Question regarding your faith in God or not. (page 3)

gumby

Do any of you have any real evidence other than a feeling fed by emotions?

I hear ya Ken!

These ones who are 'fed by emotions' , all believe that is good enough of god as far as communicating with mankind. It's a secret club kinda deal.........god chooses the most deserving ones. Just ask the millions who have called out to god for help in finding him, and never recieved an answer or relief from their horrors, they'll tell ya.

BTW....I'm still as lost as you on all this......guess misery loves company eh?

Gumby

Carmel

When I left the Borg I was on a search to find a more inclusive cosmology. I couldn't accept the JW god, or the biblical god or any other god. It wasn't until I ran across the Baha'i concept of an "unknowable essence" as God, could I feel comfortable believing again! carmel

Midget-Sasquatch

I'm an agnostic-gnosticwannabe. Thats Midget speak for:

I don't know and not sure if its possible to know...I definitely don't believe in the god portrayed by the JWs or other fundamentalist types. From all the hard evidence for evolution, the amorality of nature and what we call natural evils, I don't believe that a loving god made us or nature.

That said though, I really do wish that there were something divine...even just a little...to the experiences had by those first century Jews who followed that Galilean.

Markfromcali

Markfromcali My time reference was in this regard, if you tell an infant "wait 5 minutes then we'll go" do you thing he understands? No he doesn't. In that regard, couldn't the same thing reply to God?

Okay, sort of the 'a day as a thousand years' deal? But doesn't this idea imply a God that's rather separate from humankind? Why would God say that to an infant knowing, as God must, that he wouldn't understand? If that's the case the situation does not call for talking but perhaps some other form of more immediate comfort or help.

But besides that having NO time reference is also not the same as having a different span of reference, but if that was the case then you are limited by your frame of reference, same principle as having a point of reference which I was getting at earlier. You see this particular idea is simply too much like an magnification of the human personality, like if people are this way God is just a million times multiplied - quite frankly it seems to me it is a projection of the human mind, the point of reference is simply the human psyche. I'm just analyzing this idea mind you, I am not putting you down personally or anything.

myauntfanny

I'm not B'hai and don't know anything about them, but I think "unknowable essence" perfectly describes my general feeling about...whatever it is. And that's as far as I'm willing to go in believing anything.

I do mostly avoid organised religion. But I attended a UU congregation when I had one available, and that was really pretty fun. It's quite nice to be in a group that is focussing on spiritual matters, and the UU approach is always one of questioning rather than dogma.

LittleToe

Gumby:

These ones who are 'fed by emotions' , all believe that is good enough of god as far as communicating with mankind. It's a secret club kinda deal.........god chooses the most deserving ones.

I take it that you're predominantly talking about Christianity (though I accept not exclusively), and so I'm sure you won't mind me stating that I feel that faith-group is being misrepresented by your comments.

Christianity is not about emotions, it's about "faith".
Emotions may be stirred by it, but then they can just as easily be stirred by a hotdog or a good dump (so I'm informed).

Is it a secret club, when churches across every continent try to inform folks of how to enter it?
It's not like a secret handshake is needed, or anything

Further, does God choose the "deserving ones"?
You surely know that's not how it works. If it were about how good or righteous or clever or rich or poor you were, then it might be far more clear cut.
Doctrinally, the Calvinists would have it that God chooses who he chooses, regardless of worth.
Doctrinally, the Arminians would have it that God foresaw who would respond to His message.
When Jesus seemed to concentrate on the poor and helpless, how can you say that it's got anything to do with being "deserving"?

Just a few thoughts

gumby

Is it a secret club, when churches across every continent try to inform folks of how to enter it?It's not like a secret handshake is needed, or anything
Further, does God choose the "deserving ones"?
You surely know that's not how it works.

It's a secret club when it appears god only deals spiritually with believers and not the informed. How much special attention from god did the cannanites get from god......and please don't say he gave them rain and sunshine? God supposedly only answers those who put faith in his son.....so I guess I and a few billion others are screwed.

As far as god choosing ones......I thought that's what the bible taught. In one reference it tells all to take lifes water free and in another, god chooses and forordains those who are his.

Gumby

Markfromcali

Well as far as emotions go, we should be specific. After all if someone decides to leave the JWs based on an emotion we won't hear too many people from the XJW camp being critical of that.

Now granted, something like the existence of God, which implies something about ultimate reality being based on an emotion is another matter, but that just goes back to that point about understanding why we believe something. So we can just as well apply that to emotions, why do we feel a certain way? My point is it's not that we want to dismiss emotions entirely out of hand is it? If nothing else it is something involved in self understanding. Even if you have a nice logical world view that is based on the best scientific data or whatever, if you ignore your emotions you're not going to have a fun time in day to day living.

Ohh, uhhh.. So I'm kind of on topic still it's relevant because umm.. Well, your faith has something to do with understanding yourself right? Okay there, I'm on topic.

frankiespeakin

Mark,

It may be slightly off topic but a good piont:

Now granted, something like the existence of God, which implies something about ultimate reality being based on an emotion is another matter,

That's true if we believe in a God with emotions. How about a God with out emotions in that he existed even before emotion, or even before any thought,,any time or any thing. A kinda no-thing God.

Flash

My question is to those who now do not believe in God or the bible.
Did you attend any other religious type groups since leaving JWS or read the bible. What changed your point of reference.

I enjoyed your Post.

I don't qualify to answer all of your question because I do believe in God and live my life based on most of the teachings of the Witnesses. My point of reference changed when I reclaimed my mind from the WTS. I now scrutinize and criticaly analize everything from them. I only accept what I believe is right and reject the rest. That is how I 'make sure of ALL things and hold fast to what is fine.'

Question regarding your faith in God or not.

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