NationStates Jolt Archive

Lots of people complained about the last poll (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=530519) I had, and I have to admit, they had a point (even though it was the forum's fault). So, here is another poll, and you can't whine about it. Why? Because it's not mine! It's a poll I saw in Time magazine which actually seems a better way to connect the religious and political beliefs of people. There is a more in-depth description of the poll here (http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1549413,00.html).
For those of you who don't want to read the article, here is a description of each option:
Authoritarian God: A god who is deeply involved in daily life and world events. This god can also punish people (while they are still on earth).
Benevolent God: A lot like the Authoritarian God, but this one is less likely to punish sinners. He (or She, or It) is a almost completely positive force in the world.
Critical God: A god who does not really interact with the world but is unhappy with the current state and with exact divine judgment
Distant God: A god who does not interact with the world and is not angry. This god is more a force of nature (probably a Deist perception of God)
No God: Self-explanatory. This wasn't in the original poll, but I think that poll only interviewed people who believed in a god.
There is a nifty infographic that has some more statistics here (http://www.time.com/time/covers/20061030/what_we_believe/), at Time magazine.

EDIT: If you believe in more than one god, assume the choices are plural

Of those choices, "distant God".

A crazy, but largely benevolent goddess. She's hawt too.

Benevolent and distant

No god. I used to think there was a benevolent God, but people change.

Here are some interesting statistics (from the Time site):
Believe government should increase military spending
Authoritarian God: 63%
Benevolent God: 55%
Critical God: 46%
Distant God: 34%
In other words, people who are more likely to believe God directly punishes sins are also more likely to believe we should do a better job protecting ourselves!
(Another interesting statistic: there was no group where more than one-fourth of the people thought abortion was always wrong. The way it gets bandied around, you'd think it would be much higher).

A distant, but caring and benevolent god.

I am closer to Buddhims, Toaism and the Eastern religions in by beliefs than the Western religions such as Christianity, Judaism or Islam. The whole father figure idea does not make sense to me I just can't see why an all-powerful being would even care if He was worshipped or not or if we followed His rules. Eternal punishment because you fell in love with someone of your own sex? Why would a being without sex even care. On the flip side, ff God is supposed to be loving and protecting us, then why is there so much violence and sickness in the world? And before you say it is punishment for not following His rules, how come innocent babies die just as tragically and horribly as adults?

So what do I believe in? I believe that any kind of supreme being would be beyond human comprehnsion in both form and motive and would be closer to an energy field or a formless void than a physical being. Why did it create the universe with sentient life forms? What happens to us after we die? What are we supposed to do while we are living? I truthfully don't know nor do I arrogantly pretend to have the answers. Like many of us, I am still looking for the answers or even better yet the questions themselves.

While I am glad to finally have an option for myself, your poll is still biased (no options for agnostics and polytheists.

As a pantheist, I am incapable of voting in this poll.

As a pantheist, I am incapable of voting in this poll.

I actually had to reread that before I realized you weren't talking about worshiping your pants.

I actually had to reread that before I realized you weren't talking about worshiping your pants.
Not the pants themselves, anyway. :D :p

A crazy, but largely benevolent goddess. She's hawt too.

Hang on, don't I have you down as member of the "Sex and Chocolate" church, of which I happen to be the main deity?
How dare you call me crazy, you impertinent young wardrobe?

I actually had to reread that before I realized you weren't talking about worshiping your pants.
Well, pantheism is seeing everything as not only the creation, but the part of god. I guess that would include pants.
But as for voting in the poll: no worries, just substitute "god" for "universe", or something like that. It doesn't fit perfectly, but it's close enough.

Hang on, don't I have you down as member of the "Sex and Chocolate" church, of which I happen to be the main deity?
How dare you call me crazy, you impertinent young wardrobe?

Not you silly.

Atheist. Don't car anymore. Doesn't matter.

none of them. My Gods are like humans themselves (which is appropriate, seeing as they are the Gods of humans); sometimes critical, sometimes loving, sometimes harsh, sometimes distant and mysterious. And sometimes all sorts of other things.

EDIT: If you believe in more than one god, assume the choices are pluralAs a pantheist, I am incapable of voting in this poll.Do I really want to know the difference between a pantheist and a polytheist?

Do I really want to know the difference between a pantheist and a polytheist?
Pantheism is about a single natural entity with multiple expressions. Polytheism is about many distinct supernatural ones. *Shrug*

Not you silly.

Oh, so you're an apostate, then? Pity.

None of the above.

Read the poll by TIME, interesting fact that only a minority within ALL factions trusts Bush " a lot ". I don't know what they mean by " a lot ".

I'm a little iffy on the entire concept, but I suppose there's room for me to not totally disbelieve in a God, which I suppose should be both wrathful and benevolent, depending on the situation, but probably distant.

The Republican God: An totalitarian social-Darwinist God who despises weakness in everything and punishes the poor, homeless and disabled, while blessing the unscrupulous and amoral with money and wealth.

None of the above.

Read the poll by TIME, interesting fact that only a minority within ALL factions trusts Bush " a lot ". I don't know what they mean by " a lot ".
It was an interesting article. It was part of an issue where they examined demographics across the board (the board here being the US). It dispelled one or two misconceptions I had about Americans as a whole. It's a good resource to turn to every time you here the 300 million Americans being treated as a single entity. I wish they would now do an issue like that on other places.

How's about a completely crazy god, who interferes with our world in a random and irrational manner? Like a celestial version of someone who devises plots for a soap opera.

How's about a completely crazy god, who interferes with our world in a random and irrational manner? Like a celestial version of someone who devises plots for a soap opera.
A Trumanist God.