Do you believe in God?

[qwertyMike]

I don't mean Religion by any means

[madeline_con]

1. Isn't religion what it's called? n/t

[qwertyMike]

5. Religion is man-made

I'm talking about God.

Einstein did
Teller did

[madeline_con]

8. God is man made. n/t

[Common Sense Party]

25. God will be so amused to hear that. ....nt

[Critters2]

28. God is dead. Nietzsche

Nietzsche is dead.
God

[Deep13]

87. At least we know Nietzsche once existed. n/t

[Critters2]

136. Do we?

How? Because you read it in a book? I read about hobbits, too. And some guy who went around the world in 80 days in a hot-air balloon.

[Deep13]

163. No, that's not how.

Or at least it is not the only way how.

[Critters2]

166. Then how? You met him? nt

[Deep13]

170. Are you really suggesting Nietzsche wasn't real?

Are you really comparing the historical fact of Nietzsche's contribution to 19th century German philosophy with the wishful hope that there might be a god? Or are you going to say that because I don't have his letters or his watch or have dug up his grave and looked inside that I have no evidence. Historians examine primary sources and publish for the benefit of secondary readers. Their books are based on objective evidence that everyone has access to. They are reviewed and criticised by peers. His writings survive. Probably his legal documents too. Probably personal property. Probably people whose grandparents knew him and talked about him. The fact that I don't have this stuff in my house means nothing.

So, smartass, just what kind of crap are you going to point to to say there is just as much evidence for god?

[Critters2]

177. I'm just saying you have as much evidence for the existence of Nietzsche

as others do for God. People you trust, people you consider reliable tell you he existed. Sources I trust tell me of the experiences people have had of God. The difference is that I also believe I've experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit in my own life. Have you met Nietzsche?

You only believe Nietzsche existed. You may have good reason to believe it, but you have no real proof. Anyone could have produced those "primary sources". I say this as a degreed historian who took a bunch of courses in historiography. Still, it all comes down to trusting your sources. That's all you've got.

[Deep13]

85. No he won't. He's imaginary.

[madeline_con]

10. opps, button stuck.

[Q3JR4]

100. When Einstein talked about God he wasn't referring

To a supreme being that sat in judgment of humankind and watched over us all (which I think is the definition of religion). When he used the word "God" he was talking about the laws of physics as discovered by man. In other words he meant God in a poetic sense.

"I believe in Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with the fates and actions of human beings." -Albert Einstein following his wife's advice in responding to Rabbi Herbert Goldstein of the International Synagogue in New York, who had sent Einstein a cablegram bluntly demanding "Do you believe in God?" (See Victor J Stenger, Has Science Found God? Chapter 3)

"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 egotisms."
-- Albert Einstein, obituary in New York Times, 19 April 1955, (See James A Haught, "Breaking the Last Taboo")

"I do not believe in immortality of the individual, and I consider ethics to be an exclusively human concern with no superhuman authority behind it." -- Albert Einstein, 1954, (See Albert Einstein: The Human Side, edited by Helen Dukas and Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press)

"A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death."
"It seems to me that the idea of a personal God is an anthropological concept which I cannot take seriously. I also cannot imagine some will or goal outside the human sphere.... Science has been charged with undermining morality, but the charge is unjust. A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death."
-- Albert Einstein, "Religion and Science," New York Times Magazine, 9 November 1930

And finally,

"It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. 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 religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it."
-- Albert Einstein, 1954, (See Albert Einstein: The Human Side, edited by Helen Dukas and Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press)

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

101. Teller believed in God?

How can we know? Penn said so?

:rofl:

[RedCappedBandit]

146. Religion is man made.. so is god. nt

[Critters2]

2. Yes. I'm a progressive Christian.

Fundies think that's another way to say "atheist". In this, as in so many things, they're wrong.

[ghostsofgiants]

3. No.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. My dear qwertyMike...

I believe in something outside of us...

Something that caused the universe to come into being...

Something that animates us...

That binds us together...

Like a communal soul...

But I don't really know...

I envy those with faith...

[qwertyMike]

14. You believe in a person called "God"

Not religion, not faith

[CaliforniaPeggy]

18. No, I don't believe in a person called god...

It's a form of consciousness for me...

Not a person...

It's a spiritual thing, a spiritual feeling that I have...

[GoddessOfGuinness]

26. I envy those with the guts to say "I don't know"

Sometimes we forget that believing and knowing are not the same thing. :hug:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

43. My dear GoddessOfGuiness...

Thank you sweetie...

It's not a matter of courage for me...

I'm just a very poor liar...:hug:

[Critters2]

44. I admit I can't prove it.

But I still believe.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

47. It's good that you're honest with yourself...

:thumbsup:

[Critters2]

49. Thanks,

I've realized that one of the things that bugs me about Mormonism--about which I hadn't thought much before--is all the speculation about what happens after death (and before birth, for that matter). All I can think is "You don't know what happens after death, and neither do I. How can you make up these wild stories?!" But then I realize that there are people who would consider my faith a bunch of wild stories, too. But Geez--I don't think I'm gonna be a god after I die. I mean seriesly!!

[Common Sense Party]

55. For some of us, it makes sense.

I'm a "Mormon" (actually, we're called Latter-day Saints) and what I've come to believe about the afterlife and the meaning of this life has helped me a great deal.

It's not for everyone, and heaven knows it sounds "weird" to many. But to some, it gives us great comfort and hope.

[Critters2]

57. AS I say, there are those who think my faith is irrational or worse.

I don't mind, as long as they treat me respectfully. I try to do the same with others.
so, if my post above seemed disrespectful, please accept my sincere apology. It was really not appropriate. I had no idea you were LDS, but that doesn't excuse me.

I don't understand speculating about things after death, but I've said for years that my not understanding someone's pov doesn't give me the right to treat them badly.

So, sorry.

[Common Sense Party]

58. No problem--no offense taken, really.

I've seen and heard so many ugly things said about my beliefs lately that I'm almost numb to some of them.

But your comments were far from being out of line. You don't have to agree with anyone else's theology. There are some parts of our theology I don't quite understand myself. I believe in what I believe, and anything I'm unsure about, I say to myself, "Hmm...I don't quite understand that one. Let me ponder it for a while...maybe for a couple decades. It will all work out in the end."

No, there was no disrespect meant, and none taken. Thanks for all your kind words.

:pals:

[Critters2]

59. Thanks very much!

And with that, I'm off to bed. Today was my day off, but tomorrow's a work day. So, need some shut-eye.

Have a good night!! :hi:

[lost-in-nj]

131. yeah but no one can prove

he didn't exist either...



lost

[qwertyMike]

160. LOVE

[rug]

6. Sure.

[JVS]

73. Me too, comrade.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

7. Yes. n/t

[Kutjara]

9. No. n/t

[LostInAnomie]

11. Meh.

:shrug:

[InkAddict]

12. Do you believe in love? n/t

[qwertyMike]

15. Of course

It's all we have

[Connonym]

13. I don't know but sometimes I really wish I did

I think maybe people who have faith are happier. The funny thing is that some agnostic/atheists will tell you that people believe in god because it makes death less scary but for me the thought that there might be a god makes death more scary. If death is the end of all consciousness there's nothing to be afraid of because you won't be aware, you'll just cease being. But if there's an after life, well, all that catholic school has me so afraid of hell that just makes death a really scary proposition.

[Critters2]

16. I'm agnostic about life after death.

I tend to think there is, but I admit it's as much hope as belief. Yet, I'm still a Christian. So, it isn't about fear of death for me. It's about believing in something better in this life.

[JVS]

79. How can that be?

I'm surprised.

[Critters2]

114. I hope, and tend to think there is life after death,

but I also tend to think of eternal life as a mystical experience of God in this life. "Eternal", in theological and philosophical circles, means outside the bounds of time and space. As opposed to everlasting, which means not ending, but within time. I think that when scripture talks about eternal life, it's talking about an experience those who were writing had had--not one somewhere off in the future. I believe it is this sense of the eternal that gives believers the courage to stand without fear in the face of persecution and death--some have already been beyond death into eternity. That's what I meant when I said that, for the Church to be authentically the Church, it must make itself vulnerable to violence and persecution. To protect oneself is to deny eternal life. Tillich talks about this in his book _The Eternal Now_.

As to what happens after death, I have no way of knowing. Even after the resurrection (yes, I believe in Jesus' resurrection), Jesus felt no need to tell us what his experience had been. This is clearly not the focus of his work, as some would have us believe. Instead, he continued to teach ethics and prepare the Church for its work in the world.

I do use the Church's metaphors when speaking about life after death--particularly at funerals, where my job is to comfort those in grief. But I don't do any speculating myself. Happily, in my tradition, funerals are first and foremost services of thanksgiving for the life lived, not opportunities to talk about whether that person is in heaven.

So, that's it. I tend to seem unorthodox to those outside the UCC, but most UCCs are cool with my theology. I've been criticized for lots of things in my 21 years in ministry, but I've never been called a heretic by anyone in my denomination. Others, yes. UCCs, no.

[kwassa]

17. Yes, and ...

this question or variations on it have been asked many many many times, sometimes with polls attached, and belong in the Religion and Theology forum.

[Critters2]

21. Good point. It often erupts in flames. nt

[Robeson]

19. There is no "God"....

...unless you can provide empircal evidence that there is.

[madeline_con]

34. But there is unless evidence to prove otherwise is presented.

The conundrum that starts the war.

[qnr]

42. No conundrum. The burden of proof is on the positive n/t

[madeline_con]

45. Ball's in your court. You're "positive" there's no God.

:popcorn:

[qnr]

51. Nope doesn't work that way, 30 seconds of thought should make that obvious n/t

[madeline_con]

52. Bingo! The ubiquitous personal attack in the God thread!

I need 30 seconds of thought. :rofl:

[qnr]

56. Yup... that's it :)

:hi:
http://www.aliboom.com/dragon.html .... Carl Sagan's The Dragon In My Garage

[GoneOffShore]

124. And because the link didn't work

Try this one.

http://www.users.qwest.net/~jcosta3/article_dragon.htm

Now keep an open mind when you read the essay.

:rofl:

[datasuspect]

92. a claim related to the veracity of something, or whether it exists, must be either evident,

demonstrable, or provable by evidence. self-report, anecdote, and emotion aren't candidates for determining the truth value of this type of claim.

[varkam]

153. The burden of proof rests with the person making the claim.

Atheists, by and large, simply don't think theists have satisfied the burden of proof.

[qwertyMike]

41. Can you provide empirical evidence

That there is Gravity
Or that Light is a wave or particle form?

And so on

[trotsky]

84. Oh my

If there were just a FRACTION of the empirical evidence for "god" as there is for gravity, I'd be a believer.

[GoneOffShore]

20. No

nor ghosts nor angels nor fairies nor leprechans nor alien abductions nor witches nor warlocks nor vampires nor werewolves

But I do believe in trolls - I found several today in GD

[Robeson]

23. I agree. I do believe in trolls.....

...and I love to feed them granite....;-)

[KitchenWitch]

162. I am a Witch.

[Critters2]

168. I caught that, too.

Don't believe in witches? Hell, I know several!

[KitchenWitch]

171. Hey, just out of curiosity

Where did you go to Seminary?

[Critters2]

176. Andover Newton Theological School

Newton, MA

[GoneOffShore]

174. Ahhh, but you're a kitchen witch

Totally different..
And I'm a kitchen wizard.
We work with the tangible.

[Fire Walk With Me]

22. Yes.

[Arugula Latte]

24. No. I could never believe it. Even when I was a child, it seemed so far-fetched to me.

Whether there is some sort of vague life force of unknown nature that someone wants to call god, well, maybe .. who knows.

But an omnipotent deity pulling the strings? No way.

[Common Sense Party]

31. What if the deity isn't pulling the strings?

What if the deity is waiting to see how well we pull our own strings?

[Critters2]

36. Hmmm...interesting. Thank you. nt

[Arugula Latte]

37. Well what is the deity there for?

Just hanging around in the ether? :shrug:

Like I said, the whole thing has always struck me as very far-fetched -- Just a convenient way to explain stuff away.

[Critters2]

38. The deity has to be there "for" something?

Maybe the deity just is.

[Arugula Latte]

40. That doesn't make much sense to me. But, then, none of it ever did.

[Common Sense Party]

53. Well, this is MY interpretation of it. It's worth about what you pay for it:

The Deity in question is our Parent. We are God's spirit children. We used to live with God, as spirits. We're here on earth to gain some life experiences, to learn from the school of hard knocks, but most importantly to learn how to be kind and loving to others, and try to live a good life, as God has defined it. In short, our goal in life is to learn to be a little bit like God.

Just like human parents, when they push us out the door at age 18 to go to school or go work in the real world, don't "pull the strings" and control every aspect of our lives, neither does God. Human parents hope that they've taught us well, they know we're going to make some mistakes and that hopefully we'll learn from them, they may help us out if we're in a really tight spot, but mostly they just hope we grow up to be like them and bring honor to the family name. I think God's like that as well.

This, too, will probably strike you as far-fetched and contrived. That's fine.

I used to think religious stuff was pretty far-fetched, too. Then I had some experiences that led me to believe otherwise. Now, the idea that there is no God and no purpose or meaning to this life--that seems more far-fetched to me.

To each his or her own. As long as you're happy and helping others, that's the main thing.

[TheFriendlyAnarchist]

71. I'm pretty sure he's huffing the ether.

[Arugula Latte]

149. Well, that explains Joe Lieberman, famine, Hitler, cancer, and Melanie Griffith's acting

:)

[TheFriendlyAnarchist]

150. And Kevin Costner.

[SammyWinstonJack]

179. Or some are.

:evilgrin:

[Common Sense Party]

27. Yes, I do. But the better question is: Does God believe in ME? nt

[Common Sense Party]

29. Has anyone done a thorough poll on DU about this question?

Not in the Lounge, but in GD?

It would be interesting to see the results. I had no idea there were so many atheists here. Not that I have a problem with atheism--I used to be agnostic myself. I guess I was surprised by how many anti-religion atheists there are.

I wonder what the percentage of atheists/agnostics would be here on DU.

Am I in a tiny minority?

[Critters2]

48. This comes up all the time, but not usually in the Lounge.

And, as someone pointed out, this may not be the most appropriate venue for this discussion. These things often end up being flamefests.

There are a LOT of atheists here. Maybe the majority, maybe just quite vocal. I've never been sure.

There are a good number of Christians, of a variety of traditions. I know of a Lounge regular who's LCMS, and at least two of us are quite committed UCCs. And a healthy contingent of Jews. Some Muslims, too. And others.

So, I don't know if atheists are in the majority, but there are a lot. Over in Religion/Theology, discussions between atheists and theists can get quite nasty. I avoid R/T altogether.

Have you checked out the Liberal Christian/Progressive People of Faith group? It's been pretty quiet lately, but we're a friendly bunch. Stop on by!!

[emilyg]

30. Yes.

[Akoto]

32. I'm a Buddhist, so ...

No, in my case. :) A lot of people believe that the Buddha is viewed as our equivalent to, say, the Christian-style God. For a goodly part of the tradition, he is an enlightened guide, as opposed to a divine being in that sense. Instead of worship, the Buddha's teachings guide people (in behavior and understanding of the world) toward Nirvana, which is actually a state of being/mind rather than a place. That's an extremely simplistic way of explaining it, but like any ancient path of spirituality, you could spend a lifetime studying the topic. There are even other Buddhas besides the one most people think of!

That said, there are other paths and schools of Buddhism, some of which do have concepts much closer to that of a God/Omnipresence.

[qnr]

33. No n/t

[Neoma]

35. No.

[Tektonik]

39. Not at the moment

but I'm open-minded

[BlueJazz]

46. I do not believe in a god

[Lethe]

50. i am more of a polytheist

i believe in any god i want to believe in, and there's no "one true God"

i respect the gods my ancestors worshipped

i am also a low-grade animist, and a weak atheist (how can that be?)

[fizzgig]

54. in a sense

i believe there is something(s) bigger than us, but i don't propose to know it/them.

is it a matter of comfort so i don't feel so small and alone? maybe

i also believe those called god/s are the same, they just go by different names

[laylah]

66. ...

:hug: :loveya:

[Jamastiene]

60. When there is a dangerous storm coming,

I'm an ardent believer. The rest of the time, I am like the character in Bruce Almighty, looking up at the sky asking,"Why do you hate me, God? What did I do to deserve this?"

All in all, though, I'd say no, because I don't go to church and I don't KNOW there is really a God up there. I'm just trying to calm myself in crappy situations. I'm leaning toward no.

[pokerfan]

61. No

Strictly speaking, I'm an agnostic atheist.

[last_texas_dem]

62. No

I'm agnostic, so I don't deny the possibility that there could be a God, but I don't "believe."

[qwertyMike]

63. As Leonard Cohen said

"I know that you still think that its me. I know that you think that there's somebody else. I know that these words aren't yours. But I tell you friends that one day

You're going to get down on your knees,
You're going to get down on your knees"

[sakabatou]

64. If you mean Jenova and the FSM

then yes. Otherwise, no.

[Skittles]

65. no

I find the idea that this mess is overseen by some all-knowing omnipotent being laughable.

[Guava Jelly]

67. NO

and NO

[Inchworm]

68. Do you believe in orange juice?

:hi:

drink every day and you'll lessen bein sick

:)

[China_cat]

69. 'God' is a job description, not a name.

[Midlodemocrat]

70. Yes.

[michaz]

72. Yes, I do! But I have no problem with those who don't. It is their choice.

[YankeyMCC]

74. Who or what is this "God" you speak of?

then I can answer your question.

I generally don't believe n anything 'supernatural' by definition it does not exist within nature therefore does not exist.

[Fox Mulder]

75. I don't know what I believe.

To me, there's no way one can prove or disprove that God or god(s) or some form of a deity even exists...so I'm stuck in that limbo called Agnosticism.

[RebelOne]

76. This atheist says absolutely not.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

77. no i think he/she is a crutch, which is to say when i am hopeless i will pray to a non existent god

cos really what else is there to do.

so no i dont believe in god.

and yes i do pray to it every once in a while.

[Marrah_G]

78. Which one?

[johnnie]

80. I believe in a collective energy

I don't believe there is an omnipresent force that watches over everything we do and so on, but I do believe that we are all one part of a whole and that our actions affect everyone else to some degree.

I've experienced too many "supernatural" events in my life that to think there is nothing beyond what we see would be silly of me. I also believe that it isn't my responsibility to try to prove to anyone else that there is something more, that's each individual person's trip.

So I guess I believe there is a God of some sense. Not an old man in the sky but more of a larger consciousness that we are all part of and we will most likely be a whole in the future.

[datasuspect]

94. i've never experienced anything supernatural

but i completely agree with your statements.

[Wapsie B]

111. I agree.

There's some kind of energy, a force that connects all of us. I've had no supernatural events but I do believe we've been given this consciousness, this sense of reasoning for a purpose. There are simply some things in life we cannot explain scientifically, and that fact flies in the face of those needing empirical evidence in order to believe.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

81. Yes. n/t

[lizziegrace]

82. Yes n/t

[Bucky]

83. Here's a great story....

There was a young Jewish student in New York who had gone to City College and gotten full of the radical ideas there in the 1930s. One day in his senior year he ran into one of the rabbis who'd taught him in Hebrew school and proudly announced, "I don't believe in God."

The old rabbi replied, "Tell me, son, do you think God cares?"

[Deep13]

86. No. God is not real.

I'll take a step further and say belief is irrelevant. Reality is what matters.

And belief in god is religion. To paraphrase a line from the film Oh God, if he isn't for religion, then he picked a pretty funny business to go into.

[datasuspect]

91. reality is the most relevant thing

but what if you use some form of mysterious thinking/contemplation of an amorphous divinity as a palliative, even though you know it isn't rational or even real, but still provides a psychological comfort?

[Deep13]

93. Whatever gets a person through the night, I guess.

[datasuspect]

96. that's pretty much the conclusion i arrived at.

i guess as i get older strict adherence to ANY doctrine has become less and less palatable to me.

[Deep13]

128. I don't think I have a doctrine. It only seems that way...

... because I am constantly being put on the defensive for my lack of belief. Aparently being an American or at least a good person requires me to at least accept the supposed virtue of monotheism and I just don't. To paraphrase Adams, there has never been an engine of evil as great as the cross. Everyone else is free to talk about god this and god that, but as soon as I decline to shut up, suddenly I'm the one who is intolerant.

By the way, even if monotheism is good and even if we need god, it does not mean he exists.

When I still had doubts about the nonexistence of god, I could do as you are suggesting. In 1999 when my father died I was pretty much a non Christian by then, but still prayed for my father's recovery and for salvation from Bush. I figured it could not hurt. It is amazing how durable childhood indoctrination is. Now I am aware of the extent of the evidence and know that anything we could call god is impossible.

[datasuspect]

88. i don't believe in a monotheistic anthropomorphized interventionist deity

i believe that there are gods in all things. i'm more of a pantheist.

[Beer Snob-50]

89. god is a concept by which we measure our pain

or god is a crutch for those who cannot handle reality.

[seemunkee]

90. I don't know and I don't think it matters

If an all powerful omnipotent being existed would it really care if I worshiped in one particular manner or another. Wouldn't that imply that god was egotistical? I think our actions would matter more than our worship practices.
Right thought
Right action
Right intention
If there is a god I will let it judge me on how I lived.

[southpaw]

95. No

[Flatline]

97. There's only one God? news to me

as a Pagan I have many not just one.

[PVnRT]

98. Well...

[HERVEPA]

99. Invisible Cloud Being (or any other variety or flavor)? Nope!

[Phillycat]

102. I believe in a higher power

I occasionally choose to call it "god".

[SteppingRazor]

103. I believe in inspiration.

That the work of a person can somehow add up to more than the person him/herself. That we may find grace through art, peace through scientific endeavor, and love in our fellow humans.


That remainder that is left after one finds the sum of a human being -- that sense of awe that one can feel when listening to the songs of Beethoven or Bob Dylan, or seeing the work of Van Gogh or da Vinci, or reading the words of Gabriel Garcia Marquez -- that remainder is my god.

[LeftyMom]

104. Nein. nt

[Seashell Eyes]

105. sometimes

If there is no god, then life is the greatest accident ever.

[Q3JR4]

106. The funny thing is

people can talk about belief all they want. Thousands of years ago humanity believed that the earth was flat until science set them straight. If there is a God out there, I don't think that such a thing can be everything that the christians like to ascribe to it. I don't think it has always been there since the beginning, nor do I think that it will always be there. I don't think it watches everything we do, nor do I think it's all knowing or even "good" in the human sense.

The argument for God seems to go like this: All life on the planet looks really complex, in fact complex enough to look designed and so it was. This designer christians like to talk about watches everything you do, has a personal connection with every living human being on the planet, and punishes you for whatever "wrongs" you may commit. That being sounds really complex to me, much more complex than we of the "where am I?", "why am I here?" ilk. To use the very same argument that christians use, all life is complex (even the godly life) so either life (or God) came into being in some way or it (either one) always existed. Both are too complex to have just popped into existence. In fact logic dictates that that "popping" effect is too improbable. The most logical case, then, is that evolution played a part. Thus if God exists, that being had to have been created by a process like the one all life on earth currently seem to be going through.

I don't know if that's clear, but I can't put any more thought into it right now.

[Critters2]

115. I'm a Chrisitan, and those aren't the arguments I use.

But thanks for defining my faith for me. So much easier than letting me do it myself.

[Anarcho-Socialist]

107. No n/t

[Throd]

108. I have been an atheist since I was 8 years old.

About the same time I realized that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were just as real as God.

[groovedaddy]

109. Yes. Just spoke with her this morning

and, man, is she pissed!

[GCP]

110. No

[RainDog]

112. I believe in an infinity

that is as great as nothingness. I think that everything in this world is connected at the level of mass, and yet all mass has a greater amount of nothingness at its atomic level.

I think that we cannot know everything with our rational minds... things like the whistle a dog can hear but humans can't because it's out of our range. what that means, exactly, I do not know. but I respect the idea that humans are not necessarily the highest form of intellect in the universe.. yet don't know of anything at this time, and maybe never will because that would be impossible ifyouknowwhatimean.

does that mean I believe in "God?" That word, "God" means something entirely different to me than my explanation above and carries a lot of baggage from all different belief systems.

[Swede]

113. Yes.

Where God came from is the question.

[SKKY]

116. Nope. The older I get, the more I tend to side with the...

..."we came from monkeys" camp. I wish I did believe in God, I really do. It seems like such a nice idea there is life after this one. But that would require me putting blind faith into something I have no way in hell of ever proving, so I don't.

[Arugula Latte]

133. We didn't come from monkeys, but we share a common ancester with apes.

...Just to be a pain in the ass about it. :)

[Critters2]

135. I believe this, AND I believe in God.

It's not an either/or, no matter what the fundies say.

[SKKY]

139. Yea, I know. We probably evolved from something that isn't even...

...around anymore other than through small similarities in genes.

[mike_c]

117. no-- not even a little bit....

God is a figment of human imagination, apparently a pretty fundamental bug in the human psyche.

[montanto]

118. nope

[UrbScotty]

119. Yes

[cordelia]

120. Yes

[Critters2]

121. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

[Xipe Totec]

122. Yes, in a Deist sort of way

I do not believe we are God's chosen creation.

[Javaman]

123. The real question is: does god believe in me?

Once you understandt that god is man made, the rest is easy.

[LanternWaste]

126. Wouldn't it be more precise to state...

"Once you understand that god is man made..."

Wouldn't it be more precise to state "once you believe that god is man made..."?

[Javaman]

137. nope, understand. believe means you hold out for another possibility. nt.

[redqueen]

125. At this point I don't believe in anything.

[Burma Jones]

127. Sure, God is what we don't know yet - always has been.........

[porphyrian]

129. Mostly not, but moreso I believe that it doesn't matter.

If there is no God, it doesn't matter that I don't believe in God. If there is a God, they would understand exactly what I believe and why, so there's no reason for them to hold it against me. I think much of religion, Christianity specifically, has become a huge pageant of sorts, where the contestants have to convince each other of how pious they are. If there is a God, I think he/she/it's laughing at them. Hard.

[Iggo]

130. No.

.

[IronLionZion]

132. Yes

And kudos to those who have the courage to say so on this board, also those who say they don't know.

But I believe he(or she or whatever non-human force is out there) does not have as much of a role in our day-to-day lives as some may think. I strongly believe God wants us to make our own decisions and take responsibility to run our own lives as much as possible. I'm sure he's appalled at the stuff that gets done in his name. I thanked God for the food I had for dinner last night, and for bringing my girlfriend into my life.

I believe what I believe. No matter what, I react very angrily to anyone who tells me what I should believe, whether that person is a bigoted fundie or a self-styled "liberal and open-minded" DUer.

[Common Sense Party]

142. Well said. nt

[THUNDER HANDS]

134. i don't "believe" in anything

I either know or I don't know.

and I don't know if there's a God.

[Beetwasher]

138. There Are Only Three Things I Know For Sure

1. "Something" exists because 'I' think, therefore 'something' must exist.
2. "It" changes. That's obvious.
3. "It's" infinite, because no matter how it changes, there can never be "nothing", so there will always be "something" in some form or another.

But I have no belief in a "god".

[applegrove]

140. I believe in some force. How can there not be. But what it is I have no idea.

So I stick close to humanity and believe in that miracle.

[Tikki]

141. I say if you believe in one of them you have......

believe in all of them.
If you don't believe in one of them...there are none to you.


Tikki

[youthere]

143. Not after today.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x7258629

[graywarrior]

144. When my ass is on fire.

[Critters2]

151. Well, that would explain it.

My ass is on fire a lot.

[otherlander]

145. No, I don't.

[RedCappedBandit]

147. Of course not

[Rob H.]

148. Nope. nt

[izzybeans]

152. no

[RebelSansCause]

154. NO

never.

[ldf]

155. i can't resist... GOD specifically states it doesn't exist

this whole god thing revolves around time.

god says:

"in the beginning", it created, etc, etc, blah blah

and eventually:

"at the end of time" it judges, rewards, punishes, blah blah



time doesn't begin, or end, therefore the whole hypothesis is invalid. sort of like space ending. can't happen.

infinity and forever. two concepts that are hard to wrap our brains around, so we invent all sorts of crap, just to explain those concepts.

the whole idea is that we should BE NICE to one another. you know, the old "do unto others as you would have them do unto you"...

the whole god thing is a TOTALLY manmade concept for the purpose of control and manipulation.

works pretty well, doesn't it?

[Critters2]

169. So, you believe God wrote the Bible?

I'm confused.

And trust me, if religion controlled people, my life would be MUCH easier. It does no such thing.

[Genevieve]

156. Just one of many reasons why: NO, I do not:

[OhioChick]

157. Yes n/t

[BreweryYardRat]

158. Yes. A couple.

Christianity mixed with a little paganism.

The commandment says "have no gods before me." Not "have no other gods. Period."

And the Christian/Jewish/Muslim God is quite obviously not omnipotent.

[BarenakedLady]

159. I don't think so.

:shrug:

[SPKrazy]

161. I believe

in a power greater than myself

I believe in many powers greater than myself, but I will have to say that I believe in some kind of force with a purpose and reason that exists for the good of all, and that force can be tapped into because it is, and is in everything. I think we block ourselves from it through our own self doubt, fear, self loathing, guilt, resentment, etc.

I believe that when we clear ourselves of these things, we are able to be in touch with that power. Can I prove it?

No, have I felt it, I believe I have.

That's all that matters is that I believe I have.

I'm willing to share that with others IF THEY ASK but not someone that would ever go and preach it to others without their asking for it.

I grew up in that kind of environment where 95% of the people around me belonged to the Mormon church and it was a constant pressure and was in everything (school, scouts, etc.) that was around.

Thanks

:hi:

[Critters2]

167. This is well expressed, Southpaw. Thank you.

Now, go decorate that tree! :hi:

[YellowRubberDuckie]

164. I believe God exists...

But I do not believe in most Christians. I have no faith in them.
Duckie

[KitchenWitch]

165. I believe in a greater consciousness

Spirit, as it were. I also believe that all creatures, human and otherwise, are part of this greater consciousness. Therefore even on the most minute level, when one of us is pained, all of us hurt, even if we are not conscious of it.

[MilesColtrane]

172. If by God you mean a cosmic creative force that is all loving...

...then yeah.

But, I sure don't believe in a large man in the sky with a white beard and a toteboard tallying up every person's transgressions.

[Steely_Dan]

173. NO

[nytemare]

175. Not for a while now. N/t

[MissMillie]

178. yeah, I do... but God doesn't look to me the way most religions paint God

the one I believe in doesn't expect anything from me at all...

[WritingIsMyReligion]

180. No, nor do I believe in the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

BLASPHEMY, I know. :P

[MikeH]

181. I consider myself to be just on the believing side of agnostic

And I would consider myself closer to being a Deist than anything else.

I used to be a Christian, but with all due respect to people who are Christians, I eventually came to the realization that, for myself, the Christian faith, and my supposedly having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, had not been of any help to me personally in enabling me to better deal with any source of pain, frustration, or unhappiness in my life. That being the case, I felt, and still feel, that it was the right and healthy thing for me to part company with the Christian faith, and in particular to absolve myself of any duties and obligations specifically imposed by the Christian faith (as opposed to those incumbent on any good or moral person).

However, with all due respect to people who are atheists, I find that I myself have problems with atheism. One of my favorite authors when I was a Christian was the noted apologist C. S. Lewis. While I no longer accept his arguments regarding the person of Jesus Christ (there is some question as to whether he really existed as a historical person), or tenets of the Christian faith, I like and still accept his philosophical arguments that our reasoning abilities, and our sense of right and wrong, and our ideas of beauty, truth, and goodness, would seem to be rooted in some reality or some person higher and greater than ourselves and the natural universe.

I now would not want to say that these philosophical arguments prove for certain that there is a God in the sense commonly understood by Christians and other theists; however I would want to say that at the very least I think the idea of God is a possibility, and not something that is totally ridiculous.

I discovered some web sites about deism about two years ago; they are easy to find on the internet. They advocate the use of our reason (one might, if so inclined, say that our reason is God-given). Deists particularly disbelieve in any alleged revelation from God, such as the Bible or the Koran.

If God reveals himself/herself to a person, that is a revelation to that person only. Otherwise any alleged revelation from God is at best second-hand, or hearsay. And the Bible is not even second-hand, or third-hand, or fourth-hand any more.

I am definitely in agreement with the deists about the Bible, and about any other alleged revelation from God.

The deists generally would like it very much if there were a life after this life, but accept uncertainty about the matter. I am also with them about that, though I consider the reports of near-death experiences to be possibly indicative of a life after this life.

Being a deist I think I have some very good company. Many of our country's founding fathers, such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and most especially Thomas Paine, were deists. Also I think some might consider Albert Einstein to be a deist.

[Catsbrains]

182. hell no.

[Mythsaje]

183. Well, only in the most vague, pantheistic, demi-taoist, semi-agnostic

really don't-give-a-shit way.

Why do you ask?