(April 18, 2014 at 4:50 pm)Godlesspanther Wrote:(April 18, 2014 at 4:31 pm)ThePinsir Wrote: I tend to think the same way. I don't think most people reaaaaaly believe in a god. They believe in belief.
However, to state that is utmost arrogance. It's the same as a xian tell me I really do believe. It's unfair to put words in someones else's mouth...or ideas in their heads, so to speak.
So, I just smile and wave lol
I suspect that a majority of people who claim belief in a deity really do genuinely believe in that deity. We look at things like the Heaven's Gate cult -- 39 people killed themselves thinking that they would catch a ride on comet by doing so. Completely irrational thing to believe without a spot of evidence to suggest that it might even be possible, but they believed it 100% -- if there were anything short of absolute certainty -- they would still be alive.
I think the problem lies in believing in belief. They seem to be of the opinion that adamant dogmatic insistence is the same as evidence. "I really, really, really believe this shit, therefore -- it's true."
You can't make something true by dogmatically insisting that it's true. When a person comes to this realization then they are usually on their way to abandoning whatever faith they are being imprisoned by.
You're forgetting that people are stupid and a majority of people are clinically insane. So it's perfectly normal for such people to believe that they would catch a ride on a comet. Consider all of the recent past and current preachers who blab about the end of the world. Countless people believe them even though everyone has been wrong about such things.
