Is There a God?

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Originally Posted by Brown, Jon Brow

You mean in the same way we don't have the 'means' to see the fairies at the bottom of the garden?

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Yeah. Something like this. :laugh:

So, after 244 posts, has anyone modified their opinions at all and why?

Non-believers (or realists as I like to call us) cannot understand why people are so gullible to believe there is some mystical, all seeing deity that invented Heaven, Earth and Hell. He can listen to each and every one of the 6 billion human beings prayers, thoughts, desires and judge each and everyone of us when we die to decide whether they are worthy to enter his kingdom or should spend the rest of eternity being tortured.

Then we have the believers who believe without doubt that the above is true and wont entertain any 'evidence' that contradicts their 'faith'.

Heaven and hell, good and bad, black and white, believers and non-believers. Both sides of the same coin that are no more likely to change sides as they are sexes.

Perhaps we shall need a new thread called 'Converts coner'?

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Originally Posted by Brown, Jon Brow

Perhaps we shall need a new thread called 'Converts coner'?

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http://www.seriouswheels.com/pics-20...e-1280x960.jpg

Eki, you have issues mate. Serious issues.

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Originally Posted by Robinho

I think we live in a time where more and more of an educated and free thinking population is rejecting the notion of a god and unsustainable when weighed against the acquired knowledge of the populous, as "god" is not needed to explain natural phenomena and the church is wrestling to retain control over "man". In large parts of Europe it is possibly losing, the church being nothing more than a social cause, however still very powerful.

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And look at the way some churches seek to retain their societal position — by speaking out from an utterly backward standpoint on issues like gay marriage, for instance. Even representatives of the more moderate branches of the Christian faith talk of the rise of secularism as though it is something to be feared, rather than acknowledging the ways in which it may simply be inevitable.

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Originally Posted by airshifter

On occasion they will also need to change the battery, replace the tires, replenish oil, etc. But the car doesn't run on those things. Are you claiming that an average person having never been exposed to an internal combustion engine would simply understand how it works without any background and education on the subject?

In reality the engine runs more on air than liquid fuel, yet we never have to fill that up.

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You really think that average people are that dumb that they do not understand some basics? Maybe I grew up in a world of geniuses, where everyone was above average, though I highly doubt it, and yet everyone understands the basics of how an engine works without need to take up physics or engineering classes.

As for the air, well it is oxygen not air that the engine uses, and we should consider ourselves lucky that we do not have to fill the engine with air from an air station pump.

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Originally Posted by gadjo_dilo

The ancient greeks and romans worshiped the natural forces, the ancient egyptians worshiped even animals.

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Looks like they knew better.

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Originally Posted by Rudy Tamasz

Nothing. I just try to make sense of it.

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And does it work?

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Originally Posted by Robinho

Science is all about testing observable phenomena, to understand them, to recreate them, to prove them, science more often than not tests its own hypotheses and proves them wrong, whilst narrowing the parameters of what it is searching for. No-one is disputing that scientific thinking has been incorrect i the past, based on the observable theories were put forward which were generally accepted until the ability to test and observe things changes, as a result of scientific progress. This evolution of science is part of what I think defines us as humans, as does the evolution of society, morals etc.

Religon observes something that was unexplainable and seeks to leave it out of the reach of the comprehension of man but explaining it as the result of a supernatural deity that is responsible for all things and is unquestionable. Also invisible, but all seeing and all powerful. Scary stuff. Add to that the whole afterlife, judgement day, heaven and hell and you have a whole lot of unobservable and untestable things to retain power over people. Teach thme these things from birth and promise great hardship, pain etc for eternity and you wind up with believers.

I think we live in a time where more and more of an educated and free thinking population is rejecting the notion of a god and unsustainable when weighed against the acquired knowledge of the populous, as "god" is not needed to explain natural phenomena and the church is wrestling to retain control over "man". In large parts of Europe it is possibly losing, the church being nothing more than a social cause, however still very powerful. In the USA and most Islamic counties the balance is far more in favour of the religous teachings, but the inability of religon to evolve and develop new ideas, due to its inflexible basis will ultimately IMO be its downfall. I cannot see how more people will be converted to believe than do reject the theory of a god, despite how strongly the religons continue to try to influence everything its followers do.

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Couldn't agree more. Very well explained. :up: