Yes, it is Thursday again, and time for the Thursday survey. If you wish to participate, and I hope you will, just click on the comment button below, type your answer in the comment box when it opens, click on the anonymous button, (give your name if you wish, or not if you don't), and then click on the publish button. Today's question which arises out of the last post is:
If you believe God exists, why?
If you believe God does not exist, why not?
If you believe Alabama will win the SEC basetball tournament, how did you achieve that level of faith?
No comments yet so I'll try and say what I think people are thinking.
ReplyDeleteThe yes:
- I just do.
- Because that's what I was told, and I believe it.
- Because if I don't and I'm wrong it doesn't turn out so great for me in the end.
- Because other people who I care about think this way.
The No:
- I'm a pompous intellectual. I have many leather bound books.
- Because I can't prove it, and no one else can.
- Because I'm unsure, and I can do as I please without feeling guilty if I come down on this side.
- Because other people I care about think this way.
So I am being sarcastic, but I have thought about this question for a while now. Some of my close friends have struggled with it recently, and they continue to struggle with it. I think the reason I believe that God exists is the peace you receive. Life is full of crap. Crap stays crap, but God at least lets you know that things turn out okay, no matter how messy they are along the way. God gives purpose. I realize that I am speaking more to my relationship with God rather than to his/her/its existence, but that's the way he works. God is around no matter what I say or choose to believe---like oxygen---and we are continually interacting with him. If God weren't around life would be pointless.
We all need to believe in and be part of something bigger than ourselves. That's an argument both for our belief in God (whatever he/she/that turns out to be) & an argument used by people who say our brains have just gotten sophisticated enough that we need something "else" to deal with. I think we (as probably other animals) have a spiritual nature that is connected to whatever God is. I just don't know what that is. I suspect people who say they are really sure they know all about God know less than others. Through a glass darkly and all of that. Back to the original thought, in some way that we are usually not conscientious of, we are all one (and that may very well include other than our species). I won't quote the Black-Eyed Peas here, but I could.
ReplyDeleteI do believe God exists because I have known His presence in my life in ways more real than the visual world around me.
ReplyDeleteI desperately want God to exist. I think about death all the time. It makes me feel better to believe that there is a God. It brings comfort and peace to think that I am a special and unique creation worth saving. It is a place holder for the unknown. It is for all of those reasons that I do not believe that there is a God.
ReplyDeleteI believe that there must be a reason for our existence. I choose to believe that the universe was set in motion for some reason and by something outside of that universe. There is no proof of that. I always get stuck on the Why. Why do we exist? I believe that there is an answer beyond nature and God seems as plausible as any other answer I can come up with.