What's your Religion?

How bout you apologize for being 18 posts in and already unable to have civilised discourse- 18 posts and already looking a like a you may be another TW Douche

 

ouch

 

I'm curious who you think made god. If the universe didn't just *poof* and exist without God creating it or getting the ball rolling, then where did God come from without a little help?

Really? Haven't you ever had pets? Same thing.

Good point there. How did 7 billion people develop from 2 guys? First off, gays are bad according to religion right? Second, what kind of inbred species would we be if we descended from only 2 people anyway even if it were from a man AND a woman? Seriously, look at animals that get inbred too much: bad hips, illness, short life spans.... How would the human race as a whole have even survived this long with only 2 sets of DNA/genes to start with? And no evolution to make that change.....

 

this might be the best thread on this forum!! LOLZZ If you ask me I think we should just allll get along haha. You believe what you believe and no one will change you mind on it so stop trying. Isnt this thread supposed to be about what religion you are, not lets try to persuade everyone to become my religion? hahah

 

its painful because ALL of his Biblical facts are 100% off... not because he doesnt agree with me. he doesnt have to agree with me at all. mostly i was just playing around anyway. thus the smiley... he's entitled to his opinion.

 

well if God created us... then he's obviously vastly beyond us... he exists outside of our world outside of time oustside of everything that has to do with us. the Bible specifically says that he has no begining and no end. thats pretty hard to wrap your brain around... it was for me. but if he created time and exists outside of time then he always was... eternity is a hard thing for us to digest because everything we know has boundaries defined by time.

 

i would like to know how you think things got started also... the atheists that ive had conversations with in the past got stuck with that one. maybe you can be more insightful.

 

I suppose my answer to both is I don't know. If we evolved from primordial ooze, then what put all of that together? Where did the ingredients needed come from? Ok, maybe god threw everything into a blender so to speak to see what happened when he poured it out and tossed it in an oven. But then were did he come from? Who made him? If I'm supposed to believe life couldn't spontaneously erupt from pond scum as bacteria, and evolve into more advanced life how can I believe in a God who himself spontaneously existed? Or just "is" with no beginning, no end, and no greater creator?

I have a hard time believing the scientists that say space is infinite, and never ending as well. I always thought space itself had to be in something. So what's the bigger fishtank? What's on the outside looking in?

Everything has a beginning and an end. The distance between varies, but eventually everything ends. Life, natural resources, everything comes to an end eventually. So something that "just exists" with no beginning or end doesn't add up, or really inspire faith from me without any kind of proof.

While I say atheist, I don't believe in God as the portrayed all-knowing, all-seeing, all-powerful entity. Maybe he does exist, but I don't believe he made everything, controls how it happens, etc. If I did he'd have to be pretty messed up to let all the things that happen in this world go on: wars, floods, famines, disease, abuse, the list goes on. I would be more inclined to believe god was like a kid with an terrarium: toss a few things in, and see how it develops on its own. No intervention, no "saving" people, etc just let things play out.

 

As for how the human population grew to the size it is? I don't have an answer, but it also doesn't mean I can believe we sprang from the 2 offspring of Adam and Eve. Even before hearing both their children we guys, it didn't make sense. Eve was made from Adam's rib yes? So he essentially had sex with his sister, produced 2 male offspring, and thus produced 7 billion people? People with white, brown, and black skin? Brown, blond, red, black, straight, and curly hair? Brown, blue, hazel and green eyes? Or any of the other variations in the human race from, essentially, 1 set of DNA (Adam's)? And evolution didn't happen so all of these variations had to already exist somehow. From a logic perspective it's impossible. I can't take my single male cat, and somehow breed every variation of house and wild cat on the planet. And yet we are supposed to believe exactly that happened with the human race? Sorry. I don't buy it. I don't even see how it's remotely possible even with evolution involved. Unless some how that single male being has/had all the necessary genes to create all those variations in the first place. Which would make it some sort of super-being, and not a normal man (or cat in this case). Might as well say aliens populated the planet then. Oh right, we're alone in that sense too aren't we? So where does that leave us?

 

ok man seriously you have alot of valid questions. and if you are willing to have a serious conversation i would be more than willing to share what i know with you. im 27 years old and ive done alot of research over the past 10 years that covers an awful lot of territory. so as you can imagine with the questions youve posed it will take quite a while to discuss. so far on the forum no one has listened to anything ive had to say... you seem like a pretty smart dude so i feel like we could have a civil conversation. and going in i will go ahead and let you know, im not a typical christian. im not a finger pointing "youre going to hell" type. i also dont believe in blind faith. i believe in solid research to determine what you believe. there's too much bullshit floating around to take what someone tells you as fact. im a human being. no better than you or anyone else. i have my faults just like everyone. if you legitimatly want to know the answers to your questions then ill do my best to share with you everything that i know. im not by any means saying i know everything because i most certainly dont. i just dont want to go through all the time and effort in vain... if you do then give me a while to get all my shit in one place and ill pm you.

 

Bear with me... I quoted a lot of people but here we go. I'll be brief because this is kind of a lot, so if you want more explanation on a specific point just ask. I am by no means an expert, but I'll share what I have learned.

A lot of those laws in the Old Testement were very practical in order for the survival of the Hebrew people (God's chosen). Science wasn't that advanced back then! haha God made laws regarding bodily discharges, leprosy, and unclean food to protect the Isrealites from disease and schtuff like that. The laws you mentioned are similar to that idea. Slavery was allowed during times of war. Those slaves were prisoners from nations that were trying to destroy the Hebrews. The law regarding the woman marrying the brother was (I believe) for the survival of family lines. Heritage was very important.

Regarding homosexuality: yes, it is a sin according to the Bible. But it is just like any other sin in the Bible. A man who cheats his wife with another woman is in sin just as much as a man that has sex with another man. It's no worse, no better. Both men in this example need God's grace.

You said you have nothing against homosexuality. Do you have anything against beastiality? (It's their personal life afterall.) Along with sex with your mother, father, sister, brother, uncle, etc... they are all mentioned as sins in the same chapter in the Bible. Since you have nothing against homosexuality because it's their personal life, do you have anything against any of the other 15 or so laws regarding sexual morality?

The Bible is a reliable collection of historical documents written by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses; they report supernatural events that took place in fulfillment of specific prophesies and claimed that their writtings were divine rather than human in origin. No on can deny the historical accuracy of the Bible, and how can you deny that it's the Word of God based on a 100% prophesy fulfillment record to date??? No human can accuratly predict thousands of years into the future with specific descriptions of specific events.

When you said, "Many parts have been edited, left out and altogether lost" you couldn't have been more wrong. Every single translation of the Bible is directly translated form the original documents, not previous translations. Nothing was edited or left out.

I like that Ghandi quote! It is unfortunate that so many Christians are hypocrites. We are supposed to be reflections of Jesus' nature.... It's pretty sad really...

As mentioned above: "The Bible is a reliable collection of historical documents written by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses; they report supernatural events that took place in fulfillment of specific prophesies and claimed that their writtings were divine rather than human in origin." That "ONE" account was written in 3 different languages with 66 books on 3 separate continants by 40 different authors over 1500 years! (Not a single monk makin up some epic story.)The Bible has internal consistancy, is supported externally by vastly different secular historians (Josephus, Tacticus, Suetonius, Pliny the Younger, Thallus, etc...), and is historically supported by 23,000 archeological digs.

You said, "I also don't understand why the Christian god has to be THE god." Do you believe in an absolute truth? If not, then what is truth? If so, than it is what it is. (God is God because he simply "is") Why is anything what it is?

BTW, dinosaurs ARE mentioned in the Bible. lol Also, dinosaurs still exist today. Crocodiles for instance... By definition, they are actually dinosaurs.

Isn't God's creation beatiful?

So obviously you don't believe in heaven/hell. How do you know that you're right? What if you're wrong?

Where is the proof that they don't exist? It seems that you are hoping they don't exist as the non-existance of heaven/hell is also based on your beliefs. Live how you want, God gave you free-will, but there are consequences (good and bad) for every choice we make. =/

It's not that we need to live forever necessarily, but that is how it is... Why would believing in an afterlife change your appreciation for the time spent with family/friends here on Earth? Yes, I am so exited that I'll see my family in heaven, but that does not (in any way, shape or form) lessen my appreciation for the time I have with them. I'll be with ALL my brothers and sisters in Christ when I die, and that is pretty cool!

He's wrong. You're going to hell because you deserve to go to hell because you are a bad person. Now don't get mad, I'm not singling you out. The Bible says ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Anything that falls short of God's goodness is not good enough and = bad. However, Jesus' sacrifice payed the price for the world's sins. All you have to do is acknowledge that, and give your life to God. (You're His creation after all)

Just because someone calls themself a Christian or was "raised" as a Christian, it doesn't make them a "Christian." Everyone is born a sinner with a selfish, human nature. It is natural. Being born in the US does not make you a christian! lol As for people in other coutries who were not raised around this belief, it makes no difference. Here's why: when someone chooses to follow Christ, it is due to the Holy Spirit speaking to them. God offers the gift of salvation to everybody. Yes, Christianity is restricted very heavily in some countries and yet people convert everyday! If you are interested in the concept of being "moved" by the Holy Spirit, Ephesians is a great place to look. Especially chapter 1, it explains it well.

See my answer a few quotes up about the validity of the Bible

Actually....... Noah's ark was very feasable. Think baby animals... why would Noah take fully grown beasts? lol Btw, it took aproximately 55-75 years to build the ark. That think was big!! haha Noah was 600 years old when he finished the ark! Of course, that was a normal age for humans back then...

Where does the Bible say Adam and Eve had 2 sons???? The first two (Cain & Able) are the most famous, but their third son Seth is also mentioned. The Bible says, "The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters." Yes, at this point in history, the bros and sisters married eachother. But this wasn't really dangerous at that point seeing as they were the only people on earth!

And a work of fiction it is not. I explained in my previous answers...

That's such a shame. Those men need need some mercy.

Yup, interstingly enough, Jefferson and Franklin were the least "Christian" of the bunch, and they recieve the most attention in public schools because of it. But look at the rest, especially the Adams's! Given what we currently know, all of the first five presidents and most, if not all, of the Founding Fathers believed in God. Atheism was mostly unknown among the writers of Constitution and was very rare among those of European descent in the 18th- Century.

I dont want to get political (and I don't think this is) but according to the Bible there are 3 main sheres of government: the state, church, and family. These should be separate from eachother under God's ultimate authority. Jefferson understood this need for separation. The funny thing is that it's the Bible that shows the need for this separation. Our nation is built on Biblical principles in and out.

God is eternal; He wasn't created. It's hard for our finite minds to grasp this idea

Answered that a few quotes up...

 

I Did not read this whole thing as it is alot to read. i also dont believe in "god".

im not arguing with anyone or anything, but you said proof??

why dont YOU show US proof?
see bolded

 

It seems that Slodgetto is a philosopher.

 

Slodgetto, I think you misunderstood my question, but thanks for taking the time to answer. What I meant was, for example, why aren't the several Gods that Hindus worship THE gods. Or the ones that ancient Greeks believed in?

And the whole 600 year old Noah is a little ridiculous don't you think?...

 

lol It is a lot, but I could have gone on... What do you think happens when you die? (Just curious.)

Proof? There is no solid "proof", and that is my point. Athiests must have just as much (if not more) faith than do Christians. Except they are hoping there is no God so they don't end up in hell.

How do I know I'm right? It's not based on my knowledge. My mind is only finate. "For we walk by faith, and not by sight." (2 Cor 5:7) There is no other way that makes sense to me. It is hard to answer from my point of view because I admit I know truth through faith and God's revelation to us. An athiest doesn't like to admit he has "faith" and must resort to his own intellect which of course is finite; nobody knows everything.

What if I'm wrong? If I'm wrong, than I lived a joyful life and I rot in the ground. But, if an athiest is wrong he goes to hell.... =/

LOL! As to your WTF exclamation:

Earth was a lot different before the flood than what it looks like today. Differences in climate, composition of the atmosphere, hydrologic cycle, geologic features, cosmic radiation reaching the earth, ozone concentration, ultra violet light, background radiation, genetics, diet, and a host of other subtle and/or profound chemical and physiological changes caused a rapid decline of the longevity after the flood. Josephus (an acclaimed historian and external from the Bible) said it well:

"Now when Noah had lived three hundred and fifty years after the Flood, and that all that time happily, he died, having lived the number of nine hundred and fifty years. But let no one, upon comparing the lives of the ancients with our lives, and with the few years which we now live, think that what we have said of them is false; or make the shortness of our lives at present an argument, that neither did they attain to so long a duration of life, for those ancients were beloved of God, and [lately] made by God himself; and because their food was then fitter for the prolongation of life, might well live so great a number of years: and besides, God afforded them a longer time of life on account of their virtue, and the good use they made of it in astronomical and geometrical discoveries, which would not have afforded the time of foretelling [the periods of the stars] unless they had lived six hundred years; for the great year is completed in that interval."
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there wasnt mcdonalds and marlboro reds back then

Just thinking out loud here:
if christians are right: we go to heaven (or hell ) when we die
if atheists are right: nothing

so why not believe in Jesus? at least try it out, just for my peace of mind! haha

to each their own, though. freedom of religion is a good thing

 

dang beat me to it!

 

AAHHahahahaha!!!! sigged Never taken a philosophy class in my life...

I got you... I'll try and expand my answer in the morning. My head hurts now haha Gotta catch a flight in the morn so I should have some hours to kill at the airport. I'm actually in a DFW hotel right now lol, heading home tomorrow.

Peace y'all.

 

I'm not quite sure what I believe. Christianity hasnt been forced on me but we did go to church every Sunday when I was little. I despise atheists...I can't stand their logic. No disrespect to any atheists. I believe there has to be something more than us and more to science to explain where we came from, why we're here, and what our purpose is.

When I think about the "afterlife" I can't really imagine a heaven and a hell. A lot of the time I see people as a whole. Sort of as if there was one central...thing. And everyone has a different level of each trait passed down from their parents that continues the being of this "thing" if that makes any sense. Then when we die we really don't because I'm you and you're me. Idk...the things a kid with add can think about while writing a one minute post...