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NeoGreen

(4,033 posts)
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 08:25 AM Jan 2020

Aaron Rodgers: How Can Anyone Believe in a God Who Sends People to Hell?

Last edited Fri Jan 24, 2020, 11:41 AM - Edit history (1)

https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2020/01/23/aaron-rodgers-how-can-anyone-believe-in-a-god-who-sends-people-to-hell/




Aaron Rodgers: How Can Anyone Believe in a God Who Sends People to Hell?
By Hemant Mehta, January 23, 2020

If you pay any attention to football, then you know Aaron Rodgers is both an amazing quarterback and intelligent guy. (He was a winner on Celebrity Jeopardy, too.)

About a month ago, he gave an interview to Danica Patrick for her “Pretty Intense” podcast and opened up about his religious skepticism.

He spoke about joining a Christian group when he was younger, even going on memorable missionary trips, but his priorities changed once he got to college. He also learned about other religions, and realized a lot of religious claims are equally absurd.

Then there’s this:

… I don’t know how you can believe in a God who wants to condemn most of the planet, you know, to a fiery hell. Like, what type of loving, sensitive, omnipresent, omnipotent being wants to condemn most of his beautiful creation to a fiery hell at the end of all this?

Fair question. Not an unusual one either. The concept of Hell has created many an atheist and led to countless seminary discussions. But Rodgers’ comments seem to have struck a chord, especially given the religious nature of football.


Restated:
How could you possibly experience the purported bliss of heaven when you are fully aware there are friends and family in hell 'burning' in eternal conscience torment? How much will you have to twist your internal conscientious to ignore that fact and how would that twist of conscience comport with being a good or moral person?
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Aaron Rodgers: How Can Anyone Believe in a God Who Sends People to Hell? (Original Post) NeoGreen Jan 2020 OP
Fits the Republican mind set exboyfil Jan 2020 #1
I'll do you one better pamdb Jan 2020 #2
Some people might say... NeoGreen Jan 2020 #3
Right on que no less Major Nikon Jan 2020 #5
Yes, and we would be subject to yet another example of a... NeoGreen Jan 2020 #6
How can anyone believe that Aaron Rodgers can win another Super Bowl ring? guillaumeb Jan 2020 #4
oh hai Act_of_Reparation Jan 2020 #7
So you will argue that Rodgers can win another ring? guillaumeb Jan 2020 #8
Nope. Act_of_Reparation Jan 2020 #12
I laughed when they lost. guillaumeb Jan 2020 #13
Seahawks came within about 3 inches of taking out SF, so... yeah. AtheistCrusader Jan 2020 #30
Lynch was out of football for approximately 18 months. guillaumeb Jan 2020 #34
Lynch did great. AtheistCrusader Jan 2020 #35
It takes a whole team to win edhopper Jan 2020 #9
Rodgers led his team, G led his. guillaumeb Jan 2020 #10
do you even understand what he was saying edhopper Jan 2020 #11
Vikings fan here. Rodgers has been carrying his bag of trash team on his back for several years. Cuthbert Allgood Jan 2020 #17
Unlike your claims about this "creator," which are completely supported, right? trotsky Jan 2020 #14
Fee free to cite one instance where I said that they are/were. guillaumeb Jan 2020 #15
So Rodgers' claims about your "creator" are just as valid as yours. trotsky Jan 2020 #16
You made the actual, unsupported claim in #14. guillaumeb Jan 2020 #18
You are correct. I claim that you have made specific claims about your creator. trotsky Jan 2020 #20
The examples aren't that hard to find Major Nikon Jan 2020 #19
Indeed. trotsky Jan 2020 #21
And let's not forget any literal reading of the bible he doesn't like is wrong Major Nikon Jan 2020 #22
Well the literal readings he likes aren't literalism, you see. trotsky Jan 2020 #23
Almost sounds like that makes him a "decider" Major Nikon Jan 2020 #24
He's a choir of one, I guess. trotsky Jan 2020 #25
Are you unaware of the concept of an opinion piece? guillaumeb Jan 2020 #33
As a recovering Evangelical gibraltar72 Jan 2020 #26
My folks had an answer for that FiveGoodMen Jan 2020 #27
The great Universalists Hoseau Ballou, John Murray and others tackled this question stewrat Jan 2020 #28
Sure... NeoGreen Jan 2020 #29
How about this? PJMcK Jan 2020 #31
Fansplaining, pure and simple. FiveGoodMen Jan 2020 #32

NeoGreen

(4,033 posts)
3. Some people might say...
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 09:16 AM
Jan 2020

Last edited Fri Jan 24, 2020, 11:43 AM - Edit history (1)

...something to the effect of, "it's all an aspect of the creator."...or a something-something subjective double-speak that doesn't mean anything at all.

guillaumeb

(42,649 posts)
4. How can anyone believe that Aaron Rodgers can win another Super Bowl ring?
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 11:10 AM
Jan 2020

And he makes an unsupportable claim about the Creator, and the Creator's intentions.

guillaumeb

(42,649 posts)
8. So you will argue that Rodgers can win another ring?
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 12:34 PM
Jan 2020

Good luck. Rodgers is still good, but SF showed how a running game and strong defense can win.

AtheistCrusader

(33,982 posts)
35. Lynch did great.
Tue Jan 28, 2020, 10:58 AM
Jan 2020

Wilson failed to prepare and call a play in time, so we got the delay of game penalty, minus five yards.
Administrative fuckup. That's on the Coach and the QB.

Edit: It was doubly infuriating, because the SAME failure to call a play problem, likely was the proximate cause for our last superbowl loss.

edhopper

(34,848 posts)
9. It takes a whole team to win
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 01:03 PM
Jan 2020

Rodgers is better than Jimmy G, his team was not better than SF.


As for this so called unsupported claim. It is the same claim that the majority of Christians make, so you can take it up with them.

guillaumeb

(42,649 posts)
10. Rodgers led his team, G led his.
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 01:08 PM
Jan 2020

And we know which team won. The score aside, it was not even close. You could see the body language and facial expressions on the Green Bay bench in the 3rd quarter.

As to the claim, we have competing, unsupportable claims. Perhaps Rodgers takes his claim on faith.

Cuthbert Allgood

(5,170 posts)
17. Vikings fan here. Rodgers has been carrying his bag of trash team on his back for several years.
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 03:42 PM
Jan 2020

I was kind of surprised he took the contract extension. He had to know that meant he wouldn't win another ring.

I actually like him more with this interview (I do think he is one of the best QB in the NFL—just wish he wasn't in the central).

guillaumeb

(42,649 posts)
15. Fee free to cite one instance where I said that they are/were.
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 02:17 PM
Jan 2020

If you are interested in dialogue, it would be better if you did not make such unsupported claims. Ironic, is it not?

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
16. So Rodgers' claims about your "creator" are just as valid as yours.
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 03:33 PM
Jan 2020

Thank you for confirming.

And I know that you are not interested in actual dialog, because all you do is spit in my face when I make an attempt.

guillaumeb

(42,649 posts)
18. You made the actual, unsupported claim in #14.
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 05:07 PM
Jan 2020

And now you accuse me again of being rude. Wass it rude of you to make your unsupported claim?

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
20. You are correct. I claim that you have made specific claims about your creator.
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 08:11 AM
Jan 2020

Now defend the claims you've made. For Koresh's sake, don't you ever get tired of humiliating yourself?

Major Nikon

(36,900 posts)
19. The examples aren't that hard to find
Fri Jan 24, 2020, 06:57 PM
Jan 2020

Pretty much every time he mentions “Creator” it’s in absolute terms.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/1218268107

In other words, it’s perfectly OK to make a completely unsupportable claim about what the “Creator” does, but when someone speaks speculatively about what a creator does when they are using it as an example of something they obviously don’t believe in it to begin with, that’s unsupported.

The Doublethink is strong with this one.

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
21. Indeed.
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 08:12 AM
Jan 2020

"we are created in the image and likeness of the Creator."

A distinct and specific claim which remains to this date wholly unsupported.

But that's OK for guillaumeb to do, because he applies different rules for others than he does for himself.

Major Nikon

(36,900 posts)
22. And let's not forget any literal reading of the bible he doesn't like is wrong
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 01:38 PM
Jan 2020

Because he understands the original meaning of the totally anonymous authors and to prove it he will scour the googles to find some obscure reference from an irrelevant interweb author that happens to kinda sorta agree with him. Yet any other interpretation readily accepted by billions of adherents to Abrahamic religions over a millennium is just flat wrong because like everyone else they just don't understand. Eventually his claim of 'just stating his opinion' starts to look a lot more like a sermon where any dissent is forbidden.

trotsky

(49,533 posts)
23. Well the literal readings he likes aren't literalism, you see.
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 01:40 PM
Jan 2020

That's one of his go-to insults whenever someone mentions a bible verse he doesn't like.

Major Nikon

(36,900 posts)
24. Almost sounds like that makes him a "decider"
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 01:52 PM
Jan 2020

Oh wait, since he likes using that term as a pejorative that can't possibly be correct unless he's a complete hypocrite.

guillaumeb

(42,649 posts)
33. Are you unaware of the concept of an opinion piece?
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 08:59 PM
Jan 2020

Or must each separate post that any make here be so labelled?

FiveGoodMen

(20,018 posts)
27. My folks had an answer for that
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 04:06 PM
Jan 2020

Since we were born such sinful, unacceptable pieces of shit, a GOOD and LOVING god had no choice but to send us to hell.

Burning to death was just too good for us.

stewrat

(50 posts)
28. The great Universalists Hoseau Ballou, John Murray and others tackled this question
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 04:16 PM
Jan 2020

and argued that sin is finite, but Gods love is universal therefore, salvation is universal and that all Sinners will be restored to God. Not sure when they get restored, it might be a while depending on the nature of their sins I guess.

NeoGreen

(4,033 posts)
29. Sure...
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 05:02 PM
Jan 2020

...they should tell that to the people who are "burning in eternal conscience torment".

But your post doesn't answer the fundamental question that arises from the purported afterlife possibilities, how could you experience 'heavenly bliss' while being aware that some your friends and family are 'experiencing hell'.

What would it say about you, to be able to ignore that level of suffering?

PJMcK

(22,889 posts)
31. How about this?
Mon Jan 27, 2020, 05:48 PM
Jan 2020

As your soul passes through the Holy Gates and you receive your wings and harp, there's a degaussing device surrounding the Gates. As you fly into Heaven, your memory is erased and you won't remember your friends and family who are no longer with you.

Hey, it makes as much sense as anything else I've heard or read.

By the way, when a soul enters Hell, they're given a pitchfork and an accordion. (Musician joke, sorry.)

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