“In fact, isn’t it what the majority of humanity has said?”
Sure, and they’ve said it was a jaguar, a feathered serpent, a glowy white guy, a blue dude, their dead grandmother, zeus, the tree spirits, etc. This is something we can examine and look at evidence for/about. We can talk about it scientifically, culturally, etc.
Now, if you said that all of humanity had _one particular god_ come up to them, that would be more interesting.
Something that most current god-systems have in common is that their god says they’re the only god. Which seems to pretty much eliminate a plethora of gods as proof for any one particular one.
If you’re arguing that people like the idea of a supernatural force being behind stuff they can’t control, responding to their needs, I’ll totally agree with you. If you’re arguing that it actually exists, once again, no proof-as-defined-by-how-I-judge-everything-else-in-the-universe, irrelevant, don’t believe in it.
When I didn’t die when I was told I had 6 months but kept on going I made the biggest mistake of my life – got married. That only lasted about 6 months too – but the take away is: live for the moment.
First off, I don’t believe in any of the gods I’ve ever heard of. So that, right there, makes me an atheist for all current conditions.
Secondly, the idea of ‘god’ has, at it’s root, an idea of not requiring proof, of being outside the rational world.
I reject the idea of things which ask for belief without proof and behave irrationally. Therefore, while I am willing to believe in super-powerful aliens with magnificent technology, I do not believe in gods. That seems to take care of future god-like manifestations (willing to believe in) and gods (not). I believe things should be figured out, rather than taken on faith without proof. Anything which demands I do otherwise, I reject, and do not believe in.
Until such point as they provide proof, which makes it a) not a god and b) a smooth fit within my framework.
I think ‘existence’ is defined as that which is bounded by my knowledge of what seems to have proven its existence. As such, it is definitely bounded, though the boundaries can expand. Everything which is outside of those boundaries (unicorns, gods, cold fusion) I do not believe in (by definition) and everything inside (the taj mahal, gravity, evolution, my toenails) I do believe in. There are obvious problems with this (I’ve never seen the taj mahal) but since all the evidence points consistently toward the existence of the Taj, I am willing to put it inside the bounds until such point as evidence against it comes forward.
For things where there is no evidence, or the evidence is contradictory, they go outside the boundaries, and I do not believe in them.
But that’s all sort of beside the point, as the _nature_ of god-ness is that it is outside those boundaries of knowability. Once it becomes knowable, not a god.
So, as a concept, I don’t believe in gods. Hence, atheist.
I was wondering how I am going to die today. Does G*d already know? Would I live my life differently if I knew now? Should I run off to an ashram to “sort it out”? : P
cobble- beats my 1040SE or 8829.
“In fact, isn’t it what the majority of humanity has said?”
Sure, and they’ve said it was a jaguar, a feathered serpent, a glowy white guy, a blue dude, their dead grandmother, zeus, the tree spirits, etc. This is something we can examine and look at evidence for/about. We can talk about it scientifically, culturally, etc.
Now, if you said that all of humanity had _one particular god_ come up to them, that would be more interesting.
Something that most current god-systems have in common is that their god says they’re the only god. Which seems to pretty much eliminate a plethora of gods as proof for any one particular one.
If you’re arguing that people like the idea of a supernatural force being behind stuff they can’t control, responding to their needs, I’ll totally agree with you. If you’re arguing that it actually exists, once again, no proof-as-defined-by-how-I-judge-everything-else-in-the-universe, irrelevant, don’t believe in it.
om mani padme hum
When I didn’t die when I was told I had 6 months but kept on going I made the biggest mistake of my life – got married. That only lasted about 6 months too – but the take away is: live for the moment.
I’m amused that post 666 is about to hit as you all ponder God and His existence 🙂
The Universe has a sound to it.
It is imperceptable to humans as it is
200 octaves below the threshold for hearing.
ohmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Okay, let’s try it again:
First off, I don’t believe in any of the gods I’ve ever heard of. So that, right there, makes me an atheist for all current conditions.
Secondly, the idea of ‘god’ has, at it’s root, an idea of not requiring proof, of being outside the rational world.
I reject the idea of things which ask for belief without proof and behave irrationally. Therefore, while I am willing to believe in super-powerful aliens with magnificent technology, I do not believe in gods. That seems to take care of future god-like manifestations (willing to believe in) and gods (not). I believe things should be figured out, rather than taken on faith without proof. Anything which demands I do otherwise, I reject, and do not believe in.
Until such point as they provide proof, which makes it a) not a god and b) a smooth fit within my framework.
I think ‘existence’ is defined as that which is bounded by my knowledge of what seems to have proven its existence. As such, it is definitely bounded, though the boundaries can expand. Everything which is outside of those boundaries (unicorns, gods, cold fusion) I do not believe in (by definition) and everything inside (the taj mahal, gravity, evolution, my toenails) I do believe in. There are obvious problems with this (I’ve never seen the taj mahal) but since all the evidence points consistently toward the existence of the Taj, I am willing to put it inside the bounds until such point as evidence against it comes forward.
For things where there is no evidence, or the evidence is contradictory, they go outside the boundaries, and I do not believe in them.
But that’s all sort of beside the point, as the _nature_ of god-ness is that it is outside those boundaries of knowability. Once it becomes knowable, not a god.
So, as a concept, I don’t believe in gods. Hence, atheist.
I was wondering how I am going to die today. Does G*d already know? Would I live my life differently if I knew now? Should I run off to an ashram to “sort it out”? : P
Oh cripes, You losers still trying to solve the unsolvable?
Can we go back to puns yet?? : P