by BlackSwan of Memphis 90 Replies latest jw friends
Short of God coming down herself to say "Howdy y'all!" what would it take to make you a believer in God?
Not necessarily the God of the Bible or any religion in particular, just a Supreme Deity of some sort, call it Ra, Thor or Chaos.
What kind of proof do you need?
What kind of proof do you need to believe in life after death?
What kind of proof do you need to believe in mental telepathy?
let's limit it to those few things.
What would be proof enough?
>>Short of God coming down herself to say "Howdy y'all!"
I can buy that God's a woman, but do you really think she's got a southern accent? ;-)
What represents proof of anything? For me, if it's believable in the first place, it doesn't take much. If a guy says he caught a 2-pound fish, I need nothing. I believe him. If he says he caught a 25,000-pound fish, then I need more.
God falls squarely into the 25,000-pound fish category. To believe in him, I'd need something predictable and then see it fulfilled. Saving everyone from a hurricane, for instance. And there'd need to be something "god"-ish about it. Not some apparent good luck that gets attributed to god, but maybe everybody being miraculously encased in bubbles and floated to safety. Lame, I know. Surely God would think of something better!
But it really would probably be easier to say "Howdy y'all".
Dave
but maybe everybody being miraculously encased in bubbles and floated to safety.
Hmm... but that, or something like it, could also be just advanced technology, no?
He'd have to act like the god of love he's reputed to be, and look after his alleged creation instead of making us suffer. It seems to me that if there is a god, he hates rather than loves humanity.
>>but that, or something like it, could also be just advanced technology, no?
Yep. So where do you draw the line between "advanced technology" and "miracle"? For that matter, between "advanced life form" and "god"? If aliens dropped by saying "howdy y'all" and could do all sorts of miraculous things, at least some of mankind would label them gods. And the rest of us would be told we have proof of god right in front of us and refuse to believe it.
Dave
I can buy that God's a woman, but do you really think she's got a southern accent? ;-)
I can't speak any foreign languages and the Southern Accent sounded sort of, cute.
And there'd need to be something "god"-ish about it. Not some apparent good luck that gets attributed to god, but maybe everybody being miraculously encased in bubbles and floated to safety. Lame, I know. Surely God would think of something better!
But what if God doesn't quite think that they need to intervene in anything? You know what if this God has the idea that we need tragedy for some reason or another. Maybe to teach us something. (Let's not start trying to figure out what I'm just throwing something into the mix)
Full of Doubt: Ok, but let's say we're not talking about the God of the Bible. Any Supreme Deity will do. OR Mass Consciousness or something along those lines.
Daystar:
Hmm... but that, or something like it, could also be just advanced technology, no?
Ah, so what ever proof there could be, would we continue to try to attribute it to something else? Despite it's glaring obviousness?
Why would aliens say Howdy Y'all? Wouldn't they have a completely different form of Communication?
Like mind melding or something...
For me it was witnessing things that seem miraculous and having seen spirits that sort of thing . I believe in God just not too big on religion , I like talking about the bible but religion is simply somebody making up rules based on their own opinion and involves rites and rituals that sort of stuff really is tidious .....
Well, I guess we'll just have to define God then, won't we, before we can try to pin down what proof of his existence might look like.
And since we all have different definitions and can, as a race, never agree on it...
My son says God is female and has a male wizard counterpart with a rainbow wand. That's part of how he defines God. Anyone else?
For my part, I don't know. It is in my nature to doubt all things. Nothing is to be taken on faith or on dazzling acts.
Despite it's glaring obviousness?
Glaringly obvious to whom? To you? To me? It's so very subjective isn't it? Think Contact with Jodie Foster.
***What kind of proof do you need to believe in life after death?
What kind of proof do you need to believe in mental telepathy?***
For the first, I'd have to die (not near-death) and then wake up in another dimension.
For the second, I'd have to be able to read someone's mind without being under the influence of schizophrenia or mind-altering drugs.
