(June 18, 2015 at 1:19 am)robvalue Wrote: Thanks so much everyone! We're having a lovely meal today at one of our favourite places![]()
Here's my thoughts, for what they are worth! I would wager every atheist here would agree with me on at least the first point.
1) You are too good for Catholicism.
2) Your stated reason for belief that Jesus really was God is the success of the church and all its history. If you're interested, this is argument from incredulity fallacy: you can't imagine any other way for all this to happen other than Jesus really being God. The truth doesn't depend on our ability to imagine it. There is a very simple and much more likely alternative: people continued to think Jesus really was God throughout the church's history. As I'm sure you'll agree even now no one can prove there is a god or that Jesus was God, so the belief alone is enough to keep all of Christianity going. So it's no surprise that this could have always been the case, when proof was similarly impossible. If people really believed it, what difference would it have made if it was actually true or not?
3) A question I asked earlier: how would you feel if you were gay? Would you still love a God who insisted you repress who you are, even when gay sex hurts no one else? Not long ago a teenager killed herself because she couldn't handle how much God was disapproving of her just for being the way she was. Your gut reaction to gay sex being "off" is not surprising, since you're not gayAll of sexual attraction is bizarre when viewed objectively. It only makes sense biologically, and to the individuals. Not wanting to do it yourself isn't a reason to stop others wanting to do it, that's sensible morality, so why would God stick his oar in and say otherwise?
1. Haha, thank you for the half compliment, but Catholicism has contributed deeply to who I am as a person.

2. I understand what you are saying. I agree. There is no physical proof that I can point to or show anyone. Proof that God is real or that Jesus is God does not exist. I have particular reasons why it makes more sense to me that there is a God verses that there isn't, but at the end of the day, you are correct, there is no proof that I can show anyone.
3. I would have a very very hard time accepting the Church's teachings on sexual morality if I was gay. I most certainly wouldn't want to. Of course, I'd like to say that I would follow church teaching and remain celibate, but in all honesty that would probably not be the case. I love the closeness of being in a relationship and the family life. If I was gay it would be very very difficult for me to adhere to Church teaching on it. I feel greatly for people who are gay, and I do believe God has great mercy for them.
"Of course, everyone will claim they respect someone who tries to speak the truth, but in reality, this is a rare quality. Most respect those who speak truths they agree with, and their respect for the speaking only extends as far as their realm of personal agreement. It is less common, almost to the point of becoming a saintly virtue, that someone truly respects and loves the truth seeker, even when their conclusions differ wildly."
-walsh
-walsh