Do you believe in God?

[noisiaturismo]

I believe in science, the chances are bigger it would happen.

 

[homeforsummer]

And what is time? I always thought that time is a measurement of the longevity of reactions or events. I believe God created time through creating points of reference from which we can measure from. I cannot respond about the point of time slowing down purely because I have little knowledge of such topic.

Nobody "created" time itself. Humankind created the concept of time simply as a device to measure the relative distance between one event and another. Time itself as an entity is just a byproduct of those events happening. It's simply one state of affairs taking over from another state of affairs.

 

[SkierPS3]

There is no God, plain and simple. The Bible is a work of fiction, just like The Odyssey. Fundamentalists say evolution is a theory, and I say God is a hypothesis.

 

[TankAss95]

There is no God, plain and simple. The Bible is a work of fiction, just like The Odyssey. Fundamentalists say evolution is a theory, and I say God is a hypothesis.

You have no proof that God does not exist. Plus, you have not given any reasons why you think that.

 

[hampus_dh]

Please re-read my previous post. I think you'll find the answers there.

I have faith in God and what the Bible teaches. Part of that includes faith that I will get to heaven. Maybe it is wrong of me to presume you think these beliefs as being stupid. It's my religion. I keep it to myself. I believe such things are the only real logical explanation to everything. I feel that science explanations are very often stupid, yet I keep that opinion to myself. I do not take these theories and laugh at their "stupidity" like many people do so about Christianity.
No, I do not compare myself to such characters. If you find no difference between brainwashed "cults" or extremist organisations to a humble child discussing his own opinion of God then it fills my heart with much pain. If these are the kind of people who represent Christianity, or any religion to you, then no wonder you have such views.
And how exactly can I prove an experience? How can I provide a logical explanation of my experiences? I walk with God day to day. He helps me through life. If you want any proof of that then unfortunately your wish cannot be granted. That goes with your wish to prove God. It is a futile task, especially when you are so single minded and (excuse me if I'm wrong) so negative to the whole concept of religion all together.

You do realise that if you were brought up in south east Asia you would probably be a buddhist due to everyone around you is also.

Do you see Evolution as a fact or fake?

 

[homeforsummer]

You have no proof that God does not exist. Plus, you have not given any reasons why you think that.

And you, equally, have no proof that he does.

That said, I agree with your request for further explanation. It'd be a dull thread indeed if everyone simply came out with yes/no type answers.

 

[SkierPS3]

You have no proof that God does not exist. Plus, you have not given any reasons why you think that.

You have no proof God exists. To list all the reasons for disregarding God as a fact would take literally days. For starters the Bible is not reliable info, it often contradicts itself and it can't be proven that God wrote it.

Also look at this: http://imgur.com/OnekE

Do you want to believe in a God as cruel as that?

 

[TankAss95]

You do realise that if you were brought up in south east Asia you would probably be a buddhist due to everyone around you is also.

Do you see Evolution as a fact or fake?

How are you certain of this?
I see evolution as fake. 99% of all mutations are destructive not helpful. If I threw a watch against a wall, would you think it would improve? And if it could what do you think the probability of that is?
Ever heard of the blind watch maker?

 

[Famine]

Nobody "created" time itself. Humankind created the concept of time simply as a device to measure the relative distance between one event and another. Time itself as an entity is just a byproduct of those events happening. It's simply one state of affairs taking over from another state of affairs.

Hmmmnnuummnnmmmhnnnmmm... Not really.

Time - moreover spacetime - is not a human-created concept. How we measure time is all ours, right down to the Planck Time, but time is an integral part of the structure of the universe, every bit as much as space is. The Plank Length is the smallest amount of distance possible and the Planck Time - the time taken for light to travel one Planck Length in a vacuum - is the smallest amount of time possible. They are inextricably linked and part of the structure and physical law of our universe.

To put it another way, humans invented the concept of mathematics, including the concept of one and of zero. Zero is merely the absence of something and one is merely the presence of an individual something. Both are independent of how we choose to represent them, but how we represent them is our own.

How are you certain of this?
I see evolution as fake. 99% of all mutations are destructive not helpful. If I threw a watch against a wall, would you think it would improve? And if it could what do you think the probability of that is?
Ever heard of the blind watch maker?

We have a Creation vs. Evolution thread for that. It is easily debunked except amongst those who do not want it to be.

 

[TJC_69]

There is no God, plain and simple. The Bible is a work of fiction, just like The Odyssey. Fundamentalists say evolution is a theory, and I say God is a hypothesis.

+1 👍

 

[SkierPS3]

How are you certain of this?
I see evolution as fake. 99% of all mutations are destructive not helpful. If I threw a watch against a wall, would you think it would improve? And if it could what do you think the probability of that is?
Ever heard of the blind watch maker?

And what of that 1%? Over billions of years, those 1% of mutations add up big time. And where is YOUR evidence for that statistic?

 

[TheCracker]

99% of all mutations are destructive not helpful.

[citation needed]

 

[TJC_69]

Tankass is incorrect .

But he won't accept that as the Bible told him what to believe.

 

[hampus_dh]

How are you certain of this?
I see evolution as fake. 99% of all mutations are destructive not helpful. If I threw a watch against a wall, would you think it would improve? And if it could what do you think the probability of that is?
Ever heard of the blind watch maker?

You seriously think you would be christian from birth despite having your whole family and friends being Buddhists?
Ok so evolution is fake. How old is the earth?

-------------------------------------------

Check this out, it´s amazing.

When you click on it you see alot of dust sort of in the picture.
When you zoom in, you see what it really is. MORE stars.

http://www.astrosurf.com/sguisard/Pagim/GC.html

Part of the Milky Way

One galaxy out of billions.

 

[dylansan]

Please re-read my previous post. I think you'll find the answers there.

I have faith in God and what the Bible teaches.

Ah, faith. Belief based not on proof. And yet you claim to have had experiences which have proven to you that god exists. What would happen if someone proved that those experiences were not caused by God? If you would continue to believe, then those experiences are obviously not why you believe. So then what is the reason? There must be one. That's the tricky thing about faith. If you don't believe based on evidence, there has to be some other reason you think it's true. So what is that reason for you?

Part of that includes faith that I will get to heaven. Maybe it is wrong of me to presume you think these beliefs as being stupid. It's my religion. I keep it to myself.

If you base any decisions that affect other people on your faith, such as voting, then it is of concern to everyone it affects.

I believe such things are the only real logical explanation to everything. I feel that science explanations are very often stupid, yet I keep that opinion to myself.

...he typed carefully into his computer and sent over the internet on a website about video games. Seriously, what about science is stupid? Care to give some examples? You claim to care about logic but science is just a logical methodology to find answers to questions. Scientists don't just come up with crazy ideas and spread them as fact. They test them, double and triple and centuple check everything to make sure nothing has been missed. And it's all based on evidence. I'm not sure how you can claim any scientific explanation is stupid, when your view of the world is by definition not based on evidence.

I do not take these theories and laugh at their "stupidity" like many people do so about Christianity.

I would hope because there is actual evidence behind scientific explanations, but I fear that's not why. And just by the way, not mocking a belief just because they have a right to have it is not a good thing. If a belief is not supported by evidence, as well as harmful, I will not respect it, no matter how happy it makes that person to believe it. If science was a crock I wouldn't respect it either, but it isn't.

No, I do not compare myself to such characters. If you find no difference between brainwashed "cults" or extremist organisations to a humble child discussing his own opinion of God then it fills my heart with much pain. If these are the kind of people who represent Christianity, or any religion to you, then no wonder you have such views.

Sort of unrelated, but how do you know your interpretation of the bible is more correct than those of these cults and such? Do you ever wonder if they have it right, and you've just misunderstood?

And how exactly can I prove an experience? How can I provide a logical explanation of my experiences? I walk with God day to day. He helps me through life. If you want any proof of that then unfortunately your wish cannot be granted.

I won't ask you to prove to me that you had these experiences, as that is admittedly impossible. However, I must ask you what these events were and how you know they came from God. Please don't say you could just "tell". What physical phenomena occurred and why is God to only explanation for them?

That goes with your wish to prove God. It is a futile task, especially when you are so single minded and (excuse me if I'm wrong) so negative to the whole concept of religion all together.

It isn't close minded to expect evidence of something before believing it. That's called being rational. If someone presented valid evidence of God's existence, I would believe it. However, it is close minded to believe something despite evidence that shows it isn't true. It is close minded to say "any arguments against [my position] would be pointless". It show's you're not open to accepting anything different than what you already believe. Please practice what you preach.

look Im not claiming to have all the answers about the Lord but if you are stiaght thinking of it through just Logic there are enough people that can convince you either way its not a intellectual thing a person lacks its could be more spiritual.

I don't understand this sentence at all. Could you please clarify?

The other thing is just because people don't believe in God doesn't mean there isnt one.

No one has claimed that God doesn't exist because we don't believe he does.

I dont believe that I cam from amoeba or some ape just bang we just appeared

Evolution is the exact opposite of "bang we just appeared" This however...

I believe God made every single one of us

is the definition of "bang we just appeared"

and cares for every single one of us he made us all in his image, He sent his Son Jesus to die on the Cross for our sins. and rose again on the third day to show that sin did not bind him to give us all a chance at going to heaven and being with him because God loves us.

So? He could have just forgiven us. Why did he kill his Son? Plus, it's not like Jesus actually sacrificed his life. It's not quite dying if you get to come back three days later. Not to mention Jesus is apparantly God anyway, so unless God himself died, which I can't imagine you believe, it wasn't much of a sacrifice at all.

Why did God have to kill anyone to forgive us? He could have just forgiven us on the spot and been done with it. And why did Adam and Eve sinning get transfered to every human in existance? Why did God have to blame all of mankind, just so he could forgive us later?

A lot of people believe Jesus was a real person in history and they say he was a '' good man'' well either Jesus is what he claimed to be or mad man there is no in between. I challenge anyone to really take the time to study the bible and refute its claims

People do. The Catholic Church already admitted Adam and Eve didn't exist, which leaves me wondering where original sin came from in the first place, and why Jesus had to come at all...

Its not my religion that keeps me going its my growing relationship with my Lord.I do not claim to have all the answers. I am growing and learning everyday. God has a plan for everything and everyone weather we follow it or not is our choice God gives us all free will. Also just because your saved doesn't mean the road is a bed of roses it will probably make Life harder if anything. but I believe its well worth it.
Its all about faith

It's not really God's plan if you can choose not to follow it. Doesn't God know what I'm going to choose if he made me?
How can I do something God wasn't expecting? And if he was expecting it, but he let me do it anyway, why didn't he make me so that I wouldn't choose to?

And again with the faith. Do you believe everything everyone tells you on faith? No. You believe things based on evidence. So how do you know the information you got about God is true? How do you know God isn't just evil and wrote the bible to trick you into worshiping Him?

 

[SkierPS3]

dylansan deserves a monetary reward for that post.

 

[hampus_dh]

dylansan deserves a monetary reward for that post.

+1

 

[TJC_69]

dylansan deserves a monetary reward for that post.

+2 👍

 

[homeforsummer]

Time - moreover spacetime - is not a human-created concept. How we measure time is all ours, right down to the Planck Time, but time is an integral part of the structure of the universe, every bit as much as space is. The Plank Length is the smallest amount of distance possible and the Planck Time - the time taken for light to travel one Planck Length in a vacuum - is the smallest amount of time possible. They are inextricably linked and part of the structure and physical law of our universe.

To put it another way, humans invented the concept of mathematics, including the concept of one and of zero. Zero is merely the absence of something and one is merely the presence of an individual something. Both are independent of how we choose to represent them, but how we represent them is our own.

I thought I covered that with "Humankind created the concept of time"?...

My point was more that humans simply came up with a way of measuring something that already happens as a byproduct of the universe constantly changing.

Should the universe end according to the heat death theory, then time itself will also end as there will no longer be any changing anywhere in the universe.

 

[dylansan]

Also, here's a simulation where bad mutations are 100 times more likely than good ones. Offspring which have the most negative mutations are most likely to be eaten. The rest is just random reproduction and passing on of genes. It's a really simple simulation, but have a look at the results. The whole video is quite interesting, and you can download the simulator from the video description. Have fun learning!

 

[Famine]

I thought I covered that with "Humankind created the concept of time"?...

We created our concept of time, but time itself exists whether we accurately recognise it or not. Seconds aren't massively relevant to the universe, but they underpin all of our mathematics and physics knowledge. Similarly, the Planck Time is part of the structure of the universe but almost pointless in human mathematics (and only really helpful in quantum physics).

My point was more that humans simply came up with a way of measuring something that already happens as a byproduct of the universe constantly changing.

Yes, though the thing that already happens - time - isn't a human concept. That's the issue with saying that we created the concept of time.

Should the universe end according to the heat death theory, then time itself will also end as there will no longer be any changing anywhere in the universe.

Thus rendering all human endeavour ultimately pointless. Just to get the gig in perspective.

 

[High-Test]

I challenge anyone to really take the time to study the bible and refute its claims

Challenge accepted.


One must remember that the first twenty-two chapters of Genesis are myth. We are modern human beings. We have scientific means to explain most things. The people who were present 3300 years ago, about the time Torah was compiled, hadn't the faintest conception of the scientific method. This does not insinuate that they were stupid by any means when considering the document they compiled.

As a pre-modern society, their first concern was to ensure solidarity among their people. When considering Émile Durkheim's theory of mechanical solidarity, one need look no farther than the Israelites for a prime example. There are generally two punishments for deviance: death or exile. With those punishments for various crimes, people were kept in line. There are 613 commandments in Torah. 365 negative: "do not" and 248 positive: "do". One's associations in premodern societies were not chosen. The purpose of Torah in the first place can be easily understood as a code of conduct: Torah means "To teach". What is it teaching? Law.

God reveals himself to Abraham. Like the bases for Christianity and Islam, it was a personal revelation. God just spoke to one dude. Maybe the dude was crazy. Abraham, Muhammad, Jesus, and the prophets during the time of prophecy could have easily been dismissed as crackpots.

Let us take the claim of revelation at Sinai. Supposedly, God revealed God's self to several hundred thousand people at the same time. If famine were to say that "the voice of Isaac Newton called to me the evening of the 23rd of October, 2011 and told me to drop a sperm whale and a potted plant off of the Royal Albert Hall", one could quite easily dismiss him as a loon.

However. Imagine that the voice of Isaac Newton spoke to famine and every last GTPlanet user at the same time. Though it is an even more preposterous claim, it is fundamentally hard to dismiss. Could every last GTP'er be wrong?

Christians do not pick and choose things out for interpratation

I'll pick on Christianity as an example of the fundamental contradictions within organized religions.

The entirety of the New Testament, and therefore Christianity as a result, is based on mistranslation and the contradiction of Tanakh.

The whole point of Christianity is the coming of the mashiach which was foreseen during the time of the prophets. However there is no logical reasoning whatsoever supporting the claim by Jesus of Nazareth to the messiahship.

Example: Isaiah 7:4. The word "Alma", which is in the original verse, means maiden, whereas the word "bethulah" means virgin. The word bethulah is not used. Nobody ever said that the messiah would be born from a virgin.

Consider lineage. The Messiah is supposed to be derived from the stock of David, right? One must remember that Jewish lineage was still on a patrilineal basis at this time. Only through one's father was one considered a Jew. Joseph (the father) was a gentile. Not Jewish. In the age of patrilineal descent, Jesus was neither Jewish nor a legitimate descendant of David.


Let us also consider that God explicitly forbids human sacrifice. "You shall not sacrifice your children to moloch".

Well, the New Testament claims that Jesus was the son of God. The son of God was apparently sacrificed on a cross in order to pay for the sins of humanity. The notion that God would engage in human sacrifice is preposterous.

 

[homeforsummer]

We created our concept of time, but time itself exists whether we accurately recognise it or not. Seconds aren't massively relevant to the universe, but they underpin all of our mathematics and physics knowledge. Similarly, the Planck Time is part of the structure of the universe but almost pointless in human mathematics (and only really helpful in quantum physics).

Yes, though the thing that already happens - time - isn't a human concept. That's the issue with saying that we created the concept of time.

Gotcha 👍

 

[cullenand]

There is no God, plain and simple. The Bible is a work of fiction, just like The Odyssey. Fundamentalists say evolution is a theory, and I say God is a hypothesis.

How are you going to say that God doesn't exist? Yes I know that I cant prove God exists either. But science can't fully prove God doesn't because there is a lot that science doesn't know. Yes, the Bible is not reliable to prove God, but why cant God and evolution co-exist. God created the universe and everything went on from there.

 

[homeforsummer]

Science can't even fully prove God doesn't because there is a lot that science doesn't know.

As has been covered about a hundred times, science has no obligation to prove that something doesn't exist.

 

[Hun200kmh]

^^^^ Exactly. Might I add that, as a believer in the existence of God I also feel I have no obligation to prove His existence.

 

[cullenand]

As has been covered about a hundred times, science has no obligation to prove that something doesn't exist.

I know that, but some of the posts I read are pretty much saying that because science doesn't acknowledge God as fact means that he isn't real.

 

[Tic Tach]

But science can't fully prove God doesn't because there is a lot that science doesn't know.

And yet, if in the newspaper tomorrow there was an article announcing that science has shown that a god exists (and it just happens to be the Abrahamic god, out of the thousands of gods man has invented), you'd be jumping up & down saying "See, see, we were right after all". But when science has done the opposite, showing that there is absolutely no evidence for any deities, you still cling to your beliefs.

 

[PeterJB]

And yet, if in the newspaper tomorrow there was an article announcing that science has shown that a god exists (and it just happens to be the Abrahamic god, out of the thousands of gods man has invented), you'd be jumping up & down saying "See, see, we were right after all". But when science has done the opposite, showing that there is absolutely no evidence for any deities, you still cling to your beliefs.

If we haven't answered the question of what or who created the universe, then we haven't proven or disproven God's existence.

 

[homeforsummer]

I know that, but some of the posts I read are pretty much saying that because science doesn't acknowledge God as fact means that he isn't real.

It's not that science doesn't acknowledge God as fact, it's that there's nothing to acknowledge.

If there was actually a sliver of evidence for God's existence, but one that didn't really stand up to scientific scrutiny, you could fairly say that science doesn't acknowledge the existence of God. But then at least they'd have tried to scientifically prove that he does. They'd have examined the evidence, and found it to be false.

Without any evidence of God, there is nothing to study scientifically and the onus is no longer on science to prove that he exists. As above, it's no scientist's obligation to prove that something doesn't exist.

If it was, then they'd waste their whole time trying to prove the existence of other human imaginary constructs like unicorns, Santa Claus, the personalities of Jersey Shore characters or Justin Bieber's talent.

However, someone claiming that God does exist and claiming it as fact should be prepared to supply evidence, no differently than anyone else claiming that something exists.

The only difference between God and say, the Loch Ness monster, is that people who believe in the Loch Ness monster have at least tried to find evidence that it exists, rather than believing it does and dismissing the lack of evidence because their faith in its existence should be enough for anyone.

Anyway, as I've stated before in this thread, I'm quite happy to believe that God exists, just not beyond the minds of his believers. Just like Justin Bieber's talent, God exists solely in the mind of his followers.