Hello; new girl here

[Rizzo]

Wow. It's been a while since I did the whole atheist forums thing. I forgot how they can make me feel both smart and stupid at the same time.

Ah! Excellent question!

The key phrase in that is that there's something else out there outside of science <b>as we currently know it.</b>

At one time, how the seasons changed or how the stars lit up the night sky were outside of science as we knew it. Now we know more and have more advanced equipment to study it with.

Someday, we will probably be able to study what we can't now, provided we don't go ahead and finish off the human race before we get the chance.

Well, I think it is understandable that perhaps some things, in reality, in the future are actually impossible for science to grasp and understand...(or at least human science or possible for any other alien life forms to ever understand either)..

For example quantum theory may be too complex and weird ultimately to be uncracked and there is a lot to be known by it IF we could understand it but ultimately there are some things there that humans just never can figure out...

But these mysteries of the future that are definitely not true puzzles, buy mysteries because they are never to be unlocked - what makes you think that it would be anything supernatural? It could just be for instance, the quantum universe gets too complicated and weird to fully be understood (going with Quantum Theory as just an example).

Out of curiosity I am wondering what makes you think that these possible mysteries (that forever are mysteries, unlockable - if not by all lifeforms entirely then at least by us humans and all other life forms on earth) - what makes you think that these mysteries could be supernatural? Why would that be probable?

All that really springs to mind for me personally would be the hypothetical concept of infinite realities and dimensions so that everything exists somewhere - in some universe, whether supernatural or not - everything exists because the universe itself is infinite... the hypothetical idea of that.

Although I know of no evidence of this and that if these hypothetical alternative realities/dimensions, and certainly no evidence of their effect on this universe if they indeed exist because the universe is indeed 'infinite' so that 'everything exists somewhere'.

At the moment I believe that the universe finite I think - 'just' inconceivably gigantically enormous.

I don't really know much at all about cosmology though. And I'm not sure really if the concept of ultimate infinity necessarily implies that it means 'everything exists somewhere'?

Yeah, that's part of it. Time and the universe are both infinate so, yeah, when you think of infinity, anything is possible. Heck, if you ask me, when I think about infinity, it's more likely some of these bizarre and crazy things actually DO exist.... even if I don't have proof. That's kinda the nature of infinity, ain't it?

Well if you have no reason to believe or disbelieve then I assume disbelief is the default because you need reasons to believe something exists first.

Yeah, it kinda comes down to that. Logic 101: you can't absolutly prove a negative. Really, it is kinda hard to absolutly prove that God/Magic/Spirits/Ghosts don't exist and if they don't, I don't think it can absolutly be proven that they don't.

Maybe it's my way of saying that I have an open mind, I dunno. I'm still figuring myself out quite a bit right now, so trying to figure out the nature of the universe will kinda be taking a back seat.

And maybe it's just hopeful thinking. Part of the reason I believe in supernatural (even though, granted, I don't have proof) is because I want to believe there's more. This world and my life (now) is wonderful and it hurts to think that in a few decades it will be over and nothing will be left of me. I want to believe there's some kind of after life, even though I don't have any proof of it.

Well if by weak atheist you mean that you are not absolutely 100% certain that God doesn't exist and you certainly don't claim to absolutely 'KNOW' he doesn't?

I myself - at least by my definition - do not think that opinions on other supernatural beliefs, or beliefs about the afterlife or spiritual beliefs or whatever - have any effect on the strength of the 'atheism'.

I think of your atheism as your stance on "God" as in a supernatural creator of the universe - your other supernatural beliefs don't have any effect on that per se.

Yeah, I think that's kinda the fine line I'm walking here. I don't believe in any supernatural creator of the universe (or, at very least, I can't believe in the Judeo/Christian/Muslim version of God), but other realms of supernatural.... yeah, they might exist. Might not. Can't say one way or the other.

E.G, by my definition at least: You can have many spiritual or supernatural beliefs but still not believe in a "God" (as I define God: a supernatural creator) so therefore still be an atheist and even be a very strong gnostic atheist that absolutely claims there isn't one...

Anyway, even if I believed in that, the world is just too chaotic to believe in any all powerful God.

Unless God is an alcoholic on LCD or something? Or he (/she/it) has severe psychosis lol.[/quote]

Actually, even there, I could believe in an all powerful God who created the universe and the laws of physics that govern it and simply left it to itself. However, if such a God did exist, does it really matter that he does? It would obviously not be a God that wants us to worship him or to write laws based on his holy book let alone kill people in his name.