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May I have Your Attention Please!

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#41
Allthough I am atheist myself, I have to diagree with your behaviour lizardhands.

Firstly, you can't argue about faith, as it is not something rational, you could also spend your time arguing against a wall.

Also, while I do not believe in god (or some kind of entity/energy/thing with noodly appendages that has a godly influence on our lives), I don't feel the urge to "convert" faithful people to atheism. I don't gain anything from it, and in fact, fundamentalistic atheists can be almost as bad as fundamentalistic followers of any religion.
I say if a person needs faith to lead a better life, then why should I try to take it from him? Many find religion to be an anchor for their lives, giving them hold and comfort.
So, as long as they accept that I don't need faith in a higher being to lead a "good" life, I can very well accept that they may need it.

EDIT: Concerning death: Well, we rot. Basically we are eaten by microbes, worms, bugs and the likes. I don't believe there is an immortal soul, and I don't believe in reincarnation. IMHO its just over. Not even blackness. Nothing is left of you except the few material things you managed to achieve, and half of your DNA in your children.
And no, this thought does not have anything discomforting to me at all, in case anyone's gonna ask :D
 
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#43
Sherman said:
I don't see how scientists can say there is no such thing as God and that everything didn't appear out of nowhere and then turn around and believe the big bang theory which makes just as much or less sense than intelligent design. It's just bollocks.
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Who said it came out of nowhere? Perhaps the universe is eternal? As we have only a limited time of existence, our mind can't really cope with infinity. So we had to make our world "start" somewhere to at least cover the philosophical question of "Where are we from?"
But instead of having another eternal thing "start" it all, it might very well be eternal by itself, pulsating, so "restarting" every few hundreds of thousands of billions of years by itself...

And I think the platypus proves that if there was design involved, it wasnt intelligent. ;) Also, why bother with the vastness of empty space and myriads of barren worlds, if just one table like setup with a rotating lamp would have sufficed?
If you try to imagine the enourmous blackness of space, and how unpercievably tiny or small blue saphire is within it, even the thought that some "omnipotent" beeing that created it all would work out every little detail on it just seems... well, not very likely, to me. But then, facing eternity, God had pretty much time at hand, I suppose...

But then, as I said, each to his own!
 
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#44
1.) How old are you?

17

2.) What is your religion?

none

3.) How did you come about your religion?

by not coming about a religion

4.) Do you follow the guidelines?
(Yes, No, Only if it suits me)

yes:D

5.) Have you read up on your religion (Bible, Koran, etc)?

yup:D

6.) Do you attend a place of worship?

every day:cool:

7.) How Often (In a year)?

see above

8.) If yes to #6, why? If no, why not?

you may as well call my computer and my car places of worship

9.) Do you pray?

no

10.) why? Why not?

I have no reason to and nothing to pray to

11.) Does religion matter when dating?
a.) When making friends?

no, but I don't dig extreamly (spelling?) religious people

12.) Are you open to other religions?

no

13.) Do you believe evolution or creationism?

evolution

14.) Overall, do you feel that religion of any kind is necessary?

no *but my friend once started a religion devoted to kiera knightly, I was down with that one:rolleyes:
 
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#45
1.) 17

2.) Aethist

3.) Read the bible and saw all the obvious loop holes or whatever I should call em, too interpretable ***** I like more concrete ****.

4.) YES ITS HARD BUT I MANAGE

5.) Well, some.

6.) Nope

7.) Nope

8.) Nope

9.) Nope

10.) Im stuck between god and science, theres no praying here only beer.

11.) Cant picture myself with a muslim girl, and I think thats mutual.
a.) Depends, dont wanna shoot hoops with a fundamentalist

12.) Not really.

13.) Darwin: 1, God: 0

14.) Not really, its outdated and was used to keep people in check, right now people should just settle with "believing". So we get rid of all this religiously sprung conflicts and bull****.
 
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#46
Sure. I'll just quote your questions into my reply to keep 'em straight.

1.) How old are you?

29, 30 in November

2.) What is your religion?

None/atheist.

3.) How did you come about your religion?

Don't feel any spiritual connections to any "greater being" or anything like that.

4.) Do you follow the guidelines?
(Yes, No, Only if it suits me)

Yes, easy to do when you don't have a religion.

5.) Have you read up on your religion (Bible, Koran, etc)?

Nothing to really read up.

6.) Do you attend a place of worship?

:D Nope.

7.) How Often (In a year)?

See #6

8.) If yes to #6, why? If no, why not?

Atheists don't worship?

9.) Do you pray?

Nope, see #3.

10.) why? Why not?

11.) Does religion matter when dating?
a.) When making friends?

No (when I was dating, I'm married now) and no. I don't try convincing people there isn't a God as long as they don't try convincing me there is one (or more). (Edit: I should add my father is now in the seminary and my mother is a practicing Christian... along with the rest of my family.)

12.) Are you open to other religions?

As in... Am I open to conversion? Not really.. Am I open to other people having different beliefs? Yes, as long as they don't try forcing them upon me through whatever means.

13.) Do you believe evolution or creationism?

Evolution.

14.) Overall, do you feel that religion of any kind is necessary?

I think the world could do fine without them. There are a few people religion seem to help, but I think they could help themselves if they tried.
 
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#47
1.) How old are you? 21

2.) What is your religion? Roman Catholic

3.) How did you come about your religion? Born into it.

4.) Do you follow the guidelines? Yes
(Yes, No, Only if it suits me)

5.) Have you read up on your religion (Bible, Koran, etc)? Yes

6.) Do you attend a place of worship? Yes

7.) How Often (In a year)? Twice, Three times

8.) If yes to #6, why? If no, why not? It is a family tradition on holidays.

9.) Do you pray? Yes

10.) why? Why not? Because I believe in God and the power of prayer.

11.) Does religion matter when dating? Yes
a.) When making friends? No

12.) Are you open to other religions? Depends

13.) Do you believe evolution or creationism? A mixture.

14.) Overall, do you feel that religion of any kind is necessary? Yes
 
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#48
1.) How old are you?
Twenty-two.

2.) What is your religion?
I neither follow nor deny any.

3.) How did you come about your religion?
Because all religions are exclusive. Their way is the *only* way. That isn't fair to someone who grew up, just as human as me, on the other side of the world, not knowing about religion X.

4.) Do you follow the guidelines?
(Yes, No, Only if it suits me)
I treat others how I wish to be treated. I think that is a rule that most of them share, but keep in mind number 2 above :)


5.) Have you read up on your religion (Bible, Koran, etc)?
I've read several and taken Theology classes along the way, and had a great many conversations about the various religions and their strengths and weaknesses. Their time has passed, lets resign the guide-books to the annals of history and exist as reasonable beings.

6.) Do you attend a place of worship?
Nature and the company of fellow man should be temple enough for anyone.

7.) How Often (In a year)?
I go to various houses of worship when the occasion arises (friend's wedding, for example).

8.) If yes to #6, why? If no, why not?
Not applicable :)

9.) Do you pray?
To a higher being? No. To myself when I need to coach myself through a tough time? Absolutely.

10.) why? Why not?
Part a) no. If none exists, why should I waste the energy? Part b) To myself because people are stronger than they think. It's not divinity, it's human nature. We need to remind ourselves of that now and then.

11.) Does religion matter when dating?
a.) When making friends?
Well sure. You should respect someone else's belief regardless of if you agree with it, as they should yours. I've dated and been friends with people of all creeds.

12.) Are you open to other religions?
I am open to any idea that helps someone make themselves better. I don't agree with them, but everyone is entitled to their belief, be it Christian, Hindu, Wiccan, etc.

13.) Do you believe evolution or creationism?
Evolution. Science is science. Creationism is a re-wording of outdated and outlandish teachings.

14.) Overall, do you feel that religion of any kind is necessary?
No. But, that is just my feeling. There are people I know who would be dead or in prison if they didn't have their beliefs, so its importance is still noticable.


I thank you for your time
You are very welcome :)
 
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#49
MercyKiller said:
ofcourse he used evolution. But if you chose you believe in evolution your basicly saying there, was a poof and everything was created , your saying god didn't create anything, it just mear coincidence then.

Genesis

1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the earth .3 And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

and if your asking who created god ? heres your answer..
Revelation 22:13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.

so that means no one...
Click to expand...
You've lost me a little bit there. Evolution = poof and everyhting's created?

I think God created the world, the univerise, call it what you will. Which means he's outside the universe and as such doesn't have to conform to it's rules. Naturual selection is prooven wether people like it or not, but what I'm trying to say is that a system, a world, where natural selection functions, the rules of probability function, was made. God created and guided it. I'd take that quotation from Revelations to mean that God is"the beginning and the end" of the Universe, and that quotation refers to God in relation to our world.

[-project.rattus- said:
Firstly, you can't argue about faith, as it is not something rational, you could also spend your time arguing against a wall.
Click to expand...
That's why I'm not fond of faith as an answer, I beleive in God, yes through faith, but also through logic. My own experiences have lead me to beleive that God exists. Faith in God means we think God is powerful and can make things happen, but we should know God exists. I don't know if that's making any sense though, but putting 'faith' as an answer seems like giving up, to me.

I always get a little carried away in discussions like this...
 
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#50
MercyKiller said:
it wasn't made up, it was inspired by the holy spirit of god on to man... and they wrote it , the word isn't manipulated by any means ..
Click to expand...

Well, I'd have to take those same peoples(the people who were "inspired by the holy spirit") word for it, which roughly equals believing in the stuff L.Ron Hubbard "remembered" while he was on acid. If I say "God/holy spirit told me to write this" does that make my writings eternal truths? No. How about if Darwin or Einstein had added that to the end of their books, would you say they had a stronger case? No.

And thats exactly what the bible is.. It is claims, speculation and theories about subjects people dont really understand, nothing more.

If you look at the news headlines today, you can clearly see why religion and "eternal truths" are useful for controlling masses, Mogadishu was up until about yesterday controlled by rivalling warlords and gangs, now however Islamists have taken control, united by a religion which tells them what laws to install etc. Thats why religions are made "holy" and therefore impossible to argue with, theyll always "win" the argument with prhases like "its beyond our understanding", "God works in mysterious ways" or "God is great" or "so is it written".
 
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#51
1. 20
2. I dont believe in orgainised religion but i believe their may be god/gods or some higher power and that maybe we souls but i dont waste my life thinking too deeply about it, when im dead i'll see or wont if there's nothing past this world. I do like the idea of reincarnation though it can in theory encourage people to improve this world so in their next life they live in a better nicer world.
3. The realisation that orgainised religion is a means to control people, people are much better persuaded if someone tells them their god is on their side or this is gods will:rolleyes:.
Also without religion we'd have evil people doing evil things and good people doing good things.
4. While not religious i have very strong morals and do believe the bible quote do onto others as you would have others do onto you.
5. A bit of the bible.
6. Once in a blue moon.
7. Once or twice depending if relations die i also go at christmas to appease my mother.
8. There's really no point the way i see it what difference will it make its a sham imho.
9. nope.
10. Again i dont waste my time what happens happens no amount of praying is gonna help you, of course if you actually believe in this stuff you might get a placebo effect if your praying for a cure to a disease you have.
11. Yes if someone is extremely religious than i would not get involved seriously with someone,
11a Probadly not just avoid the subject and everything is rosy.
12. Im open to no religions i believe their uneccesary and are dangerous cults they cause people not to think rationally and to do stupid things.
13. Evolution although i believe some higher power/powers may have laid down the ground rules.
14. Nope if people cant live good just lives without the threat of their god being angry then there's something wrong with them imho also the idea that you can simply ask for forgiveness is ridiculas imho opinion i believe they have to earn forgiveness not say a few words and feel their forgiven.
 
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#52
[-project.rattus-] said:
Allthough I am atheist myself, I have to diagree with your behaviour lizardhands.

Firstly, you can't argue about faith, as it is not something rational, you could also spend your time arguing against a wall.

Also, while I do not believe in god (or some kind of entity/energy/thing with noodly appendages that has a godly influence on our lives), I don't feel the urge to "convert" faithful people to atheism. I don't gain anything from it, and in fact, fundamentalistic atheists can be almost as bad as fundamentalistic followers of any religion.
I say if a person needs faith to lead a better life, then why should I try to take it from him? Many find religion to be an anchor for their lives, giving them hold and comfort.
So, as long as they accept that I don't need faith in a higher being to lead a "good" life, I can very well accept that they may need it.
Click to expand...
My aim isn't to "convert" people to believing what I tell them to. That is the thing I hate the most about organised religion -- people just accept what they're told by religious leaders/parents/whoever and believe it for the rest of their lives with no logical reason to do so. I only want people to question what they believe and why they believe it, and to ask themselves if they believe in God because it makes logical sense or because it comforts them because it helps them to explain things they can't understand.

I don't think people should "need faith". Believing in a higher being just because it comforts you is illogical and weak-willed. If you truly believe you have good reason to do so, it's another matter, but I doubt that many "believers" really do.

Note: I'm not intending to offend anyone. I'm merely representing my opinion and beliefs, just as the religious do.
 
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#53
1.) How old are you?

35

2.) What is your religion?

Catholic

3.) How did you come about your religion?

Born into it.

4.) Do you follow the guidelines?
(Yes, No, Only if it suits me)

As I see fit. (I don't murder or steal but have no problem with birth control or capital punishment).

5.) Have you read up on your religion (Bible, Koran, etc)?

Bible as required. Nothing voluntarily.

6.) Do you attend a place of worship?

Baptisms, Funerals and Weddings.

7.) How Often (In a year)?

4-5 times a year for the above reasons.

8.) If yes to #6, why? If no, why not?

Why - I have to, tradition.

Why Not - I am not a fan of being told what to do by a religion and prefer to think for myself.

9.) Do you pray?

Whenever I buy a lottery ticket and when a new person gets in my tasnk in RO, otherwise no.

10.) why? Why not?

If there is a God and he is not doing anything about cancer, hunger, genocide, the New York Jets and other big issues why would I expect him to do something about my problems? Praying is futile, but it can't hurt as long as you remember that.

11.) Does religion matter when dating?

Yes, I would not date someone so into religion that they let it control their life or who feels the need to be guided by a church. I also would not date a Muslim (I know, call me a anti-Islamic pig but I am only being truthfull. I consider it the religion of the enemy.)

a.) When making friends?

Somewhat. I am not going to associate much with people who cannot use their own brains and feel that the church must tell them what to think. I will associate with Muslims, work with them, and have casual friendships with them but will always question their true loyalties.

12.) Are you open to other religions?

Sure, worship what you wish but if you are real serious about any one religion I will doubt your own intelligence and objectivity.

13.) Do you believe evolution or creationism?

Evolution, and the Flying Spaghetti Monster!

14.) Overall, do you feel that religion of any kind is necessary?

For control of the ignorant masses it is very usefull. Most sheeple (sheep / people) need to be controlled and guided because they are not smart enough to figure out a moral code for themselves so I guess religion has its place.
 
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#54
1. 16
2. Atheist
3. About 4 years of thinking
4. NA
5. NA although I did read up on some Hindu stuff at one point
6. NA
7. NA
8. NA
9. NA although I do meditate.
10. NA
11. Somewhat, I tend to critize very strict religious people
a. I don't think I could get along with a person who was faith oriented
12. I accept people religions. But i've made up my mind about the subject.
13. Evolution
14. No, and I believe it's caused more divions and conflicts than it's solved.
 
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#58
Lizardhands said:
My aim isn't to "convert" people to believing what I tell them to. That is the thing I hate the most about organised religion -- people just accept what they're told by religious leaders/parents/whoever and believe it for the rest of their lives with no logical reason to do so. I only want people to question what they believe and why they believe it, and to ask themselves if they believe in God because it makes logical sense or because it comforts them because it helps them to explain things they can't understand.

I don't think people should "need faith". Believing in a higher being just because it comforts you is illogical and weak-willed. If you truly believe you have good reason to do so, it's another matter, but I doubt that many "believers" really do.
Click to expand...
Despite the fact that you're coming from a completely different perspective from me, I couldn't agree more. I've always had a problem with the big organised denomonations / religions. If anyone here has read Small Gods by Terry Pratchett, I think it has a very good analogy for the Catholic church. Small Gods is about a huge religion in Discworld which essentially only has one person left who actually beleives in their god. He describes the church as like an oyster who's shell grows so large that it dies.

There are Catholics who have real belief in God, but there are far too many people who simply come along every Sunday because ...that's what they do. They never think about it, you get entire churches filled with people who barely even know who Jesus is, just blindly following the service (which is almost identicle every single time). You can look at the history of the church and see that it's some of these people who broke off, formed the Protestant church, in protest. And have since formed the methodist and baptist and many other evangelical churches have been formed because they feel their previous denomination had become too stuck in ritual, in systems for people to express their belief in God.

Re-reading what I've written, I hope I'm not actually insulting anyone, but this is something I feel very strongly about.
 
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#59
MrBunsy said:
Re-reading what I've written, I hope I'm not actually insulting anyone, but this is something I feel very strongly about.
Click to expand...

This is also an interesting topic that comes up in every religious discussion, and Ive had a quite a few, one noticable fact is that noone is ever concerned in any way that I, the atheist, will be offended by anything they might say. Sufffice to say, they (non-atheists) never manage to offend me either, which is exactly how it should be IMO.

If you speak freely and express your honest opinion on the existence or non-existence of god(s) why on earth should people take offence? I am a blasphemic, atheist heathen, so what, if you think you've picked the right god, and believe the evidence holds water, then why "take offence"?The Idea that some subjects are too holy or sacred belongs in places like iran, not a free society.. in a free-speech country, you have your opinions, I have mine, thats the rules :)

Also, I find it strange that some think "you shouldnt mix religion and science", ofcourse that was before they came up with "intelligent design" :) Maybe now that they have ID , theyll will finally have to let us use the dreaded weapon of logic against religion..

This isnt directed at anyone in here in any way, I just find it interesting that we are always so concerned about not stepping on any (religious) toes. :)
 
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