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Forums - General Discussion - Do you believe in God? Why/Why not?

 

Do you believe in any god?

Yes 63 36.21%
 
No 111 63.79%
 
Total:174
Ostro said:

I do not but I understand most religions and their intentions (I don't know all of them) and hence don't dislike them.
I'm a science guy but I won't go as far as others and say that is the contrary to being religious or believing anything. In fact, lots of well known and big scientists who really contribute to our knowledge say there is something we don't understand and it could simply be described as God until we understand anything about it (if we ever do that is).

People who personalize God don't understand the theory behind it. That's also why questions like "why should I worship?" do not make any sense and are just general conversation but nothing beyond and meaningful.

But shouldn't we at some point stop ascribing things to God when time after time we uncover that it has nothing to do with God?

The question of "why should I worship" is simply a practical one. Why should I devote any time whatsoever pondering about God when I could just completely ignore him and live the exact same life? If there is a meaning to life(which I doubt there is) it probably isn't to waste my time doing essentially nothing.



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I reverted to becoming a believer a couple of weeks ago because science couldn't explain something important - consciousness.

You can piece together carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen all you want, and through the laws of physics you can create beings that walk, talk, and respond to stimuli, but awareness of yourself and the environment did not make sense to me when considering it occurred as a natural evolutionary process.

Our brain consists of neurons which follow the rules of physics. There is no purpose to a consciousness when you can simply behave the same towards stimuli without one (like a robot would depending on how it is programmed).



Ethio89 said:
I reverted to becoming a believer a couple of weeks ago because science couldn't explain something important - consciousness.

You can piece together carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen all you want, and through the laws of physics you can create beings that walk, talk, and respond to stimuli, but awareness of yourself and the environment did not make sense to me when considering it occurred as a natural evolutionary process.

Our brain consists of neurons which follow the rules of physics. There is no purpose to a consciousness when you can simply behave the same towards stimuli without one (like a robot would depending on how it is programmed).

Yet. Just because you don't understand something, it doesn't make it a good reason to follow fairy tales for empty but comforting ideas. 



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Runa216 said:
Ethio89 said:
I reverted to becoming a believer a couple of weeks ago because science couldn't explain something important - consciousness.

You can piece together carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen all you want, and through the laws of physics you can create beings that walk, talk, and respond to stimuli, but awareness of yourself and the environment did not make sense to me when considering it occurred as a natural evolutionary process.

Our brain consists of neurons which follow the rules of physics. There is no purpose to a consciousness when you can simply behave the same towards stimuli without one (like a robot would depending on how it is programmed).

Yet. Just because you don't understand something, it doesn't make it a good reason to follow fairy tales for empty but comforting ideas. 

Jesus is scientifically proved to have existed, Saints and Apostles are scientifically proved to have lived, suffered and died for believing in something, Old Testament prophesying Jesus is scientifically proved to have been written hundreds of years before him, and he is scientifically proved to have lived and fulfilled those prophesies (those that can be proved at least)

of course now you can deny that these people had any connection to God, but still that doesn't make it a fairy tale

present day, scientific research proves that people who follow the Christian lifestyle - guided by Jesus, show higher life satisfaction and personal happiness than the non-fairy tale believers, they also make more long-lasting and happy marriages and have lower cancer rates, too good for believing a fairy tale, right?

it is scientifically proven that Christian diet lifestyle (limited meat diet) significantly reduces cancer rate, but how could the ancients know? also proven that red meat increases sex drive, therefore consumption is limited under Christianity to focus on real love instead of hormone drive, how could the ancients know?

Jesus teaching makes perfect sense, and believers or not, most sensible people follow the basics at least, and under those the West world was built (best way of life right), a coincidence?

too many coincidences for one fairy tale


I agree there have been some things thought to be by God because there was no other explanation at the time, but why is this even important? the faith was never based on those anyway, just because we have an explanation for rain, it doesn't mean that Jesus was fake

but there are also things, like Jesus miracles that are marked as fake because there is no other explanation, so the contrary also holds, isn't that too convenient for atheists though?

there are still things that cannot be explained, some could be from God like Big Bang, some could not, but why does it matter as much? as long as we cannot bring back the dead, give consciousness/free will to something, or disprove it, or understand the Big Bang and where the quarks and photons come from, there is more than enough room for God, and I highly, highly doubt these will ever be achieved, and the answer is simple, the creation cannot reach the creator, only the other way round, and it has already happened



don't mind my username, that was more than 10 years ago, I'm a different person now, amazing how people change ^_^

dark_gh0st_b0y said:
Runa216 said:

Yet. Just because you don't understand something, it doesn't make it a good reason to follow fairy tales for empty but comforting ideas. 

Jesus is scientifically proved to have existed, Saints and Apostles are scientifically proved to have lived, suffered and died for believing in something, Old Testament prophesying Jesus is scientifically proved to have been written hundreds of years before him, and he is scientifically proved to have lived and fulfilled those prophesies (those that can be proved at least)

of course now you can deny that these people had any connection to God, but still that doesn't make it a fairy tale

present day, scientific research proves that people who follow the Christian lifestyle - guided by Jesus, show higher life satisfaction and personal happiness than the non-fairy tale believers, they also make more long-lasting and happy marriages and have lower cancer rates, too good for believing a fairy tale, right?

it is scientifically proven that Christian diet lifestyle (limited meat diet) significantly reduces cancer rate, but how could the ancients know? also proven that red meat increases sex drive, therefore consumption is limited under Christianity to focus on real love instead of hormone drive, how could the ancients know?

Jesus teaching makes perfect sense, and believers or not, most sensible people follow the basics at least, and under those the West world was built (best way of life right), a coincidence?

too many coincidences for one fairy tale


I agree there have been some things thought to be by God because there was no other explanation at the time, but why is this even important? the faith was never based on those anyway, just because we have an explanation for rain, it doesn't mean that Jesus was fake

but there are also things, like Jesus miracles that are marked as fake because there is no other explanation, so the contrary also holds, isn't that too convenient for atheists though?

there are still things that cannot be explained, some could be from God like Big Bang, some could not, but why does it matter as much? as long as we cannot bring back the dead, give consciousness/free will to something, or disprove it, or understand the Big Bang and where the quarks and photons come from, there is more than enough room for God, and I highly, highly doubt these will ever be achieved, and the answer is simple, the creation cannot reach the creator, only the other way round, and it has already happened

https://time.com/5159848/do-religious-people-live-longer/
The reasons have more to do with community rather than belief.

Belief can also make things worse
https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-04-07/ultra-orthodox-jews-hit-disproportionately-hard-in-israels-coronavirus-outbreak
Easter caused an uptick in cases and later deaths here as well.

The key factor is leading less stressful lives by worrying less. Giving yourself up to a higher power. Ignorance is bliss. Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change is a key part. However those that do not accept the things they can not change, end up improving the world. (Or destroying it, works both ways) Religion is stagnation, good for maybe living a bit longer but what progress has ever come from religion?



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Ethio89 said:
I reverted to becoming a believer a couple of weeks ago because science couldn't explain something important - consciousness.

You can piece together carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen all you want, and through the laws of physics you can create beings that walk, talk, and respond to stimuli, but awareness of yourself and the environment did not make sense to me when considering it occurred as a natural evolutionary process.

Our brain consists of neurons which follow the rules of physics. There is no purpose to a consciousness when you can simply behave the same towards stimuli without one (like a robot would depending on how it is programmed).

We do not understand how consciousness arises.

That doesn't mean "god did it" is a viable answer.  Do you have an explanation for how god can create consciousness?  Or where his consciousness would come from?

dark_gh0st_b0y said:
Runa216 said:

Yet. Just because you don't understand something, it doesn't make it a good reason to follow fairy tales for empty but comforting ideas. 

Jesus is scientifically proved to have existed, Saints and Apostles are scientifically proved to have lived, suffered and died for believing in something, Old Testament prophesying Jesus is scientifically proved to have been written hundreds of years before him, and he is scientifically proved to have lived and fulfilled those prophesies (those that can be proved at least)

of course now you can deny that these people had any connection to God, but still that doesn't make it a fairy tale

present day, scientific research proves that people who follow the Christian lifestyle - guided by Jesus, show higher life satisfaction and personal happiness than the non-fairy tale believers, they also make more long-lasting and happy marriages and have lower cancer rates, too good for believing a fairy tale, right?

it is scientifically proven that Christian diet lifestyle (limited meat diet) significantly reduces cancer rate, but how could the ancients know? also proven that red meat increases sex drive, therefore consumption is limited under Christianity to focus on real love instead of hormone drive, how could the ancients know?

Jesus teaching makes perfect sense, and believers or not, most sensible people follow the basics at least, and under those the West world was built (best way of life right), a coincidence?

too many coincidences for one fairy tale


I agree there have been some things thought to be by God because there was no other explanation at the time, but why is this even important? the faith was never based on those anyway, just because we have an explanation for rain, it doesn't mean that Jesus was fake

but there are also things, like Jesus miracles that are marked as fake because there is no other explanation, so the contrary also holds, isn't that too convenient for atheists though?

there are still things that cannot be explained, some could be from God like Big Bang, some could not, but why does it matter as much? as long as we cannot bring back the dead, give consciousness/free will to something, or disprove it, or understand the Big Bang and where the quarks and photons come from, there is more than enough room for God, and I highly, highly doubt these will ever be achieved, and the answer is simple, the creation cannot reach the creator, only the other way round, and it has already happened

Wow... you're going to have to back that up.

Show me the peer reviewed scientific evidence for those claims please.  



dark_gh0st_b0y said:
Runa216 said:

Yet. Just because you don't understand something, it doesn't make it a good reason to follow fairy tales for empty but comforting ideas. 

Jesus is scientifically proved to have existed

yes, this is true. However, so is Abraham Lincoln, but that doesn't mean he was an actual vampire hunter just because someone made a movie about it. 

Historical fiction is a thing, you know. Religion isn't real just because some of the events depicted in the holy texts are based on real events. you do know that, right?



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JWeinCom said:
Ethio89 said:
I reverted to becoming a believer a couple of weeks ago because science couldn't explain something important - consciousness.

You can piece together carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen all you want, and through the laws of physics you can create beings that walk, talk, and respond to stimuli, but awareness of yourself and the environment did not make sense to me when considering it occurred as a natural evolutionary process.

Our brain consists of neurons which follow the rules of physics. There is no purpose to a consciousness when you can simply behave the same towards stimuli without one (like a robot would depending on how it is programmed).

We do not understand how consciousness arises.

That doesn't mean "god did it" is a viable answer.  Do you have an explanation for how god can create consciousness?  Or where his consciousness would come from?

dark_gh0st_b0y said:

Jesus is scientifically proved to have existed, Saints and Apostles are scientifically proved to have lived, suffered and died for believing in something, Old Testament prophesying Jesus is scientifically proved to have been written hundreds of years before him, and he is scientifically proved to have lived and fulfilled those prophesies (those that can be proved at least)

of course now you can deny that these people had any connection to God, but still that doesn't make it a fairy tale

present day, scientific research proves that people who follow the Christian lifestyle - guided by Jesus, show higher life satisfaction and personal happiness than the non-fairy tale believers, they also make more long-lasting and happy marriages and have lower cancer rates, too good for believing a fairy tale, right?

it is scientifically proven that Christian diet lifestyle (limited meat diet) significantly reduces cancer rate, but how could the ancients know? also proven that red meat increases sex drive, therefore consumption is limited under Christianity to focus on real love instead of hormone drive, how could the ancients know?

Jesus teaching makes perfect sense, and believers or not, most sensible people follow the basics at least, and under those the West world was built (best way of life right), a coincidence?

too many coincidences for one fairy tale


I agree there have been some things thought to be by God because there was no other explanation at the time, but why is this even important? the faith was never based on those anyway, just because we have an explanation for rain, it doesn't mean that Jesus was fake

but there are also things, like Jesus miracles that are marked as fake because there is no other explanation, so the contrary also holds, isn't that too convenient for atheists though?

there are still things that cannot be explained, some could be from God like Big Bang, some could not, but why does it matter as much? as long as we cannot bring back the dead, give consciousness/free will to something, or disprove it, or understand the Big Bang and where the quarks and photons come from, there is more than enough room for God, and I highly, highly doubt these will ever be achieved, and the answer is simple, the creation cannot reach the creator, only the other way round, and it has already happened

Wow... you're going to have to back that up.

Show me the peer reviewed scientific evidence for those claims please.  

yeah, I didn't bother responding to all of his points because the crux of his argument was pretty faulty from the get-go. 



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Runa216 said:
dark_gh0st_b0y said:

Jesus is scientifically proved to have existed

yes, this is true. However, so is Abraham Lincoln, but that doesn't mean he was an actual vampire hunter just because someone made a movie about it. 

Historical fiction is a thing, you know. Religion isn't real just because some of the events depicted in the holy texts are based on real events. you do know that, right?

That's actually not true.

The general consensus among historians is that he did exist, but there's far from scientific proof.  The only way historians can really "prove" someone existed is based on contemporary historical documents written about them.  There is some writing about Jesus from sort of contemporary sources, but really not much.  The earliest non-biblical source is Josephus and even that's 30 years after his death.  The earliest gospels are from around the same time and were not written by eyewitnesses.  Paul's letters mention Jesus, but Paul never claimed to have met Jesus (physically anyway).  At best his information is second hand.

If you compare Jesus to say, Socrates, the amount of the evidence for the latter dwarfs the amount of evidence for the former.  And even that would fall short of scientific proof.  Most historians agree that Jesus existed, and not being a historian myself, I'm inclined to take their word for it.  But I don't think any serious historians would claim that there is "scientific proof" for Jesus' existence.

Of course, as you say, the far more important thing is whether or not the claims he allegedly made can be verified.  And those can't be even verified by the looser standards of historical evidence, and definitely not by the standards of science.  



JWeinCom said:
Runa216 said:

yes, this is true. However, so is Abraham Lincoln, but that doesn't mean he was an actual vampire hunter just because someone made a movie about it. 

Historical fiction is a thing, you know. Religion isn't real just because some of the events depicted in the holy texts are based on real events. you do know that, right?

That's actually not true.

The general consensus among historians is that he did exist, but there's far from scientific proof.  The only way historians can really "prove" someone existed is based on contemporary historical documents written about them.  There is some writing about Jesus from sort of contemporary sources, but really not much.  The earliest non-biblical source is Josephus and even that's 30 years after his death.  The earliest gospels are from around the same time and were not written by eyewitnesses.  Paul's letters mention Jesus, but Paul never claimed to have met Jesus (physically anyway).  At best his information is second hand.

If you compare Jesus to say, Socrates, the amount of the evidence for the latter dwarfs the amount of evidence for the former.  And even that would fall short of scientific proof.  Most historians agree that Jesus existed, and not being a historian myself, I'm inclined to take their word for it.  But I don't think any serious historians would claim that there is "scientific proof" for Jesus' existence.

Of course, as you say, the far more important thing is whether or not the claims he allegedly made can be verified.  And those can't be even verified by the looser standards of historical evidence, and definitely not by the standards of science.  

Fair enough, but I'm still not gonna argue with the historians who's job it is to know this stuff. 



My Console Library:

PS5, Switch, XSX

PS4, PS3, PS2, PS1, WiiU, Wii, GCN, N64 SNES, XBO, 360

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