An Old Argument.... does it hold water?

by AK - Jeff 1495 Replies latest jw experiences

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  AK - Jeff

  Actually, Jeff, if your invisible yellow dragon was giving you hope, and telling you to do good things, all the more power to you. I'd probably think you were hallucinating, unless I saw some evidence of invisible yellow dragons too... but whatever. I wouldn't want you locked up unless your invisible yellow dragon was telling you to be a bad person, to hurt people, etc.

  Now, as nice as that seems - and it surely is sincere - do we really want people to be comforted by delusion? I would rather be surrounded by honest non-deluded people, than by those smiling and happy all the time, if I knew that the smiles and happiness was all from mental attachment to delusions.

  The last portion of your statement touches on one of the major problems I see with religious delusionalism - it causes massive harm, although it is insidious in nature. Those caught up in delusion in their productive mental years will harm others by failing to use the brain and sometimes genius housed therein to benefit mankind. If Einstein and other great minds had been busy 'praying and fasting' instead of studious inspection of the universe and it's laws, we would be less advanced than we are. It is impossible to state how far behind we are as a species due to the delusions of millions of fine brains who never contributed to the advancement they could have.

  Jeff
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  OnTheWayOut

  If you want to love a parent for bringing you into the world, but cannot respect them for being able to prevent disaster upon you or for watching you starve, okay.

  Well, then, I would say that most of the world cannot respect their parents. Including your own children (if you have them)... because I can't see how YOU can prevent [all] disaster from coming upon them. That you can prevent them from starving is simply due to demographics - had you had them in, say, Darfur... you wouldn't necessarily be so... shall we say, "fortunate".

  You must just be pretending to miss the point. I know human parents cannot prevent disaster.

  If it makes it easier for you, the human parent puts the baby in a crib and the house catches fire. "Well, I brought him into the world, he's on his own to get out of the house."

  As far as definitions of worship, who asked me/us to worship, and your understanding of the Holy One of Israel, I apologize to AK-Jeff for feeding the argument troll. Good day, AGuest. I say good day.
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  PSacramento

  Psac, you admitted that you have no idea why God permits evil to occur, and you find that acceptable? Scientists admit that they don't know for sure how the universe came to being, but they actually can work on finding the truth. Your knowledge will never be filled, you will never know the answer to why God permits evil. Never. And yet you continue to believe in something that can never give you all the answers. I just don't understand it.

  You need to re-read what I wrote:

  The honest truth is that I DO NOT KNOW any posible answer as to why God permits evil and suffering that would convince a non-believer.

  I don't know if there IS one.

  I think it is valid to question and to ask why and it is valid to search for the answer, wherever it may lead us.

  Personally, as a believer I have reconciled WHY I beleive God "permits" evil and suffering but what I believe is NOT proof or evidence and may not even be accepted as "reason" by someone that does NOT believe in God to begin with.

  And I can accept that.
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  Twitch

  Totally meant to quote that but I failed miserably. aha.

  Copy text to the reply box

  Hit Enter/line return for your reply before formatting quote

  Put the cursor at the beginning of the quoted text and select the Styles drop box. Select Quote. Presto

  Selecting Quote or Styles again to remove quote format

  The " button just indents
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  TheUbermensch

  Copy text to the reply box for your reply before formatting quote Put the cursor at the beginning of the quoted text and select the Styles drop box. Select Quote. Presto Selecting Quote or Styles again to remove quote format The " button just indents

  Thanks!
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  N.drew

  The answer is number two. Some prayers God will not listen to (the man of violence-his prayers) and some God will not answer (not in harmony with righteousness) And Jeff? How can you possibly say that God has not intervened? Look at all human history all over the world. There has always been relief from every tribulation. War, famine, natural disaster. They all come to an end. How do you know it was not Jehovah who brought the end to those things? How do you know it was not the power of Jehovah that helped many through?

  Want to know what I think the Bible Students were planning? Baiting Jehovah, that is what they might be doing, and Jeff, aren't you doing the same?
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  OnTheWayOut

  They all come to an end. How do you know it was not Jehovah who brought the end to those things? How do you know it was not the power of Jehovah that helped many through?

  Right after he killed a bunch of heathen people's children (or, granted, stood by allowing it).
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  N.drew

  OK Mr. OnTheWayOut, please, are you a believer who is angry at the god, or are you wasting time?
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  watersprout

  Nancy don't waste your time! You only end up in a fruitless argument with him.

  Peace
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  Bella15

  (I have not read all of your posts yet)

  I have learned that problems are not a God thing, it has to do with men, with us as individuals. One person can make such a difference in the world - ME, YOU.

  C'mon I am sure that the U.S.A. could help feed 500 and 1700 children a day and save them from starvation with only the food not eaten and that ends up in the landfills.

  Quote: " More than 40 percent of all food produced in America is not eaten, according to research by former University of Arizona anthropologist Timothy Jones. That amounts to more than 29 million tons of food waste each year, or enough to fill the Rose Bowl every three days. Nationwide, food scraps make up 17 percent of what we send to landfills."

  I understand your feelings, but really, we shouldn't blame GOD for this problem ... it is up to us to help each other ... IT IS DOABLE, but sometimes it is INCONVENIENT to put our time, money, resources ... our EGOS are very big ...

  Satan is also a "father" of some progeny ... one will have to REALLY look into which "father" is making his children starve to death ... many times the bible mentions the word "mystery" ... I'd say this is one of them ... (but the answer is throughout the bible)

  And I will put enmity
  between you and the woman,
  and between your offspring [a] and hers;

  Some people only focus on this referring to Jesus crucification:

  he will crush [b] your head,
  and you will strike his heel.”