(July 6, 2016 at 8:33 am)Excited Penguin Wrote: Look, I'll be honest with you. Does any of us really know for sure that God is real or even that our God is the real one? No! But that's the whole point. It's not about being right, it's more of an emotional experience than anything else, really. Believing in something against all evidence is incredibly liberating. It gives your life purpose and meaning.

I don't understand how it's liberating? It may feel great, but then so do many things that are ultimately bad for you, like drugs.

It seems to me that your belief system is like your mental map of the world. The point of a map is to help you navigate the terrain safely, so it's important to make it as accurate as possible, to highlight hazards.

If you are lax about what you draw on your map, if you are happy to add lots of unconfirmed or unsubstantiated things just because they feel good, then it seems to me that you are at risk of getting into trouble. If the map is inaccurate, the sat nav could just lead you off a cliff.

I could imagine I was a millionaire, I could imagine I was all sorts of things. I could possibly even use affirmations and self hypnosis to make myself belief it. But just because I can draw something pretty on my map, it doesn't mean it's there in the real world.

(July 6, 2016 at 12:40 pm)Veritas_Vincit Wrote:

(July 6, 2016 at 8:33 am)Excited Penguin Wrote: Look, I'll be honest with you. Does any of us really know for sure that God is real or even that our God is the real one? No! But that's the whole point. It's not about being right, it's more of an emotional experience than anything else, really. Believing in something against all evidence is incredibly liberating. It gives your life purpose and meaning.

I don't understand how it's liberating? It may feel great, but then so do many things that are ultimately bad for you, like drugs.

It seems to me that your belief system is like your mental map of the world. The point of a map is to help you navigate the terrain safely, so it's important to make it as accurate as possible, to highlight hazards.

If you are lax about what you draw on your map, if you are happy to add lots of unconfirmed or unsubstantiated things just because they feel good, then it seems to me that you are at risk of getting into trouble. If the map is inaccurate, the sat nav could just lead you off a cliff.

I could imagine I was a millionaire, I could imagine I was all sorts of things. I could possibly even use affirmations and self hypnosis to make myself belief it. But just because I can draw something pretty on my map, it doesn't mean it's there in the real world.

But I believe in science, my religion doesn't affect my worldview in any relevant sense. It's just this private thing I entertain, just like I fantasized about one day getting an owl with a message from Hogwarts when I was a little kid. So how is it bad for me? It doesn't affect any decision I make or affect any judgement of mine in any sensible way.

You're entitled to your fantasies.  Would help if you recognized them as such but hey, whatever floats your boat.

(July 6, 2016 at 12:29 pm)ApeNotKillApe Wrote:

(July 6, 2016 at 12:25 pm)Drich Wrote: The Universe was made with us in mind to play a small part... which can be said no matter what your theological beliefs are.

It can be said, doesn't mean it's true.

then it's just a coincidence that the OP speech patterns emulate that of a Character written in a book several thousand years old..

(July 6, 2016 at 12:54 pm)Drich Wrote:

(July 6, 2016 at 12:29 pm)ApeNotKillApe Wrote: It can be said, doesn't mean it's true.

then it's just a coincidence that the OP speech patterns emulate that of a Character written in a book several thousand years old..

I like how you used the word 'character'.

I still think GQDO is a site for entertainment purposes, and Ken Ham is just a really good troll who knows how to make money off of dumb theists.

(July 6, 2016 at 10:14 am)Excited Penguin Wrote: Ah, that is the question, isn't it?

It's a question, but I don't know about the question.

(July 6, 2016 at 12:24 pm)Drich Wrote: That's the thing, the facts for the individual will indeed be supported, even if others are allowed to poop poo on them.

That's not what EP said.

Maybe we atheists would be a little more sympathetic to your beliefs if you guys could come up with a consistent narrative?

(July 6, 2016 at 12:54 pm)Drich Wrote: then it's just a coincidence that the OP speech patterns emulate that of a Character written in a book several thousand years old..

I like reading your posts, because they make me feel relatively sane.

Yes, they're not completely useless, as they serve as very good bad examples.