<p>Mullberry, MD–Trust me, I attempted to refute my brother, IQ 164 (Stanford-Binet) addressing apparent contradictions. He referred me to an attorney who wrote a book attempting to destroy simplistic Christian faith. It is called “More than a Carpenter” by Josh McDowell. That book nailed me on every front. Unbeknownst to me, I was an arrogant budding anarchist, having nothing to do with living responsibly. Yet, I thought I was a good guy, that all religions led to the same God. Man I was so egotistical, not a hint of humility toward Jesus. I actually hated Christians, tho’t they were simpleton whimps. Thank God He changed my heart when I saw a DVD called "Jesus of Nazareth"by Franco Zeffereli. That Jesus broke my heart.</p>
<p>@mulberrypie: That actually makes sense (albeit in a strange way) once you think about it. When you die, the world does sorta end for you.</p>
<p>Anyways, bad people go to hell, good people to heaven, and iffy people to purgatory. It’s that simple. Well… at least that’s what I got out of years of catechism.
However, I do think it would be more fitting for people to wind up in whatever situation they believed (while they were still alive) would hapen at death.</p>
<p>Energy cannot be created nor destroyed. Take that however you’d like.</p>
<p>chocobok: I was trying to make a smart comment, but if you say so, it was actually very profound ;)</p>
<p>dplane: I don’t understand your response. So you’re admitting that the Bible has many contradictions within itself?</p>
<p>an interesting article here [God's</a> Genocide | open source theology](<a href=“http://www.opensourcetheology.net/node/477]God’s”>http://www.opensourcetheology.net/node/477)</p>
<p>the very concept of God’s advocation of genocide is a contradiction. Does that disprove God? No. But I do think it says that he may not be that all-powerful all-loving can do no wrong can make no mistakes person that so many people seem to think he is.</p>
<p>//Yet, I thought I was a good guy, that all religions led to the same God.//</p>
<p>So you were prior, a theist/deist?</p>
<p>All my sexual fantasies will come true! <em>growls</em></p>
<p>And that’s a lot of them to last me another couple of lifetimes! All of the fantasies i’ve thought about since 6th grade and still thinking… Hmmmm… That would be great!</p>
<p>^ ROFL, very nice. I might adopt your point of view…</p>
<p>Disclaimer: 12 years of catholic school has compelled me to put forth some clarifications. Much of what I’m about to write is not actually what I believe but this is a Christian point of view</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>The Bible isn’t written account of what actually happened, and many of the stories in it are not supposed to be accepted as fact. They were written to teach the Isrealites lessons about their Jewish faith. Many of the Biblical stories were composed during difficult times for the Israelites as a way to have them remain faithful to God. One of these times was the enslavement in Eygpt in which many Israelites were turning to other deities, so, naturally, many stories were created that involved hardships and God’s rewards for those hardships. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>According to my Catholic teachings, God wants us to freely choose to follow his teachings. God wants to be freely loved instead of forcing man to love him. Genocide and other terrible occurrences happen within the realm of free-will. </p>
<p>Personally, I believe there is a God that created the universe and that’s about all I believe. I don’t believe any of the dogma that the Catholic Church teaches. I personally don’t believe that God plays am active role in our lives. I think of God as more of an observer. Also, I believe that everyone is pretty much worshiping the same God but in different forms. I believe there was a very wise man named Jesus who taught very important teachings on morals.</p>
<p>Note: Don’t try to push your beliefs on to others. I’ve seen both theists and atheists do this, so it’s mutually inclusive. Few people are more annoying than the condescending atheist and overzealous theist.</p>
<p>Now to answer the OP’s question, when I die, I hope that the Christian view of Heaven occurs because it is decribed as an unimaginable happiness in which all human desires vanish. I’d be content with a good food and good friends.</p>
<p>LMAO!! 
You’re hilarious.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I was talking about God ordering the act of genocide to be carried out.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>On a side note, God cannot be all-knowing and humans cannot have free will at the same time. If God is omniscient, he knows what is going to happen. Therefore, humans have no free will. On the other hand if humans have free will, God cannot know what is going to happen, so he is not all-knowing. Just something to think about.</p>
<p>Back on topic, when you die, it’s just like before you were born. You don’t exist.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>If humans have free will, clearly there is no pre-ordained future. Thus knowing the future is logically impossible. I think reasonable people can agree that God can’t do anything logically impossible. This wouldn’t exclude the possibility of God being able to do anything that is logically possible.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Lol, God is supposedly all-powerful.</p>
<p>And since when did logic start applying to religion anyway?</p>
<p>God doesn’t exist. Deal with it. No such thing as the omnipotent being. Such BS lol. If it did exist, humans would have been wiped out for all the horrible things it has done to Earth.</p>
<p>As much as I enjoyed Life of Pi, I have to admit that the theory I currently subscribe to is something along the lines of the “clockmaker” model.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=prospectiveMD]
Just because we can’t imagine not existing doesn’t mean that isn’t what happens.
[/quote]
Just because we can’t imagine a God doesn’t mean that he/she/it isn’t there. This happens to be the main principle behind my belief; if there is a supreme being, it follows that there would be some things concerning this being that we would not be able to understand (hence the supreme in supreme being).</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=lockn]
p=.0000001 there is a god apparently
[/quote]
The probability that there was just a random ball of matter that exploded and eventually caused the human race to evolve as we know it also seems pretty small in my opinion. In fact, I would go so far as to say the probability of everything happening as Scientology describes is less than the probability of the universe as we know it being a smaller part/model of a larger “world.”</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=BeKindRewind]
the very concept of God’s advocation of genocide is a contradiction. Does that disprove God? No. But I do think it says that he may not be that all-powerful all-loving can do no wrong can make no mistakes person that so many people seem to think he is.
[/quote]
In my opinion, if a God created you, he can take you away. He just doesn’t want one human to claim another human’s life because it’s not their life to take away.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=generallyrong]
This topic rests on the assumption that I die. I do not die.
[/quote]
Haha if we had a rep system I would + rep you for that.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I agree with your first sentence, but I’m not quite sure what this statement had to do with my post. </p>
<p>I am asserting that God saying “Thou shalt not kill” in the 10 commandments and him ordering his people to go out and completely slay all men, women, and children in enemy groups throughout the Old Testament is an enormous contradiction. </p>
<p>It’s even said throughout the Bible that God is a jealous being. He is clearly not perfect, but clearly is superior to us. I don’t think he can just snap and immediately be here on earth, because otherwise why would the Bible claim that he left angels here on earth to oversee and protect? </p>
<p>The Bible was written by people way back in the past. How would they know how to describe a superior race of beings and their technology? </p>
<p>Was it really a flying fiery chariot? Or was it a spacecraft of some sort?</p>
<p>“What’s the rush? We’ll all find out eventually.”</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=BeKindRewind]
I agree with your first sentence, but I’m not quite sure what this statement had to do with my post.</p>
<p>I am asserting that God saying “Thou shalt not kill” in the 10 commandments and him ordering his people to go out and completely slay all men, women, and children in enemy groups throughout the Old Testament is an enormous contradiction.</p>
<p>It’s even said throughout the Bible that God is a jealous being. He is clearly not perfect, but clearly is superior to us. I don’t think he can just snap and immediately be here on earth, because otherwise why would the Bible claim that he left angels here on earth to oversee and protect?</p>
<p>The Bible was written by people way back in the past. How would they know how to describe a superior race of beings and their technology?</p>
<p>Was it really a flying fiery chariot? Or was it a spacecraft of some sort?
[/quote]
My second sentence contrasted God’s right to take away a human life with man’s lack of such a right. Correct me if I am wrong, but you originally stated that God is not perfect because he committed “genocide.” My point refutes this because I am saying that God has a right to commit “genocide.”</p>
<p>I also have a problem with your last two paragraphs. You say that when the Bible was written people could not imagine what a supreme being was like. Do you think that we have sufficient knowledge to imagine such a being today?</p>
<p>
I just took the probability from the post I was responding to. Why are you arguing against the Big Bang? I never mentioned it.</p>