Atheists & Agnostics
Related: About this forumDoodley
(10,360 posts)Bernardo de La Paz
(50,894 posts)If you reject 1000 gods, then go all the way and reject the last one for the same reasons.
Just because something can't be proven is no reason to fall back to relying solely on faith, most often the faith you were simply born into.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)Can it be put in a test tube or examined under a microscope? No. Sometimes faith is all the proof we need. Why do atheists expect proof when there is so much they believe that is unprovable?
As for the thousand Gods, I am of the view that anyone who believes in God or a God, believes in a God that is unique to their perception, their knowledge, their understanding, their culture, their religion, their other influences, their intelligence, their personality, their experiences, etc, and this can also change day to day, so there are billions of the bloody things.
By the way, I am an atheist too.
Bernardo de La Paz
(50,894 posts)Notice I said "evidenced".
People so often are highly desirous of final proof or 100% irrefutable evidence.
If someone spends most of their time outside of work tending to and caring for an ill or disabled family member, that is not proof of love, but is surely strong evidence.
Actions speak louder than words. Sometimes people's actions belie their words.
People can believe what they want, and can generally say what they want, but how they act on those beliefs is too often at odds with reality.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)Act_of_Reparation
(9,116 posts)A machine can be programmed to tend to the basic biological, physical needs of others. It cannot be programmed to express interest in or concern for them.
Bev54
(11,917 posts)Doodley
(10,360 posts)dchill
(40,468 posts)Eko
(8,489 posts)Doodley
(10,360 posts)Eko
(8,489 posts)Doodley
(10,360 posts)Eko
(8,489 posts)but you didn't answer the question. Why is it not your choice as well?
Doodley
(10,360 posts)If you like apples better than oranges that is your choice but the why would be because you like them better. I keep asking you why that is your choice and you keep saying that it is your choice. It's obvious it's your choice but the why has yet to be given.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)Eko
(8,489 posts)Not that you choose not to but why you choose not to.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)Eko
(8,489 posts)But that doesn't line up with your earlier claim of "Just because something cannot be proven, doesn't mean it doesn't exist."
The 1st claim is that just because there is not enough evidence to prove it, it can still be true.
The 2nd claim is that you don't believe in something because there is not enough evidence.
I don't see how those are logically compatible.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)proven to exist, doesn't mean they do not exist. I choose not to believe in them as I do not see sufficient evidence, but it is still logical that I cannot rule out that they do exist.
When it comes to people who think they have made some kind of contact or connection with aliens (or God) to say prove it, won't disprove its existence.
Eko
(8,489 posts)"I choose not to believe in them as I do not see sufficient evidence, but it is still logical that I cannot rule out that they do exist."
If you say that you cannot rule out that they do exist then you are saying that they may exist, but before that you are saying that they don't because you do not see sufficient evidence. Either you believe they do, they may or they don't. You cant say your dont believe they don't exist, then next say you believe they may. Makes no sense.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)I bet you feel you have insufficient evidence to believe that. But can you rule it out with absolute certainty? No, of course not.
I don't believe you did, I don't believe you didn't. I believe you may have. See?
Chainfire
(17,757 posts)She is, in fact, snoring right next to me. If you like, I can show proof!
Man created God, in his own image, so that whosoever believeth in him, can avoid death. Humans don't like the thought of their own death. I suspect that if this old dog knew about death, her species would have created a dog god.
We hate voids of knowledge as much as nature abhors vacuums. Where there is a question, we will create an answer. It doesn't have to be true, it doesn't have to be verifiable, but it beats admitting that we just don't know. We are too damn smart to just not know.
gibraltar72
(7,629 posts)while innocents died, proves there is no God. I say that as a recovering Evangelical.
csusan
(27 posts)Everytime I see or hear a coversation re: god, i immediately think ok what is god. I dont know if i believe cause I don't know which god im suppose to be believing in. I dont believe in religion. Im done with that. So is it the catholic god, the fundemental god, the jewish god, the muslim god or just god. Do I believe there is something (one thing) out there that is in charge of everything and has a plan for everyone-no. Until someone can explain suffering to me I can not believe that there is an entity incharge that can stop suffering but allows it anyway. I dont believe in the whole orginial sin or that there is a god that punishes people because somebody else sinned.
Doodley
(10,360 posts)RFCalifornia
(440 posts)First to prove that the laws of physics can be bent or changed
Then prove to me that magic can exist
Then prove to me that a god could exist
Then prove to me that a god does exist
Then prove to me that their god, of all the thousands of gods that people have believed in, is the right one
And...I could go on
Doodley
(10,360 posts)atheist, I am not able to prove whatever an anti-scientist may ask of me. Do you think you are?
RFCalifornia
(440 posts)Not me to negate it
Doodley
(10,360 posts)You can either believe me or not believe me. I am not obligated to prove my extraordinary claims.
RFCalifornia
(440 posts)So, yeah, its a pretty useless tool
One has to prove god exists otherwise they are no different than that crackpot on the street saying "the end is near"
Doodley
(10,360 posts)personally verify.
RFCalifornia
(440 posts)For example, during COVID I looked up the evidence that said the Pfizer vaccine was safe and could help stop the spread of the virus.
Every scientific study has a brief
And since it's peer reviewed it's very possible for other scientists to poke holes in it
God cannot be proved or unproved since you can't prove a negative
But if one is making the assertion "there is a god" then they have to produce evidence, and a 2000 year old book that was edited, changed, completely reworked that we're not even sure the purported authors had anything to do with -- then they, as Ricky Riccardo once said, have a lot of explaining to do
Doodley
(10,360 posts)understand what it is to love. It isn't something that can be studied in a test tube. If you have never experienced sight or sound, you cannot understand what it is. If you do not either recognize the meaning of faith or experience it yourself, you will not understand what it is.
RFCalifornia
(440 posts)I love my wife completely
Yet I don't do it on faith, I do it because she is a beautiful person and is the SAME beautiful person I met
Stop equating faith with love
It's like equating horse shit with chocolate
Doodley
(10,360 posts)RFCalifornia
(440 posts)Act_of_Reparation
(9,116 posts)People who don't believe in bigfoot rarely suffer socio-occupational consequences for their lack of belief in bigfoot. People who believe in bigfoot aren't measurably more privileged than those who do not. Our culture does not hold belief in bigfoot to be a virtue.
RFCalifornia
(440 posts)RFCalifornia
(440 posts)If you said you didn't have any, I wouldn't believe you
Lady Freedom Returns
(14,120 posts)And then you have The Nonprofits.
Sunday's are usually me watching ACA stuff as well as stuff put out by Telltale and Jimmy Snow, AKA Mr Atheist.