Ok so in one post you say that God did not create evil he just created free will and then man took it upon himself to create Evil right? But then in this post you claim that man cannot have virtue or morality without God??? PEACE Commisso
Well surf I too believe in a higher power than myself and from the outside might be considered a seeker of truth BUT I do not believe in the christian or any conception of a "god"... so again I apologize if I put a label on you or assumed something that was incorrect... PEACE and good trading, Commisso
surfer and commisso: first off note my caveat regarding free will as an elightenment concept more than an actual state of affairs. sometimes a half useful label is better than none at all though the sharp eyed will be quick to discover issues, as you have done. (surfer i am by and large in agreement w/ John Calvin so I am quite familiar w/ predestination). Commisso the seeming contradictions you highlight are fascinating points of discussion and i look forward to addressing them, though for sake of time not tonight...to be continued, same bat time, same bat channel
Fair enough Dark and I look foward to a healthy discussion that may or may not be able to dispel any misconeptions I have regarding your conception of God... PEACE and good trading, Commisso
in the meantime Commisso i would like to hear how you can see 'solely in the realm of thought' as being any different from 'purely subjective opinion' which in turn implies no absolutes / no universal standards...if they are the same there is no need to make a distinction, if different i would like to know how to be continued...
I don't see them existing outside of the realm of thought and I don't see them being anything more than pure subjective opinions or better put labels to define reality... I do not accept or embrace absolute standards of human concepts, for the label is not reality itself... "The finger pointing at the moon is not the moon!" I do not feel that right and wrong exist in reality... They only exist in ones mind, and imo it is only until one can transcend these labels that they can see the truth or the reality in which the labels are attempting to define... PEACE Commisso
There is plenty of evidence for evolution in the fossil record, and in our DNA. There is also plenty of evidence that the earth is billions of years old, not thousands, as a literal interpretation of the Old Testament would hold. If anyone wants to believe that, the best they can do is say that in the process of creating the universe, God planted a lot of false evidence that it is older than it really is. Of course, this is an unfalsifiable and untestable proposition and therefore worthless as a scientific theory. If you understood how science works, you'd understand that no theory is ever proven. All that matters is how useful it is. As for the 200 years thing, would you argue that you'd rather, for example, be treated by medical science more that 200 years old rather than less? Finally, a lot more people over a lot longer time frame have believed in things other than Christianity. Most of the world's religions are incompatible - what makes you think that the one true religion just happens to be the one you were born into? "I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours." - Stephen Roberts
Most of the world's religions are incompatible That seems to be the problem with religion. What if you believe in God but not any religion?
So it is insane folly for man not to want to put labels on reality??? And how exactly did your God protect the 5k people that died in the WTC from mans insane follies... or 350k Somalians that died of hunger in one year... or the 3mil Jews that died at the hands or "insane" Hitler and how exactly did he save my uncle from being killed by a drunk driver from mans insane fooly to think he could operate a car after 20 shots... Are the people who resist categorizing every thing cazy insane or maybe sane crazy??? or are these just more and more labels??? insane folly of man is telling a child from birth that he or she is expected to act one way but will only be acceptable if done voluntarily that is folly in its truest sense... Edit: No what that is is permanent brain damage and a murdering of ones true self or soul... PEACE and good trading, Commisso
As in the "God the watchmaker"? Created the universe and set it in motion and basically has been hands off ever since? I don't see much harm in it, but I also don't see much point either.