@yadda
There is a difference between believing something and not believing something. I do not believe what people have told me, I do not believe god exists, it's a lack of belief. Believing something is a positive affirmation, not believing is a negative. If someone told you that there were fairies in your garden would you believe they didn't exist or just choose not believe what the person said? I can't know that a god of some sort does not exist but I do not believe what people have told me about their gods. I hope you can see the difference.

Yadda wrote on Feb 8^th, 2018 at 10:13pm:

Curious, but good!(???)

Setanta wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 1:07pm:


Setanta,
I have come to the very same conclusion! [wink]
And, i believe some things.
And other things, i do not believe.


A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.      
- David Hume


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Setanta wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 1:07pm:


If what some people tell me, is contrary to the evidence that i can see 'in the world', then i often choose not to believe what people have told me.


A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.      
- David Hume


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Setanta wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 1:07pm:


A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.      
- David Hume


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Setanta wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 1:07pm:


If i was you, clearly, i would choose not believe what the person said.  [wink]


A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.      
- David Hume


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Setanta wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 1:07pm:


Setanta,
No one really knows or is certain, about what our real circumstances are.
We come into this world as naive and uninformed beings, as small uninformed children.
And as we grow in knowledge and [our own] experience, we each come to some sense of an 'informed' but limited understanding, of the nature of the reality that we find ourselves in.

We 'do' science [in our 'consciousness'], as we learn about the world, and the 'heavens' around us.

We simply build supposition, upon supposition, as we undertake our pilgrimage in this world.

But what is the true nature of this reality, which we seem to be experiencing ?

Does any human being lay claim to know ?

I certainly do not know.

But i certainly do not dismiss the knowledge, or the experience, of new things which challenge my current beliefs and understanding.



You said.....
"I do not believe what people have told me about their gods."

There is nothing at all wrong with embracing a healthy degree of scepticism, when 'interfacing' with men/mankind, imo.


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"O ye who believe!        Ask not questions        about things which, if made plain to you, may cause you trouble.....
Some people before you did ask such questions, and on that account lost their faith."
Koran 5.101, 102


"We sent not a messenger, but to be obeyed..........they ['believers'] can have no (real) Faith, until they make thee judge in all disputes between them, and find in their souls no resistance against Thy decisions, but accept them with the fullest conviction."
Koran 4.64, 65


"O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the messenger [i.e. the clerics], and make not vain your deeds!"
Koran 47:33



Setanta,

I'm a person who is always asking questions.

And yet, i have come to a 'place' where i can easily say,      that i believe in, and i fear, and i love, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

And everyday i still seek [for] him.

Everyday, i walk in this world, imperfectly seeking the God that i love.


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Setanta,

Q.
If there is a God [wink], why does God 'hide himself' from mankind ?

Q.
If a person wanted to search for [in order to 'find' and to know God],
what 'prerequisite' would that person firstly need to be in possession of, in order to have an improved chance of 'finding' him ?


Isaiah 45:15
Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.


Amos 3:3
Can two walk together, except they be agreed?


Leviticus 11:44
For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy:....


Leviticus 19:2
Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.


Leviticus 20:26
And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.


Deuteronomy 8:2
And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.


James 4:8
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you....


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Yadda said....
http://www.ozpolitic.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1435998745/0#0
Quote:

Setanta wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 5:18pm:


I suspect there are physical properties in the brain which cause different people to be either more or less receptive to mysticism of one kind or another. Maybe one area of the brain is more or less active.

I consider myself a hardwired atheist and have no memories of ever believing in Santa or the other ones.

My first memory of religion was in 1st class, we all had our eyes closed for a prayer and I had a peak around and saw the earnest look on the other kids faces and thought....suckers...

"Nobody ever taxed their way to prosperity" - Ibn Khaldun

"One can only consume up to the value of their own production" - Jean Baptiste Say

One who likes grape without the G
Take away the R and that is he

Gordy ~ 2018

Setanta wrote on Feb 14^th, 2018 at 9:13pm:


You'd be an open face kinda guy?

Gordon wrote on Feb 9^th, 2018 at 5:28pm:


so who was jesus christ.
and should you believe in him.

in the way most christians believe in him, not at all.

but lets not be so quick.

even as a mythological figure, he is very very relevant.

his story ( at least as far as the crucifixion goes) is that the ideal man , the innocent man, is subjected to the most horrible pain and suffering and he is confronted with pure malevolence and evil and he is betrayed by everyone .

now thats just a representation of what Jung called an "archetype".

and its ahero myth.

because despite being subjected to the most extreme forms of pain suffering and injustice, jesus still keeps picking up his cross and carrying it forward nobly and not complaining and" thinking of others" (as in his concern for the robber supposedly being crucifed next to him).

what does this hero myth mean.

it means that you should try to act heroiclally and do the same.
this isnt "the good news", this isnt a religion for "the happy clappies".

this is a religion for supermen. for men who can remain unflappable despite pain and fear and injustice

and its no wonder people either corrupt it into either a fairytale about milk and honey or , if they start to understand its implications they completely turn away from it.

people who understand what christianity actually means turn away from it like an animal turns away from the fire . and no bloody wonder.
but that doesnt mean it isnt a recipe for transcending suffering.

and if you dont understand that life is suffering, you are either naive or you are just going to have to wait a bit longer to find this out