NationStates Jolt Archive

I went around and did some searching as to why people believed in only one god. I came up with some interesting results that quite frankly proved nothing. So here is what people came up with followed by my response. They took bible quotes and interpreted them so that they went along with their beliefs. Of course I know that there really isn't one true god, so I interpreted things differently. Maybe you can come up with other reasons.

From Exodus: Chapter 20, verse 2-3
"I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me."
So god is saying that because I helped you out and freed you, you shouldn't worship any other god but me. This says nothing about there being only one god. It just says that this god helped these people out of a tight situation and they owe him. So now they aren't allowed to worship any other gods.

From Exodus: Chapter 34, verse 12-14
"Beware thou never join in friendship with the inhabitants of that land, which may be thy ruin. But destroy their altars, break their statues and cut down their groves Adore not any strange god. The Lord his name is jealous, he is a jealous God."
What this tells me is that this god is jealous and doesn't want their people worshiping other gods. This however proves nothing. In fact it seems to imply that their really is more than one god but this god is just the type that wants everyone to worship him. It really sounds more like this god is an egotistical attention whore. Worship me, worship me, only me, me, me, me. There is no other god be me. Love me and embrace me, only me. You shall have no other god but me.

From Isaiah: Chapter 45, verse 5-7
"I am the LORD; there is none else; beside me there is no God, I girded thee about, though thou hast not known me, That they may know from the rising of the sun, And from the west, there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. I form light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I, the LORD, do all these things."
So people can't create peace on their own huh? And so much for the argument that god is infinitely good. But does this actually mean that there is only one god? It says nothing about there being only one god. This is just saying that this god stands alone. He acts all by himself and doesn't interact with other gods.

From Isaiah: Chapter 46, verse 9.
"Remember the things of old, For I am God; there is none else. I am God, and there is not one like me."
As far as arrogance is concerned I can agree with that. It sounds more like a child claiming that he is special. He repeated himself in succession in his claim that there is no other like him. It's as if he's trying to get a point across that he want's non believes to one day accept. It would be like me saying I am the greatest, I am the greatest, I am the greatest. One day if repeated enough times, I am going to actually start thinking that I am the greatest and that everyone else is below me.

Well that's it for now. I am still puzzled as to why people believe in only one god other than arrogance. But maybe you believer could shed some light on things. Why do you believe in there being only one god? Is it because someone told you that there is only one god, or do you have some proof? What is it that actually made you believe that there is only one god? Do you actually believe that this god is supremely perfect? Why?
__________________________________________________
Out of all the demons in this world, none is more frightening than man.
And yes, I am a Demon bent on torturing souls and frightening little children.

Actually in The DaVinci Code it talks about the ancient Israelites believing in a female counterpart to God known as Shekinah

I went around and did some searching as to why people believed in only one god. I came up with some interesting results that quite frankly proved nothing. So here is what people came up with followed by my response. They took bible quotes and interpreted them so that they went along with their beliefs. Of course I know that there really isn't one true god, so I interpreted things differently. Maybe you can come up with other reasons.

Well, first off, I'd question your source material. You've only looked at the concept of divinity from one context, the Judeo-Christian theology and The Bible. I think I understand your question, but perhaps it's too broad, and what you're really meaning is, "Why do Christians believe in only one God?"

Second, I'd love to know how you "know there isn't one true god." Because I've been searching to find evidence of any sort of God or multiples thereof and would enjoy seeing some proof. :D


From Exodus: Chapter 20, verse 2-3
"I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me."
So god is saying that because I helped you out and freed you, you shouldn't worship any other god but me. This says nothing about there being only one god. It just says that this god helped these people out of a tight situation and they owe him. So now they aren't allowed to worship any other gods.

This is a good point. The Bible never explicitly denies the existance of other Gods, simply that the true divine source, if you will, is the one outlined in the Bible. Indeed, the early Catholic church got around this question quite nicely by incorporating other Gods into it's pantheon of saints, making it easier for those outside the church to become part of it with the understanding that their "God" was really a lesser divinity under the "One True God." However, God's throughout history have been notoriously possessive of their followers. Therefore, it's not surprising that Christianity would take this tack as well, be it correct or not. If one looks at the Church purely as a form of social control, then it becomes more obvious why there is a need for a clear heirarchy of power. Anyone who has children has probably encountered the situation where the child asks to do something, you tell them no and they come back with, "Well, Mommy /Daddy said I could!" To enforce order, there must be a source of that order and it's certainly easier to consider that source if it can be defined in a unique and discrete package.


From Exodus: Chapter 34, verse 12-14
"Beware thou never join in friendship with the inhabitants of that land, which may be thy ruin. But destroy their altars, break their statues and cut down their groves Adore not any strange god. The Lord his name is jealous, he is a jealous God."
What this tells me is that this god is jealous and doesn't want their people worshiping other gods. This however proves nothing. In fact it seems to imply that their really is more than one god but this god is just the type that wants everyone to worship him. It really sounds more like this god is an egotistical attention whore. Worship me, worship me, only me, me, me, me. There is no other god be me. Love me and embrace me, only me. You shall have no other god but me.

Again, as before, you are correct. It has never been denied that Jehovah of the Old Testament was rather a bastard. Smiting here, trying to get someone to kill their kid over there and making bets with the devil on the loyalty of his followers. Again, though, this is the "God" of the Old Testament and his message is somewhat softened and illumanated by the New Testament.


From Isaiah: Chapter 45, verse 5-7
"I am the LORD; there is none else; beside me there is no God, I girded thee about, though thou hast not known me, That they may know from the rising of the sun, And from the west, there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. I form light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I, the LORD, do all these things."
So people can't create peace on their own huh? And so much for the argument that god is infinitely good. But does this actually mean that there is only one god? It says nothing about there being only one god. This is just saying that this god stands alone. He acts all by himself and doesn't interact with other gods.

Well, I don't think this rules out God being infinitely good. Simply because he also created evil doesn't mean he can't be infintely good. He is God, after all. He eats paradoxes like that for breakfast. :D

Again, though, you are right. The passage doesn't explicitly deny the existance of other Gods. It does imply precedence over them, at least in things human, but this is not denial of their existance.

To understand this view, though, you must consider the roots of the Church and the Judeo-Christian belief. For a large expanse of history, Christians (and Jews) suffered under various forms of persecution. Life was not pleasant and, in many cases, the only comfort was death. Is it any wonder that a belief would form which not only embraces a much better existance after the current harsh one? Also, it's comforting to believe that you are favored above your persecutors by some divine force that is not only greater than them, but greater than the divine forces that they worship. I believe this argues for the mutability of God and not for the "rightness" of the Christian God. The aspect early Christians and Jews needed of God was this strong, powerful, leader who demanded obedience and, in exchange, promised eternal reward and punishment of one's enemies. Later, as society progressed and matured around this concept of God, it found the need for a more compassionate and loving God. There were still rules, of course, but they were more merciful and fostered more cooperation than crushing (regardless of what people actually did). That's when the Bible got a revision and the story of Jesus became the focus of the modern Christian faith. It was still an aspect of the same God, which was in and of itself most likely an aspect of a higher or more abstracted source of divinity. So, in a way, we create the gods we need or, more in line with my belief, we call forth the aspects that we can use. Never, though, do we appreciate or even recognize the whole.

I think, and this is my own speculation here, that we are currently living in another age of revision. People are questioning this "loving and merciful" personification of God and asking if it's valid. Is the problem systemic or is it merely the practice that fouls things up? I think this questioning is good and will ultimately give access to a new plateau of spiritual conciousness. However, it will not be an easy or quick process and may not be appreciated until thousands of years from now, when the things we do and say today become history, then legend and then myth.


From Isaiah: Chapter 46, verse 9.
"Remember the things of old, For I am God; there is none else. I am God, and there is not one like me."
As far as arrogance is concerned I can agree with that. It sounds more like a child claiming that he is special. He repeated himself in succession in his claim that there is no other like him. It's as if he's trying to get a point across that he want's non believes to one day accept. It would be like me saying I am the greatest, I am the greatest, I am the greatest. One day if repeated enough times, I am going to actually start thinking that I am the greatest and that everyone else is below me.

Again, this is true and goes hand in hand of the concept of Jehovah as outlined in the Old Testament. It's as close as the book ever comes to saying that there are no other gods period. This aspect of God may seem harsh, surly, unforgiving and tempramental by our standards today, but who can say how it appeared to those of the time? Again, it also falls in line with the idea of church as social construct with The Big Man firmly at the top handing out the orders and in charge of the whole shebang.

I have noticed that all your cites are from the Old Testament. I would encourage you to read the New Testament as well, if only for a sense of comparison. Ideally, you will find that the aspect of God depicted through the words and actions of Jesus is a much more humble and loving being. Which isn't to say that the God of the Old Testament isn't accurate or valid, just that it is merely an aspect of a far greater whole.


Well that's it for now. I am still puzzled as to why people believe in only one god other than arrogance. But maybe you believer could shed some light on things. Why do you believe in there being only one god? Is it because someone told you that there is only one god, or do you have some proof? What is it that actually made you believe that there is only one god? Do you actually believe that this god is supremely perfect? Why?

I don't think it's always arrogance, although there are certainly cases where that is true. It can be a whole host of reasons. Fear, comfort, the clique mentality, there are many reasons why people might choose to believe in one god. One of the most basic may be the most common, in that it's the only god they've ever had experience with. Many people do not stray out of the religious path their parents decide for them at birth. Therefore, they never take the time to explore other faiths and beliefs and, instead of trying to understand why other people adhere to those beliefs, their only experience of them is in why their belief tells them that they are wrong. For many, this seems to suffice for their life's purpose. The myriad forms of human belief are mind boggling at best and, more often, completely overwhelming and, to truly explore these possibilities, one must risk being confused, frustrated and thwarted and there's no guarantee that at the end of the search, you will have anything close to an answer. This is obviously time consuming and quite frightening. Developing empathy for other beliefs is exhausting and scary and most people seem to have neither the time nor the temprament to attempt to do it. They latch on to their singular perception and cling to it while they attempt to navigate the ordinary struggles of their day to day lives. I personally believe that this is a waste and that to not approach human belief with the open curiosity and openess of a child is to miss out on one of the fundamental experiences of being a human. Even still, though, after my own spiritual questing, I have gravitated back to my original social construct of Christianity (although, I must say, it's a much more liberal interpretation of Christianity than I was brought up with). Not so much because I believe it is the one singular path to eternally salvation, but because of my social conditioning, it's the one who's terms I'm most comfortable with and resonates most with me. This comfort gives me an opportunity to explore exactly what I believe God to be

I do believe in one "God", but I'm not sure that any religion really worships that God. I think maybe some of the Pagan faiths come closest by giving reverence to life in general or the Eastern faiths that see God in all things (a concept which I do find myself believing in). I focus on the Christian concept of God because it is the one I am most familiar with, but I also believe it is only one aspect of a true greater source that is, frankly, beyond our comprehension at this time. So a more accurate, but more bewildering, way to phrase it would be to say that I believe in one God, but that's just my belief and others can certainly believe differently because I may be wrong, but, in the end, we may all be right.

As for proof and sources of belief, well, that's something I still puzzle over. There are compelling arguments both for and against, but most of these arguments seem to be stack either for or against specific gods and their mandates and less against belief in general. Certainly all the obvious bad things in the world from war and injustice down to that wasp that lays it's eggs in living caterpillars are commanding arguments against a just and loving God. Again, though, that's an argument against a specific mode of belief framed in human terms that we can comprehend and not against a source that may be beyond our comprehension. The complexity of life and existance as well as the fact that all cultures we have knowledge of have some "god" concept argue for the existance of something, some sort of higher governing force. Still, that's not proof and without proof, the idea that gradual change can give rise to the complexity of existance is just as compelling. Ultimately, for me, it comes down to a very weak justification, but it's all I have at this time. It's just a sense of knowing I'm on the right track. It's like a huge, infinitely complex word problem (I may have used this example before, if not, woo-hoo a metaphor is born!). You read it and are immediately confused. Then you start putting down anything you can think of, trying to break it down into simple, solvable steps. At some point, at least in my experience, I would right something down that would click. It wouldn't be the correct answer in total, but it would put into focus everything around it and I'd know I was on to something and if I just went slow enough, eventually I would come to an answer. It might not be a correct one (although I'm really good at math so it usually was), but it wasn't always important to get the right answer, but to show your reasoning. Also, the way you solve the problem might not be the same way someone else would, but you both have valid steps and may come to similar conclusions.

When I consider God, I feel like I'm on to something. My explorations of religious belief outside my own as well as agnosticisim and atheisim are my attempts to write down something that will give me that point of focus. Even when I claimed to be an atheist, I was one of those firey atheists who's loud denial of belief is almost a form of religion in itself. I later discovered that I didn't ever really not believe in God, but was denouncing him out of anger at a world that didn't work like it seemed it should and, as he was the one in charge, it must all be his fault. That's why atheisim was never a comfortable fit for me, unlike many of the other posters on this board, because I never came to it honestly and my motives weren't pure. That's all part of the solution, though, and I do believe it has made me a stronger, more empathic, person because I do know what it's like to question and to doubt and I can admit I might be wrong in my specifics (and, possibly, in my answer).

As for the question of the supreme perfection of God, I think it's perhaps a pointless question. If indeed God does exist, by it's very nature, it would be beyond human terms like perfection and failure, which are completely relative and subjective. In a sense, I guess I would say yes, I do believe in the perfection of God, but not in the perfection of any human formed religious construct with it's accompanying social motives. It's sort of a fiat state (I say God is 'perfect' because it's God and therefore must be 'perfect') which annoys both myself and those who disagree with me, but it seems to fit, particularly with the added caveat of, "Yes, God is perfect, but I don't think we've actually seen God yet."

well which dr who do you mean. there were so many. it started out with some old guy, i never liked him really but he died after a while and they replaced him with a whole new actor who was nothing like the old guy but they explained that he was just tossed into a new body or something. there was that guy that played tristan in all things great and small. i liked him pretty well in a doofy kinda way. dint he end up directing some of the star trek episodes? or maybe he became a producer or something. my sister was way more of a fan than i ever was. especially when her kids were young, the schools were all in an uproar because dr who was stupid or violent or something but i never understood that. tom baker was my favorite dr who. he was the one who wore that great big long scarf. my mom knit a scarf like that for my sister because she was such a big fan she loved it and used it for many years until it finally got lost one time when she moved. he was my favorite too but i never wanted a scarf really although i did envy my sister having hers.
none of them were as annoying as adam sandler though

Second, I'd love to know how you "know there isn't one true god." Because I've been searching to find evidence of any sort of God or multiples thereof and would enjoy seeing some proof. :D
This is the only part I have time to respond to right now. I’ll respond later to the rest when I have the time. I’ve actually been acquainted with a couple gods before. That’s how I know that there is more than just one god. One was a sea goddess on a small island chain. The other was a wind god. I met them both a long time ago and haven’t spoken to either one in a long time. I would go to say hello, but that would be a waste of time. I wouldn’t even know if they were still alive. Well this is all that I can offer for proof. As I said, I’ll respond to the rest later.
__________________________________________________
Out of all the demons in this world, none is more frightening than man.
And yes, I am a Demon bent on torturing souls and frightening little children.

Actually in The DaVinci Code it talks about the ancient Israelites believing in a female counterpart to God known as Shekinah

sorry but no we didn't lol....Da vinci code is in the fiction section for a reason

Let's reverse the question:

Why many gods? It makes much more sense to have one Supreme Being if you believe in religion. Over half of the world will tell you so.

Let's ask a new question:

What does the poll have to do with God?

Let's reverse the question:

Why many gods? It makes much more sense to have one Supreme Being if you believe in religion. Over half of the world will tell you so.

So you're saying God is decided by majority vote?

Worshipping more than one God means investing oneself in more than one supreme diety, and if we can't even give ourselves over completely to even another human being, how can we completely gives overselves over to a diety?

No. All I'm saying is that where is evidence in multiple gods? Where is evidence in one god? Where is evidence in no god? Polytheism, monotheism, atheism - it's all based on assumptions. I assume there is one god, but it is just an assumption. All religion based things are based on faith - on assuming you're right and others are wrong. There'll never be proof on any side of the debate. Reversing the question just helps prove my point.

[EDIT: The majority of the world thing was a detail I could have left out.]

No. All I'm saying is that where is evidence in multiple gods? Where is evidence in one god? Where is evidence in no god? Polytheism, monotheism, atheism - it's all based on assumptions. I assume there is one god, but it is just an assumption. All religion based things are based on faith - on assuming you're right and others are wrong. There'll never be proof on any side of the debate.

Faith does not always mean assuming others are wrong. True, many times it is taken to that extreme, but it doesn't have to be. You are right, there is no conclusive "proof" of one or more Gods, but just because one person reveres a single aspect and another person reveres multiple aspects doesn't mean they are mutually contradictory.

Worshipping more than one God means investing oneself in more than one supreme diety, and if we can't even give ourselves over completely to even another human being, how can we completely gives overselves over to a diety?

I think your assuming that reverence for a God requires submission. I could be wrong in my interpretation. If I'm correct, why do you believe this?

Well, I understand how you may think that, but if you believe in the Bible, you kind of have to believe in one God.

These people just picked a few verese that could mean something else.

Here is something from Genesis

"In the begining God created the heavens and the earth."
It says God, not gods, this first verse of the bible alone aliminates anything that could lead one to beleive there are any gods equal to God, it might leave some room for questioning about demi-gods, if you believe in that sort of thing, but thats about it.

God is also comonly refered to as "The Father", not a father, or fathers.....another example about God being the only god. I could probally come up with more examples, but I am very lazy. :-)

Berkylvania, Not all the times, but many of the times. For instance, if Christianity is the true Faith, Islam is wrong and vice versa. Their conflicting view of God means that only one Faith is true. Islam in its Koran says, "For He was not begotten and He begot no one," and Christianity in its Bible says, "For God so loves the world that He gave His only begotton son that whosoever beleivith in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." [Excuse my translations. Typed both verses out of memory.] Thus, all Faiths conflict greatly, meaning only one can be true.

Well, I understand how you may think that, but if you believe in the Bible, you kind of have to believe in one God.

Why? Other than the reasons MK mentioned, where God specifically tells you to believe in Him over other deities?


These people just picked a few verese that could mean something else.

Well, that's the thing about the Bible, isn't it? There's a lot there and people are very fond of picking one or two things out of it, generally out of context, and then using them to justify whatever it is they want to do. Whereas someone else can use the same verses to justify something completely opposite. Who's right?


Here is something from Genesis

"In the begining God created the heavens and the earth."
It says God, not gods, this first verse of the bible alone aliminates anything that could lead one to beleive there are any gods equal to God, it might leave some room for questioning about demi-gods, if you believe in that sort of thing, but thats about it.

Yes, but it never says that other Gods don't exist, just that, in the Judeo-Christian theology, this particular God took the time to create stuff. It doesn't rule out other Gods. Also, it doesn't really say that this one God is particularly more powerful than these other potential Gods, just that this one actually did it here and now.


God is also comonly refered to as "The Father", not a father, or fathers.....another example about God being the only god. I could probally come up with more examples, but I am very lazy. :-)

Again, though, all those only work if you specifically take Judeo-Christian theology as the entire basis of the argument, which I don't think it can be.

Verses taken out of context can be twisted any way. Take the Jehovah's Witnesses for example. They're "Christians" and yet they have a radically different view than mainstream Christianity.

"I contend that we are both atheists. I merely believe in one fewer god than you. When you can explain why you dismiss all other gods, then you will know why I dismiss yours."

-- Stephen Roberts


Thought it was somewhat relevant to the topic and it makes sense to me. I side with Roberts.

Berkylvania, Not all the times, but many of the times. For instance, if Christianity is the true Faith, Islam is wrong and vice versa. Their conflicting view of God means that only one Faith is true. Islam in its Koran says, "For He was not begotten and He begot no one," and Christianity in its Bible says, "For God so loves the world that He gave His only begotton son that whosoever beleivith in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." [Excuse my translations. Typed both verses out of memory.] Thus, all Faiths conflict greatly, meaning only one can be true.

I see your point, but I would argue that is less due to religion and God and more due to man and his desire to have power over other men. I agree, if faith A says do This Thing and kill all others that don't and faith B says do That Thing and kill all other that don't, then they are in conflict. However, very few faiths actually say this.

I think the problem creeps in when people start talking about the One True Faith. Again, though, I suspect this is more man's doing than that of God.

"I contend that we are both atheists. I merely believe in one fewer god than you. When you can explain why you dismiss all other gods, then you will know why I dismiss yours."

-- Stephen Roberts


Thought it was somewhat relevant to the topic and it makes sense to me. I side with Roberts.

That's great, but what's the point. I haven't dismissed anyone's Gods or lack thereof. Why do you feel it's necessary to dismiss the gods of others?

I don’t think looking at verses from text that more than a few thousand year old, that have been copied and recopied over and over again will solve anything. God only mentioned other gods when the jews came into contact with other cultures that had their own gods. At that time they only believed in one god and knew nothing of any other gods. There were other gods around at that time, but the Jews never knew about them before they came into contact with them. You also have to admit that the Jews must have gone under a great ordeal under Egyptian control. They must have though their gods to be as cruel as the people who worshiped them. So it became important to stamp out any influence that any other god had on the Jewish people. So it is understandable why they said that they should have no other gods. Meanwhile it was their god that helped to protect them while they made their escape. In short they suffered under the rule of many gods while it was a single god that protected them. That make for a good reason to command that the influence of all other gods be stamped out.

As to why they only believed in one god I may never know. But the fact that they believe in only one god does not mean that there is only one god. You can learn a lot about people by the gods that they worship and the stories they tell. With a monotheistic religion that is rather hard to accomplish because some people will only focus on certain aspects of their religion while ignoring all the rest. Where as in a polytheistic religion people will worship whichever god best represents their life more than any other god. A hunter will pray to the hunting god more than other gods, a warrior will pray to the god of war more than others, and so on. If I were religious I would be more inclined to be polytheistic.

I don’t think looking at verses from text that more than a few thousand year old, that have been copied and recopied over and over again will solve anything. God only mentioned other gods when the jews came into contact with other cultures that had their own gods. At that time they only believed in one god and knew nothing of any other gods. There were other gods around at that time, but the Jews never knew about them before they came into contact with them. You also have to admit that the Jews must have gone under a great ordeal under Egyptian control. They must have though their gods to be as cruel as the people who worshiped them. So it became important to stamp out any influence that any other god had on the Jewish people. So it is understandable why they said that they should have no other gods. Meanwhile it was their god that helped to protect them while they made their escape. In short they suffered under the rule of many gods while it was a single god that protected them. That make for a good reason to command that the influence of all other gods be stamped out.

As to why they only believed in one god I may never know. But the fact that they believe in only one god does not mean that there is only one god. You can learn a lot about people by the gods that they worship and the stories they tell. With a monotheistic religion that is rather hard to accomplish because some people will only focus on certain aspects of their religion while ignoring all the rest. Where as in a polytheistic religion people will worship whichever god best represents their life more than any other god. A hunter will pray to the hunting god more than other gods, a warrior will pray to the god of war more than others, and so on. If I were religious I would be more inclined to be polytheistic.

Excellent point.

and

Why the hell is Adam Sandler winning this poll?!? Does he have a time machine or a robotic dog? No. Case closed.

Why the hell is Adam Sandler winning this poll?!? Does he have a time machine or a robotic dog? No. Case closed.
He had a robotic dog?

Man it's been too long. Oh so long very. Somebody hold me. :(

Why the hell is Adam Sandler winning this poll?!? Does he have a time machine or a robotic dog? No. Case closed.
He had a robotic dog?

Man it's been too long. Oh so long very. Somebody hold me. :(

There, there. K9 will make everything all right.

y'all obviously dont realize that the winner of this is the one who SURVIVES.
any of the dr who incarnations is better than the continued existance of adam sandler

i have serious doubts about the divinity of dr who, even the tom baker incarnation.

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

Maybe I believe in one God because that is my faith, and I don't see the need for people to bitch about it constantly. People act like the fact that people are Christians hurts them in some way :roll:

Maybe I believe in one God because that is my faith, and I don't see the need for people to bitch about it constantly. People act like the fact that people are Christians hurts them in some way :roll:

No offense, but did you read his post? He makes some good points.

And why do you believe in your faith?

Maybe I believe in one God because that is my faith, and I don't see the need for people to bitch about it constantly. People act like the fact that people are Christians hurts them in some way :roll:

No offense, but did you read his post? He makes some good points.

And why do you believe in your faith?

Yes I read the post, but when there is part of a Scripture that says "You shall not have strange Gods Before me" nothing there to me implies multiple Gods, especially in the context of the Bible, just false gods. I'm rather tired so sorry if I seem overly uh...."a jerk" and am not making myu points well but I am getting tired of a thread a day about how Christianity is incorrect and things along that line. And I should probably ignore them but they just tick me off after awhile. Also the Bible isn't the sole basis of Christianity. As for why I believe in my faith, thats rather hard to explain, I hate to say it like this but I just do. It's an internal decisicion. Maybe I'll think of how to word it more tomorrow.

Yes I read the post, but when there is part of a Scripture that says "You shall not have strange Gods Before me" nothing there to me implies multiple Gods, especially in the context of the Bible, just false gods.
I'm rather tired so sorry if I seem overly uh...."a jerk" and am not making myu points well but I am getting tired of a thread a day about how Christianity is incorrect and things along that line. And I should probably ignore them but they just tick me off after awhile. Also the Bible isn't the sole basis of Christianity. As for why I believe in my faith, thats rather hard to explain, I hate to say it like this but I just do. It's an internal decisicion. Maybe I'll think of how to word it more tomorrow.

I completely understand and I apologize if I seemed accusitory. I also understand about the constant Christian bashing and how tiring it can be to have someone make assumptions about one's character based on a label.

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

Atheist.

Its my own personal belief that religion is a need for the weak willed.
Humans sometimes inherently need a belief in something higher than themselves to explain what they can not know.
What makes the crops grow.....where do we go when we die....

Answers that cannot be answered need explanation, for some people.
Thus we Invent religions to do so.

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

Atheist.

Its my own personal belief that religion is a need for the weak willed.
Humans sometimes inherently need a belief in something higher than themselves to explain what they can not know.
What makes the crops grow.....where do we go when we die....

Answers that cannot be answered need explanation, for some people.
Thus we Invent religions to do so.

Fair enough. :D

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

I believe that because it seems self-evident to me that all major churches (<-note i said churches) are merely tools of societal control. That is why they so often come in conflict with governments, which perform much the same role. Since I believe in democracy, which is the rule of the people, I automatically deprecate religion, the rule of gods. Now that still leaves room for spirituality, which is quite personal & doesn't require gods or rites.

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

Atheist.

Its my own personal belief that religion is a need for the weak willed.
Humans sometimes inherently need a belief in something higher than themselves to explain what they can not know.
What makes the crops grow.....where do we go when we die....

Answers that cannot be answered need explanation, for some people.
Thus we Invent religions to do so.

Fair enough. :D

I will say this though..

1.) As a general rule....people suck.

2.) If becoming a Christian, Buddist, whatever helps a person to become a BETTER person....then I see no harm in that at all....
Its only when the person believes they are better than anyone else of any other faith/ lack thereof, and tries to "save" the other..do problems exist.

So If taking up religion makes you a better person...then rock on!

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

I believe that because it seems self-evident to me that all major churches (<-note i said churches) are merely tools of societal control. That is why they so often come in conflict with governments, which perform much the same role. Since I believe in democracy, which is the rule of the people, I automatically deprecate religion, the rule of gods. Now that still leaves room for spirituality, which is quite personal & doesn't require gods or rites.

I completely agree with you, although I would question why a belief in democracy (which I also very strongly believe in) commands an immediate disbelief in religion (which is an entirely different thing altogether).

you can have as many gods as "ju" want
Think about it...Does it make sence to you? NSZA

Jesus, Jehovah, Allah, Buddah, Thor, Odin, Zeus, Ra,....

It doesnt matter......

Its all crap.

Yes, fine, but why do you think that?

I believe that because it seems self-evident to me that all major churches (<-note i said churches) are merely tools of societal control. That is why they so often come in conflict with governments, which perform much the same role. Since I believe in democracy, which is the rule of the people, I automatically deprecate religion, the rule of gods. Now that still leaves room for spirituality, which is quite personal & doesn't require gods or rites.

I completely agree with you, although I would question why a belief in democracy (which I also very strongly believe in) commands an immediate disbelief in religion (which is an entirely different thing altogether).

I wouldnt say a "disbelief" so much as a "disregard".

This is becuase it it IMPERATIVE that no group of one religion..has political sway, or control of any other,

Im an Atheist....so I wouldnt like a bunch of christians making my desicions for me, as Im sure that Jewish, or Buddist, or Muslim wouldnt either.

Justice is blind remember.

So too, should democracy.

I wouldnt say a "disbelief" so much as a "disregard".

This is becuase it it IMPERATIVE that no group of one religion..has political sway, or control of any other,

Im an Atheist....so I wouldnt like a bunch of christians making my desicions for me, as Im sure that Jewish, or Buddist, or Muslim wouldnt either.

Justice is blind remember.

So too, should democracy.

I'm in agreement with what you said. Religious constructs should not be used to create political constructs. It's always a failure. However, that wasn't what was said. While I think it's important to keep religion out of politics, I also think it's important to keep politics out of religion, at least the kind we're referring to, civilization politics...I don't know, it's late and I'm losing my edge...besides, I wasted all my good material on the whole gay-nazi-post a thon thing.

I went around and did some searching as to why people believed in only one god...

Monotheism is the natural evolution of polytheism. Centuries or ethnic and religious rivalry largely fueled by 'my god can beat up your god' eventually results in one all powerful god, the god of gods and everything. It serves to both simplify and unify religon, on the other hand, the god of Christianity/Judaism and Islam are the same and look at all the lovely stuff that has happened between these religions in the name of God. :roll:

I wouldnt say a "disbelief" so much as a "disregard".

This is becuase it it IMPERATIVE that no group of one religion..has political sway, or control of any other,

Im an Atheist....so I wouldnt like a bunch of christians making my desicions for me, as Im sure that Jewish, or Buddist, or Muslim wouldnt either.

Justice is blind remember.

So too, should democracy.

I'm in agreement with what you said. Religious constructs should not be used to create political constructs. It's always a failure. However, that wasn't what was said. While I think it's important to keep religion out of politics, I also think it's important to keep politics out of religion, at least the kind we're referring to, civilization politics...I don't know, it's late and I'm losing my edge...besides, I wasted all my good material on the whole gay-nazi-post a thon thing.

I agree.

Church<------------------------------------------------------------>State.

This works (or should work) for the benefit of both organizations.

Berkylvania, Not all the times, but many of the times. For instance, if Christianity is the true Faith, Islam is wrong and vice versa. Their conflicting view of God means that only one Faith is true. Islam in its Koran says, "For He was not begotten and He begot no one," and Christianity in its Bible says, "For God so loves the world that He gave His only begotton son that whosoever beleivith in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." [Excuse my translations. Typed both verses out of memory.] Thus, all Faiths conflict greatly, meaning only one can be true.

Well, think about it. Some Christian circles believe in the Holy Trinity - that God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost are one. In which case, Jesus is God, not God's son. He merely created an avatar or incarnation of himself through the Virgin Mary. *shrug*

I went around and did some searching as to why people believed in only one god...

Monotheism is the natural evolution of polytheism. Centuries or ethnic and religious rivalry largely fueled by 'my god can beat up your god' eventually results in one all powerful god, the god of gods and everything. It serves to both simplify and unify religon, on the other hand, the god of Christianity/Judaism and Islam are the same and look at all the lovely stuff that has happened between these religions in the name of God. :roll:
What you are talking about is often used in an attempt to disprove religion. It implies that religion is nothing more than a pseudoscience. It is a human construct to attempt to explain things that otherwise couldn't be explained. Science is the end result of that evolution. Although sociologists that first attempted to explain religion in that manner are now wary to explain it in that way. Theists came up with a rebuttal, and I'm not entirely sure of what it is but now all that they say is that there is just some correlation and that argument proves nothing.