What religion are you? And what does it mean?

[Calvin19 0]

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you guys have NO IDEA how happy i am to see that athiest is the winning category

Apparently, math isn't one atheist's strong suit.

How does 36% equal a majority?

Homeslice, Im not even athiest. Im not Agnostic, im not even sure i know what Agnostic means exactly, but i dont believe there is nothing, but i dont believe there is something. I dont know, and i dont care much.

Im what me and my Boys call 'a hopefull',

I once was flying a Twin Commanche through the grand land of ALASKA for 40 days with my freind Coe, and as we were punching through clouds leaving toward the south, carving though canyons, setting up the 'ground effect autopilot' on the shore, i looked over and said to coe-

'I dont know man, but if there is a god, he is trying really hard to convince us'

[windcatcher 0]

Thanks to those who answered my questions.

Mother to the cutest little thing in the world...

[br0k3n 0]

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Here is a good example where Jesus is teaching. The common thought of his day was if something bad happened to you it was because you were bad. he corrected that fallacy. What makes this all the sadder is the book of Job was one of the first Jewish books written and it teaches the same. I guess a few thousand years wasn't enough to "get it." I guess a few years after JC, people still don't "get it.'

Interesting that you raise the story of Job,

Job is perhaps one of the best examples of the biblical god’s evil. Here, he has a faithful servant, who had not sinned, feared God (who wouldn’t?), and avoided evil. Job had a number of sons and daughters, thousands of sheep, camels, oxen, asses, and also had a large home. He even went so far as to offer sacrifices to God after feasts, just in case one of his sons had ever sinned (Job 1: 1-5). It seems unlikely to me that you would find a man in the Old Testament who loved God more than Job. So what was his reward? Did God multiply Job’s household and give him everything a man of great faith would require? Did God make his seed the rulers of great kingdoms? No. Quite the opposite, in fact.

There came a time when Satan and the “…sons of God…” came to before the Lord. God asks Satan where he has been (wait…isn’t God omniscient?), and Satan says he has been walking around the earth. God asks Satan if he has “…considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man…” Satan says that he has met Job, and that he only loves God because he has so many great things and has been blessed so much. The Devil tells God that if God were to “…put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath…” that Job would curse God to his face (wait again…I thought no man has seen God face to face? John 1: 18, Exodus 33: 10, 1 John 4: 12). Basically, if God messes with Job’s stuff, Satan says, Job would hate God. The Lord already knows the answer (remember that whole omniscience thing), but for some reason decides he needs to basically destroy Job’s life through suffering, pain, ruin, and destruction in order to show Satan he is wrong. This would be a good time to go back to the start of the article and re-read what the definition of evil is. God knows Job would repent and come back to God after cursing him, but it’s not enough to know this. Instead, he has to prove Satan wrong, no matter what the cost. Sounds like pride to me when you can’t just be satisfied knowing you’re wrong, but have to be able to say, “Told you so!” Wasn’t pride the reason Satan became a fallen angel and was cast into Hell?

Quick question here in case you have confusion as to who’s at fault here. Who’s responsible for a murder? A robot, or the scientist who created the robot and programmed it to kill? Remember, God made Satan and saw all the things he would do.

In the first chapter of Job, God lets Satan go and mess up Job’s life a little bit, with the stipulation that he does not harm Job physically. First, every one of Job’s servants that watch his oxen, save for one, is slain. Secondly, great fire burns up all his thousands of sheep and the servants that watch them as well, save one. Next, his camels and servants that watch the camels are all slain, save for one. Ouch. Oh wait, to top it off a building collapses, killing all of his sons. This all happens on the first day that Satan is messing with Job, per God’s orders, remember. What does Job do? He shaves his head, and falls down and praises the Lord. (Job 1: 14-22)

So the next time that Satan and the “…sons of God…” come to see the Lord, God again asks Satan where he has been (anyone else beginning to be confused about God’s omniscience?), and Satan says he has been traveling the world. God asks Satan about Job again, and Satan says (paraphrasing Job 2: 4-5), “Yeah, yeah. So you took what he had. A man will give everything he has for his life. If you torture him physically though, he’ll curse you.” God, again knowing what will happen, still tells Satan to go out and do what he will with Job, short of killing him. So Satan goes and infects Job with horrendous boils from the top of his head to the sole of his feet. At this point, even Job’s wife realizes how horrible God is being to Job, and says, “…curse God, and die.” (Job 2: 9). It’s understandable that she would be a little upset with Job, as his worship of this God has caused the death of her children.

Job suffers for a long time, and his friends come to his house and the rest of the story is about Job suffering, and debating with his friends about God and his purposes. In the end, Job never curses God, and God gives the things back to Job twofold.

So what is the moral of the story? That if you are faithful, God will double what you have. Oh, and if you’re faithful, God will destroy one of your homes, kill your children, kill your animals, kill your servants, and strike you with sores and boils from head to toe, so he can tell Satan, “Told you so!

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--+ There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't.. --+

[shropshire 0]

Hi Ya,

What's the purpose of life?
Past just existing & reproducing, I'm sure that I dont know - but I dont want kids, so the best that I can do - to be there for my friends and family first and anyone else afterwards. To be what I consider to be a good person.

What's the purpose of living? ( Staying alive?)
To keep on living and enjoy what I havee worked hard for.

Where do you turn to when everything in your life gets turned upside down?
Not where, but who - my friends and family (these are the most important people that I know). We learn from others' experiences and attempt to repair any damage done through those experiences.

What hope do you have for things to change?
I dont sit back and rest on an In-Active concept like hope, I actively go out to try to make my life and that of those around me better... no sitting around dreaming.

What keeps you going everyday?
Life.... It's pretty good (for me) and as it's the only one that I'm likely to get, I'm making the most of it.

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[steveorino 7]

The moral of Job:

Job asked him the basic question, "Why? Why, me?"

What was God's response?

steveOrino

[pajarito 0]

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Perhaps you should further study other religions. All the religions of the world have FAR more in common than ways in which they differ.

The notion that Christianity may have things in common with other major religions or even that their similarities might outweigh the differences is of no consequence. Which is the only one that offers payment for your lawlessness where the ultimate destination is hell? That is the most important thing to consider.

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Christianity doesn't do anything for the Christian that Buddhism doesn't do for the Buddhist, or that Islam doesn't do for the Muslim, or Judaism doesn't do for the Jew (to name but a few).

The “feelings of goodness”, “peace of mind”, “good deeds performed”, “fellowship with others who think the way you do”, or whatever else one gets out of “religion” will matter not when it comes time for judgment. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: Hebrews 9:27.” Which one, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, to name only a few, offers a path to salvation from the wrath to come?

[beowulf 1]

I still don't understand how you could possibly think your religion is any better then any other. They all have the same amount of evidence to support them. Basically none. This 'salvation' you speak of sounds more like an imagined benefit then anything real.

[jcd11235 0]

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Perhaps you should further study other religions. All the religions of the world have FAR more in common than ways in which they differ.

The notion that Christianity may have things in common with other major religions or even that their similarities might outweigh the differences is of no consequence. Which is the only one that offers payment for your lawlessness where the ultimate destination is hell? That is the most important thing to consider.

If you use distinctly Christian terms, the answer is Christianity, since you have defined the question as such. That doesn't make the religion different, only the terminology.

It's a lot like me asking you if your computer has Firewire. If you are not using a Mac, the answer is no. However, your PC may have IEEE1394, which is essentially the same thing.

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Christianity doesn't do anything for the Christian that Buddhism doesn't do for the Buddhist, or that Islam doesn't do for the Muslim, or Judaism doesn't do for the Jew (to name but a few).

The “feelings of goodness”, “peace of mind”, “good deeds performed”, “fellowship with others who think the way you do”, or whatever else one gets out of “religion” will matter not when it comes time for judgment. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: Hebrews 9:27.” Which one, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, to name only a few, offers a path to salvation from the wrath to come?

Many religions do not believe such a wrath is inevitable. However, I think if you look into Buddhism's (To offer but one example) Four Noble Truths and the Eight fold path, you will find they have a path to salvation/Nirvana.

Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials!

[AnnasSkies 0]

Through birth I'm jewish, but I'm not religious at all. I believe in love and evolution...

fear is the mindkill

[BillPaine 0]

Recommended reading for all participants of this thread:
"The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins
"The End of Faith" by Sam Harris.

And here are a few quotes for your perusal:

"Men are not the dreams of gods. Rather, gods are the dreams of men." (Carl Sagan)

"Gods are fragile things. They may be killed by a whiff of science or a dose of common sense." (Chapman Cohen)

"I am against religion because it teaches us to be satisfied with not understanding the world." (Richard Dawkins)

"Blind faith requires no vision." (Flacco)

"Where knowledge ends, religion begins." (Benjamin Disraeli)

"A man's ethical behaviour should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." (Albert Einstein)

"We have met the enemy...and he is us." Pogo

www.mondo-fiasco.com

[gjhdiver 0]

Watching people argue about religions is like watching two retarded 4 years olds arguing about who has the best imaginary friend.

[SpeedRacer 1]

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Watching people argue about religions is like watching two retarded 4 years olds arguing about who has the best imaginary friend.

Your short bus is waiting.

Speed Racer
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[Calvin19 0]

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Watching people argue about religions is like watching two retarded 4 years olds arguing about who has the best imaginary friend.

[Royd 0]

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Recommended reading for all participants of this thread:
"The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins
"The End of Faith" by Sam Harris.

And here are a few quotes for your perusal:

"Men are not the dreams of gods. Rather, gods are the dreams of men." (Carl Sagan)

"Gods are fragile things. They may be killed by a whiff of science or a dose of common sense." (Chapman Cohen)

"I am against religion because it teaches us to be satisfied with not understanding the world." (Richard Dawkins)

"Blind faith requires no vision." (Flacco)

"Where knowledge ends, religion begins." (Benjamin Disraeli)

"A man's ethical behaviour should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." (Albert Einstein)

Are you hairyjuan in disguise?

[windcatcher 0]

Hi Paj!

Where you been?

Mother to the cutest little thing in the world...

[br0k3n 0]

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The moral of Job:

Job asked him the basic question, "Why? Why, me?"

What was God's response?

The book of Job is widely celebrated as one of the great works dealing with the monotheistic problem of suffering: Why is there evil and suffering in a world created by a benevolent, omniscient, and omnipotent god? What tends to be glossed over by those praising the book is that God never gives a decent reason for the sufferings of the virtuous and upright Job. Instead, he blasts Job by saying, in effect, “Who are you, little man, to demand answers of me?” One reason this dodge is overlooked is the beauty and majesty of the verses when God answers Job out of the whirlwind. For example, consider Job 38:4-7:

Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched a line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

This poem goes on for four chapters, with God’s paean to his own greatness only interrupted once by Job, who says he is of little account (Job 40:3-5), and capped by Job marveling at God’s greatness at the end (Job 42:1-6). It is a truly beautiful piece, but it fails to answer the Epicurean objection. Ecclesiastes shares with Job some of the most beautiful poetry ever written, but its message is one of utter cynical hopelessness. Our lives are vain and pointless precisely because God is omnipotent. The author recognized that if God knows and controls everything, there can be no chance. Everything is preordained. If this is true, then we really can have no free will. Since God has already made all the choices for us, there can be none for us to make. Not only that, there is no justice in the world. Neither virtue nor merit is necessarily rewarded. For all his omnipotence, God doesn’t seem to care much what happens to people.

What did you get out of it Steveorino?????

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--+ There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't.. --+

[steveorino 7]

Similar to you ...

God is God and we are not. His ways are not understandable by us. God never did answer Job's question of "why." However I did not gain that life is futile. I gained God's reasonings are often beyond our understanding. Who am I to understand Him?

Life hasproven to me the teaching points of Job. God's ways are not always discernable, religous people love to assign blame, God will restore us when we remain faithful.

BTW, speaking of free will that you say we don't have. Was Job able to freely curse God or trust God when life didn't make sense?

steveOrino

[kallend 1,651]

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Obviously, there's no scientific explanation for the reason that your life was spared that day.

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who married a Baptist minister. One day in 1999 they were driving on I94 with their six children when a part fell off an 18 wheeler and punctured the gas tank on their van. The van caught fire and incinerated six of their children (Benjamin Willis, 13; Joseph Willis, 11; Samuel Willis, 9; Hank Willis, 6; Elizabeth Willis, 3, and Peter Willis, 6 weeks) right in front of the parents' eyes.

You want to call that evidence of the existence of a loving caring God?

I remember it very well. It made the national news.

I'm sure the parents had a lot of questions, but as I recall, they accepted it as God's will.

When your number is up, living in a rubber room isn't going to keep you safe, and the Bible says that your days are numbered.

So, if everyone lived a do nothing life, and died in their sleep at the age of 85 plus yrs. would that be evidence? You'd probably find fault with that.

"God's will" - typical cop-out when the facts contradict the idea of a loving caring god.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[steveorino 7]

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"God's will" - typical cop-out when the facts contradict the idea of a loving caring god.

See, i don't buy this. The natural laws that God created like gravity and two things can't occupy the same place at the same time dictates accidents wil happen. My personal experience says God seldom intervenes into HIs natural laws. To say all things are God's will is not correct theologically.

steveOrino

[jcd11235 0]

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"God's will" - typical cop-out when the facts contradict the idea of a loving caring god.

See, i don't buy this. The natural laws that God created like gravity and two things can't occupy the same place at the same time dictates accidents wil happen. My personal experience says God seldom intervenes into HIs natural laws. To say all things are God's will is not correct theologically.

If God intervenes, then we can logically assume he is not all powerful, otherwise he would have gotten the natural laws correct to start with, and there would have been no need to intervene.

Likewise, if all things are not God's will, then God is logically not all knowing and all powerful.

Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials!

[steveorino 7]

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If God intervenes, then we can logically assume he is not all powerful, otherwise he would have gotten the natural laws correct to start with, and there would have been no need to intervene.

See previous posts on "strawman"

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Likewise, if all things are not God's will, then God is logically not all knowing and all powerful.

If an omnipotent diety wants to give free will to his creation -- he can't?? Explain why, please.

steveOrino

[jcd11235 0]

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If God intervenes, then we can logically assume he is not all powerful, otherwise he would have gotten the natural laws correct to start with, and there would have been no need to intervene.

See previous posts on "strawman"

How is my comment a strawman?

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Likewise, if all things are not God's will, then God is logically not all knowing and all powerful.

If an omnipotent diety wants to give free will to his creation -- he can't?? Explain why, please.

If god is eternal and all knowing, he knows our futures. If he knows our futures, then our free will is but an illusion, as we have a destiny to fulfill. If we have free will, then the information of our future does not exist because we have not yet made the relevant choices. If the information does not exist, God cannot know our futures, implying God is not actually all knowing.

Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials!

[billvon 2,435]

>Likewise, if all things are not God's will, then God is logically not all
>knowing and all powerful.

If God is omnipotent, could he create a stick so strong that he couldn't break it?

[steveorino 7]

It is a strawman because your creating your own idea of divine attributes.

It would not stand in ANY theology class I know of from the most conservative fundamentalist to the extreme liberal higher criticism.

Again knowing what we choose is not the same as choosing for us. Ask any parent.

steveOrino

[jcd11235 0]

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If God is omnipotent, could he create a stick so strong that he couldn't break it?

If all the males in a particular town either always shave their own faces or are always shaved by the resident male barber, but never both, who shaves the barber?

Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials!