Do you believe in God ?

[Kyanimal]

Since others believe in their "Gods", then, yes, "God" exists in all of them, and is a "force" we all have to contend with when relating to others. Their beliefs color their perceptions, influence their actions, and ,thus, also effect us. In turn, whether we believe in "God", or not, our bank of beliefs, and assumptions, also shape the way we deal with others, and they relate to us as they interpret us. So, yes, "God" exits, and is all around us, from day one, as a "Higher Power" in our lives. Religion has proven to be a powerful motivator throughout history, whether right or wrong.

Is there a Supreme Being? Personally, I highly doubt that. My astronomy prof. was J. Allen Hynek, of Project Blue Book, etc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Allen_Hynek He was constantly being asked if there were UFO's and ET's. His general reply was that he didn't have any scientific proof that there were, nor did he have any proof that there weren't. I'll go with that in regards to there being an "Almighty".

 

[Jacquemar]

I certainly don't believe in the anthropomorphic god of the Judeo-Christian tradition. But I think the Plotinian "One" is certainly possible. To point above, I don't have proof, other than some very well-thought-out answers to some very important questions.

 

[Pierresro]

and why ?

*** I know I know it is such a boring topic,God did nothinmg while millions died. There is no God anyone can believe other wise not me!

 

[Kulindahr]

and why ?

*** I know I know it is such a boring topic,God did nothinmg while millions died. There is no God anyone can believe other wise not me!

It's always amusing to see people thinking God should butt in on people's private business because if He actually did they'd be screaming He should leave us alone.

 

[SeaCore]

It's always amusing to see people thinking God should butt in on people's private business because if He actually did they'd be screaming He should leave us alone.

Dude, you're equating intense amounts of suffering up to and including rape, slavery, and murder to people's private business. If I know that your private business is raping someone I would be a monster for not stopping it if I could. I would hold the ultimate judge to that standard.

 

[Jacquemar]

^^ Awesome response!! I agree.

 

[magikarping]

It's the classic problem of evil: how could evil exist when there is supposed to be an all-knowing (omniscient), all-powerful (omnipotent) and all-good (omnibenevolent) deity/being?

And of course, a defense of an all-knowing, all-powerful and all-good deity/being is also a defense of the existence of an all-knowing, all-powerful and all-evil deity/being. So there's that.

 

[Jacquemar]

It's the classic problem of evil: how could evil exist when there is supposed to be an all-knowing (omniscient), all-powerful (omnipotent) and all-good (omnibenevolent) deity/being?

And of course, a defense of an all-knowing, all-powerful and all-good deity/being is also a defense of the existence of an all-knowing, all-powerful and all-evil deity/being. So there's that.

Another defense is that there is no evil, only a deficiency of good; or even ignorance.

 

[Kulindahr]

Dude, you're equating intense amounts of suffering up to and including rape, slavery, and murder to people's private business. If I know that your private business is raping someone I would be a monster for not stopping it if I could. I would hold the ultimate judge to that standard.

Right there is the original sin: you want to define what's okay and what isn't, and you want God to conform to that -- exactly what Lucifer did when he declared "I will be like God".

But God put humans in charge of this planet, so He keeps mostly out of it. If He were to step in to correct the evils you happen to dislike He would also have to correct all the evils -- and that would mean interrupting every single person repeatedly every single day. God does what my sister the engineer would have called "total inspection", rejecting every item with the least flaw, whether it's cheating at cards or littering or rushing to get the last piece of pizza before anyone else can or speeding or vandalism or doing something "good enough" or not disclosing everything on tax forms or cutting in line in front of someone else or cursing at other drivers on the road or not giving to the homeless or losing your temper or telling a "little white lie" or driving past a hitchhiker ... or anything else that falls short of perfection.

You claim you want to hold God to a certain standard -- but your standard itself falls short of perfection. And God will not bend to your wishes by enforcing something that is itself evil.

 

[Kulindahr]

It's the classic problem of evil: how could evil exist when there is supposed to be an all-knowing (omniscient), all-powerful (omnipotent) and all-good (omnibenevolent) deity/being?

The classic problem of evil is that humans only define it to suit themselves -- and then want to use force to coerce others into following their standards, not realizing that what they are proposing is itself evil.

 

[opinterph]

all-good

all-evil

Can either of those things exist without the other?

 

[Superboy69]

Do I believe in God?

I believe that there is a problem with the word "believe". If you are asking if I am intellectually convinced that God exists, my answer is - I am not certain. I do not think that anyone can "prove" God's existence through the scientific method or through pure logical reasoning.

Nonetheless, I choose to trust in the idea that God exists. I choose to think and act as if there is a benevolent creator. I choose to think and act that the universe is filled with his spirit, including us. I also choose to believe that we human beings are creatures imbued with free-will, and can choose to align with good or evil.

 

[magikarping]

The classic problem of evil is that humans only define it to suit themselves -- and then want to use force to coerce others into following their standards, not realizing that what they are proposing is itself evil.

This is how I read your statement: "The classic problem of religion is that humans only define it to suit themselves -- and then want to use force to coerce others into following their standards, not realizing that what they are proposing is itself evil."

Probably not what you intended, but it works just as well lol.

 

[magikarping]

Can either of those things exist without the other?

Semantically speaking, no. Can't recall which linguistic theory talks about how words are defined through their opposites, or "what they are not."

The follow-up to your question is "How about both of them not existing?"

 

[Jacquemar]

Can either of those things exist without the other?

The Platonists would have said yes. God is the unqualified Good. There is no evil, only a deficiency of Good. In my opinion, it hardly lets God off the hook.

 

[SeaCore]

If He were to step in to correct the evils you happen to dislike He would also have to correct all the evils --

That does not follow. Just because you intervene in some situations doesn't mean you have to intervene in all of them. And even the god of the bible demonstrates this because it has instances of intervention and it's not constantly intervening.

Also I need to address the bold. You're downplaying rape, murder, and slavery as being simple dislikes, again, and that's abhorrent.

You claim you want to hold God to a certain standard -- but your standard itself falls short of perfection. And God will not bend to your wishes by enforcing something that is itself evil.

You appear to be critquing my standard for not being perfect and therefore worthless but that's a meaningless critique because your use of the word 'perfection' is implicitly subjective, but it sounds like you're treating it as objective. If gods standard is objectively perfect, I shouldn't be able to see it as flawed because it is perfect. But I don't. You've given me no way to improve my standard. You need to demonstrate it's perfection because I'm not about to give that serious consideration just because you claim that you understand god.

 

[opinterph]

Plotinian "One"

One [Wiki]​

 

[opinterph]

“There is no evil, only a deficiency of Good.”

It is a generally accepted principle in physics that there is no such thing as cold – it is simply an absence of heat. Similarly, darkness is understood to be an absence of light. Can evil be explained without comparing it to something else?

 

[opinterph]

… Can't recall which linguistic theory talks about how words are defined through their opposites, or "what they are not."

The follow-up to your question is "How about both of them not existing?"

If someone affirms that neither of them exists can that person still [reasonably] believe in God?

 

[magikarping]

If someone affirms that neither of them exists can that person still [reasonably] believe in God?

Not in a God that's considered all-good. Also, I chuckled at "[reasonably]."