Where is God hiding?

[richardhutnik]

pokoko said:

richardhutnik said:

pokoko said:
On a serious note, god existing or not, I will never, ever understand the concept of worship. I don't get it. In fact, I would automatically lose respect for any god that required worship. It's an immature and fearful idea born from immature and fearful cultures.

If there really is a god out there, and he's as illuminated as people claim, I would imagine that he face-palms quite often over the whole bowing and kneeling thing. He's probably waiting for humanity to stand up and start thinking for itself on a regular basis.

Explain what the point of the that picture in your profile for me. I don't get it.

My understanding of worship, in its many forms, is that people feel a need to trumpet things they see of superior value to others, to show virtue and whatnot.  There is also a desire to have things that are sacred.  Real worship involves doing things to reflect the ideals of the object of the worship, and reflect its nature, and then when seeing it express one's feelings towards it.  That is the heart of worship actually.  And you see a LOT of it on this site, in these forums thrown at this game or that, or this fictional character or that.

Are you really, actually somehow suggesting that I worship a picture because I like it?  Come, now.  You know that's a failure as an analogy.  Worship, for most people, is about dedication and surrender.  With many religions it comes with the warning that suffering is the alternative.  Most forms of christianity will say that worship is a requirement, which goes far beyond the idea of simply communicating what you like or respect.

That brings to mind the undercurrent running through Dan Simmons' Hyperion novels, that humanity has paid its dues to god and no longer needs to bow and scrape, that we've offered up enough.

Worship is the esteeming something very highly and showing reverence towards it, for numerous reasons.  This can be shown in a lot of different forms.  This impulse is seen in forums like this, towards different things.  And I say this also based on scientific research show.  The same part of the brain that becomes active during religious worship, is the same part of the brain associated with loyalty to certain commercial brains.  In short, it is the same thing to the human mind.  If you have irrational devotion towards something, it is a religious impulse.

http://consumerist.com/2011/05/20/mri-shows-apple-stimulates-fans-brains-like-religion/

Pretty much, YES fanboys look like religious zealots, because they exercise the same part of the brain as religious zealots do, and reason the same.  And their behavior is religous worship towards whatever object them esteem.