Why do people believe in God if there's no valid proof?

[hanoverphist]

Originally posted by: OCguy

Originally posted by: Homerboy

Originally posted by: Baked

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Who cares, let people believe what they want.

KT

That's all good if true, but it's not. Brainwashing children is not cool, nor is putting fear into the weak minded to make them do "God's" work.

Oh give me a break, "brainwashing children".

That is exactly what it is. Kids even believe in Santa/toothfairy/Easter-bunny when they are young due to their parents saying it is true.

Parents like the ones in Jesus Camp need to be locked up.

i bet your house is a barrel of laffs, geez. santa, easter bunny and tooth fairy have nothing to do with religion really, so why even bring them up? only 2 of the 3 even happen on the same day as their supposed religious holiday, and their meanings have been changed over time so vastly, they arent really pertinent to this conversation.


im not in the jesus camp at all, but im also not keeping my kids from asking questions about things they hear/ learn about religion. i let them make up their own minds, and talk things out when they have either misinformation or need help grasping radical concepts.

 

[LumbergTech]

Originally posted by: hanoverphist

Originally posted by: jjzelinski

Originally posted by: Pepsei

Top Ten Signs You're a Fundamentalist Christian




10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.

9 - You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.

8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.

7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" including women, children, and trees!

6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.

5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.

4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs -- though excluding those in all rival sects - will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."


3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.

2 - You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.

1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.

link

I second this motion

for the most part so do i, but i think the #1 reason is bullshit. after all the solid 9 before it, that one is like a cheap lame shot at religioulites. could have been left out totally

its true

my girlfriend was a bible quizzing champion

now an atheist..

its quite hilarious watching people debate her about it because she knows her shit

 

[Leros]

Originally posted by: QueBert

Originally posted by: Leros
Their parents told them it was true. Every kid trusts their parents. Then they grew up around people who also thought it was true. They trusted these people too.

Basically, the "world" they grew up in accepted this religion to be true. It was as true to those people as anything else. Then as they grew up, it just became a part of them.

What about the millions of people who aren't raised religious and discover it all on their own much later in life? My mom never once pushed God or religion on me while growing up, but when I became older I found faith on my own, not thru the intervention or "brain washing" of others.

I have no problem with that.

I'm not religious myself, but I don't care if people are religious. I just don't like how children are raised into a religion.

 

[hanoverphist]

Originally posted by: LumbergTech

Originally posted by: hanoverphist

Originally posted by: jjzelinski

Originally posted by: Pepsei

Top Ten Signs You're a Fundamentalist Christian




10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.

9 - You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.

8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.

7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" including women, children, and trees!

6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.

5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.

4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs -- though excluding those in all rival sects - will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."


3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.

2 - You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.

1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.

link

I second this motion

for the most part so do i, but i think the #1 reason is bullshit. after all the solid 9 before it, that one is like a cheap lame shot at religioulites. could have been left out totally

its true

my girlfriend was a bible quizzing champion

now an atheist..

its quite hilarious watching people debate her about it because she knows her shit

must be an area-specific thing then, most religion nuts i know read the bible daily, and can quote/ interpret from memory. i used to attend church with my mom (when i had to) and i still have quite a few friends and relatives that are regular church goers, all of them are very versed in their knowledge.

 

[destrekor]

I'll make this brief. I hope, can only say for sure once I write it out. 😀

As others have said - it's called faith. And it's the most retarded fundamental aspect of mankind that has been beneficial in getting us to where we are, especially when we were a primitive and retarded race.
Well, we still are a retarded race, and somewhat primitive - we haven't figured out how to beat the animal nature of us.

It's been a defining human trait, that as I said, has been beneficial, it has its time and place. It gave us the ability to look at life as if we weren't animals, and as yet another way to express our tribal tendencies. Grouping together, and fighting against tribes that compete in the region, is what gave rise to advancements in every segment of life. The most beneficial advancements have always been born out of competition/war.

But see where I'm going with that? Anything that makes us tribal, is a two-headed beast. One side brings benefits, helps civilization boom. But the other side, and the concept of us being tribal, brings us to kill each other. Granted, I'm training to make that my profession, but as long as we are in this current way of living, it is necessary. It'll take an extreme situation to snap us out of this, if we ever can. But the whole idea of an animal species so devoted to retarded concepts that they kill - in grand numbers - their own species... that doesn't make a lick of sense. But like the above statement, it got us to where we are today. But keep it going, and I have a feeling we'd just destroy all progress.

Hmm, not bad... that wasn't too lengthy. I'm proud of myself. 🙂

 

[Farang]

You ever had a girl cheat on you and you knew it, even when the most obvious signs came up you made stupid excuses for yourself that it wasn't true? Then maybe a few months later you look back at how stupid you were to have believed your own excuses?

It's kind of like that, except for instead of a cheating girl it is death. There has to be a God, there has to be I just know it.

 

[SneakyStuff]

Until you can explain with 100% certainty how the universe was created they are no more right or wrong than you are. 😉 I think there are more important things in life to worry about anyway.

 

[sandorski]

Originally posted by: SneakyStuff
Until you can explain with 100% certainty how the universe was created they are no more right or wrong than you are. 😉 I think there are more important things in life to worry about anyway.

Negative.

 

[Crono]

Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

And let me preempt the circular logic "because we can physical prove by observation and experimentation that our sense are fairly reliable".

 

[sandorski]

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

Probably because without those impulses there would be no consciousness. Besides, you are basically arguing that what we Sense is all Illusion and that which we think is Illusion is Real. I'm calling Bupkis on that reasoning.

 

[TruePaige]

I'm sick of these pointless threads, this is like the 20th one in a week.

 

[QueBert]

Originally posted by: sandorski

Originally posted by: SneakyStuff
Until you can explain with 100% certainty how the universe was created they are no more right or wrong than you are. 😉 I think there are more important things in life to worry about anyway.

Negative.

how so? if an event cannot be explained by anyone, then by default nobody can say the next persons theory is wrong as they cannot prove it being wrong. I'm usually in the mind state of "the burden of proof is on you to prove it, not me to disprove it" but in a case like this where nobody can do either, nobody is right, and nobody is wrong.

 

[Crono]

Originally posted by: sandorski

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

Probably because without those impulses there would be no consciousness. Besides, you are basically arguing that what we Sense is all Illusion and that which we think is Illusion is Real. I'm calling Bupkis on that reasoning.

http://www.nizkor.org/features...ging-the-question.html

I'm not arguing that sense is an illusion. Read my post again.
I'm arguing that belief in existence is not dependent on physical proof, it supercedes it. I forget who it is, but one member here keeps on calling the Christian belief circular logic. Well, questions regarding existence of anything, including God, are circular. i.e. you believe it because you believe it. You can't sidestep the argument by saying the two aren't comparable. Belief in your own existence, and the consequential acting on it (everyone acts on it unless they are a complete vegetable) that shows you indeed believe in your existence, is on the same fundamental level as believing in the existence of God. I can say with certainty that there is a God. Where is the proof? I don't need it - if God is the creator of the physical universe, and therefore greater than it, physical proof really wouldn't be proof. In fact, there is no such thing as anything that could be proof of the creator God, because we can't observe or test anything that is outside the universe. What physical thing could be considered definitive proof? You can only believe by faith.

People forget that the sum of your philosophical assumptions of the universe, what could be called your world view, are critical and superior to the beliefs underneath them. Your world view determines your interpretations of the facts of science, religion, politics, and nearly all aspects of life.

 

[SlitheryDee]

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

And let me preempt the circular logic "because we can physical prove by observation and experimentation that our sense are fairly reliable".

Something is generating input for our brains to chew on. If that input is not the truth, and really you can make an argument that it's not the whole truth, then there's nothing we can do about it. The world these signals describe seems to be satisfactorily consistent between individuals and reacts in a predictable fashion to our manipulations, so what more can you say about that particular conundrum? If it's false, we'll never know it and we have no choice but to experience it. We DO have a choice about what we believe, however. The fact of the presence of a creating God is not being thrust upon us with the regularity and precision that the facts of our senses are. All the things that people cite as being "obvious" indicators of his presence seem like more of the mundane, mechanical, and completely un-supernatural universe to me.

 

[dennilfloss]

Religious faith is a matter of the heart & soul, not of the mind.

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: dennilfloss
Religious faith is a matter of the heart & soul, not of the mind.

Wrong...

 

[Crono]

Originally posted by: SlitheryDee

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

And let me preempt the circular logic "because we can physical prove by observation and experimentation that our sense are fairly reliable".

Something is generating input for our brains to chew on. If that input is not the truth, and really you can make an argument that it's not the whole truth, then there's nothing we can do about it. The world these signals describe seems to be satisfactorily consistent between individuals and reacts in a predictable fashion to our manipulations, so what more can you say about that particular conundrum? If it's false, we'll never know it and we have no choice but to experience it. We DO have a choice about what we believe, however. The fact of the presence of a creating God is not being thrust upon us with the regularity and precision that the facts of our senses are. All the things that people cite as being "obvious" indicators of his presence seem like more of the mundane, mechanical, and completely un-supernatural universe to me.

You don't have a choice about whether to believe in existence, you automatically act on it. Those who don't are the dead. Either you are alive and believe, or you aren't and therefore you are dead. You can claim that you don't exist, but when some punches you in the face, you are going to react like someone who believes in his own existence. You say you have a choice to believe or not, but that's not true. You do have a choice to deny or not. You can say you don't believe in your own existence, but of course you do. You can pretend there is no God, you can say "there is no God", you can even tell yourself "there is no God".

That's one of the reasons the Bible never goes about arguing the existence of God, because it is evident.
But when the universe finally gets turned upside down, no one will be able to deny God, they will be saying either "*expletive God*" or "save me, God".

 

[sandorski]

Originally posted by: QueBert

Originally posted by: sandorski

Originally posted by: SneakyStuff
Until you can explain with 100% certainty how the universe was created they are no more right or wrong than you are. 😉 I think there are more important things in life to worry about anyway.

Negative.

how so? if an event cannot be explained by anyone, then by default nobody can say the next persons theory is wrong as they cannot prove it being wrong. I'm usually in the mind state of "the burden of proof is on you to prove it, not me to disprove it" but in a case like this where nobody can do either, nobody is right, and nobody is wrong.

So says you. We can postulate based upon things we do understand. It is not 100% Proof, but it's far more than saying "God did it". The Sun and Stars used to revolve around the Earth, the Earth was Flat, 10lbs of Lead fell faster than 10lbs of Feathers, etc etc. Our Senses, Experience, and Logical processes Proved otherwise.

 

[sandorski]

Originally posted by: Crono

Originally posted by: SlitheryDee

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

And let me preempt the circular logic "because we can physical prove by observation and experimentation that our sense are fairly reliable".

Something is generating input for our brains to chew on. If that input is not the truth, and really you can make an argument that it's not the whole truth, then there's nothing we can do about it. The world these signals describe seems to be satisfactorily consistent between individuals and reacts in a predictable fashion to our manipulations, so what more can you say about that particular conundrum? If it's false, we'll never know it and we have no choice but to experience it. We DO have a choice about what we believe, however. The fact of the presence of a creating God is not being thrust upon us with the regularity and precision that the facts of our senses are. All the things that people cite as being "obvious" indicators of his presence seem like more of the mundane, mechanical, and completely un-supernatural universe to me.

You don't have a choice about whether to believe in existence, you automatically act on it. Those who don't are the dead. Either you are alive and believe, or you aren't and therefore you are dead. You can claim that you don't exist, but when some punches you in the face, you are going to react like someone who believes in his own existence. You say you have a choice to believe or not, but that's not true. You do have a choice to deny or not. You can say you don't believe in your own existence, but of course you do. You can pretend there is no God, you can say there is no God, you can even think to yourself "there is no God".

The same is true for the belief in the existence of God. That's one of the reasons the Bible never goes about arguing the existence of God, because it is evident.
But when the universe finally gets turned upside down, no one will be able to deny God, they will be saying either "*expletive God*" or "save me, God".

We don't need to "Believe" because we are Alive. We just are Alive and Know it. There is no Evidence of "God", none.

 

[SlitheryDee]

Originally posted by: dennilfloss
Religious faith is a matter of the heart & soul, not of the mind.

But what if the part of you that you "feel" is your heart and soul is, in fact, only your mind? How can you tell the difference between a transcendental, spiritual, beyond-the-flesh, feeling and merely an ordinary emotion, born of the same chemical reactions as all the rest, of extreme intensity? Just because worship makes you happier than at any other time doesn't mean that you are incapable of being that happy without it. At what degree of rapture are you certain that you have left the capabilities of your natural body behind when it comes to faith? I postulate that everything you think or feel, from the most joyous you've felt to the worst depression had, occurs solely in your mind, and you are merely pinning a "spiritual" tag on the ones so extreme as to be rare.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

Tell a lie long enough and it becomes the truth.

 

[PlasmaBomb]

Originally posted by: Hyperblaze

Originally posted by: jmebonner
Why do people keep posting the same type of question over and over? Now *that* is a question worth asking.

damn good question.

My guess is that there are idiots in the world who like to cause mayhem 😉

My guess is that there are idiots.

 

[Crono]

Originally posted by: sandorski

Originally posted by: Crono

Originally posted by: SlitheryDee

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

And let me preempt the circular logic "because we can physical prove by observation and experimentation that our sense are fairly reliable".

Something is generating input for our brains to chew on. If that input is not the truth, and really you can make an argument that it's not the whole truth, then there's nothing we can do about it. The world these signals describe seems to be satisfactorily consistent between individuals and reacts in a predictable fashion to our manipulations, so what more can you say about that particular conundrum? If it's false, we'll never know it and we have no choice but to experience it. We DO have a choice about what we believe, however. The fact of the presence of a creating God is not being thrust upon us with the regularity and precision that the facts of our senses are. All the things that people cite as being "obvious" indicators of his presence seem like more of the mundane, mechanical, and completely un-supernatural universe to me.

You don't have a choice about whether to believe in existence, you automatically act on it. Those who don't are the dead. Either you are alive and believe, or you aren't and therefore you are dead. You can claim that you don't exist, but when some punches you in the face, you are going to react like someone who believes in his own existence. You say you have a choice to believe or not, but that's not true. You do have a choice to deny or not. You can say you don't believe in your own existence, but of course you do. You can pretend there is no God, you can say there is no God, you can even think to yourself "there is no God".

The same is true for the belief in the existence of God. That's one of the reasons the Bible never goes about arguing the existence of God, because it is evident.
But when the universe finally gets turned upside down, no one will be able to deny God, they will be saying either "*expletive God*" or "save me, God".

We don't need to "Believe" because we are Alive. We just are Alive and Know it. There is no Evidence of "God", none.

Prove you are alive to me without using your senses or without me using my senses.You can't.
Can I prove God exists to you without using my faith? No.
The two are on the same level for us humans. We cannot prove the existence of anything. If we try, we fall back on the circular logic of "it exists because I know it exists". The flaw of your argument is in your assumption that the belief in the physical universe is somehow superior to the belief in God, that somehow believing in what you hear, smell, touch, taste, and see is infinitely times more verifiable than the belief in God. But both are fundamental. You can't go above the two to seek proof of either.

 

[Cattlegod]

http://www.modifiedstreetcars....ite-Mini-Skirt-245.jpg


babe thread, lock it up!

 

[sandorski]

Originally posted by: Crono

Originally posted by: sandorski

Originally posted by: Crono

Originally posted by: SlitheryDee

Originally posted by: Crono
Why do people believe the information carried by electric signals in their brains from sensory organs and nerves?

And let me preempt the circular logic "because we can physical prove by observation and experimentation that our sense are fairly reliable".

Something is generating input for our brains to chew on. If that input is not the truth, and really you can make an argument that it's not the whole truth, then there's nothing we can do about it. The world these signals describe seems to be satisfactorily consistent between individuals and reacts in a predictable fashion to our manipulations, so what more can you say about that particular conundrum? If it's false, we'll never know it and we have no choice but to experience it. We DO have a choice about what we believe, however. The fact of the presence of a creating God is not being thrust upon us with the regularity and precision that the facts of our senses are. All the things that people cite as being "obvious" indicators of his presence seem like more of the mundane, mechanical, and completely un-supernatural universe to me.

You don't have a choice about whether to believe in existence, you automatically act on it. Those who don't are the dead. Either you are alive and believe, or you aren't and therefore you are dead. You can claim that you don't exist, but when some punches you in the face, you are going to react like someone who believes in his own existence. You say you have a choice to believe or not, but that's not true. You do have a choice to deny or not. You can say you don't believe in your own existence, but of course you do. You can pretend there is no God, you can say there is no God, you can even think to yourself "there is no God".

The same is true for the belief in the existence of God. That's one of the reasons the Bible never goes about arguing the existence of God, because it is evident.
But when the universe finally gets turned upside down, no one will be able to deny God, they will be saying either "*expletive God*" or "save me, God".

We don't need to "Believe" because we are Alive. We just are Alive and Know it. There is no Evidence of "God", none.

Prove you are alive to me without using your senses or without me using my senses.You can't.
Can I prove God exists to you without using my faith? No.
The two are on the same level for us humans. We cannot prove the existence of anything. If we try, we fall back on the circular logic of "it exists because I know it exists". The flaw of your argument is in your assumption that the belief in the physical universe is somehow superior to the belief in God, that somehow believing in what you hear, smell, touch, taste, and see is infinitely times more verifiable than the belief in God. But both are fundamental. You can't go above the two to seek proof of either.

Complete Fail.