

Life does happen

Handling your mind when someone you or someone you love has been brutally raped, for instance,

Or when your grandfather who was basically the only person literally in your family that didn't bully you around dies and you're forced to confront the finality of death at age 9

or has been diagnosed with a terminal disease,

Been there.

or has committed some unspeakable crime...

I wouldn't consider what I've done unspeakable. But I've done things.

or even when momma nature has caused some horrible things to happen, like a hurricane or a tsunami...well, it can be hard.

Yes they happen. And it's not hard when you know nature can be disastrous. Not by cause but just out of random. But we're able to detect these things and properly warn people a majority of the time.

That's why I'm here.
I also enjoy being entertained.
Sarcasm is one of my favorite forms of entertainment, and you seem very intelligent, which is a major requisite for doing sarcasm right.
You make me giggle.

Glad I can entertain. It's a relief since I just got out a relationship this year with a woman who took even sarcasm seriously. Extremely grating to the nerves.

You wouldn't be terribly popular as a Muslim where I live. I guess it depends on your view of "reality".

But the reality of the situation is that if I was Muslim in your neighborhood I would not be liked.

That statement is true for the following three scenarios:

If I was Christian
If I was Muslim
If I was Atheist

It doesn't matter if I was either of those, the statement remains: if I was Muslim in your neighborhood I would not be liked. That's the reality I'm referring to. Changing myself and my life has no bearing on reality. Which is why my fall from faith didn't get me struck by lightning.

I think that was the whole point. Religion causes people to do things they would not ordinarily do.

Actually the point was religion gives people a reason, but not the means. Meaning that no religion can do things another religion can't.

You'll never see a Greek Pantheon follower smite flames with his faith of Poseidon. You'll never seen a man charge his cell phone with his faith of Odin. You'll never see a devout Christian save hundreds of dollars and make easy party favors by making water cups and turning them to wine with his faith of Jesus.

Religion gives you no tools to do things, just a reason to do it. So it doesn't matter what you believe, you're never gonna be more than human. The reason but not the means.

Exactly. People do things because of their beliefs.
Even atheists do things because of their beliefs.

Yes, but I don't get a Helios sun ray as a package bonus for liking Helios.

Thus we have people getting all offended when they see a cross in a public place, as if it were hurting anyone.

Funny, I don't know an atheist that does. If it were on a Government building or a school then yeah we're up in arms.

And please, don't whine to me about tax dollars when the thing was already there, and had stood there for decades.

We don't tax churches so you can fly whatever you want there. But when you do business with the state there are boundaries. And if you're a government service period like Police, Firefighting, public Schools, IRS, etc you're not allowed to do it period. End of story. This is a secular nation.

I do. I don't think you do.

Still waiting on my Helios Sun ray.

What, you want pictures of Him sitting around the Christmas tree with the family, or in His swimming shorts at the beach during vacation?

Oh come on. Do you think Yahweh can fit any size?

If he's wearing stratosphere sized trunks he better be paying for the materials to make them.

If He showed Himself to everyone who wants to see Him, what would happen to faith?

It would go... up? He would literally end the whole atheist argument and would countless conflicts world wide based on his refusal to show himself.

We already agreed that forced faith is not real faith, remember?

How would it be forced? It would be CONFIRMED. Just like Gravity is CONFIRMED to happen. You're not forced to agree with something that's absolutely undeniable. There's not way you can because there's no way to disagree with gravity existing outside of intellectual suicide.

Sudden "goodness" because you have now seen God and know that He is real would be kinda like that.

Much of what I've heard is people being people. So people would be good or bad regardless. So stands it that I'm a good person and would not get "gooder" by seeing God.

He'll show Himself when the time comes...

Don't tell me you're a rapture prophet.

What, exactly, is "free will"?

A term that means zilch to anyone.

Are you a relative or something?

Back in the day I was known as Grimmy, the Butcher.

I'm pretty sure you are nowhere near old enough to have known him personally...heck, I'm nearly 65, and he was an item in the Encyclopedia when I was a kid....

I was simply saying you don't know my knowledge for sure.

Actually, like many people, I have dealt with skin cancer from over exposure to the kindly Helios.

Well what a jerk.

Those 42 bears tore up a bunch of young men who thought it would be fun to mock an old man who was a prophet.

Yes because 42 bears being the very immediate vicinity of one another is plausible.

Perhaps they would have assaulted him? We don't know...God handled the situation.

I doubt a few children would.

You may not like the way He handled it, but I'd bet His method was pretty effective...

So sending down angels to protect prophets was a thing of the past then? Wasn't that the angels job?

I never said a single word against Helios...and I'd be willing to bet that none of the other thousands of victims had cursed him, either. He's just that way..

Irony here.

 

[Ana the Ist]

Maybe one day you will become skeptical of your own skepticism. Anyway, I'm not limited by your way of thinking and for that I am very grateful.

Contempt prior to investigation guarantees a life of perpetual ignorance......very much like your circular display about the bible.

Who says I didn't investigate?

Also it's not my display... it's pulled from a christian website, which is hilarious.

 

[Archaeopteryx]

I agree, I consider the evidence of the material sciences as well as the spiritual.

What "spiritual sciences"?

 

[GrimKingGrim]

What "spiritual sciences"?

He meant to say "pseudo-science"

You know, the words do sound the same

 

[Colter]

What "spiritual sciences"?

Should have said the realm of the spirit. There is the material realm, that mind can perceive, observe, study and test, and there are the spirit in man that can be explored.

 

[Archaeopteryx]

Sure, questioning church doctrine is fine, but Just like scientific inquiry isn't finished, neither is growing in understanding of God. Certain things in both science and religion will remain beyond our understanding and even our capacity to understand. I don't see that as a cop out, rather it's the acknowledgment of limitation.

If it's beyond our capacity to understand, then we stand in ignorance. It is a cop-out to say that this or that is beyond our understanding, but you must believe my claims about it nonetheless. Why should I believe your claims about it? It's beyond your understanding.

 

[Colter]

If it's beyond our capacity to understand, then we stand in ignorance. It is a cop-out to say that this or that is beyond our understanding, but you must believe my claims about it nonetheless. Why should I believe your claims about it? It's beyond your understanding.

Good question, I would say that having observed some of the material phenomenon of the cosmos and extracted some of it's secrets, then we assume there is more to know, so we don't give up the science pursuit of the understanding of the material manifestation of the first source and center. Having tasted some of the manifestations of the spirits of God and the Word of Living truth, we seek more. God and true generic religion is not simply a belief and rituals around that belief, rather living faith is a pursuit. The evils of religion are the petrification of speculation and interpretations into lifeless creeds and stunted petrified doctrines.

The original gospel that Jesus preached to the Jews, his religion, was a liberating spiritual pursuit of God by the individual free of the yoke of institutionalized religion. But after Jesus left the gospel changed and became contaminated by old Pagan ideas.

 

[Colter]

Who says I didn't investigate?

Also it's not my display... it's pulled from a christian website, which is hilarious.

This has been my experience. I quote something that I find helpful or interesting from the Urantia Book which most people have never herd of. Rather then commenting on the content, a skeptical sort of person will go google something about the UB from a skeptic, they then have instant faith in the skeptical source, write off a 2,000 page book and move on. That is a sad sort of perpetual ignorance that I was referring to.

I myself am very grateful that I don't think like that, I am powerless to doing anything about how you or anyone else thinks.

I find lots of things in the Bible that I don't believe but I don't through it all out.

 

[Archaeopteryx]

Good question,

You say it's a good question, but then you sort of don't answer it. You go on about something else altogether.

 

[Colter]

You say it's a good question, but then you sort of don't answer it. You go on about something else altogether.

Maybe you didn't understand my answer. I will simplify it.

* Science doesn't know everything, they know some things, but they don't stop looking.​

*A person of faith has found spiritual truth but hasn't found all spiritual truth, they don't stop looking.​

As for why you should look for God because I have found God, you are free to do whatever you want. God does not compel you to do anything your don't want to do, he does not demand you worship him or search for him. The choice is entirely yours.

 

[Archaeopteryx]

Maybe you didn't understand my answer. I will simplify it.

* Science doesn't know everything, they know some things, but they don't stop looking.​

*A person of faith has found spiritual truth but hasn't found all spiritual truth, they don't stop looking.​

But that doesn't answer the question. It doesn't even address it. Here is the question, in context of a discussion on limitations: If it's beyond our capacity to understand, then we stand in ignorance. It is a cop-out to say that this or that is beyond our understanding, but you must believe my claims about it nonetheless. Why should I believe your claims about it? It's beyond your understanding.