Why are we here?

[ignoramus]

From the Westminster Shorter Catechism: 

Q. 1. What is the chief end of man?

A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, [a] and to enjoy him for ever. [b]

[a]. Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11[b]. Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4

Telling me that my purpose in life is to grovel before some malignant warlord has nothing to do with my post.  
You apparently missed the point or you just ignored it.

Please do not interrupt ... His eyes are in the back of his head, as he channels...   If we rudely wake him up now, the shock of reality may kill him.

[KevinM1]

In the infinite span of time and the vastness of the cosmos, why are we even here?  If god knows everything, why did not god just send everyone to heaven or hell from the get go? What is to be gained by this infinitesimally short and insignificant life we have?  The birth and the death of uncountable universes would be but a blink of the eye from a god's perspective.

From the Westminster Shorter Catechism: 

Q. 1. What is the chief end of man?

A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, [a] and to enjoy him for ever. [b]

[a]. Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11[b]. Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4

Why does a supreme being need glory?  And at the threat of eternal punishment, no less?

[IATIA]

Why does a supreme being need glory?  And at the threat of eternal punishment, no less?

Exactly, according to most theist philosophies, god created us for the sole purpose of groveling before it or suffer eternal damnation. That purpose in and of itself makes no sense and the theists are unable to come up with anything else. All their arguments boil down to this ridiculous premise.

[KevinM1]

Why does a supreme being need glory?  And at the threat of eternal punishment, no less?

Exactly, according to most theist philosophies, god created us for the sole purpose of groveling before it or suffer eternal damnation.  That purpose in and of itself makes no sense and the theists are unable to come up with anything else.  All their arguments boil down to this ridiculous premise.

What's funny is that when theists are questioned about this, they generally pull the, "Well, without god, you wouldn't be here!" card.  Okay, the same can be said about my mother, but I don't worship her.  She doesn't demand that I do, and she doesn't gravely punish me for not doing it.

[abaris]

Okay, the same can be said about my mother, but I don't worship her.  She doesn't demand that I do, and she doesn't gravely punish me for not doing it.

The better point would be, who cares. If I wasn't here, I certainly wouldn't care about not being here, since I wouldn't fucking exist.

[SteveII]

From the Westminster Shorter Catechism: 

Q. 1. What is the chief end of man?

A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, [a] and to enjoy him for ever. [b]

[a]. Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11[b]. Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4

Telling me that my purpose in life is to grovel before some malignant warlord has nothing to do with my post.  
You apparently missed the point or you just ignored it.

Well, you did ask why are we here in the religion section...

God created man with free will so that man could choose a relationship with God. Why is that hard to grasp? With the ability to choose, comes the ability to choose badly. If you personally choose not to pursue a relationship with the infinite creator of the universe who has put out his hand for you, this does not change your purpose, it means you did not fulfill it. 

Re: "What is to be gained by this infinitesimally short and insignificant life we have?" Whether your life is eternally insignificant is up to you.

[SteveII]

Exactly, according to most theist philosophies, god created us for the sole purpose of groveling before it or suffer eternal damnation.  That purpose in and of itself makes no sense and the theists are unable to come up with anything else.  All their arguments boil down to this ridiculous premise.

What's funny is that when theists are questioned about this, they generally pull the, "Well, without god, you wouldn't be here!" card.  Okay, the same can be said about my mother, but I don't worship her.  She doesn't demand that I do, and she doesn't gravely punish me for not doing it.

Do you put your mother on par with the infinite (which you cannot even comprehend what that means) creator of the universe? If so, she is worthy of worship.

[SteveII]

Another thing about punishment, hell is a place of separation from God. It is a consequence of not searching for a relationship with God. Our sin must have atonement, he has offered such but we must freely take it. God does not send people to Hell, they send themselves.

Romans 6:23 New International Version (NIV)
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Of course if you don't believe God exists, than you have nothing to worry about...wait, it probably does not work that way. I am guessing that if God exists and you bet he didn't, it won't change the heaven/hell thing much.

[abaris]

Of course if you don't believe God exists, than you have nothing to worry about...wait, it probably does not work that way. I am guessing that if God exists and you bet he didn't, it won't change the heaven/hell thing much.

The same could be said about you. You're certain that your particular brand of god exists. So what about all the others? Truth is, you have been brought up to believe what you believe.

[SteveII]

Of course if you don't believe God exists, than you have nothing to worry about...wait, it probably does not work that way. I am guessing that if God exists and you bet he didn't, it won't change the heaven/hell thing much.

The same could be said about you. You're certain that your particular brand of god exists. So what about all the others? Truth is, you have been brought up to believe what you believe.

You are right, I have been brought up believing as I do. That does not make a bit of difference in the truth claim though. Each religion needs to be a) weighed on whether it is internally consistent, b) consistent with our observations of the world, c) has a well-defined image of God (tying that all back to a and b), and d) bears fruit.