RE: What would it take for you to believe in God?
April 29, 2014 at 10:44 pm
(This post was last modified: April 29, 2014 at 10:44 pm by Cyberman.)
Great, now we've got traction. This is actually a lot more than we usually get from resident theists, so you're earning points right out of the gate here.
Why depend on faith? If you have evidence, you don't need faith. You might have reasonable expectations based on the evidence, but since you've set up such a partition you don't even have those.
Fine. Do you ever test those presuppositions? For example, what do you know of your god's attributes and how do you know them?
Evidence is only a problem, usually handwaved away like this, to those who don't actually have any. If you or any theist actually had some copper-bottomed, compelling evidence for whatever god you're proposing, do you think you (or they) wouldn't come to places like this and parade it around like a show pony?
Again, fine. I'm more interested in what you can demonstrate to be true, as distinct from what you believe to be true.
(April 29, 2014 at 10:30 pm)te1148 Wrote: I believe out of faith. I certainly think there are evidences that support my faith, but my faith does not rest on these evidences.
Why depend on faith? If you have evidence, you don't need faith. You might have reasonable expectations based on the evidence, but since you've set up such a partition you don't even have those.
(April 29, 2014 at 10:30 pm)te1148 Wrote: I presuppose that God is there.
Fine. Do you ever test those presuppositions? For example, what do you know of your god's attributes and how do you know them?
(April 29, 2014 at 10:30 pm)te1148 Wrote: I don't think using evidences to point to God is very helpful.
Evidence is only a problem, usually handwaved away like this, to those who don't actually have any. If you or any theist actually had some copper-bottomed, compelling evidence for whatever god you're proposing, do you think you (or they) wouldn't come to places like this and parade it around like a show pony?
(April 29, 2014 at 10:30 pm)te1148 Wrote: I believe in God just like I believe my wife loves me. It's a part of who I am.
Again, fine. I'm more interested in what you can demonstrate to be true, as distinct from what you believe to be true.
At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist. This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways - with relief or with despair. Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, 'Wait a second. That means there's a situation vacant.'
