The Great Faith Debate

[all_shall_perish]

I think it is reasonable and (hopefully) virtuous that people are skeptical about most things. Especially those things concerning ideas and maybe even entities that are out of our physical and intellectual reach (at least as of current). I can't say it better than Emerson does about skepticism so I'll just quote him:

 

“If there is a wish for immortality, and no evidence, why not say just that? If there are conflicting evidences, why not state them? If there is not ground for a candid thinker to make up his mind, yea or nay,- why not suspend the judgment? ...In short, since true fortitude of understanding consists "in not letting what we know be embarrassed by what we do not know," we ought to secure those advantages which we can command, and not risk them by clutching after the airy and unattainable... It stands in [the skeptic's] mind that our life in this world is not of quite so easy interpretation as churches and schoolbooks say. He does not wish to take ground against these benevolences, to play the part of devil's attorney, and blazon every doubt and sneer that darkens the sun for him. But he says, There are doubts.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson (Montaigne; or, the Skeptic)

[SeVeR]

What happened to the world discussion forum???

[CRe]

We merged the World Discussion and Development Forums into the General Forum.

[Sketter]

We merged the World Discussion and Development Forums into the General Forum.

 

Why was that done?

[CRe]

We merged the World Discussion and Development Forums into the General Forum.

 

Why was that done?

 

General Development only became such after merging 2 dev forums, that only arised, because general discussion had issues keeping all the active topics on more than 1 page... sometimes even 2 pages. Well, obviously that issue is long gone, so I re-merged it with general. Feel more than free to continue posting development threads. I just feel condensing the little activity that forum and world discussion we're seeing (frontpages stretching back more than 5 months, and most the front page topics being moved from general) it might just be worth merging discussion down a bit.

 

I do plan to begin banning the retards again. So if someone won't stop running their mouth, or decides to begin playing victim, blah blah blah, they will find themselves no longer a member of this community. Banned, Deleted, and gone.

 

It was something I have been pondering for weeks... if not months. I finally decided to just go ahead with it. SSF's 7th Birthday is coming up, along with SSO's release, Zoner's re-release, and now a new billing site. I'd like to see things maybe pick up again, and turn SSForum back into a useful place to post.

 

Some people may not like this. But this is my reasoning.

[SeVeR]

Wll tbh, i'll most likely stop posting here now. I don't want to have to trawl through general discussion topics for one relating to politics or religion. I also think people will be less inclined to make those sorts of posts now.

[»1587200]

Sad to see this topic die after 2 1/2 years of discussion. If it does die, thank you to everyone who made it worth discussing (active, inactive and banned alike). I started this thread for ppl to have a place to chat and discuss religion, faith, and their personal beliefs about the topics, I never thought it would continue on this far.

 

In an effort to keep this topic alive I'd ask that the staff re-pin it, as there are users in this thread who come mainly to discuss this topic.

[Static Burn]

When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called Religion.

[Arry]

post rescinded, putting out fires I'm responsible for. Sorry. Edited September 26, 2009 by Shrouded Cnight

[rootbear75]

When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called Religion.

 

Posted 14 August 2009 - 04:20 AM

What happened to the world discussion forum???

wow... not even a page ago this was explained....

 

We merged the World Discussion and Development Forums into the General Forum.

 

Why was that done?

 

General Development only became such after merging 2 dev forums, that only arised, because general discussion had issues keeping all the active topics on more than 1 page... sometimes even 2 pages. Well, obviously that issue is long gone, so I re-merged it with general. Feel more than free to continue posting development threads. I just feel condensing the little activity that forum and world discussion we're seeing (frontpages stretching back more than 5 months, and most the front page topics being moved from general) it might just be worth merging discussion down a bit.

 

I do plan to begin banning the retards again. So if someone won't stop running their mouth, or decides to begin playing victim, blah blah blah, they will find themselves no longer a member of this community. Banned, Deleted, and gone.

 

It was something I have been pondering for weeks... if not months. I finally decided to just go ahead with it. SSF's 7th Birthday is coming up, along with SSO's release, Zoner's re-release, and now a new billing site. I'd like to see things maybe pick up again, and turn SSForum back into a useful place to post.

 

Some people may not like this. But this is my reasoning.

Edited September 25, 2009 by rootbear75

[»Lynx]

When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called Religion.

 

Posted 14 August 2009 - 04:20 AM

What happened to the world discussion forum???

wow... not even a page ago this was explained....

 

We merged the World Discussion and Development Forums into the General Forum.

 

Why was that done?

 

General Development only became such after merging 2 dev forums, that only arised, because general discussion had issues keeping all the active topics on more than 1 page... sometimes even 2 pages. Well, obviously that issue is long gone, so I re-merged it with general. Feel more than free to continue posting development threads. I just feel condensing the little activity that forum and world discussion we're seeing (frontpages stretching back more than 5 months, and most the front page topics being moved from general) it might just be worth merging discussion down a bit.

 

I do plan to begin banning the retards again. So if someone won't stop running their mouth, or decides to begin playing victim, blah blah blah, they will find themselves no longer a member of this community. Banned, Deleted, and gone.

 

It was something I have been pondering for weeks... if not months. I finally decided to just go ahead with it. SSF's 7th Birthday is coming up, along with SSO's release, Zoner's re-release, and now a new billing site. I'd like to see things maybe pick up again, and turn SSForum back into a useful place to post.

 

Some people may not like this. But this is my reasoning.

 

Perhaps not everybody reads all the posts in a near 20 page thread root, or perhaps you just enjoy being a condescending bastard to people who don't really call for it.

 

-L

[rootbear75]

Perhaps not everybody reads all the posts in a near 20 page thread root, or perhaps you just enjoy being a condescending bastard to people who don't really call for it.

 

-L

The fact that that post was on the same page is why i did it. If people dont even bother to read a few posts back, thats not my fault. He did call for it since it was only 4 posts behind his, on the same page.

[»Xog]

The only reason God ever came into fruition is because people needed an explaination for something that they couldn't understand.

 

For instance, the Sun, the Moon, the Grass, the Rain, the Water, the Wind, and Fire. Nobody knew how these things worked at the time and considered them to be controlled by a God. Each one had their own creator, until it was all debunked. Just watch, when scientists finally prove God doesn't exist you'll all be sitting down and wondering why you hadn't thought of that before. Although your time worshipping your religion isn't time wasted, I'm sure you've had fun and had life changing experiences, but the belief that a mystical entity created everything is just as ludicrous as Apollo (God of the Sun) flying over the sky every day to give us warmth and light.

 

Brb, getting my fire-retardant uniform.

Edited December 30, 2009 by Xog

[SeVeR]

You can't prove God doesn't exist.

[Simulacrum]

Not scientifically, at least. But you can make philosophical arguments that point to contradictions in a particular conception of God. If these arguments hold, then God is proven to not exist.

[SeVeR]

Conceptions will and always have changed to meet the needs of religious veracity. It's the God of the Gaps. The new conceptions can simply say that the old conceptions were wrong, and therefore you didn't prove anything.

[Simulacrum]

OK, but if you disprove a conception of God like "there is an omnipotent, omnibenevolent being," you're invalidating a pretty fundamental tenet of the Abrahamic religions.

[SeVeR]

Good luck disproving that, and good luck convincing anyone you've disproved it without descending into semantics.

[Simulacrum]

http://www.uncountedthemovie.com/images/goalposts.jpg

[Anonymous]

Religion is simply how people who cannot wrap their minds around life being within their own hands explain things that we have no answer for.

I see it almost like this,

Picture this; a boy is walking with his father circa 400 B.C.E. and notices the sun is moving slowly through the sky (or something similar) he is constantly bothering his father about this "phenomenon" so finally his father, after all day of listening to his son tirelessly bother him on this, turns and says "oh, its the god of the sun, he moves it across the sky so we know what time it is and its actually somebody up there pushing it" just to get his son to be quiet and reward him some silence. However, this particular boy is very curious and asks for more of an explanation of every little thing; Rain, Sleep, War, Dreams etc. His father satisfies each with its own created "super natural" ability or power to satisfy the questions.

 

Now, we know why the sun moves across the sky, we have explanations for these little things that we all take for granted because it is now common knowledge to all of us.

The Earth is moving, the Earth is round, the Earth revolves around the sun with other planets.

It rains due to precipitation in the clouds becoming to heavy to hold its own form and falling back to Earth.

We sleep because the body needs a period to heal and rehabilitate itself.

We fight in wars because humans believe they are on the side of right.

We dream because our brains think while we are asleep and show us whatever our minds are wondering to.

 

However, we have no explanation for death. All we know is what we observe. The body dies, life ceases to exist. Whether or not the mind and spirit (soul or dogma; I'm trying not to offend anyone) lives on after is difficult to say that is true since noone who has died has ever come back to tell us.

 

Religion helps alleviate the worries for the minds who question what death is a fear that it really is the end of their lives.

 

I, personally, conclude that anyone can say anything they want about what happens when we die since noone can prove that person correct or incorrect. So those people will continue to believe whatever they want and whatever anyone else says is a lie or a direct attack against said person or persons belief.

 

Therefore, religion exists for some, and is silly to others.

 

tldr - To explain something we do not know the truth about simply because anyone can state something they believe is true and since there is no counter argument, it remains true until there is a counter.

Edited January 25, 2010 by Anonymous

[BDwinsAlt]

There will be a day when everyone will know who the real God is. Just think to yourself if you are willing to risk rejecting the idea your whole life. That's just my thinking. Not to stereotype either group, but athiest are generally arrogant, and Christians are sometimes counter-productive with how they tell people about God, which may be the cause for some of the arrogance. I am personally a Christian, but I don't try to force people to convert. If they ask me I tell them my perspective on God, and I openly listen to their views. If the rest of the world did this, there may be some kind of common-ground and fewer court cases

 

Edit: Well Christians argue that something had to spin everything into place to do what it does today. Like a huge formula that God has in work that the Sun and the Earth are doing exactly what they have to do. Life is extremely hard to create/sustain and requires so many variables and constants. The idea of all that being a coincidence and lasting this long is crazy to some people. Most of the world believes in some kind of religion.

Edited January 25, 2010 by BDwinsAlt

[Simulacrum]

Religion is simply how people who cannot wrap their minds around life being within their own hands explain things that we have no answer for.

Well, you've lost me already. Do religious people have answers — that is, explanations — or not? If I have a theological explanation for something rather than a scientific one, am I not wrapping my mind around it?

 

Your claim is also far too narrow, as it does not apply to the parts of religion that do not involve explaining phenomena (which I would say is most of it).

[Anonymous]

Religion is simply how people who cannot wrap their minds around life being within their own hands explain things that we have no answer for.

Well, you've lost me already. Do religious people have answers — that is, explanations — or not? If I have a theological explanation for something rather than a scientific one, am I not wrapping my mind around it?

 

Your claim is also far too narrow, as it does not apply to the parts of religion that do not involve explaining phenomena (which I would say is most of it).

Mis-read.

-Anon

Edited January 28, 2010 by Anonymous

[Simulacrum]

Your post is incomprehensible, but I will at least point out that I merely said that your claim is too narrow*, which is a vastly different thing from narrow-minded.

 

* Though I really meant to say too broad.

Edited January 26, 2010 by Simulacrum

[SeVeR]

What's your opinion Simulacrum?