mega thread Everypony's Religion And Why?

[Dany Heatley 160]

The question was, how would you react? The question isn't weather you believe or not, its how you would react if it did happen.

 

 

 

 

When I said crap, I meant how you applied everyone who believes in god gets a message from him.

 

For the most part, you seem to hate how you can go to hell for not believing in the right religion. LRP has been telling me the opposite of what you keep telling people.

 

When I said biased, heres what I meant. Throughout this entire thread, the only atheist I get rifled up at is you. For one thing, you seem to act as if Christians is religion in general.

 

Another thing, religions like Christians? Wouldn't that still be Christians?

 

Now I can get some of your stuff, but really, it seems more like you want to listen to stereotypes.

 

 

 

Heres another thing. I hate how some Atheists say that we are the bad guys. But they are always the ones on the internet I see start the flame wars...I don't believe all atheist are like that, but both atheist and theist have their bad people and I'm tired of people not seeing that.

 

What I was saying was it won't happen.

 

How would you react if you just "died"... well you can't really react so this is not fair.

 

But If that did happen (which, again, I am certain it won't), I would see my whole life, even reality, as a lie. Everything I thought was false (Alien visiters, sasquatch, ogopogo) I would have belief in that they existed.

 

I have nothing against any other religions; this is just what I believe

[HomuraBL 851]

What I was saying was it won't happen.

 

How would you react if you just "died"... well you can't really react so this is not fair.

 

But If that did happen (which, again, I am certain it won't), I would see my whole life, even reality, as a lie. Everything I thought was false (Alien visiters, sasquatch, ogopogo) I would have belief in that they existed.

 

I have nothing against any other religions; this is just what I believe

 

The question is if you died and IF you met God how would you react. This has nothing to do with the death part.

[Dany Heatley 160]

The question is if you died and IF you met God how would you react. This has nothing to do with the death part.

 

 

 

But If that did happen I did meet god (which, again, I am certain it won't), I would see my whole life, even reality, as a lie. Everything I thought was false (Alien visiters, sasquatch, ogopogo) I would have belief in that they existed.

 

 

 

[Whiteshade 1,426]

The question is if you died and IF you met God how would you react. This has nothing to do with the death part.

 

I would laugh

 

[Envy 6,156]

Christian denominations vary greatly but to say all Christian denominations believe someone "goes to hell for believing in a 'wrong' religion" is completely absurd and is in fact contradictory to a majority of official Christian teachings.

 

This isn't about what certain denominations of Christianity say, this is about what the Bible says.

 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

 

Even if you don't interpret that as Hell, I think it's pretty cruel of this God. Judaism and Islam do not accept Jesus Christ as the son of God, so they are 'condemned'.

 

When I said crap, I meant how you applied everyone who believes in god gets a message from him.

I'm not going back to read my post right now, but I didn't mean that at all. I'm saying that there are people from all religions who feel that their deity has spoken to them, and many of them do believe it on that alone. That was my point, not that everybody believes it for that reason. Although I do see quite a lot of Christians claiming that Jesus has spoken to them and some saying that we're idiots if we don't believe in Christianity.

 

I am NEVER referring to every single person from anything. I don't even see how my words are being misconstrued in that way.

 

For the most part, you seem to hate how you can go to hell for not believing in the right religion.

Yes, that's pretty cruel. However, I'm not worried about it actually being a reality.

 

For one thing, you seem to act as if Christians is religion in general.

I have little experience with other religions. I live in the Bible Belt, my family is Christian, I was Christian...twice. Christianity is what I am constantly exposed to, therefore I am more inclined to talk about it than other religions.

 

Another thing, religions like Christians? Wouldn't that still be Christians?

 

No, just look at Islam. It's pretty similar. But that's probably because they're both based on the same God.

Edited April 16, 2012 by Envy

[Tenshinohana 264]

I'm a lutheran, but I don't actually believe in God. Here people are kinda silent about their beliefs, so people really don't mind if you're an atheist or not (except for the fanatics, of course.)

 

I remember once looking at a documentary about atheists in USA, and (I don't know if this is just kinda overdramatized or something) the atheists were kinda outsiders... They even had a support group for them.

 

I don't believe in God, as I said - but I do believe there might be a greater power. God is just what human want the "greater power" to be - a human-like thing. It's just a reflection of humans.

 

There are people who say that "We don't need Gods anymore, science explains anything." Well, I think that's where people go wrong - science can never explain, for example, fate. Of course science can explain that "this is HOW the earth became what it is" - but it will never explain WHY. Why did it become the earth we know it is? Why not something else? Why THIS?

 

But yeah, this is kinda the thing I believe in.

[Envy 6,156]

I remember once looking at a documentary about atheists in USA, and (I don't know if this is just kinda overdramatized or something) the atheists were kinda outsiders... They even had a support group for them.

Atheists are the most disliked minority in the USA.

 

Or so I've heard. Not very hard to believe.

 

Support groups are always nice when you feel like you're completely alone. Although I'm lucky to know quite a few non-religious people IRL.

 

I don't believe in God, as I said - but I do believe there might be a greater power. God is just what human want the "greater power" to be - a human-like thing. It's just a reflection of humans.

Interesting, I certainly hear you there. If there is a higher power, the likelihood of that higher power being anything like the way religions interpret it is incredibly unlikely.

 

There are people who say that "We don't need Gods anymore, science explains anything." Well, I think that's where people go wrong - science can never explain, for example, fate. Of course science can explain that "this is HOW the earth became what it is" - but it will never explain WHY. Why did it become the earth we know it is? Why not something else? Why THIS?

'Fate'? I'm not sure how something being the way it is requires some supernatural explanation... If you want to believe that there is some higher power, and some higher purpose, that's your own right. However, for me, as a non-believer of any higher power and fate, I see no reason to ask "Why". I believe that everything just is. Now how everything originated is obviously way above our understanding, but if there is a higher power, you can't stop asking "Why?" with it, right? Or are you just going to say that it just is?

 

The existence of a higher power just raises so many more questions than it answers, which is a primary reason why I believe that such a thing should not even be considered until there is some evidence of its existence. Perhaps there never will be evidence, but I'm not worried about a potential higher power being anything other than Deistic in nature.

Edited April 16, 2012 by Envy

[Tenshinohana 264]

Yeah, I think that believing in "fate" is really up to somebody. But I think that this all can't be just pure random - of course this is for the person to decide.

[Lady Rarity Pony 4,892]

-everything you've posted in this thread-

Ya know, at this point, you're the only one who consistently posts in this thread with the lone goal of making Christians, and other religious people, look bad, whether or not your logic is based off sound reasoning.

 

It is easy to create a scapegoat for the world. Choose someone to link all your personal and even the world's problems to. In fact, it only takes a matter of seconds to do this.

The results are also quite efficient. It supplies easy answers for the misfortunes of one's life, and gives a satisfying feeling to one's mind.

 

Though your scapegoat can eventually become non-existent, and fictitious.

 

It's easy to let a change in your life spiral out of control, from what felt like liberation, to what easily became an arrogant and twisted sense of superiority fueled by nothing more than hate. Twisted egos to maintain this satisfying sense of superiority are not uncommon at all.

 

 

It doesn't take a Meteorologist to realize when it's raining. It's abundantly clear you hate and despise religion and those who follow it.

You've hit a point where you're beyond absurd generalizations and stereotypes.

 

I'm sure it was quite shocking and traumatizing to realize the world wasn't a very pretty place. Everyone comes to this realization at some point or another. There are ways of coping with such a situation, sadly one of those ways are to build a scapegoat.

Link your issues with the world to a group of people, and then go from there. It's an easy option.

 

Once you have your scapegoat, you now have easy answers to explain why the world is the way it is and why you had to endure trauma. You also have a high horse you can now sit on, to satisfy your new found hate for your scapegoat.

I'm sure the feeling of 'liberation' from these 'disgusting' people was quite amazing. Finally having a sense of freedom, not being controlled by another. With this new found 'freedom' you now have an easy path to developing an excessive sense of superiority.

 

These 'inferior' people allow you to wake up every morning, and be able to remind yourself of them, which in turn reminds yourself of your 'superior' stance.

 

'Christians' and 'religious people' are your 'inferiors'. It's very easy to look at the suffering and pain of the world, and irrationally attribute it to religious people.

"Oh it's not religious people, it's just religion". Religion is a belief system, it is incapable of committing positive nor negative acts. To "blame religion" is no different than 'blaming religious people'.

 

With an inflated sense of superiority is where your accusations against religious people, turn into fallacies against fictitious people.

One can very easily compile all the negative acts Humans are capable of committing. Simply list them and link them to someone.

Such a large ego for hate and intolerance requires a much larger scapegoat.

 

When the people you use as a scapegoat no longer fit the bill, just create your own set of fictitious people! Conjure up fallacies, attribute negative actions to them, and give them a name of real life peoples.

 

Your view of Christians and religious have turned into fallacies, and you don't care. Your scapegoat helps you feel superior, and explains the pains of the world. To say you use absurd generalizations of religious people would be an understatement. You simply mark all religious people as 'harmful' and 'hateful' whether or not they actually fit the bill you give them.

 

You want them done away with, you want religion eradicated from the world. As your ideology is apparently superior, and deserves to reign.

 

 

You are blinded by your own hate. You justify your hate with simple rebuttals referencing actions you accuse others of. You take the very same actions you accuse religious people of committing.

Hate, bigotry and arrogance.

 

It doesn't take a belief in a powerful deity to delude someone into believing they are a superior human being.

History is also very good and repeating itself.

Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, Queen Mary I...what do they all have in common? They believed their ideology was supreme, they believed those who didn't follow their ideology were horrible and worthy of extermination.

 

Your profound feelings of hate and superiority mirrors that of the worst people who have walked the Earth. Your thinking is no different than that of those who have ordered exterminations and persecutions of others. All you're missing is a seat of power.

 

You've done an excellent job of proving that hate can arise anywhere, not just from religion, but from anyone who believes anything.

Feel free to deny this all you wish, I don't expect this to be swallowed nicely.

Edited April 17, 2012 by Lady Rarity Pony

[HomuraBL 851]

Ok, so all I can say is that my opinion on religion keeps bouncing off the walls...My views are always changing and stuff.

Edited April 17, 2012 by RaccoonBL

[Frost 18]

You are forgetting pastafarians.

[Marcato 2,143]

I have hesitated in getting involved with this thread because I fear beginning a debate and ultimately straying off topic.

 

I'm a Christian. I have had several times when i was younger where i doubted my belief, then i started taking apologetics, the study of the scientific details and evidence against evolution and for creationism. So i believe in it because evolution seems too unlikely and because I grew up in a Christian home.

 

That's my opinion though.

[Anachronous 682]

The question is if you died and IF you met God how would you react.

 

Oh, this is easy. I'd be like, "Yo, God, how you doing? You alright, homes? Wanna kick it for a while, keep it real? Grab a drink, take some rays? Let's do it, man, put 'er there."

 

We would then proceed to have an atomic fist bump and discuss various things over gin martinis, such as the economy or the GOP.

[Simcity11100 772]

I have a question for you atheists. Just a simple question.

 

When you die, and if you see God, how would you feel? Just asking like I said.

 

Noting that this post is slightly old, but here's how I know I won't see God, first off if you make your own Afterlife, then that's how you wouldn't, just like in any other religion, they all say heaven is different for each religion and it's because the founder of that religion said that's what the followers Afterlife will be and that's what they get because that's how they imagined their Afterlife to be; And if I did see him, well that's for me to find out and non of your business, and I got a very special question for you; What if you didn't see God in your Afterlife? This too is a simple question.

[Marcato 2,143]

What if you didn't see God in your Afterlife? This too is a simple question.

 

You would never know if you didn't see him. Because your essence and soul would be nowhere. Simple as that.

[Simcity11100 772]

You would never know if you didn't see him. Because your essence and soul would be nowhere. Simple as that.

 

Maybe I should bring Penn and Teller into the story.

[Fizz. 1,078]

I have a question for you atheists. Just a simple question.

 

When you die, and if you see God, how would you feel? Just asking like I said.

 

I'm not an atheist nor agnostic, rather "spiritual", but I don't believe in a monotheistic, or hell, any God(s) at all.

 

So if I saw a God of some sort? What kind of God is this? I see any God that sentences people to eternal damnation for mistakes they made in, at the highest possible, a 120~ year life, I would rather be damned then spend an ounce of my time with him.

 

I don't care if he's "eternally wise" or whatever, that kind of God would never merit my respect. He may have created us, but hell, your parents created you; do you follow all their morals? Why should you follow is? Just cause he made everything doesn't make him right. Can someone tell me the true harm in eating pork? Why it destroys your supposed "soul"? Cause is that not what Islam believes?

[Marcato 2,143]

Maybe I should bring Penn and Teller into the story.

 

I'm not sure if you just called me a lier or not. I don't know how to take that.

 

Anyways, to explain in more detail your mind and thought would literally not exist, thus you would never know anything beyond your own death, and would never do anything again. Not move, not see, not even think. It would be nothing but utter blackness, and nothing, literally NOTHING would happen.

 

It's quite depressing if you think about it.

[Envy 6,156]

 

Oh, so now I'm one of the worst people to ever live? =/

 

I believe that to be an huge exaggeration. I do hate Christianity (read my whole post to get what I'm meaning, please), and I do not forgive it. For you see, I see religion as purely man-made, and therefore prone to the prejudices and hatred of the humans who made them.

 

You may think that the ideas of religions are harmless, but I must disagree. The largest problem I see with a religion like Christianity (and I do mean the Bible here) is that we're seeing Bronze age Mythology (complete with Bronze age 'ethics') clash with a much more progressive society.

 

My reason for despising Christianity is not imaginary. And no I do not despise Christians. I've done a whole lot more thinking about this than you think I have. From late 2007 through early this year I identified as a Progressive Christian. Before that I was a lot more shallow. When I initially became an Atheist (2005/2006) I had a much more simple view. I thought that Christianity caused people to hate all by itself. When I went back to Christianity all of the sudden I saw the complexity of it all that most people don't tend to see.

 

I don't blame Christianity for the hatred of humans. I blame it for allowing the tolerance of that hatred to continue longer than it normally would. See my post here for it more in detail.

 

That is why I do not like the religion of Christianity. Sure it's a complex mix of human nature and Christianity's acceptance by society, but that mix could not happen without Christianity in it. What I am saying is that while Christianity is not at fault by itself, it is a part of the formula and the formula could not work without it.

 

This is not scapegoating, it's a reality.

 

It's sad that you think I hate Christians. I don't. However, bad people do disgust me, and unfortunately bad people oftentimes end up being Christians and with a widely accepted religion comes great power - power over that person and over others.

 

Perhaps I have worded things badly. At my very core I feel very strongly disgusted when seeing others discriminated against for things that neither harm others nor are under their control. Things like racism, sexism, and homophobia. This formula of Christianity with human nature and society (hopefully wording it that way instead of saying "Christianity" clears up some misconceptions?) is very lethal.

 

I think recently something really sparked this fire in me. I read an article about a school district that got influenced by Christian anti-homosexual groups to force the staff to remain completely 'neutral' in regards to homosexuality. What this meant was that the staff could not speak about it at all. This "neutrality", completely approved by those hateful groups, only worked in a way that it allowed for gay kids (or kids perceived to be gay) to be bullied without any repercussions for the bullies. The staff could not do a thing.

 

I think you probably know what happened now. These kids started killing themselves. Even more disgusting about this is that when asked about how they felt about what happened with these kids, the leaders of the groups responded saying "Welp, it was their fault for being gay." (no exaggeration)

 

Now I know what you're thinking "Well... those were bad people. You can't blame Christianity." The problem is that do you think without Christianity, without its words about homosexuals, without its acceptance into society that this still would have played out the same way? Do you think that the school district would have given any care about some hateful group coming to school asking them to not even hint that being gay is okay if that group wasn't religious?

 

That's what I'm getting at here. I don't think that all Christians are bad. I don't think that Christianity is completely alone in being at fault. However, I do feel pretty strongly that Christianity is wrong (as in not true) and with stuff like what happened above going on, I can't help but want it to go away (not by force, though). The world would not be perfect without it and other religions, but maybe just maybe, incidents like the one above might not be so common.

 

It's sad you think I'm so full of hate. My reasons are not hateful, they are the opposite. I don't hate people for believing in Christianity. I hate the fact that bad people get into it, and that the combination of things the Bible says, and society having to be accepting of religious beliefs, those bad people to have success in getting what they want. And then when it happens, religion always gets completely spared of blame. I believe that is wrong. Religion very much had a part in all of this.

Edited April 17, 2012 by Envy

[Simcity11100 772]

I'm not sure if you just called me a lier or not. I don't know how to take that.

 

Anyways, to explain in more detail your mind and thought would literally not exist, thus you would never know anything beyond your own death, and would never do anything again. Not move, not see, not even think. It would be nothing but utter blackness, and nothing, literally NOTHING would happen.

 

It's quite depressing if you think about it.

 

How can you see your death in the future, it's like trying to predict the end of the world on it's exact year and month and day.

[Fizz. 1,078]

I'm not sure if you just called me a lier or not. I don't know how to take that.

 

Anyways, to explain in more detail your mind and thought would literally not exist, thus you would never know anything beyond your own death, and would never do anything again. Not move, not see, not even think. It would be nothing but utter blackness, and nothing, literally NOTHING would happen.

 

It's quite depressing if you think about it.

 

How do you know? It wouldn't be blackness, you'd be gone. Wiped out, It's beyond human thinking, but you'd simply stop existing.

 

Possibly, maybe.

[Whiteshade 1,426]

You are forgetting pastafarians.

 

win

[Fizz. 1,078]

Oh, so now I'm one of the worst people to ever live? =/

 

 

You're confusing "Religion" with "Christianity and its Sister religions."

 

Buddhism does not think homosexuality is good for the soul, but it believes in ultimate tolerance. The Dalhai Lama (However his name is spelled) said a good Buddhist would not practice homosexuality, but everyone must be tolerated all the same.

[Marcato 2,143]

How can you see your death in the future, it's like trying to predict the end of the world on it's exact year and month and day.

 

I don't. And neither do you. So who's to say you won't see God then?

What I'm trying to say is there would simply be NOTHINGNESS. You wouldn't really even exist any more.

[Envy 6,156]

You're confusing "Religion" with "Christianity and its Sister religions."

 

Buddhism does not think homosexuality is good for the soul, but it believes in ultimate tolerance. The Dalhai Lama (However his name is spelled) said a good Buddhist would not practice homosexuality, but everyone must be tolerated all the same.

 

And here I worded something badly again. But my point was taken, right?

 

Read the whole post and I think you'll know where I'm coming from.

Edited April 17, 2012 by Envy