God - the unauthorised biography

In the beginning…

Creating gods is something humans have probably always done. The human search for ‘God’ began long before the invention of writing. We know this because archaeologists have recovered artifacts from Paleolithic times – 35,000-10,000 BCE – that resembles objects of later periods identified as sacred in surviving texts.

[MASSIVE copy-and-paste removed]


Sources:
Karen Armstrong, A History of God, Vintage, 1993. John Bowker, God: A Brief History, Dorling Kindersly, 2002. David Boulton, The Trouble With God, John Hunt Publishing, 2002.

Source

Mod Note: Do not copy/paste information without indicating it is an article from another source and providing the source.


[edit on 3-3-2010 by SkepticOverlord]

reply to post by LiveForever8


Great thread

It is fascinating how many gods the Israelites had in their early history, many of them seem to have been forgotten or lumped together as just another name for the monotheistic GOD that came in later.

We've been dreaming up gods for a long long time and while the "mother" goddess might have been the earliest on record I wish we could go back and find out just who the first god really was and when they were 'invented'. How far back would we need to go? 40 thousand, 60 thousand, a hundred thousand? It boggles the mind just how much of our origin and history is shrouded in mystery.

Its often made me wonder what archeologists a thousand years from now will think of our culture when they dig it up, will they find graven images and posters of celebrities and think they were our gods? Will they dig up shopping malls and believe them to be our temples? And what Gods will they themselves be worshipping, if any?

Fascinating stuff, Star and Flag

reply to post by Titen-Sxull


Hey

One of the strongest cases against there being a god is the fact that there are so many. But not only that there are so many, but that there were so many that are now extinct.

The age old question of 'what came first the chicken or the egg?' or in this case, 'did god invent man or did man invent god?' seems to roll on and on. But it seems that God/gods are a necessary step in human evolution. As Voltaire puts it - “If there were no God, it would have been necessary to invent him.”

It is indeed a fascinating subject.

One of the strongest cases against there being a god is the fact that there are so many. But not only that there are so many, but that there were so many that are now extinct

reply to post by LiveForever8


Or perhaps one could argue that the fact that mankind continually seeks to name 'god' implies that 'god' does exist....

Wonderful, thought-provoking thread, OP.

reply to post by LiveForever8


as always LF you hit us with yet another stunning thread, great job man

What most people tend to forget, is that God is everything.

One consciousness that split to experience things other than the unity it was.

In doing so, it/we created and creates many, many different realms and dimensions to play in.

Everyone is God having the experiences they planned on having. There are many different lives we live through to experience the good, the bad and the ugly. So in returning to the All That Is, we bring our unique energetic marker to the Whole.

In being vulnerable and prone to illusion, you gather an enormous amount of experience, which enables you to really understand what oneness means, what love means at the level of experience. You will understand what love is, not as an abstract concept, but as a living, creative force that moves you and fills your heart and spirit with a deep sense of joy and satisfaction. This is the end goal of your journey, the Homecoming you are longing for: to be God-as-you, to experience oneness as an ‘I’. You do not want to give up your ‘I’ness. It is through the connection of your ‘I’ with the whole, that you experience the deepest joy and that you add your own unique energy stamp to the whole of creation. God-as-you adds something new and precious to creation.

www.jeshua.net...

reply to post by smyleegrl

Or perhaps one could argue that the fact that mankind continually seeks to name 'god' implies that 'god' does exist....

Great point

I know it might not have been what you meant, if you meant spiritually, but there is evidence of humans being 'hard wired' to believe in God......

Humans are programmed to believe in God because it gives them a better chance of survival, researchers claim.

A study into the way children's brains develop suggests that during the process of evolution those with religious tendencies began to benefit from their beliefs - possibly by working in groups to ensure the future of their community.

The findings of Bruce Hood, professor of developmental psychology at Bristol University, suggest that magical and supernatural beliefs are hardwired into our brains from birth, and that religions are therefore tapping into a powerful psychological force.His work is supported by other researchers who have found evidence linking religious feelings and experience to particular regions of the brain.

They suggest people are programmed to receive a feeling of spirituality from electrical activity in these areas.

Source

So maybe not proof that God exists, but certainly evidence that suggest a belief in God/gods was evolutionarily beneficial to humans.

reply to post by blujay


I don't really understand what your meaning is

Reading what you said reminded me of when David Icke speaks about 'Infinite Consciousness'.




Is this what you mean?
The idea that we are all Gods?

I know it might not have been what you meant, if you meant spiritually, but there is evidence of humans being 'hard wired' to believe in God......

reply to post by LiveForever8


I can appreciate how religion would have helped with terms of evolutionary survival.

But what I mean, I think, is really just my personal musings lately.

I've been questioning the existence of a god for quite some time, doing all that introspective stuff, and I keep coming back to a single thought.

If it didn't exist, would I yearn for it?

It's not scientific, I know. But somehow....it feels.....right?

reply to post by smyleegrl


I understand, and I would like to think I wouldn't yearn for it at all. After all, what is there to yearn for?

To me it seems that he idea of God came from a lack of understanding of the world around us, something that isn't the case nowadays (to an extent).

I have never been attracted to the idea of an all knowing, all powerful God, I was far too fascinated in what science had to say on such matters as the universe and the creation of life.

I see God as a stumbling block, something that is holding us back, a kind of make or break for our species. Yes, it has maybe served a purpose, but we have outgrown the ideas of religion, it's time to evolve.

reply to post by LiveForever8


Does it prove that "gods" don't exist? I disagree with the assertion that it does. All you have shown is mankind's feeble and at times self serving attempts to grasp a concept that he cannot really grasp. We put things into context with what we do understand, add to that our ability to twist things to fit what we want to believe and a whole lor of time and you get the progression you illustrate. It has nothing to do with the factuality or existance of a higher power except perhaps in our ability to grasp the concept.


[edit on 25-2-2010 by Watcher-In-The-Shadows]

reply to post by Watcher-In-The-Shadows


I agree, it doesn't prove that 'gods' don't exist, I never said it did. I stated that it is evidence against the idea that a specific God is unique.

My little cousin asked me if I believed in God a few days ago, to which I replied 'Which God do you mean?' She couldn't believe it when I reeled of a list of gods she had never heard of, I think the penny dropped for her then.

I would never be so ignorant as to say there is 100% no God, because it's impossible to prove, but I'm quite happy to say I believe there is a 99.9% chance God doesn't exist.



[edit on 05/08/2009 by LiveForever8]

To me it seems that he idea of God came from a lack of understanding of the world around us, something that isn't the case nowadays (to an extent).

reply to post by LiveForever8


Point taken, and agreed.

In college, I took a couple of astronomy courses and biology courses. The more in-depth we looked into the science involved, the more that idea that "something" else is out there began to resonate within me. Complexity, and all that.

I've read the evolutionary explanations, they make sense. But I think I'll keep searching, anyway......

regardless, I've really enjoyed your posts!!!!

reply to post by LiveForever8


Before I continue let me please just tell you I do understand your argument and do respect your stance. But, I must respectfully point out you contradict yourself.

One of the strongest cases against there being a god is the fact that there ar so many. But not only that there are so many, but that there were so many that are now extinct.

If you agreed with me then you would not view the latter as one of the strongest cases against, for the reasons I pointed out.

[edit on 27-2-2010 by Watcher-In-The-Shadows]

reply to post by Watcher-In-The-Shadows


So are you trying to say that there is some sort of divine being but throughout history we humans have been unable to grasp it, hence why there are so many interpretations of it?

Surely it's more believable that we humans are seemingly 'hardwired' to create and believe in such idols for evolutionary benefits.

I was aware of the contradictory nature of that comment, that was the exact point I was making. Why does anyone believe in one god over the other?

reply to post by LiveForever8


Um...Jesus did claim he was God... he said "before Abraham was, I AM"...what does that sound like? Why did the religious of the time get up and try to stone him immediately after he said that? Both them and he knew what that meant.

Assume for a minute that the south park and family guy depictions of Jesus are false and what is written is fairly close to what went down... what then?

reply to post by LiveForever8


No, what I am saying is either way you cut it existance or non-existance the concept of a "god" isn't really one we can really grasp as history shows. The fact we consistantly attempt to anthromorphise the concept is one IMHO. Also, we could be hardwired to believe and such a being exists doesn't necessarily mean it doesn't exist, we could be instinctually reaching towards a being we once knew intimately. You or I just never know.

But, in a nutshell, no I wasn't and shall never make the claim any "deity" or what we would call a deity exists or doesn't. That requires a level of artificial certainty either direction you point IMHO. I have my beliefs or hunches to be sure, but, I'll never make a topic for discussion by stating it as 100% undeniable fact. And then there is the human capacity to pigeon hole those who disagree into box that they don't listen to no matter content.

reply to post by LiveForever8


Oh and google the following 2 words please: Universal Unitarianism.


[edit on 3-3-2010 by Watcher-In-The-Shadows]

reply to post by Watcher-In-The-Shadows

Oh and google the following 2 words please: Universal Unitarianism.

then what?

or: why?

take your pick

reply to post by Spiramirabilis


Considering the comment wasn't directed at you and was in fact was directed to the OP in furtherance of our conversation he'll know why if he does what I ask troll.