Are we Ready To Drop God?

[Captain Chaos]

Causality is complex. I would conclude that the killer took actions that resulted in my feeling bad. Or, I could say that the killer and his actions are a significant component of the branching causal chain that resulted in my feeling bad.

[luke virtual kh]

Quote by: Nathan Struth So are we ready?

Done and dusted.

[Autolykos]

I'll grant that emotional responses are partially instinctual. Yet human beings have the ability to suppress any instinct. Emotions are not entirely deterministic.

- Rob

[phoenix_fire]

Quote by: Autolykos I'll grant that emotional responses are partially instinctual. Yet human beings have the ability to suppress any instinct. Emotions are not entirely deterministic. - Rob

Really... *strokes chin and smiles*

[Captain Chaos]

Quote by: Autolykos I'll grant that emotional responses are partially instinctual. Yet human beings have the ability to suppress any instinct. Emotions are not entirely deterministic. - Rob

Not entirely. I believe they can be cultivated, but not overtly controlled.


Could you, Rob, choose to find 400 pound women with several oozing warts desirable?

[Autolykos]

Yes, I could. But I choose not to.

- Rob

[Cephus]

Quote by: Heehoos There will always be unknown. Humankind will never reach the limits of understanding. Therefore, humankind will always seek God.

No, humankind will always seek answers, but there are some questions which we simply cannot answer at the time. God is an avoidance of "I don't know". When in doubt, invent an answer, which is exactly what man did when they invented God.

[Heehoos]

Quote by: Cephus No, humankind will always seek answers, but there are some questions which we simply cannot answer at the time. God is an avoidance of "I don't know". When in doubt, invent an answer, which is exactly what man did when they invented God.

That is your perspective. I look back at human history and see how humankind has always sought answers and has also always sought God.

It is also your perspective that people of faith defy reason. What is your perspective on philosophy? To me, they are similar things. There are more "why" questions than how tangiable things work, but also how life works. People of faith are not (always) void of reason.

Einstein said, "Science without religion is lame. Religion without science is blind."

And even Buddha said, "Believe nothing, no matter where you read it .. or who said it .. no matter if I have said it .. unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.""

[luke virtual kh]

Quote by: Heehoos There will always be unknown. Humankind will never reach the limits of understanding. Therefore, humankind will always seek God.

Theres a helluvalot I don't know, but I don't "seek God."

[luke virtual kh]

Quote by: Heehoos I look back at human history and see how humankind has always sought answers and has also always sought God.

Check contemporary history.

[Heehoos]

Quote by: luke virtual kh Theres a helluvalot I don't know, but I don't "seek God."

I will submit that you do not represent "humanity". And with regard to your other post, can you show me a time where humanity has not sought its spirituality?

[luke virtual kh]

Quote by: Heehoos Einstein said, "Science without religion is lame. Religion without science is blind."

So what if he did. He also said "The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax."

[Captain Chaos]

Quote by: Autolykos Yes, I could. But I choose not to. - Rob

I do not believe that you could. I believe that you would be lying to yourself.

[luke virtual kh]

Quote by: Heehoos I will submit that you do not represent "humanity". And with regard to your other post, can you show me a time where humanity has not sought its spirituality?

I suppose you're defining humanity as everyone but the atheists and unbeleivers then? Why so if?

See wikipedia's demographies of atheism for some relevant stats.

[Captain Chaos]

Quote by: Cephus No, humankind will always seek answers, but there are some questions which we simply cannot answer at the time. God is an avoidance of "I don't know". When in doubt, invent an answer, which is exactly what man did when they invented God.

Whether or not there exists beings powerful enough to be called gods, it seems clear to me that humanity invented the various gods they worship.

Think about it - the gods of the various religions always reflect the nature of the believers. The God of the Hebrews was a tribal god who helped the Hebrews in their various wars with other tribes.

I have a hard time imagining a creator of a universe being a tribal God.

[Heehoos]

Quote by: luke virtual kh I suppose you're defining humanity as everyone but the atheists and unbeleivers then? Why so if? See wikipedia's demographies of atheism for some relevant stats.

I didn't say every person was seeking God. I said that humanity in general seeks God. And that doesn't mean they're all seeking the Christian God. It means that it has been a common trait for human beings to seek the Divine.

I didn't see any "white" countries on that demographics map.

[Heehoos]

Quote by: Captain Chaos I have a hard time imagining a creator of a universe being a tribal God.

To be honest, CC, I do, too. I believe there is a Creator, a source of life. But I don't think that God has anything to do with what we identify as human qualities -- a body, a gender, an age, etc.

[Captain Chaos]

Quote by: Heehoos To be honest, CC, I do, too. I believe there is a Creator, a source of life. But I don't think that God has anything to do with what we identify as human qualities -- a body, a gender, an age, etc.

Or a willingness to smite the enemy of the Hebrews?

[Heehoos]

Quote by: Captain Chaos Or a willingness to smite the enemy of the Hebrews?

Yes. I don't think that a creator of a vast universe (and who knows what's on the "outside" of this universe" is going to care about one small handful of people against other handfulls of anciet people. As a Christian, I believe that Jesus taught us to do away with the ideas of who is and who is not entitled to God's love.

[luke virtual kh]

Quote by: Heehoos I didn't say every person was seeking God. I said that humanity in general seeks God. And that doesn't mean they're all seeking the Christian God. It means that it has been a common trait for human beings to seek the Divine. I didn't see any "white" countries on that demographics map.

Buddhists, taoists, confucians? Well I guess not, but I see what you mean, there is a statistically significant number of beleivers in God(s) and there have been thrughout history, but that by no means justifies the positing of a "common" human "trait" if you mean by common not frequent but posessed by all.

You seem still to think that it's a denial of so called humanity to not seek God. If you're willing to argue that, then I reply that historically the majority of mankind has lived in relative poverty and ask is it a denial of ones humanity to have material wealth? Or knowledge instead of ignorance? Longevity instead of a short life?

God is dead. He froze to death.