owdun wrote:As the man said, "There aint no atheists in fox-holes", and I believe thats so. When it gets down to the nitty gritty, you believe.
I was always under the impression too that before every battle, every soldier prayed to HIS God.
I was pronounced 'clinically dead' in 1986 I was jump started again and 18 years on I can still thank someone for those extra 6000+ days, whoever you are.
Spanner, it can't be that hard to find the name of your doc...??
I'm sorry, but I cannot believe there is some kind of unseen supernatural being that controls everything we say or do. The start of the world is still unexplained...I find it very hard to accept the 'big bang,' but I find it harder to accept that some invisible mind just thought one day, "eff it, let's start a new world."
Without going into depth, I can see how religion helps people, especially in poorer corners of the globe...notice how it's developed countries where faith is dwindling, whereas in undeveloped regions everyone believes in some religion or another?? It keeps people going, it gives them hope, and for that I believe it is a good thing. It also conveniently explains unexplainable phenomena. It is a necessary cog in the modern working of the planet, and yet also causes so much grief. Like women, you can't live with it and you can't live without it. Can you imagine the chaos that would ensue should you prove to the middle east irrevocably that no God exists?? Do you think peace would come as different religious factions would no longer have anything to fight for?? Or do you think it would cause more strife as people refuse to believe what is put before them on a plate (it's hardly unknown, is it??).
You could go on for hours about this, in fact, centuries, and never come to an agreement. It's already been done. Without religion, we'd probably wipe ourselves out as we would have no clear purpose (after all, according to all early documentation, every civilisation we know of has only strived to meet the goals set before it by some 'god' or other). With it, we're still doing a pretty good job of wiping ourselves out.
I always remember Dave Allens parting words at the end of every show he did:
"Goodnight and may your God go with you"
I've never forgot that and I suppose everyone has their own God. Would not class myself as a Christian or a member of any other religous grouping.
God is what you want him to be is what I am trying to say. For the life of me I cannot understand how intelligent people can believe everything that is written in the Bible. Sorry if this offends true Christians or indeed anybody but thats me and has been for a long time now.
I don't think the existence of god or the 'meaning of life' is something that human beings will ever understand. Whatever happened, something had to initially create everything, either that or it has always existed, both concepts that can't really be explained or understood by people (at least not me anyway).
At the point of dying, everything probably either becomes clear, or you simply cease to exist completely, or maybe you just start all over again as a mosquito or something. There is obviously something about existence people dont understand, but personally i dont think there is much literal truth in religion relating to creation, ie God creating the world in seven days etc, but i do think religion is a positive thing for people to live their lives by.
Hopefully i have managed to give my opinion without answering the question!
arameis mate, the very point of life is that god gave you freedom of choice in my eyes. I do not attend church, as I believe that the church has been although not so much now a days, been exploiting the word of our lord, how other way could one of the smallest nations on our Earth be the one of the richest?
As for the big bang theory, when in your whole life has 2 nothings or a thousand nothings ever added up to being something, that theory I will never believe, it comes from the same people who said going faster than the speed of light was impossible then were disproven years later.
Even if a heaven should not exist, then religon should still be followed as it if nothing more it is a excellent set of rules to live your life by, especially if you are a soldier.
If a man has nothing he is willing to die for then he isn't fit to live.
God gave us freedom of choice?? Surely we did that ourselves (in an odd kind of twisted, not quite free, way)?? Or do you mean that God gave us the freedom of choice by making us the most intelligent beings on the planet?? But surely every other animal makes choices and decisions, sure on a more basic level, and driven by more basic needs, not governed by ridiculous laws that we choose to impose on our own people, but still choices.
By the way, I agree with you on the church, more corrupt in the past than any government today. I also agree with you that the big bang theory sounds ridiculous. As I say above, religion has the handy trait of being able to explain the unexplainable. So if I came up with a new far-fetched theory of how the world started, I'd be half way to starting a new religion.
I also agree with what you say as to religion being a good set of rules to live by, as I said in my previous post it also gives people a reason to live etc etc. However, I seem to do a pretty good job living by my morals rather than a set of rules written down in a book that, should it be written today, would be a best-selling fiction novel rather than the basis of a third of the world's population's lives.
I think Veloman gets my vote here, Zen sounds just about right for me.
You are what you are and if your left to that it would suit me.
Anyway there are more wars caused and being fought over so called religion than anything else. So if the bible preachs love your brother how come all of the bible lands are kicking the crap out of each other.
Dolly
PS Scottish thistle ---Goldilocks and the three bears were real - so that is something you can believe in, ask any bootneck!
it comes from the same people who said going faster than the speed of light was impossible then were disproven years later.
Where and when did this happen, I was still under the impression that star trek isnt real , for you to accelerate to the speed of light you either
A)have to be a photon which are very small (technically they dont have a mass)and there energy is even smaller therefore using them in some way to travel the speed of light is impossible at this moment in time or
B) you would need an infinite amount of energy and therefore mass as the two are the same according to relativity and as we have neither how does that work?
If your right could you point me in the direction so that I can read up on this as physics is a minor interest that I have. And if your right Im going to be annoyed at myself for not having read more.
I believe in God, I dont believe in organised Religion.
I believe God put us here to crack on with it and make our own fate.
I wont look to him for reasons, salvation or to bad mouth when the crap hits the fan.
If God exsists and drafted me to earth 29 years ago then I guess the next time we need to have words is when I stand before him at the end of the draft and put my request in for my next unit.
God isnt accountable for my actions or for the actions of the rest of us.
But religion is accountable for so many bad things, too numerous to mention, and all in the "name" of God?
"on the 7th day God looked down and wrote in his Making the Perfect World memoirs
"ok next time no religion or making women so hard to understand and Ive got it cracked!"
Why is the big bang theory so hard to believe, if you can believe that some "all powerful being" created the earth in 7 days made a woman out of a mans rib, had a talking snake and an apple that brought enlightenment, why is a theory of physics, that can be explained so hard to believe...
I like some of the bible stories, they're a good read, and have some important messages in them for everyone, but when I die I don’t believe ill be in front of "my maker" ill be worm food just like everyone else...
A world without religion would be a better world in my view...
lew
All I want in life is a cold beer, a fast car, a big F**King gun and a hot woman to fetch the beer, and clean the car! is that really to much to ask? - Quotes by a redneck.com
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A world without religion would be a better world in my view...
Although I don't strictly follow any religion, I know many people who say that a firm belief in God has been very rewarding and made them better people. As pointed out earliar, religion also gives people who litterally have nothing a hope that things will get better and that there is somebody out there trying to help them. This cannot be bad can it?
Wars over religion, I believe are not really fueled by a belief in God. I personally believe that these wars are over power (does Osama really want to destroy Christianity or destroy the control the western powers have over the rest of the world?) and that religion is used to manipulate the average person into thinking that these people fighting on a religious front are fighting for them.
I have to disagree over a world without religion being better, religion has influenced the way our world's grown up, you wouldn't recognise the world we live in without it. Maybe it hasn't always influeneced it for the better but think about some of our most long standing & basic laws, the worst crime for our society is really murder, Thou Shalt Not Kill ring any bells? I agree with Doc, people are accountable for their own actions, oterwise the theory of being judged for heaven would be pointless.
Artist.
Once again your jogging my memory.
Dave Allen,he of the missing little finger,sat on a bar stool with a glass of Irish whiskey and gave his monologue at the end of his show.
As he said"May your God go with you"Amen.
Wholley.
I suppose I do believe in god, but I don't go to church or pray.
I believe that jesus was alive and all of that stuff. But I don't believe in all that rubbish about god making the world in 7 days.. .
, for you to accelerate to the speed of light you either 
