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Christianity

OptoGypsy

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Hi I'm seriously trying to consider the existence of God but it just doesn't seem plausible. What evidence do we have outside of the Bible or any Religious text that a God exists? How did you rationalize the existence of God? Is the only argument you have that a God exists is the leap of faith, is faith your only trump card?

For all the non-believers out their what is your opinion on this Guy
Yuriy and Inna | Welcome. Grow in Grace with us.
He is a controversial christian figure in the Christian Russian social groups in the west of the U.S.A [MENTION=20385]Alea_iacta_est[/MENTION] [MENTION=20044]chubber[/MENTION] [MENTION=74]digesthisickness[/MENTION] [MENTION=15318]Evee[/MENTION] [MENTION=6109]Halla74[/MENTION] [MENTION=11809]Hive[/MENTION] [MENTION=16139]Honor[/MENTION] [MENTION=71]JAVO[/MENTION]
 

gromit

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Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be something you can prove one way or another.

In my experiences God is about listening and being open to love and kindness and growth. A god of small miracles, changes of heart, and of breathtaking beauty... in fellow humans and in the world. In the midst deeply harrowing moments, as well as the sweet and simple ones.
 

OptoGypsy

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Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be something you can prove one way or another.

In my experiences God is about listening and being open to love and kindness and growth. A god of small miracles, changes of heart, and of breathtaking beauty... in fellow humans and in the world. In the midst deeply harrowing moments, as well as the sweet and simple ones.

So it's looking at life through rose-colored glasses, being thankful for life itself instead of treating a man/woman from a far far away place as a figure authority/savior...


and

Hahaha [MENTION=15318]Evee[/MENTION]
 

gromit

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So it's looking at life through rose-colored glasses, being thankful for life itself instead of treating a man/woman from a far far away place as a figure authority/savior...

Perhaps. Although the phrase "rose-colored glasses" is a little bit simplistic/naive.

By savior, I think of the power to transform and change and heal. And this spiritual source is available to anyone who is ready to accept it, Christian or not. This is my faith of course... not necessarily standard.

And being able to feel awe.
 

wildflower

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Hi I'm seriously trying to consider the existence of God but it just doesn't seem plausible. Is the only argument you have that a God exists is the leap of faith, is faith your only trump card?

i agree that you can't prove or disprove the existence of God. it is ultimately a leap of faith either way so faith is unavoidable. ;) that doesn't mean there isn't evidence though but there is no 100% certainty. as for christianity you might want to read something like the case for christ

if you are interested this is a helpful link on frequently asked questions on the bible the main thing about the bible is to read it according to its various genres & according to the interpretive principles of its time & place and not to impose modern hermeneutical (interpretive) methods onto it. you wouldn't read an ancient eastern philosophy book and keep asking why it doesn't tell you anything about modern american graphic design would you? a lot of moderns do something similar to that when reading the bible.

What evidence do we have outside of the Bible or any Religious text that a God exists?How did you rationalize the existence of God?

for me i had a supernatural encounter with God and then started following jesus. so, i didn't rationalize God but rather i experienced Him. in the 2/3rds world where the church is rapidly growing that is quite common. not so much in the western world. that doesn't mean i don't think there is plenty of evidence for jesus' claim to being the Son of God and his resurrection. i just didn't start from a place of trying to rationalize faith in God. people come to faith in all sorts of different ways but no one gets there on reason alone.

For all the non-believers out their what is your opinion on this Guy
Yuriy and Inna | Welcome. Grow in Grace with us.
He is a controversial christian figure in the Christian Russian social groups in the west of the U.S.A [MENTION=20385]Alea_iacta_est[/MENTION] [MENTION=20044]chubber[/MENTION] [MENTION=74]digesthisickness[/MENTION] [MENTION=15318]Evee[/MENTION] [MENTION=6109]Halla74[/MENTION] [MENTION=11809]Hive[/MENTION] [MENTION=16139]Honor[/MENTION] [MENTION=71]JAVO[/MENTION]

hah. for a second i thought that was about spiritual drunkenness. carry on. :)
 

OptoGypsy

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Perhaps. Although the phrase "rose-colored glasses" is a little bit simplistic/naive.

By savior, I think of the power to transform and change and heal. And this spiritual source is available to anyone who is ready to accept it, Christian or not. This is my faith of course... not necessarily standard.

And being able to feel awe.
 

OptoGypsy

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God is a product of wishful thinking.

I agree with you God is the result of a man persuading people to make him into a figure of authority by creating a 'God' with a divine eternal plan and telling them that this God choose him to lead them 2. Gods are the result of Drugs (Shrooms) 3. They are used to expain the unexplainable before science 4. People where committing suicide and the idea of a God was created to stop the mass suicides of the nihilistic society either one is a viable explanation
 

gromit

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I agree with you God is the result of a man persuading people to make him into a figure of authority by creating a 'God' with a divine eternal plan and telling them that this God choose him to lead them 2. Gods are the result of Drugs (Shrooms) 3. They are used to expain the unexplainable before science 4. People where committing suicide and the idea of a God was created to stop the mass suicides of the nihilistic society either one is a viable explanation

Ah sounds like your mind is actually made up and that you are not actually considering the existence of God as per the OP.

Wish I had known that before I wasted my time posting.
 

OptoGypsy

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Ah sounds like your mind is actually made up and that you are not actually considering the existence of God as per the OP.

Wish I had known that before I wasted my time posting.

Truth is if there was physical evidence for believing in a God I would in a heartbeat
 

Cimarron

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I don't know how others feel about this, but I don't think believing will remove doubt. You will probably have to carry your doubt with you, it's just part of a modern scientific life of knowledge of facts and theories. Belief is about something else...sorry that that's probably not what you want to hear.
 

wildflower

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Truth is if there was physical evidence for believing in a God I would in a heartbeat

there is. jesus walked the earth as not only the Son of God but as a man. he was flesh and blood. he died and then physically rose from the dead. it's a historical event, there were many witnesses to his resurrection & life and people's lives were radically changed. that is why i suggested the book i did as it outlines the physical evidence. do you really think the gregorian calendar system would change for a conspiracy of a few?
 

chubber

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Hi I'm seriously trying to consider the existence of God but it just doesn't seem plausible. What evidence do we have outside of the Bible or any Religious text that a God exists? How did you rationalize the existence of God? Is the only argument you have that a God exists is the leap of faith, is faith your only trump card?

Pretty much yes.
 

Totenkindly

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Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be something you can prove one way or another.

In my experiences God is about listening and being open to love and kindness and growth. A god of small miracles, changes of heart, and of breathtaking beauty... in fellow humans and in the world. In the midst deeply harrowing moments, as well as the sweet and simple ones.

I agree. There's a lot I won't ever know for sure, but I still choose to value certain things because of my life experience and what I see to be beautiful. It's a commitment to beauty, growth, perseverence, love.

there is. jesus walked the earth as not only the Son of God but as a man. he was flesh and blood. he died and then physically rose from the dead. it's a historical event, there were many witnesses to his resurrection & life and people's lives were radically changed. that is why i suggested the book i did as it outlines the physical evidence. do you really think the gregorian calendar system would change for a conspiracy of a few?

We don't have any corroborated witnesses. We have three snippets that claim a resurrection, but anyone can write a story down on paper as part of their holy sect especially if they believe it through word of mouth. It doesn't really pass scrutiny as "historical event" in that sense, there is no tangible history to confer with.

People's lives can be changed as long as they believe something to be true. All the studies of "positive thinking" show this, it doesn't even matter what faith you believe. So you can't attribute it to one particular faith.

If you find this particular religious view to inspire you to be a better person, I think that's great... but the historicity isn't clear. I think we can say the document transmission process is really good (because of how seriously it was taken), but there's still a gap between any events themselves and the written anecdotes. That's enough to leave some people legitimately unsure.

But then you wouldn't be believing in it, because it would be like believing in the milkman. You know they exist.

I don't remember the last time I've seen a milkman, actually.
I think they all went extinct in 1952?

OR MAYBE IT WAS ALL JUST A LIE



(ps. I actually agree with your point. :) )
 

Hive

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Hi I'm seriously trying to consider the existence of God but it just doesn't seem plausible. What evidence do we have outside of the Bible or any Religious text that a God exists? How did you rationalize the existence of God? Is the only argument you have that a God exists is the leap of faith, is faith your only trump card?

For all the non-believers out their what is your opinion on this Guy
Yuriy and Inna | Welcome. Grow in Grace with us.
He is a controversial christian figure in the Christian Russian social groups in the west of the U.S.A [MENTION=20385]Alea_iacta_est[/MENTION] [MENTION=20044]chubber[/MENTION] [MENTION=74]digesthisickness[/MENTION] [MENTION=15318]Evee[/MENTION] [MENTION=6109]Halla74[/MENTION] [MENTION=11809]Hive[/MENTION] [MENTION=16139]Honor[/MENTION] [MENTION=71]JAVO[/MENTION]
Some people find God in times of great stress or deep sorrow. Others were born into a religious environment. Some are genetically predisposed towards spiritual beliefs. I don't think you're gonna find evidence that will make you believe if you're an atheist or a skeptic. Rather, I think the evidence appears when you're already a believer. God becomes the goodness in people, the strength of our determination, the beauty of nature, or whatever else you can ascribe God to. If you're looking for some guy who proved God's existence through controlled experiments in a lab, you won't find anything.

My first impression of that Yuriy dude is that he looks like Oberyn Martell/Pedro Pascal but with a chubbier face.

 

five sounds

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So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

i would never try to convince anyone that God existed, but looking for physical proof is kind of contrary to the idea of spiritual faith. it's in your heart first, and then the physical things go from there. if you're really interested in exploring God, i say spend some time in prayer and meditation, really quieting your mind and seeking God honestly without pretense.
 
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