Question?

[Edwardo Piet]

[Nihilist Virus]

There is a fundamental flaw in assuming that one of the world's current religions must be the "correct" one.

Actually, the Mormons were right.

[Edwardo Piet]

Yay South Park.

[Minimalist]

In my college studies the origin of the universe and the best explanation of its design and that it has a beginning point to "a" God.

You should have studied harder.  Maybe taken some science classes.

[Mister Agenda]

Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer!  Thank you to everyone in the forum for your insightful contributions, I am always challenged intellectually with much of what I read here.   I have a quick question for my non theist compadres:  

If you discovered personally acceptable truth (whatever that may be for you) that the Christian God revealed in the bible was authentic, would you choose to serve and worship him?  If yes, why?  If no, feel free to elaborate as to why as well.  

I observe there are many former Christians and very knowledgable people here on the content of the bible, I look forward to hearing your responses.  

Again, I really do hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

It would depend on how accurate the Bible's description of him was and why it was so important that I worship him. Some of the Bible stories about him don't put him in a very good light; but I know some denominations are able to read the Bible and conclude God is love, somehow.

I'm suspicious of the whole concept of 'serve and worship'. If you're talking about a tri-Omni God, it doesn't actually need those things (or anything). Anything it wants to accomplish can be done with a thought. And wanting to be worshipped is unseemly in a supposedly all-good being, it indicates a psychological need for praise that a perfect God shouldn't have.

That said, if I knew the Christian God was real and planned to torture me for all eternity, I'm not too proud to admit I'm not to proud to grovel if that's what it takes to save me from eternal burning. I'm sure Stockholm syndrome will do for getting me to sufficient sincerity levels. Set me on fire for a second and I'll do almost anything to stop it, I'm under no defiant illusions about 'bring on the hellfire and suck it God' being a choice I wouldn't regret in a matter of seconds once the serious torture started.

[robvalue]

Worship either seems like an excessive form of thanks, or else pleading for better treatment.

Regarding the first point, we're often made to believe this god character used zero effort and resources to make all this. Is a lifetime of thanks really proportionate?

[Angrboda]

What part of Christianity would I then believe? Just the promise of salvation? The resurrection? The miracle stories? Both old and new testaments?

What I would do depends a lot on which parts of Christianity I held as literal truth. Many cafeteria Christians gloss over the old testament and basically ignore it as not relevant. What I make of the old testament might influence how I would believe.

If I was convinced all of it was true... I'd first try my best to understand this god.

[vorlon13]

There is a fundamental flaw in assuming that one of the world's current religions must be the "correct" one.

Actually, the Mormons were right.

Actually, it was the Mormon spin off group, the Congregation of Jehovah's Presbytery of Zion that is The One True Faith.

See you start with Mormonism, then add COMMUNISM !!!!



See, It all makes perfect sense now, don't it ??

[lisah]

If you discovered personally acceptable truth (whatever that may be for you) that the Christian God revealed in the bible was authentic, would you choose to serve and worship him?  If yes, why?  If no, feel free to elaborate as to why as well.  

Coming in late here, but . . 

The question, as stated, is . . . well, strange to me.

I guess I have always struggled with "serve and worship". 

If to serve god is the same as helping your fellow man, I find that acceptable. 

I get stuck on the worship part though. I've never quite understood that, except as a mindfulness exercise that is meant to assist one with service. Or maybe as a means of establishing and maintaining a sense of value of god, others and self . . . maybe.

But, you see, that would be me defining god, self and others and creating that value; would it not?

[Simon Moon]

I'm genuinely curious because you seem like a reasonably intelligent person.  How can you believe such utter shit?

Truly it was a long road.  It started with the typical questions about life, death.  

In my college studies the origin of the universe and the best explanation of its design and that it has a beginning point to "a" God.

What makes you insert the term "design"? Design implies a designer, and the evidence for a designer is drastically insufficient to support that claim.

The assertion that the universe is designed requires evidence.

And why is it, that the majority of physicists in the world, do not agree with your assertion that the universe has a designer? They're the ones that actually have dedicated their lives to studying the universe, actually understand the physics, and work in the field every day. What did they miss that you did not?

From there I examined most all of the major religions: Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and a few others.  At its core Christianity is unique in what is required so to speak. The bar is set very low, where as in other religions there is a requirement of works and accomplishments to be met.

Oh really? All religions have unique characteristics? I'm shocked.

I share nearly all of the objections and hard truths that everyone here has with religion, the Old Testament, science, the list is long.  However, when taken as a whole, even the really brutal stuff, I honesty find truth in the bible and in Christ's words.

We don't have "Christ's" words. We have texts written by unknown authors, who were not eyewitnesses, written decades or more after the alleged events occurred.

From there it was a matter of now I believe, do I choose to accept it, the good, the bad, the really hard stuff that I don't agree with, or reject it and go about life.  It is very difficult to ignore something that holds such eternal ramifications without giving it serious consideration.

Seriously?! Pascal's Wager.

I know you are somewhat new here, but so far I'm not impressed with your logic and arguments.