Have you lost your faith? Why?

originally posted by: Meee32
a reply to: rockpaperhammock

Why would I need to be around death? What does it have to do with anything? I am well aware of death XD

Do I study the brain? Not partuicularly intensely study it, but again I am aware of it and read bits about it from time to time, amazing yes, magical no... The brain HAS been studied and continues to be and much is known about it these days, so if you want to learn about how it works you can do that, because there is evidence and studies... Not so much for god and sprituality...

I never said the brain works with god or spiritually...i just said there is something else..i think more with quantum physics actually. You have the double slit experiment, the other experiment where two atoms spin in opposite directions no matter how far apart they are. That says there is some cool # out there we dont know about....unless of course you are you who seems to know everything.

You have been condescending the entire thread. Piss off

a reply to: rockpaperhammock

Lmao, well those words really hurt me XD

Not sure if you are aware but I am able to come into any thread I wish and voice my opinion... If you don't like it, just don't read it... Seems simple enough to me.

originally posted by: rockpaperhammock
Im probably the least religious person on this site...just to add.

That is the path to REAL truth...

Religion and truth are complete opposites.

The root meaning for 'religion' means to "reconnect with God" (from the original Latin).

The agenda behind false religion is to keep you disconnected from God.

“Religion, from religare, signifies to tie or bind, because by true religion the soul is tied or bound, as it were, to God and His service.”

Museum of Antiquity A Description of Ancient Life

originally posted by: SoEpic
I have totally lost my faith.

The more I learn the more I hate what the world is and what it's about.
Too many wars.
Too much greed.
Evil seems to be rewarded
The poor are made poorer and the rich massively richer( I am well paid, have an expensive house so it's not me being jealous)
Corporations are run at the expense of staff- benefits keep reducing, jobs off shored etc.
People don't help each other like they used to.

It's a sad place now and will only get worse.....

Don't loose the faith. Here is a short story.
This guy he is borne a prince, he spend most of his lifetime at the moment in the palace. One day he decide to go to the town (he thinks that if one day he will govern those people , he wants to know their needs). He put on some cheap clothes and went alone to the town.
He start to see how "his" people lived and he was in shock, he saw so much necessity, so much poverty that it was almost a blasphemy to think in the luxuries he has in the palace. Then an old lady with a kid recognize him, the lady has a basket with 2 fruits, she then took 1 fruit and gave it to him (the lady was smiling in happiness) as an sign of respect. He refuses but the lady said to him that nothing will make her happier than him accepting the fruit.
He went back to the palace thinking which of the 2 did not eat that day, the old lady or the kid. But thinking on how the act of giving what she lacked at that moment, make her happy. What is the source of happiness? He has everything, He though he was happy, but this experience make him think twice.

He then leaves everything abandon the palace and embark on a personal trip to find the source of happiness. So many years pass before he finds and on one day enlightment came to him, he finally find it. The secret to happiness is in doing whatever you want, helping the others without waiting anything back, giving what you don't have.

Lesson:
Give what you don't have. If you lose faith, then give faith. And yours will be greatly increase. If you lose hope, give hope.
Giving what we don't have increase the lack of that specific item.

originally posted by: rockpaperhammock

originally posted by: Meee32
a reply to: rockpaperhammock

Why would I need to be around death? What does it have to do with anything? I am well aware of death XD

Do I study the brain? Not partuicularly intensely study it, but again I am aware of it and read bits about it from time to time, amazing yes, magical no... The brain HAS been studied and continues to be and much is known about it these days, so if you want to learn about how it works you can do that, because there is evidence and studies... Not so much for god and sprituality...

I never said the brain works with god or spiritually...i just said there is something else..i think more with quantum physics actually. You have the double slit experiment, the other experiment where two atoms spin in opposite directions no matter how far apart they are. That says there is some cool # out there we dont know about....unless of course you are you who seems to know everything.

You have been condescending the entire thread. Piss off

I didn't say you DID, did I? lmao... I was merely pointing out there IS evidence for the brain... While there is no evidence for god and or spirituality... I am not saying you think the 2 are combined...

Of course there are things we don't know yet, but so what? It doesn't mean there is something magical about it, simply means we don't know yet... There are lots of things we didn't know before that we know now...

And sorry but I really don't think it is your place to tell me where I should and shouldn't be, thanks anyway

a reply to: Murgatroid

Religion makes logical sense ...I mean back in the day you had to explain something...so it was easy to explain it with religion. Then as science took over religion changed. Even now arguing with people that follow the bible. If you point out something goofy in the old testament they scream and shout how it wasn't the words of jesus....so they pick and choose whatever they want that helps their religion live. Even the current pope, who I think is pretty cool, has completely changed everything...he says stuff that has gone against much of Catholicism.

a reply to: Meee32

Ok enough of the bantering mate...

The difference between us i think is that im really excited about the fact we dont know much as a species about things like quantum physics. Don't you ever get excited about the unknown? or are you ok with just going with flow? There is no wrong answer of course but man I find life boring after everything ive been through. Survived 2 wars upon much other # and now very little excites me...but science...that science that is on the edge pushing the limits. Its about all I got to interest me any more.

originally posted by: rockpaperhammock
a reply to: Meee32

Ok enough of the bantering mate...

The difference between us i think is that im really excited about the fact we dont know much as a species about things like quantum physics. Don't you ever get excited about the unknown? or are you ok with just going with flow? There is no wrong answer of course but man I find life boring after everything ive been through. Survived 2 wars upon much other # and now very little excites me...but science...that science that is on the edge pushing the limits. Its about all I got to interest me any more.

Well of course I do! XD I love science and I love learning about quantum physics too, it is truly amazing and mind boggling, I just don't associate it with god or something mystical that's all... But it is a great mystery and whenever there are threads relating to these subjects I always read them and I visit science daily a lot too, has some great articles there. I look forward to when the answers to the questions are found.

Not sure the parts of my posts that led you to the conclusion I don't get excited about it all, I do very much so.

a reply to: Meee32

haha well all right then mate ....i think i confused the word magical...i meant magical as really cool where you saw it saw literally as i was saying its magic...i believe science will answer most our questions...and wish we spent more money on it then much of what we do.

as for a god though...i can't say 100% there isn't one....god meaning some kind of higher being...the one thing that always bothers me is no matter how far back you go...even to the big bang...what created the atoms in the big bang...no matter how hard you try something had to make the initial stuff...drives me sick because I cant solve it. So its either a god/supreme society or something we still havent figured out yet with science.

but then even if there is a god...what created the god! Its possible our brains are not good enough to solve it...like an ant can't do algerbra.

a reply to: olaru12

I "lost my faith" (let go of religion and the idea of a creator) about 30 years ago. I just realized, over a period of years, that what I had been taught all my life made NO logical sense at all. I also thought about the first people on this planet who started to think about where we came from, why we're here and what happens when we die. What is the sun? Why does it rain? It makes perfect sense that they would create a religion of sorts to make sense out of what they didn't know. It makes sense to me that people looked to the "gods" to explain nature. Sun gods, moon gods, war gods, love goddesses...

Eventually, the powerful created the main religions as a means of societal control and it's still going on to this day.

To live without religion or the idea of a God is very disconcerting at first. Especially after having it drilled into my head for 20 years. But after a few years, it's the ONLY way to go, IMO. I take full credit for everything I make happen (instead of giving it to "God") and I also take responsibility instead of blaming Satan. What I do is TOTALLY on me.

I am a MUCH better person since I gave it all up. Not because I hope for a reward someday, but because it's the right thing to do. I believe man created God instead of the other way around. The Christian God seems to have many negative aspects that sound more like a human being than a deity.

Is there more to our existence than we experience with our 5 senses? I'm not sure, but I think so. I'm not going to attribute the unknown to a big man in the sky, though... just because we don't know. There's no more reason to believe that than there is to believe in Santa Claus, IMO.

a reply to: rockpaperhammock

Okay yeah possibly lol... And I agree with the above, I can't say 100% there is no god or something else out there, but there just isn't any evidence for it so really no point in having "faith" (getting back to the thread topic XD) that there is one.

But yes these same questions I ponder often too, I mean I look at all the theories and some of them are really mind bending and I love it... Like the theory that we are just a simulation etc, so then if we are what is the "real" universe like XD And where did that come from and you're right no matter the question like this we just can't answer it yet at least... Not sure if we ever will to be honest.

I was brought up catholic too and I also studied with jehovas witnesses when I was 18 and their answer to who made god is "he always was and always will be"... Just seems like a bit of a silly answer, and I can then say, the universe always was and always will be XD

But they are great topics for discussion and it's great we have this place to have them with people with all sorts of views and opinions.

Faith though... Bleh... Just useless in my opinion. What is your opinion on faith? Is it good? Something needed? Can you "lose it"?

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

Just wanted to say... Great great post and I agree 100% with everything you said there! It does lead to a personal responsibilty and a feeling of personal worth when you realise that it is you doing the things you do and you are the one that is worthy of the praise for doing it!

So the biggest big up from me to you!


(ps. glad you got out of the mind control too... pssst believe it or not I used to thump the odd bible here or there XD)

a reply to: rockpaperhammock

Part of the problem with arguing the Bible is that everyone who does that is pretty much taking the part of the Pharisees who brought the woman before Christ. They all of them knew perfectly well that she was guilty of the charge and deserved the punishment of stoning under the law. If the Pharisees had been solely interested in righteousness and their duty in God's eyes to following God's word and God's laws, they would simply have carried out the punishment and stoned the woman. As I said, they all of them knew she was guilty of the charge and that she had earned the punishment.

However, it was more important to them that they try to use the law and situation to catch Christ out in a mistake, much like so many these days try to do with scripture, picking and choosing bits out of context and trying to pin their points on them. Christ saw them coming with that a mile away, and it was for this reason He shamed them, not because they were going to stone the woman.

So, when we all argue scripture without taking it fully into account, are we any better than a pack of screaming Pharisees in His eyes?

a reply to: Meee32

Faith is awful...in college , many years ago, I went to a debate on religion vs atheism...to my horror I was the only atheist in the debate...and it was set up by the local church which I ignorantly missed. So I went for argued my point...I actually knew the bible well and most were followers of the bible in one way or another. I felt I was defending my view well when someone said something like this "son you just have to have faith". I knew I won...at least in my mind...when they threw out #ing faith as the definitive argument against all logic.

bible humpers of any religion have caused more deaths over the years than anything I can come up with...most wars have a religious side to them...of course there is resources, self defense, economic gain etc...but religion is always there..

When I was playing in middle east I was in a part where there just wasnt much going on....desert surrounded by all sides. i watched 3 kids kick a plastic bottle through my scope for about 5 or 6 kilometers. I thought man...there is just nothing for these kids to do over there. It makes sense they join terrorist groups or become fanatically religious...it is all some of them have!

But ya we are on the same page with "faith"...it is an easy way out for the religious nuts when they are losing an argument.

Oh, and no, I haven't lost my faith. I see God coming, and that scares the crap out me for all our sakes.

a reply to: ketsuko

Well...I think it is 2 Kings 2 like 22-23... hell i just find it...23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, some boys came out of the town and jeered at him. “Get out of here, baldy!” they said. “Get out of here, baldy!” 24 He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. 25 And he went on to Mount Carmel and from there returned to Samaria.

I love this verse cause...its so #ing ridiculous haha...There isn't a thing you can say to make me believe this is ok...this verse is god awful...literally...and to me shows how stupid the bible is....I can probably put in about a dozen more that are just as wacky.

The bible is great moral philosophy in some parts...great stories in others...then pure bunk in other parts. Its a mash of ideas. It is in no way perfect...and if it came from god then id expect it to be perfect.

I have totally lost my faith- in organized religion. My faith in a Creator will never waver, though!

The Bible, among other records, give us clues as to how our existence is SUPPOSED to work, but we want to pick and choose which 'rules' to follow.

Jesus supposedly issued in the period of 'Grace'. God had tried everything to get man to walk the right path, to no avail, so he gave us Jesus' teachings as a final last-ditch effort. "Here's the way; follow it or not. Your choice. I'll butt out now. You're on your own, but I''ll be back someday to collect those who are willing to the right path."

God does not interfere. We create our own existence. He will not 'smite' our enemies, heal the sick or raise the dead. Jesus said we ALL have the exact same power that he had. We have that power; it was ceded to us to use for the betterment of mankind. It can also be used for great destruction, I imagine.

I blame God for nothing. He's on hiatus right now, if you believe what is written.

That's the way I see it.

originally posted by: SoEpic
I have totally lost my faith.

The more I learn the more I hate what the world is and what it's about.
Too many wars.
Too much greed.
Evil seems to be rewarded
The poor are made poorer and the rich massively richer( I am well paid, have an expensive house so it's not me being jealous)
Corporations are run at the expense of staff- benefits keep reducing, jobs off shored etc.
People don't help each other like they used to.

It's a sad place now and will only get worse.....

"Envy not the evildoers, for the meek shall inherit the Earth."

I see the same things you do, but it has the opposite effect on me. My faith grows stronger every day.

a reply to: rockpaperhammock

haha I can imagine that was some experience! (being the only atheist in a debate)... Full props to ya for sticking it to em and yes you got it, faith is their trump card/get out clause! It's a bit like the black card... I remember I was working in this factory and there was this huge black dude working there, lovely guy and I got on with him well, but he was just so slow!!! He really was with everything he did, so chilled and relaxed to the point he had nearly stopped! XD

I mean that's great and all to be just that damn cool but probably not the best material for a working environment. We were there from a work agency and a lot of us including myself ended up getting full time work, unsurprisingly he didn't. We were on the bus home one day after we were told who was staying on and getting a full time job and he pulled out the black card, I just had to laugh cos it so wasn't! There were other black people working there! lmao

As for war man... You probably don't wanna hear my opinion there XD

But I'll give it anyway lol... Well, I am all for self defence, totally, if my country was invaded or something I would defo fight wherever and however I could... But I would never be on the offensive, especially not how they do it. As in fly over with planes and dropping bombs etc... So many innocent lives lost... I know it's a difficult thing and it's really hard to fathom who started it!

Like I mean the US and UK where hit with suicide bombers, but why? Maybe it is because we have done stuff to them BEFORE they did that, if you get me... It just seems like a never ending circle of death and violence. How can we break the cycle, I dunno...

As you say I do think religion is somewhat to blame, they have been in many wars in the past, but what about gvernments today? I think they now take the lead in this regard! And I think you could even say that government is LIKE a religion and the "leaders" are like the religious leaders in the past.

I don't agree with joining the military in this day and age under these conditions... But it is hard because you have a feeling of wanting to protect the people closest to you...

But then hey, I fall into the anarchist "box" XD

originally posted by: rockpaperhammock
Religion makes logical sense ...

In any search for truth, logic will ultimately lead to a dead end.