A Quick Guide To Understanding Consciousness And Belief

Consciousness is the necessity of understanding self. It is born of need

We can't survive on passive energy input like plants do, we require active input

So the brain gives us 'need'. "I NEED"

For it to be able to deliver 'I NEED' for the purposes of food, water and other bodily maintenance, we are given a sense of self

I AM … THEY WHO NEEDS

It's no more mysterious than a mobile phone identifying that its battery is getting low and needs to be charged

The difference is that our 'NEED' is tied into a complex system which allows us to identify, seek and consume what we need, as needed

To satisfy need

Everything else is a by-product of this

Emotional responses are the product of a system which promotes satisfactory stasis of need

If you are living within a optimal environment, emotional systems are sated by the fulfillment of need

Though, in "1st World" societies, the line between NEED and WANT has become blurred, with need being easily provided for

Meaning that our emotional (sense of) selves become entangled within WANT, as if it were NEED

This arises as a by-product of a under-active emotional system, within optimal stasis, where a successful place within sociological equilibrium brings forth a question of 'higher purpose' from the systems of the brain put into lower function

'What is the purpose of what I am doing?' becomes part of the question 'What is the meaning of life?'

If I exist only to fulfill need? Living to work, and working to live? Then what is my purpose?

A lot of the confusion people feel in their purpose in this world arises from not properly understanding the physical consciousness

It is the first step towards truly understanding (or knowing) self

This confusion, or feeling of hopelessness, is the system of 'need for self' recycling on itself within the brain

Searching for purpose which promotes it back into it's higher function

This is where the systems which sustain life, either promote intellectual complexity and growth, or become a weapon against themselves

Analytical deduction of self and Intelligence arise from this

Contrary to popular belief, humans deduce very well

We just do it at a sub-conscious level, because society has taught us to simply accept allot of things within the construct of our environment

We take things as given, or believe that things are supposed to be a certain way without questioning them, because that is how things have always been

This is 'Logical Deduction'

And it is conditioned and pre-programmed into us from birth within the parameters of society

The problem with this, is that we then overlook so many things

We fail to see things around us such as beauty, love, pain and hatred

Things we should see

Problems and pain, we cause without realising

This is where belief systems come in. Where some need them and some do not

The programming of logical deduction within (emotional) recursive need patterns within the brain by things such as belief, can assist with intellectual complexity and (emotional) growth. But it can also poison our sub-conscious deductive patterns. Logical deductive patterns of things we (should) know instinctively, can be overwritten by those specified to us within algorithms of things such as written texts

Something often corrupted, mistranslated, or poorly understood, can often lead the mind to corruption, misinterpretation, or poor understanding

The reason that many falsely believe that our species doesn't 'deduce' things very well, is because we have 'tuned out' deduction on many thing, so we don't have to think as much

And the questions don't hurt as much

Switching our brains off in this fashion is part of the reason we are seeing the human race slowly using less and less of their brain

And why so many look to the things they have lost

Thought they do not know what it is they have lost

Belief is to know without proof
Truth is the proof of knowing

Belief and Truth are by definition incompatible, but they are relative

“The only certainty in life is death
Everything else is open to debate
Personal belief, is not the same as knowing”

The important aspect that is most commonly missed within all measures of 'belief' is that it needs to come with it's equal measure of humility

The open-minded understanding that, thought you may be right, you may also be equally as wrong

In all things uncertain, you are just as likely to be right, as you are to be wrong

Believe, but recognise the flavour of your virtues, amongst many others

Spit not of another wine, if it is not to your taste

Righteousness is not the limitation within belief, it is the culmination of understanding …

Which led to belief

We learned within coming to believe, no different than anything else taught

And there is always more to be learned, by those with ears to hear and eyes to see

No true wisdom is incompatible, only the fruit it bares within us

Remember that to define by belief, may also be to restrict by it

There is no Divinity in segregation

There is no Freedom within sanctioning

There is no Honour within censorship

There is no Love within a lie

And there is no beauty within a conditional truth

Truth is unconditional, or it is deception

To this end, you, as self, are the only knowable truth. Everything beyond this is merely possibility. It is important to remember this

The mind is not made to be understood

Merely admired

Appreciated

Loved

All you do is in this world is a measure of how willing you are to understand your faults and appreciate them within others

The reflection of who you are, who you wish to be, and wish never to be

When we choose to only love others at their best, we find it more difficult to appreciate and love ourselves at our worst

Choose to try love others at their worst, and from this it is easy to appreciate and love yourself, as this is you at your best

You need not try be perfect

Only ever be a little better than you were yesterday

Within this you will find a sense of fulfilment, and through it purpose

It is not about finding the meaning of life, but meaning within life

It is best to spend less time considering why you are here, and more time appreciating being here, to be able to consider it

Less time worrying about death, and more time enjoying the life which comes first

You need not worry about what happens when you die, as the dead worry about nothing

If there is nothing? Then there will be nothing to trouble you

If there is more? Then will there be more to bring you troubles?

Would you spend the next life worrying about more, if you come to know more?

Trouble yourself not with the unknown, when so much here needs your attention

Our soul needed no help in coming to be in this world

Nor will it need help to exit

And go where it needs. As it should. As it knows to

Be happy in the parts of you, you leave behind. In what and who you gave this world

Do not be sad in the autumn of your life season. Your time here is but a leaf on your tree, which falls so another can rise

A day ends, so that another can be known

Do not seek to live forever

As it is only with the threat of death, that life has meaning

It is fleeting, and therefore it is precious

As the beauty of a rose, is within it's picking

We hold its beauty close and breathe it in it's final moments

As the love it gives us in death, is as pure as any we'll ever know

To live forever, would be to have never lived at all

Bleed in this world to know life, and live like you're already dead

Remember that you need not believe in where you'll end up, to go there all the same, and that to worry about death, is actually to understand that you are alive

You need not fear all that is dark, because it is only with darkness, that we know light

See yourself, as you look upon yourself, looking within to find yourself

It is within the viewing, that we understand why it is we look

What meaning you take from that which is viewed, is yours to choose

As is the beauty of knowing you are alive, without knowing how you live

Be kind to each other

Give love when you can, no matter what

Take a moment, when you are late

Take some time, when you can't afford it

Appreciate the things you notice, that nobody else sees

Love when you feel like crying, and cry when you are in love

Nothing else matters, when compared to those special moments we miss in our rush to the future, through life

Remember that in years to come it will be all the things you didn't do that you will regret more than then things you did. Or those you may have done wrong

All that you feel, is all that is real

And who you are is the only thing that you will ever possibly know as true in this world

Don't let anyone take that from you

No matter what

Blood is precious. Love it as it loves you
And give all you possibly can, to the body which gave you everything
 
Beauty may sometimes seems dead to your eyes
If none have eyes to notice it
Remember that an empty heart has most often bled the most
And are those who need love the most

Everything closes off to pain
It is how we protect ourselves
But don't forsake that which is trapped inside
Don't carry with you for lifetime
Pain released in a minute worth of tears

It takes a minute to feel broken
And a lifetime more to shine

Hold the broken heart most precious
If it loves you none-the-less

And remember that sometimes
Love need not be felt
In order to be given

Love that which you hate
Do not hate that which you love
Cause no pain

Love that which hates you
Do not hate that which loves you
Accept no pain

See yourself at your best in those around you

See yourself at your worst in those around you

Try not to take the joy, love, experience or life from others, as you would not take it from yourself

As you may in time find, that the very person you took from, was yourself

It is as simple as …

Love others
Love yourself
Love our world

Your words have similar essense as Ecclesiastes in the Torah which is one of my most loved scriptures.

Thank You.

Is death so certain?

I think we choose it at some level.

Has any tasted of death and returned to talk about it with authority?

a reply to: BrotherKinsMan

Death is certain

Without it, life would hold no value

What lays beyond death, is uncertain

To know we are alive, is the only definitive truth we will ever know
To know what lays beyond death, is the only definitive unknown

The Egyptians understood this very well

They used to the same word for the God "Ra", which means "Mind" and the "Sun"

Because they understood that the sun in the sky, was one in the same as their mind

As such, they had no word for "death". Because they knew that the setting of the sun had to take place, for the sun to rise again

The same as they knew life needed to end, in order for new life to begin

They referred to death as "Westing", as they understood that the rising and setting of the sun, was no different to the passing of a life into and from this world

It is a cycle. Nothing more

The word for this in the New Testament is "Christ"

"Christ" means "Cycle"

This is why so many people are awaiting "the return" of the "Cycle/Christ"

It is also why they fear the "Anti-cycle / Anti-christ", which needs come before their cycle/Christ returns

Because they understand instinctively, that all cycles of light must be followed by a period of darkness. Like day and night

That any pulse of positive pressure, must give way to a return of negative pressure. Or the creation will cease

They do not want to let go of the safety of light. Like children that are afraid of the dark. Even though they have no need to be

When you glance in a mirror, you may think of how you looked when you were younger, even comparing that with what your appearance could be in the years to come or how you would look after applying cosmetics. These thoughts can arise almost unconsciously, yet something very special is occurring, something that no animal can experience.

Unlike animals, who mainly live and act on present needs, humans can contemplate the past and plan for the future. A key to your doing that is the brain’s almost limitless memory capacity. True, animals have a degree of memory, and thus they can find their way back home or recall where food may be. Human memory is far greater. One scientist estimated that our brain can hold information that “would fill some twenty million volumes, as many as in the world’s largest libraries.” Some neuroscientists estimate that during an average life span, a person uses only 1/100 of 1 percent (.0001) of his potential brain capacity. You might well ask, ‘Why do we have a brain with so much capacity that we hardly test a fraction of it in a normal lifetime?’

Nor is our brain just some vast storage place for information, like a supercomputer. Biology professors Robert Ornstein and Richard F. Thompson wrote: “The ability of the human mind to learn—to store and recall information—is the most remarkable phenomenon in the biological universe. Everything that makes us human—language, thought, knowledge, culture—is the result of this extraordinary capability.”

Moreover, you have a conscious mind. That statement may seem basic, but it sums up something that unquestionably makes you exceptional. The mind has been described as “the elusive entity where intelligence, decision making, perception, awareness and sense of self reside.” As creeks, streams, and rivers feed into a sea, so memories, thoughts, images, sounds, and feelings flow constantly into or through our mind. Consciousness, says one definition, is “the perception of what passes in a man’s own mind.”

Modern researchers have made great strides in understanding the physical makeup of the brain and some of the electrochemical processes that occur in it. They can also explain the circuitry and functioning of an advanced computer. However, there is a vast difference between brain and computer. With your brain you are conscious and are aware of your being, but a computer certainly is not. Why the difference?

Frankly, how and why consciousness arises from physical processes in our brain is a mystery. “I don’t see how any science can explain that,” one neurobiologist commented. Also, Professor James Trefil observed: “What, exactly, it means for a human being to be conscious . . . is the only major question in the sciences that we don’t even know how to ask.” One reason why is that scientists are using the brain to try to understand the brain. And just studying the physiology of the brain may not be enough. Consciousness is “one of the most profound mysteries of existence,” observed Dr. David Chalmers, “but knowledge of the brain alone may not get [scientists] to the bottom of it.”

Nonetheless, each of us experiences consciousness. For example, our vivid memories of past events are not mere stored facts, like computer bits of information. We can reflect on our experiences, draw lessons from them, and use them to shape our future. We are able to consider several future scenarios and evaluate the possible effects of each. We have the capacity to analyze, create, appreciate, and love. We can enjoy pleasant conversations about the past, present, and future. We have ethical values about behavior and can use them in making decisions that may or may not be of immediate benefit. We are attracted to beauty in art and morals. In our mind we can mold and refine our ideas and guess how other people will react if we carry these out.

Such factors produce an awareness that sets humans apart from other life-forms on earth. A dog, a cat, or a bird looks in a mirror and responds as if seeing another of its kind. But when you look in a mirror, you are conscious of yourself as a being with the capacities just mentioned. You can reflect on dilemmas, such as: ‘Why do some turtles live 150 years and some trees live over 1,000 years, but an intelligent human makes the news if he reaches 100?’ Dr. Richard Restak states: “The human brain, and the human brain alone, has the capacity to step back, survey its own operation, and thus achieve some degree of transcendence. Indeed, our capacity for rewriting our own script and redefining ourselves in the world is what distinguishes us from all other creatures in the world.”

Man’s consciousness baffles some. The book Life Ascending, while favoring a mere biological explanation, admits: “When we ask how a process [evolution] that resembles a game of chance, with dreadful penalties for the losers, could have generated such qualities as love of beauty and truth, compassion, freedom, and, above all, the expansiveness of the human spirit, we are perplexed. The more we ponder our spiritual resources, the more our wonder deepens.” Very true. Thus, we might round out our view of human uniqueness by a few evidences of our consciousness that illustrate why many are convinced that there must be an intelligent Designer, a Creator, who cares for us.

Art and Beauty

“Why do people pursue art so passionately?” asked Professor Michael Leyton in Symmetry, Causality, Mind. As he pointed out, some might say that mental activity such as mathematics confers clear benefits to humans, but why art? Leyton illustrated his point by saying that people travel great distances to art exhibits and concerts. What inner sense is involved? Similarly, people around the globe put attractive pictures or paintings on the walls of their home or office. Or consider music. Most people like to listen to some style of music at home and in their cars. Why? It certainly is not because music once contributed to the survival of the fittest. Says Leyton: “Art is perhaps the most inexplicable phenomenon of the human species.”

Still, we all know that enjoying art and beauty is part of what makes us feel “human.” An animal might sit on a hill and look at a colorful sky, but is it drawn to beauty as such? We look at a mountain torrent shimmering in the sunshine, stare at the dazzling diversity in a tropical rain forest, gaze at a palm-lined beach, or admire the stars sprinkled across the black velvety sky. Often we feel awed, do we not? Beauty of that sort makes our hearts glow, our spirits soar. Why?

Why do we have an innate craving for things that, in reality, contribute little materially to our survival? From where do our aesthetic values come? If we do not take into account a Maker who shaped these values at man’s creation, these questions lack satisfying answers. This is also true regarding beauty in morals.

Moral Values

[see next comment]

Moral Values

Many recognize the highest form of beauty to be fine deeds. For instance, being loyal to principles in the face of persecution, acting unselfishly to relieve others’ suffering, and forgiving someone who hurt us are actions that appeal to the moral sense of thinking people everywhere. This is the kind of beauty mentioned in the ancient Biblical proverb: “The insight of a man certainly slows down his anger, and it is beauty on his part to pass over transgression.” Or as another proverb observes: “The desirable thing in earthling man is his loving-kindness.”—Proverbs 19:11, 22.

We all know that some people, and even groups, ignore or trample on elevated morals, but the majority do not. From what source do the moral values found in virtually all areas and in all periods come? If there is no Source of morality, no Creator, did right and wrong simply originate with people, human society? Consider an example: Most individuals and groups hold murder to be wrong. But one could ask, ‘Wrong in comparison to what?’ Obviously there is some sense of morality that underlies human society in general and that has been incorporated into the laws of many lands. What is the source of this standard of morality? Could it not be an intelligent Creator who has moral values and who placed the faculty of conscience, or ethical sense, in humans?—Compare Romans 2:14, 15.

You Can Contemplate the Future and Plan for It

Another facet of human consciousness is our ability to consider the future. When asked whether humans have traits that distinguish them from animals, Professor Richard Dawkins acknowledged that man has, indeed, unique qualities. After mentioning “the ability to plan ahead using conscious, imagined foresight,” Dawkins added: “Short-term benefit has always been the only thing that counts in evolution; long-term benefit has never counted. It has never been possible for something to evolve in spite of being bad for the immediate short-term good of the individual. For the first time ever, it’s possible for at least some people to say, ‘Forget about the fact that you can make a short-term profit by chopping down this forest; what about the long-term benefit?’ Now I think that’s genuinely new and unique.”

Other researchers confirm that humans’ ability for conscious, long-term planning is without parallel. Neurophysiologist William H. Calvin notes: “Aside from hormonally triggered preparations for winter and mating, animals exhibit surprisingly little evidence of planning more than a few minutes ahead.” Animals may store food before a cold season, but they do not think things through and plan. By contrast, humans consider the future, even the distant future. Some scientists contemplate what may happen to the universe billions of years hence. Did you ever wonder why man—so different from animals—is able to think about the future and lay out plans?

The Bible says of humans: “Even time indefinite [the Creator] has put in their heart.” The Revised Standard Version renders it: “He has put eternity into man’s mind.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11) We use this distinctive ability daily, even in as common an act as glancing in a mirror and thinking what our appearance will be in 10 or 20 years. And we are confirming what Ecclesiastes 3:11 says when we give even passing thought to such concepts as the infinity of time and space. The mere fact that we have this ability harmonizes with the comment that a Creator has put “eternity into man’s mind.”

Drawn to a Creator

Many people, however, are not satisfied fully by enjoying beauty, doing good to fellowmen, and thinking about the future. “Strangely enough,” notes Professor C. Stephen Evans, “even in our most happy and treasured moments of love, we often feel something is missing. We find ourselves wanting more but not knowing what is the more we want.” Indeed, conscious humans—unlike the animals with which we share this planet—feel another need.

“Religion is deeply rooted in human nature and experienced at every level of economic status and educational background.” This summed up the research that Professor Alister Hardy presented in The Spiritual Nature of Man. It confirms what numerous other studies have established—man is God-conscious. While individuals may be atheists, whole nations are not. The book Is God the Only Reality? observes: “The religious quest for meaning . . . is the common experience in every culture and every age since the emergence of humankind.”

From where does this seemingly inborn awareness of God come? If man were merely an accidental grouping of nucleic acid and protein molecules, why would these molecules develop a love of art and beauty, turn religious, and contemplate eternity?

Sir John Eccles concluded that an evolutionary explanation of man’s existence “fails in a most important respect. It cannot account for the existence of each one of us as unique self-conscious beings.” The more we learn about the workings of our brain and mind, the easier it is to see why millions of people have concluded that man’s conscious existence is evidence of a Creator who cares about us.

People of all walks of life have found that this rational conclusion lays the basis for finding satisfying answers to the vital questions, Why are we here, and where are we going?

The article below explains why people have found that this rational conclusion lays the basis for finding satisfying answers to these questions:

Chapter 5: The Handiwork—What Is Behind It? (Is There a Creator Who Cares About You?)

Some other interesting tidbits about human uniqueness...

Chess Champion Versus Computer

When the advanced computer Deep Blue vanquished the world champion chess player, the question arose, “Aren’t we forced to conclude that Deep Blue must have a mind?”

Professor David Gelernter of Yale University replied: “No. Deep Blue is just a machine. It doesn’t have a mind any more than a flowerpot has a mind. . . . Its chief meaning is this: that human beings are champion machine builders.”

Professor Gelernter pointed to this major difference: “The brain is a machine that is capable of creating an ‘I.’ Brains can summon mental worlds into being, and computers can’t.”

He concluded: “The gap between human and [computer] is permanent and will never be closed. Machines will continue to make life easier, healthier, richer and more puzzling. And human beings will continue to care, ultimately, about the same things they always have: about themselves, about one another and, many of them, about God. On those terms, machines have never made a difference. And they never will.”

Supercomputer Equals Snail

“Today’s computers are not even close to a 4-year-old human in their ability to see, talk, move, or use common sense. One reason, of course, is sheer computing power. It has been estimated that the information processing capacity of even the most powerful supercomputer is equal to the nervous system of a snail—a tiny fraction of the power available to the supercomputer inside [our] skull.”—Steven Pinker, director of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

From Particle Physics to Your Brain

Professor Paul Davies reflected on the ability of the brain to handle the abstract field of mathematics. “Mathematics is not something that you find lying around in your back yard. It’s produced by the human mind. Yet if we ask where mathematics works best, it is in areas like particle physics and astrophysics, areas of fundamental science that are very, very far removed from everyday affairs.” What does that imply? “It suggests to me that consciousness and our ability to do mathematics are no mere accident, no trivial detail, no insignificant by-product of evolution.”—Are We Alone?

originally posted by: Compendium
a reply to: BrotherKinsMan
...
It is a cycle. Nothing more

The word for this in the New Testament is "Christ"

"Christ" means "Cycle"

This is why so many people are awaiting "the return" of the "Cycle/Christ"

It is also why they fear the "Anti-cycle / Anti-christ", which needs come before their cycle/Christ returns

...

“Who is this who is obscuring my counsel

And speaking without knowledge?

Brace yourself, please, like a man;

I will question you, and you inform me.

Where were you when I founded the earth?

Tell me, if you think you understand.” (Jehovah, at Job 38:2-4)



Christ (Glossary)

The title of Jesus, from the Greek word Khri·stosʹ, which is equivalent to the Hebrew word translated “Messiah,” or “Anointed One.”​—Mt 1:16; Joh 1:41.

Christ (Insight on the Scriptures)

... “Christ” is not a mere appellative added to distinguish the Lord Jesus from others of the same name; it is an official title.​—See JESUS CHRIST; MESSIAH.

The coming of the Christ, the one whom Jehovah would anoint with his spirit to be the Messianic King, had been foretold centuries before Jesus’ birth. (Da 9:25, 26) However, at his birth, Jesus was not yet the Anointed One or Christ. In foretelling his birth, the angel instructed Joseph: “You must call his name Jesus.” (Mt 1:21) But when the shepherds near Bethlehem were given the angelic announcement, in anticipation of Jesus’ future role they were told: “There was born to you today a Savior, who is Christ the Lord,” that is, “who is to be Christ the Lord.”​—Lu 2:11, ftn.

The personal name of Jesus followed by the title Christ may call attention to the person himself and that he is the one who became the Anointed One of Jehovah. This occurred when he reached about 30 years of age, was baptized in water, and was anointed with Jehovah’s spirit visibly observed in the form of a dove descending upon him. (Mt 3:13-17) This is the point Peter made at Pentecost: “God made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus,” evidently recalling the expression he had heard from the lips of Jesus, who first used the term “Jesus Christ.” (Ac 2:36-38; Joh 17:3) This expression “Jesus Christ” is also used in the opening words of the Christian Greek Scriptures.​—Mt 1:1.

On the other hand, putting the title ahead of the name and saying “Christ Jesus” instead of “Jesus Christ” places greater emphasis on the office or position held by Jesus. It focuses attention primarily on the office, secondarily on the office holder, as in saying King David or Governor Zerubbabel. It would remind one of the singular official position Jesus holds as the Anointed One of Jehovah, an honored position not shared by others of his followers who are also anointed. Only Jehovah’s beloved Son is entitled “Christ Jesus.” Paul used this expression in his first inspired letter. (1Th 2:14) Luke also used it, once, at Acts 24:24 (NW; RS), when speaking about Paul’s bearing witness.

The use of the article “the” with the title (“the Christ”) is another way attention is sometimes drawn to the office as held by Jesus. (Mt 16:16; Mr 14:61) ...

... In the text at 1 Timothy 2:5 mention is made of “a man, Christ Jesus” as the Mediator, but “a man” is not a title. The expression only explains that Christ Jesus was at one time a man on earth.

An exceptional use of the title “Christ” is Paul’s reference to Moses rather than Jesus, when he writes: “He [Moses] esteemed the reproach of the Christ [Khri·stouʹ, “Anointed One”] as riches greater than the treasures of Egypt; for he looked intently toward the payment of the reward.” (Heb 11:26) Moses was never anointed with any literal oil as were the high priests and kings of Israel. (Ex 30:22-30; Le 8:12; 1Sa 10:1; 16:13) But neither was Jesus nor were his followers, and yet the Scriptures speak of them as having been anointed. (Ac 10:38; 2Co 1:21) In these latter cases their anointing with God’s holy spirit served as an appointment by God, or a commission, even though literal anointing oil was not used. So, in a similar sense Moses received a special appointment. Paul, therefore, could say of Moses that he was Jehovah’s anointed one, or Christ, the recipient of a commission given to him at the burning bush, which appointment he considered to be greater riches than all the treasures of Egypt.​—Ex 3:2–4:17.

...

Other Uses of the Term “Christ.” The Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Scriptures uses the same Greek word khri·stosʹ more than 40 times, frequently as a title of anointed priests, kings, and prophets. Aaron the high priest was “the anointed one,” commissioned and “appointed in behalf of men over the things pertaining to God.” (Le 4:3, 5, 16; 8:12; Heb 5:1) Expressing his judgment on the house of Eli, Jehovah promised to raise up a faithful priest who would walk before God’s anointed one (khri·stosʹ) for all time.​—1Sa 2:35.

The kings shared this same honored title because of their relationship to Jehovah in their kingly office. So Samuel spoke of Saul as khri·stosʹ at 1 Samuel 12:3, in the Greek Septuagint. “It is unthinkable, on my part,” exclaimed David, “to thrust my hand out against [Saul] the anointed [LXX, khri·stonʹ] of Jehovah!” (1Sa 26:11) ...

...

a reply to: Compendium

“If anyone thinks he knows something, he does not yet know it as he should know it.” (1 Corinthians 8:2)

a reply to: Compendium

Could just have said "I believe I'm conscious".

Which is along the same to similar lines as "I think therefore I am".

a reply to: andy06shake

Sometimes I fancy having a conversation on this topic Andy but my only contribution here is...

TLDR!

a reply to: midicon

I am moving house right now midicon.

But I also would not mind doing that sometime.

originally posted by: andy06shake
a reply to: midicon

I am moving house right now midicon.

But I also would not mind doing that sometime.

I once asked a member on here 'if Descartes was a woman would she have said, I am therefore I think?'

He replied, she'd probably say 'thank God I'm not a man'! I thought that was funny!

Good luck with the move Andy! No need to reply to this.

a reply to: whereislogic

With your brain you are conscious and are aware of your being, but a computer certainly is not. Why the difference?

Frankly, how and why consciousness arises from physical processes in our brain is a mystery. “I don’t see how any science can explain that,” one neurobiologist commented.

That mystery is explained by exodus 3.14 that is commonly translated to "I Am that I Am". We need first understand that God is spiritual. Thus the source of "I AM" is the spiritual. It is not a product of mind as suggested by René Descartes "I think therefore I AM".

a reply to: glend

It might just have well have been an indignant ' I am who I am' sort of thing'. A statement of authority and not indicative of any other meaning that others want to infer.

a reply to: midicon

I agree you could be right. Yet "I AM" itself is typically associated with self awareness. René Descartes and others use "I AM" in that respect. So we cannot dismiss out of hand that exodus 3.14 is not stating that awareness in itself is a product of the spiritual.

If the source of our awareness is from the spiritual we can then comprehend what spiritualist Meister Eckhart meant from the following ...

“The eye through which I see God is the same eye through which God sees me; my eye and God's eye are one eye, one seeing, one knowing, one love.”

We can also see a different take on Gospels of Johns I AM statements: I am the bread of life (6:35), I am the light of the world (8:12), I am the door (10:7), I am the good shepherd (10:11, 14), I am the resurrection and the life (11:25), I am the way the truth and the life (14:6), I am the true vine (15:1)

a reply to: glend

That was a good reply. I have always been fond of Meister Eckhart's teachings.

One that always springs to mind for me is...

'all prayer is born of desire and as such is movement away from God'.

a reply to: midicon

He is one of my favourites yet never heard thta one. Love it.

originally posted by: glend
a reply to: whereislogic
...

That mystery is explained by exodus 3.14 that is commonly translated to "I Am that I Am".

It comes from a verb that means “to become,” and a number of scholars feel that it reflects the causative form of that Hebrew verb.

J. B. Rotherham’s translation renders this verse: “I Will Become whatsoever I please.” The NWT renders it “I Will Become What I Choose to Become” or, “I Will Prove to Be What I Will Prove to Be.” (the latter rendering is in the footnote)

There's no relation to what Descartes said, which is related to the philosophy of relativism, which in turn is related to agnosticism and the ideas that we can't know anything for certain or the slogan that 'science does not deal with absolutes' as for example expressed by Alexander Vilenkin:

"... there is no such thing as absolute certainty in science ..."

Which is a misuse of the word "science", since the word "science" comes from the Latin scientia meaning "knowledge", and essentially, knowledge means familiarity with facts/certainties/realities/truths acquired by personal experience, observation, or study. I.e. things that are factual/certain/absolute/conclusive/true/correct, without error. (all synonyms).

It's just a lame attempt to further promote what South Park describes as The Agnostic Code, i.e. agnosticism and the philosophy of relativism. Pontius Pilate's way of thinking about truth.

“What Is Truth?”

THE two men facing each other could scarcely have been more dissimilar. One was a politician who was cynical, ambitious, wealthy, ready to do anything to advance his own career. The other was a teacher who spurned wealth and prestige and was prepared to sacrifice his life to save the lives of others. Needless to say, these two men did not see eye to eye! On one matter in particular, they disagreed absolutely​—the matter of truth.

The men were Pontius Pilate and Jesus Christ. Jesus was standing before Pilate as a condemned criminal. Why? Jesus explained that the reason for this​—indeed, the very reason that he had come to the earth and undertaken his ministry—​came down to one thing: truth. “For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world,” he said, “that I should bear witness to the truth.”​—John 18:37.

Pilate’s reply was a memorable question: “What is truth?” (John 18:38) Did he really want an answer? Probably not. Jesus was the kind of man who could answer any question asked of him in sincerity, but he did not answer Pilate. And the Bible says that after asking his question, Pilate walked straight out of the audience chamber. The Roman governor likely asked the question in cynical disbelief, as if to say, “Truth? What is that? There is no such thing!”* [According to Bible scholar R. C. H. Lenski, Pilate’s “tone is that of an indifferent worldling who by his question intends to say that anything in the nature of religious truth is a useless speculation.”]

Pilate’s skeptical view of truth is not uncommon today. Many believe that truth is relative​—in other words, that what is true to one person may be untrue to another, so that both may be “right.” This belief is so widespread that there is a word for it​—“relativism.” Is this how you view the matter of truth? If so, is it possible that you have adopted this view without thoroughly questioning it? Even if you have not, do you know how much this philosophy affects your life?

An Assault on Truth

Pontius Pilate was hardly the first person to question the idea of absolute truth. Some ancient Greek philosophers made the teaching of such doubts virtually their life’s work! Five centuries before Pilate, Parmenides (who has been considered the father of European metaphysics) held that real knowledge was unattainable. Democritus, hailed as “the greatest of ancient philosophers,” asserted: “Truth is buried deep. . . . We know nothing for certain.” Perhaps the most revered of them all, Socrates, said that all that he really knew was that he knew nothing.

This assault on the idea that truth can be known has continued down to our day. Some philosophers, for instance, say that since knowledge reaches us through our senses, which can be deceived, no knowledge is verifiably true. French philosopher and mathematician René Descartes decided to examine all the things he thought he knew for certain. He discarded all but one truth that he deemed incontrovertible: “Cogito ergo sum,” or, “I think, therefore I am.”

A Culture of Relativism

Relativism is not limited to philosophers. It is taught by religious leaders, indoctrinated in schools, and spread by the media. ...

In many lands the school systems seem to engender a similar type of thinking. Allan Bloom wrote in his book The Closing of the American Mind: “There is one thing a professor can be absolutely certain of: almost every student entering the university believes, or says he believes, that truth is relative.” Bloom found that if he challenged his students’ conviction on this matter, they would react with astonishment, “as though he were calling into question 2 + 2 = 4.”

The same thinking is promoted in countless other ways. ...

Of course, some might argue that much of this relativism represents open-mindedness and therefore has a positive impact on human society. Does it really, though? And what about its impact on you? Do you believe that truth is relative or nonexistent? If so, searching for it may strike you as a waste of time. Such an outlook will affect your future.

Regarding the bolded phrase there: as expressed in the last line of South Park's Agnostic Code, "so it's pointless to talk about". Playing right in the cards of the one described in the Bible as "the father of the lie" (John 8:44), who does not want people finding out the truth about him or God, or any subject related to that. He much prefers to keep people in the dark (i.e. ignorant). Promoting the philosophy of relativism is one of the tools he uses, and Descartes was one of his pawns described at 1 Tim 4:1,2.

“However, the inspired word clearly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to misleading inspired statements and teachings of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of men who speak lies, whose conscience is seared as with a branding iron.”(1 Timothy 4:1,2).

Why Search for Truth?

MANY religious organizations claim to have the truth, and they offer it eagerly to others. However, between them they offer a dizzying profusion of “truths.” Is this just another evidence that all truths are relative, that there are no absolute truths? No.

In his book The Art of Thinking, Professor V. R. Ruggiero expresses his surprise that even intelligent people sometimes say that truth is relative. He reasons: “If everyone makes his own truth, then no person’s idea can be better than another’s. All must be equal. And if all ideas are equal, what is the point in researching any subject? Why dig in the ground for answers to archeological questions? Why probe the causes of tension in the Middle East? Why search for a cancer cure? Why explore the galaxy? These activities make sense only if some answers are better than others, if truth is something separate from, and unaffected by, individual perspectives.”

In fact, no one really believes that there is no truth. When it comes to physical realities, such as medicine, mathematics, or the laws of physics, even the staunchest relativist will believe that some things are true. Who of us would dare to ride in an airplane if we did not think that the laws of aerodynamics were absolute truths? Verifiable truths do exist; they surround us, and we stake our lives on them.

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The goodness is a design, otherwise there would be no life and it's free and given with wisdom and satisfaction.