Another new member

[Lord Summerisle]

Greetings all,
I stumbled across this site whilst googling and thought I'd sign up. Some interesting discussions here.
I'm a believer, but not a practitioner of any mainstream religion.

[Paul the Human]

Welcome, Lord Summerisle! Having people with differing opinions and beliefs is what makes the discussions here so interesting. I must say, though... "I'm a believer" is a bit vague. I assume that means you believe in at least one deity. Which one? Is it Zeus? It would be awesome if it were Zeus!

[Darwinian]

No, I think it must be Odin.. About time he got a mention..

[fr0d0]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfuBREMXxts

Welcome

[Tiberius]

Poor guy only knows how to play the tambourine.

[Minimalist]

Zeus is super cool.

[Edwardo Piet]

Hi Welcome.

You're a "believer"? (Damn!!!!) How vague.

EvF

[Lord Summerisle]

Thanks for the welcome fellas.

Welcome, Lord Summerisle! Having people with differing opinions and beliefs is what makes the discussions here so interesting. I must say, though... "I'm a believer" is a bit vague. I assume that means you believe in at least one deity. Which one? Is it Zeus? It would be awesome if it were Zeus!

I don't believe Zeus actually exists, although obviously it can't be proven. I can't prove to you that the Lord Almighty exists either, however one difference between the true God and Santa, Zeus, the tooth fairy, etc etc is that people don't claim to have seen/experienced them, do they?

As we all know, at one time the Greeks certainly believed in Gods which they also used to explain the observable forces in nature, but it had its time. Naturally its so much easier for the primitive mind to explain the world in terms of multiple gods (each religated to a specific realm of responsibility such as war, wind, sun, lightning, etc) rather than the monotheistic approach. Besides, polytheism is far more colourful, wouldn't you all agree? Imagine replacing He-man, superman, superwoman, & spiderman with..say, mega-bisexualman who does all those things? Yes kids, he/she/it climbs walls faster than a speeding bullet and carries a sword. It just wouldn't be the same.
I can easily well imagine that with the classical world lacking in radio, television, etc - the talk of "the gods" must have been the on going soap opera of the day. Today we've replaced our polytheism with celebrity worship - it seems human brains are still wired the same, only the cast list has been changed and their superpowers altered to suit.

It's my belief, that those who have experienced the one true God know that this isn't a mere "God of the gaps" used to explain the world around us where knowledge is lacking, but rather, something far far greater.
I consider myself more of a spritualist (rather than religious) person - though I tend to see the similarity between most religions instead of focusing on the differences as many atheists tend to. In my view, they are all different interpretations of the same God, whilst also bearing in mind that the gospel was written for an ancient audience. Can you imagine what would've happened if the Holy Bible, written for a 2nd century audience, spoke of evolution and a universe that was billions of years old, with a round Earth and other planets? People of that time would have just laughed at that "nonsense" and continued with their pagan ways or polytheism. I believe the Bible was written for its time, and it was perfect for its time, but nowadays perhaps *everything* contained within shouldn't be taken literally. The rules should change as times change, but thats just my view.
I trust this sheds a little light on where I stand, perhaps the Intro thread isn't the place to delve too deeply into this, but I look forward to further discussions on AF in the near future !

[Paul the Human]

*chuckles* The Zeus thing was a a jest. You'll find there are a lot of those around here. It is good to see that you have such a firm grasp on what you do believe. A fresh perspective is a welcome addition to any discussion, as far as I'm concerned. I look forward to further discussions, as well!

[Dotard]

You still haven't quite answered the question.

What "God" are you believing in? "One true God" doesn't answer anything.

I have seen/experianced Santa, Zues and the tooth fairy. Your 'one differance' is now voided. So why do you believe?