IS GOD REAL? HOW DO YOU KNOW?

by still thinking 778 Replies latest jw friends

  • talesin
    talesin

    oops, wrong thread! move along, nothing to see here .....

    t

  • still thinking
    still thinking

    LOL tal...join us for a group hug...I mean discussion...

    I think I have derailed my own thread...oh well.

  • panhandlegirl
    panhandlegirl

    As for the formation of the universe, all but its initiation is well understood.

    This may be where God enters the eqation. I will check out the sources you quoted.

  • still thinking
    still thinking

    Wizard of Oz....you have a reply to your PM.

  • still thinking
    still thinking
    I hear you, Still. My faith was always very personal also. Not anything that anyone taught or tried to teach

    But this is part of my problem tec...is it based on indoctrination? would I have had any faith at all if it wasn't for the catholic church...and if it began there...and led me to the WTS...how can I have any confidence in a faith based on lies. My mother was Church of England...she wasn't particularly religous...but...she did have a strong belief in Jesus. This would have rubbed of onto me at a very young age...you could say I was primed for religion and belief.

    I don't know if you had faith before any contact with religion...but lets face it...even if you're not religious, our society teaches or at least used to teach kids that Jesus is real by celebrating Christmas and easter. At the bare minimum children are taught to believe it is important enough to have a holiday for it.

    Just look at china, they are celebrating christmas now...sure they like the tinsle and the fun of it...but....how long before they become a christian nation?

  • Wizard of Oz
    Wizard of Oz

    @ still thinking...... you are welcome and not as messiah/prophet but the latter. He never, according to his story writers, ever claimed to be anything other than a man.

    @ snare..... thank you for the insight, all the best with exams. I'll be chucklin' for days over the apple thing(LOL).

    Luv'n'Thorts WoZ

  • Wizard of Oz
    Wizard of Oz

    @still thinking.........Sorry that last post was befuddled. He never claimed to be anything other than, His story writers did.

  • still thinking
    still thinking

    I know I posted this on another thread...but it made me think of you tec....are you sure you weren't indoctrinated by the catholics...your beliefs seem rather similar...

    Catholic Church and Evolution

    Since the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species in 1859, the attitude of the Catholic Church on the theory of evolution has slowly been refined. For about 100 years, there was no authoritative pronouncement on the subject. By 1950, Pope Pius XII agreed to the academic freedom to study the scientific implications of evolution, so long as Catholic dogma is not violated. [ 1 ] Today [update] , the Church's unofficial position is an example of theistic evolution, also known as evolutionary creation, [ 2 ] stating that faith and scientific findings regarding human evolution are not in conflict, though humans are regarded as a special creation, and that the existence of God is required to explain both monogenism and the spiritual component of human origins. Moreover, the Church teaches that the process of evolution is a planned and purpose-driven natural process, actively guided by God.

  • tec
    tec

    I've considered it... (particularly in relation to my views on abortion; did watch abortions being performed in a class in high school... but that might simply be more of a view based on something seen). Some of the things I believe are similar to the catholic belief (I have found, however, that some of the things I believe is also similar to Orthodo x beliefs.... and I was never e x posed to them. I can't remember the name of the poster who comes on here who is Orthodo x. )

    In either case, I was in high school before I was exposed to anything Catholic (one mass with a catholic friend when I was ten - I remember only because I took the communion, not knowing I wasn't supposed to, and I thought it tasted good. I flattened my bread for months afterward, lol). But I had faith in God long before then. Never had anyone talk to me about creationism, and the earliest I remember of evolution is as a child seeing those pictures of the man slowly evolving to walk upright. Never had any cause to doubt it. It was just never an issue until I came to this board.

    It is hard for me to even attempt to examine what I learned in the few years of high school... that would be three religion classes/four months each... since I remember very little of it. I do remember one religion teacher being so excited that the immaculate conception meant that Mary's mother was a virgin when she had Mary. I thought that was odd, but kind of just thought 'whatever floats your boat'. I don't think this is an actual catholic belief though, so I might have misunderstood. Maybe it was just something that was being tossed around.

    So I did dismiss stuff that I thought was silly or just wrong from the get-go. Had no problem with others believing it, but I needed to be really convinced before I accepted something. So did I learn from their belief on some things, or just agree with them on some things?

    Since I disagree with so much catholic stuff, it seems to point toward the latter, to me. It is interesting e x amining things that might have influenced you though.

    Peace,

    tammy

  • still thinking
    still thinking
    I do remember one religion teacher being so excited that the immaculate conception meant that Mary's mother was a virgin when she had Mary. I thought that was odd, but kind of just thought 'whatever floats your boat'.

    ROFL...thats a new one on me...Pope John PaulII was a bit obsessed with the virgin mary...apparently he was considering making here equal to Jesus at one point...how true that is...I don't know...but I do remember Mary being pushed in a BIG way at school....and thinking the same...WTF..how come you make Mary so important...the bible says hardly anthing about her.

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