The Idea of a God Is Not So Crazy

[Casparov]

This barely covers any entries on Godchecker. Try again.

I didn't realize when you asked "What is God?" you were really saying "Pick a God from this list of God's on this specific website," you really should be more specific if you are going to ask a question and then reject any answer that does not appear on some website you have in mind. But okay... I'm game... umm... I choose Indian Mythology, and Brahman.

"According to Hindu thought, the entire universe we perceive and understand is just an infinitely tiny blip in the infinite infinity of infinity. True reality is the underlying soul of the universe, an eternal unchanging Truth upon which all is based. BRAHMAN is impossible to know except by looking inwards to your own soul. When you understand yourself, you understand the universe." - From GodChecker

[Casparov]

If God is supernatural how could He even be known?

It couldn't. If God actually exists, it isn't "supernatural".

And if He is natural wouldn't science have found He exists after 2,000+ years of inquirer? Solitary

Highly unlikely. Considering that compared to billions upon billions of years 2,000 years is almost nothing at all. Just 100 years ago we didn't even know that atoms actually existed. Just 100 years ago the Milky Way was what we thought the entire universe was. Today we can't even explain how consciousness exists. Why should we assume that in 2000 years, less than a blink of an eye in terms of time, we could have already have accurately discovered and described the ultimate reality? highly unlikely.

Let's work on an explanation of consciousness first and work our way up to God.

[leo]

This troll is actually funny.

[josephpalazzo]

You mean, pathetically funny.

[Bicod]

I choose Indian Mythology, and Brahman.

So as a theist you're saying that you believe in Brahman, or are you saying that Brahman is easier to explain than your god? By the way, that explanation of Brahman as a god is still ridiculous. "I understand myself, therefore God is real." You cannot expect anybody to take that seriously.

Highly unlikely. Considering that compared to billions upon billions of years 2,000 years is almost nothing at all. Just 100 years ago we didn't even know that atoms actually existed. Just 100 years ago the Milky Way was what we thought the entire universe was. Today we can't even explain how consciousness exists. Why should we assume that in 2000 years, less than a blink of an eye in terms of time, we could have already have accurately discovered and described the ultimate reality? highly unlikely.

So we haven't discovered god because we haven't had enough time to find evidence of god, therefore god exists?

I never understood this argument from Christians. It follows the same argument that we cannot possibly grasp the idea of a god because it is beyond human capability. Whatever. Has science provided all the answers so far? Of course not. But we learn more and more every day about how the universe works. And there is a lot that we have no idea about, but there's nothing wrong with saying "I don't know". Just because I don't know doesn't mean things can be substituted with "God did it even though I have nothing to back that up with".

Let's work on an explanation of consciousness first and work our way up to God.

Consciousness and gods are independent of each other, unless you are suggesting some sort of subjective reality. Or maybe you're suggesting that humanity cannot make simultaneous discoveries. Regardless, scientists are not and never will look for proof of the existence of gods, they only study how the universe works. If that work proves that a deity is behind it, then fine, but that is the only way your "ultimate reality" will ever come into serious discussion of existence and purpse; through evidence.

Also you don't need to post so many times in a row.

[leo]

You mean, pathetically funny.

I think he is fooling around with us . This troll seems to have fun . You guys are taking him too seriously.

[La Dolce Vita]

Just read the OP, I do not understand how your subject fits with the content of it. You stated that the idea of "God" is not crazy, but offered no arguments to support this at all. You stated that you don't dislike the idea of a god, but what you like and dislike is irrelevant. I don't dislike the idea of idea of pixies, but that has no bearing on whether believing in them is crazy or not. You also said we can't disprove god, sure, but you also can't disprove pixies or flying spaghetti monsters.

So why isn't the idea of "God" (with a big G) crazy?

Note: I do agree with pretty much every single one of your point, including supporting scientific studies looking at the hypothesis. I'd like something to indicate a god exists before we start wasting money on it of course, but if private resources, go right ahead. The only thing I'd probably disagree with is that the concept of god isn't dangerous.

I also do think the concept of a monotheistic god that was not created is rather crazy, but is a mind/being that always existed and then created the universe and interacts with it is rather crazy myself. So I'd like some counter-points. Of course, many scientific concepts that seem likely now appear crazy as well, so you never know. ;)

[Sargon The Grape]

I didn't realize when you asked "What is God?"

I said "what is a god." Granted, I already knew that reading comprehension was not your strong suit a long time ago, but come on, this is 4th-grade level reading at best.

[Feral Atheist]

This troll is actually funny.

Funny like watching a spastic trying to bowl, amusing at first, but pretty soon you really begin to feel sorry for him.

[Berati]

I can understand why people used to believe in a god a long time ago. Hard to fault early man when he had no real alternatives.
Today, I think the idea stems mostly from fear of death and as a mental virus implanted in children that is carried forward by inertia.
So ya, it's pretty much a crazy idea.

I do have some sympathy for those who fear death to the point that they need a crutch to make it through life. But I find it more than just irritating when they want to force someone with a healthy mind to use the crutch as well. It's like forcing a fit person to use a wheelchair.

[SGOS]

I can understand why people used to believe in a god a long time ago. Hard to fault early man when he had no real alternatives.
Today, I think the idea stems mostly from fear of death and as a mental virus implanted in children that is carried forward by inertia.
So ya, it's pretty much a crazy idea.

I do have some sympathy for those who fear death to the point that they need a crutch to make it through life. But I find it more than just irritating when they want to force someone with a healthy mind to use the crutch as well. It's like forcing a fit person to use a wheelchair.

The crutch is kind of a two edged sword/crutch.  It may help alleviate the fear of death, but it can also blow it out of proportion.  When my mother was dying of cancer she was in a ward with a bunch of other terminal patients.  One was a young black woman, who was quiet most of the time.  But doctors would come into the ward, turn patients over, take tests, and monitor the decline of patients.  Whenever they would approach this woman and start to handle her, she would start screaming, "God have mercy!"  That's all she said, and she would repeat it constantly 50 times during the monitoring process.

I don't mean repeating it like a "Hail Mary full of grace" type prayer.  She was screaming it in abject terror, begging her version of god for mercy.  I was a Christian back in those days, and I couldn't help think this terror had something to do with her belief that death might involved an eternity of torment beyond comprehension.  Simply leaving our living state of consciousness behind as we die would not warrant that kind of terror.  Religion may help, but it can also make things worse.

Even if a person's belief in an afterlife does not formally recognize a Hell, their whole belief system is filled with spirits, gods, angels, and apparitions of the Netherworld.  They are not in a very solid position to arbitrarily exclude demons and devils on the grounds they don't want them.  They really can't.  One can never know what evil lurks in the spirit world once such a world is accepted as real.

[St Giordano Bruno]

My take on God!, every "theist", even  the most devoutly religious, is an agnostic at best. They are just not prepared to admit it or are just plain delusional. In the weight of current evidence no one can possibly know there is a God as much as they would like to believe in a God, they simply cannot know. Yes, not even Carl Jung could know there is a God.

[Solitary]

Crazy: 1: mentally disordered 2: wildly impractical. God exist with no evidence accept a book written by sheep herders that spoke to a God or An Angel. Believe that faith without evidence and ignorance is better than science. Right! Solitary.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

The God who is interested in this planet or anybody on it is the one who created a geocentric universe. In other words, the little man who lives in the heads of people who listen to the little man who lives in their head.

[rex]

I like these various groups of words.  They sound really cool.  I like "the ground of all being".  It says so much and it's really clear what that means.  "Ultimate reality" is cool because it describes a state that is more ultimate than a less alternate state of reality, and that helps me understand what a god is.  He's more ultimate than the less ultimate parts of reality, which apparently comes in various degrees of ultimateness.   It's probably a good idea to choose the most ultimate one.

Do you know what word salad is?

God:  An undetectable immaterial fog like neutrality inhabiting the Aether that senses as it permeates the environment.

This is incomplete.  It should read "positive" ground of all being.

But then it's your god.  You can define him as you like, although he lacks the positive quality of my god.

HA HA HA!!!