(April 20, 2014 at 7:21 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: What am I talking about is stages. Do you believe being more good will gravitate you towards a higher reality?

There is only one reality all else is delusion.

Quote:therefore this notion of one being higher or lower seems to non-sense from an Atheistic stand point. So it can be said higher and lower is a proof of the Highest One to whom is a reality by which the other stages get their reality.

Would you accept there being no higher or lower as evidence that god is non-existent?

Quote:I might be missing something here. This is why I'm asking.

You are missing anything approaching proof for your position.

(April 20, 2014 at 10:30 pm)truthBtold Wrote: What was in ur easter eggs?? More good? High? . Good is good.. what stages?? Stage left? Cause u aint right!!!!

I was high after my easter chocolate eggs. They were with liquor... Shhh

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Taking away God, what do Atheists feel they gravitate towards?

But in all seriousness... i can't speak for every atheist, but in my case i feel that without a god i seem more happy and i tend to enjoy life a lot more. I can make a purpose of my life whatever i want.
So my answer would be, a happy life.

I tend to gravitate towards the planet center. I'm quite sure believers also do.

(April 21, 2014 at 6:44 am)FreeTony Wrote: There has been lots of academic work done to look at how social animals such as humans interact with each other, and how they form functioning socities, how morals and empathy interact etc etc.

The Golden Rule is interesting in this respect.

Quote:As a concept, the Golden Rule has a history that long predates the term "Golden Rule", or "Golden law", as it was called from the 1670s.[1][6] As a concept of "the ethic of reciprocity," it has its roots in a wide range of world cultures, and is a standard way that different cultures use to resolve conflicts.[1][5] It has a long history, and a great number of prominent religious figures and philosophers have restated its reciprocal, "two-way" nature in various ways (not limited to the above forms).[1]

Rushworth Kidder notes that the Golden Rule can be found in the early contributions of Confucianism (551–479 BC). Kidder notes that this concept's framework appears prominently in many religions, including "Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Zoroastrianism, and the rest of the world's major religions".[7] According to Greg M. Epstein, " 'do unto others' ... is a concept that essentially no religion misses entirely."[8] Simon Blackburn also states that the Golden Rule can be "found in some form in almost every ethical tradition".[9] All versions and forms of the proverbial Golden Rule have one aspect in common: they all demand that people treat others in a manner in which they themselves would like to be treated.

The article goes on to list examples from many different religions and traditions.

Mystic, you are quite the intelligent person. I saw more of that intelligence when you were closer to agnosticism before resorting back to the god delusion. God is not an answer in any form of reasoning for the concept is merely always illogical.

(April 20, 2014 at 7:53 pm)archangle Wrote:

(April 20, 2014 at 7:32 pm)Little lunch Wrote: Religious people don't do anything good to be closer to god, they do it for themselves.
Just like Atheists. It's evolution.
Don't throw rocks at others because it may harm your chances of survival.
God doesn't need to be in the equation.
On top of that, if there is any such thing as free will, there's not much room to move between your personality, environment and history.
Personally, I think most people are as good as they can be.
I think you should reexamine your idea of being closer to god. It's really, who does god love the most, isn't it?
Sibling rivalry, daddy loves me more than you because I'm better behaved.

yeah, but what those that need help? so type of "goal".

What about the studies that show without rules people tend to hurt themselves?

Citation needed.

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Hi

When I think of people that are really good people, I have sense they are nearer to God then others. I also feel we can move closer to God. I feel there is stages and that these stages are real, that we really move closer or further from God by how our hearts of souls move through out lives influenced by how we act and react.

Bolding mine to demonstrate where you palmed a card. What you feel to be true is irrelevant; what you can demonstrate to be true is the key.

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Taking away God, what do Atheists feel they gravitate towards?

Atheists? No idea. Me personally? Towards being the best human I know how to be.

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Goodness has no metaphysical existence to draw closer to from an Atheistic perspective, so while we may become more good, we are not moving closer to anything really or am I missing something?

You're missing something.

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Do you still feel there is stages of higher and lower if we take God out of the picture?

First show that "God" is in the picture, then we can talk.

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Taking away God, what do Atheists feel they gravitate towards?

Reality.

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Do you still feel there is stages of higher and lower if we take God out of the picture?

Yes, less wish thinkinh = higher stage, more wish thinking = lower stage
God = the ultimate in wish thinking, the lowest of low stages.

The closer to god, the more dilusional, the more worthless.

(April 20, 2014 at 7:36 pm)LostLocke Wrote:

(April 20, 2014 at 6:19 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: Taking away God, what do Atheists feel they gravitate towards?

The closest large massive body, which happens to be the Earth.

Beat me to it. I'm with Newton on this one - we all gravitate towards other massive objects.

(April 21, 2014 at 7:34 am)downbeatplumb Wrote:

(April 20, 2014 at 7:21 pm)MysticKnight Wrote: What am I talking about is stages. Do you believe being more good will gravitate you towards a higher reality?

There is only one reality all else is delusion.

Quote:therefore this notion of one being higher or lower seems to non-sense from an Atheistic stand point. So it can be said higher and lower is a proof of the Highest One to whom is a reality by which the other stages get their reality.

Would you accept there being no higher or lower as evidence that god is non-existent?

Quote:I might be missing something here. This is why I'm asking.

You are missing anything approaching proof for your position.

This pretty much sums up my response. All this talk about higher or lower realities is meaningless until you can prove that such things actually exist. But then, I tend to say the same thing about gods.

(April 21, 2014 at 11:38 am)Stimbo Wrote: Bolding mine to demonstrate where you palmed a card. What you feel to be true is irrelevant; what you can demonstrate to be true is the key.

I think I've repeated many times how I differ with the Atheists here with respect to this. I do think what feel is true is important irrelevant to whether we can demonstrate it to be true or not. Our feeling of certain morals for example since children - we had no philosophical justification - but believed in them and could not demonstrate them to be true.

Quote:Atheists? No idea. Me personally? Towards being the best human I know how to be.

But when the human is the best at it can be, it is at a higher reality or is simply a conceptual thing?

Quote:You're missing something.

I think I might be.

Quote:First show that "God" is in the picture, then we can talk.

We already can talk, does that mean I've shown God is in the picture or you made a mistake