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It goes to show that Atheists rely on themselves to get through situations that might involve death while the religious need something to help them cope. Kind of shows that Atheists tend to be stronger people emotionally and mentally.
Be very careful here. Satan is working so hard to try and do one thing only. He is trying to stop you from believing in Jesus Christ. He knows that if you believe in Jesus Christ you will live forever, and he is trying everything in his power to stop that from happening.
Stay strong in your faith brothers and sisters.
mongoose...Did you read the article? I'm pretty sure people who don't believe in a mystical man in the clouds don't believe in a mystical man in some underground fire...
Religious people need to realize we are all animals. And like every other wild animal in this world we are born, we live, we die, we rot and fertilize future life. I guess death is too much for people to comprehend...
Atheists are fools. Even the Bible says that. Relying on oneself doesn't make a person stronger, only stupider.
Unfortunately Sandy, that is not going to help the atheists or agnostics once they take their last breath and find out, as the rich man did, that there is no coming back from Hades once they find out the truth, nor can they come back to warn others. It is a very scary thing to leave this earth without the blood of Christ covering you. For without him as your Lord, your sins or open and bare before God, with condemning judgment to follow and that person will be accountable for every sin, including every idle word, thought and motive. No thanks! I'll continue having faith in the Lord as my savior. Being without Christ is like playing Russian Roulette, except that all of the chambers are loaded.
You don't seem to be a much emotionally or mentally stronger person seeing as you feel the need to proclaim yourself as stronger than us.
If God wants us to know he exists, then he can send some other form of proof than a book penned by man thousand of years ago, handed down to men, and interpreted and perverted by man to satisfy the human need for greed and power.
It is the fear of death that religion keeps people asking questions (but keep paying that 10% tithe into the coffers). I consider myself Agnostic and would be happy to follow any God that there was some sort of proof of. There is no concrete proof to any theories of origin, whether it is a religious explanation or a scientific explanation. Yet there are plenty of people eager to exploit man's need for answers and the fear of the unknown.
DarkShadow-
Romans 1:20 says "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
God is not interested in proving anything to you, or anyone else. He's looking for those who are seeking HIM.
"God is not interested in proving anything to you, or anyone else. He's looking for those who are seeking HIM." Good, go seek HIM and leave the rest of us alone.
Don-816006.....So much for that all merciful, all forgiving stuff, right ? Such a hateful, revengeful "god" you believe in !
Time to grow up !
"Atheists are fools. Even the Bible says that." Like that is going to convince an atheist of his "wrong" ways.
What most religious people do not understand is that while christians may find other christian sects, muslim, hindu or mormon believes unacceptable and "funny", atheists think that all of religions' beliefs are hilarious.
I don't think so. This very small survey was not taken after all of these people just had near-death experiences...it was just their thoughts as of now. Who is to say that these atheists, if in a REAL life/death situation would not say a small prayer as a last-ditch effort to save their soul....just in case... Sitting in a nice classroom, answering questions is a safe place to think about "what ifs", but it doesn't come close to actually being in that real situation to know what you will and won't do. This little survey doesn't prove anything. It just proves that Christians, Athesists etc. stick to their beliefs while answering surveys about their thoughts on religion. That's not news....nor is it really scientific.
Shocking, the holy book of a particular religion says that people not of that religion are fools. No way. I can't believe it. *eye roll*
Being an atheist that has been in such situations, speaking for myself, I must say I became no more inclined to religion at any time during my experiences.
Now, it must be noted that although I am an atheist; I do not necessarily reject spiritual concepts off-hand. Yet, it's my philosophy that religions, in general, have 'it' fundamentally wrong and that dogmatic beliefs are the creations of men and men alone.
As for my view on death, I think in all likelihood that when my life ends, it ends. That's it. If it doesn't end, and there is something else - that's fine and dandy. I have no reason to fear it either way - what comes may come, and I know that I've treated others right as best I could because it's the right thing to do - so if there is any true justice in the afterlife, I have no reason to fear that either. If by some impossibility that dogmatic faiths are true in their assertions - then there truly is no justice in the afterlife, and it goes against every principle I have to accept injustice here or there, so I would rather face my punishment without remorse than kowtow to an unjust god.
So religious people get all warm and fuzzy thinking about death. Fine. The challenge is, what can we do to help them along in the process so we can finally have a rational world?
I'm an atheist that has been in a couple of life/death situations - I never said a prayer (small or large).
Like Shuklack, I don't outright reject spiritual concepts - but, I don't believe in a god. I also don't fear death.
Actually it's comments like those of hungrymongoose that makes me wonder just how stable religious people really are. As an atheist when I think of death I think of birth, where was I before I was born? How the hell do I know, so that can only be what death is, same difference. I didn't exist before I left the womb and I will no longer exist after I leave this Earth. For those that have some intelligence and look to the stars and the universe we know where we come from. All life, no matter what form it takes was created in the heart of a super nova, that is FACT all the elements needed to create life began at the heart of a sun, like our star. I have no fear of death I don't see any reason to fear it, its a natural part of the living its a necessary process that everyone has to go through, granted the mystery could scare some but being someone who values the measure of the universe I can only wonder about our little corner of it and how irrelevant humans and the Earth really are, nothing but a speck of dust in the grand scheme of things.
Snappa.... common sense and logic is such a breath of fresh air instead of the lunacy and delusion of the 'magical thinkers'. Religion and conservatism are classified by the American Psychiatric Association as forms of MENTAL ILLNESS....that explains the Republican party.... a gaggle of batsh it lunatics.
Just a question--I asked this of a nun at (Catholic)school in sixth grade, never got an answer--if God knows everything you've ever done and going to do, if it' all written in stone before you're born as the Bible says, then why would God condemn you for a sin if it's already predestined that you're going to do it? He's punishing you for something He made you do.
Remember a movie that came out a while back called 'The Adjustment Bureau'?
To my mind, it's got to be a set-up since by your words above, priests are not held accountable for every sin/word/thought of a sin, like, say, molesting children, just because they are priests.
But then where does 'The Lord helps those who helps themselves' come from? I thought the whole point to self-determination and free will is that we're supposed do as much as we can according to our means and trust in God to sort out the rest.
The Ten Commandments says 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me.' God never said 'Thou shalt not have contingency plans.'
I like the way you phrase that. As if one would not expect the bible not to call atheists fools.
It's like:
"Jesus is real. Even the Bible says that!"
@Amanda: "But then where does 'The Lord helps those who helps themselves' come from?"
Benjamin Franklin, not the Bible. :)
Timothy1mil doesn't know his bible. The bible does NOT say atheists are fools. It says 'the fool says in his heart there is no god'. But atheists are not creatures of the heart. Atheism is a product of the mind, of logical thought. No wonder Christians are so afraid of atheism. Even their own bible can't tell them how to handle it other than by violence
Rick in SD: Thanks!!
As far as I'm concerned, whatever it takes for someone to deal with the idea of their own mortality is fine with me until the fanatics reach the point of talking about trying to bring about Armageddon or it makes them unafraid to kill others in the name of their god even if it means losing their own lives.
"Unfortunately Sandy, that is not going to help the atheists or agnostics once they take their last breath and find out, as the rich man did, that there is no coming back from Hades once they find out the truth, nor can they come back to warn others"
Don, you say your god says believe in me or you are going to hell. Up until about 300 years ago, the overwhelming majority of people living on the planet had never even heard about your god. He sent them no prophets, no burning bushes, no nothing to clue them in that he even existed. Yet because they don't worship him, he's going to condemn them to hell for an eternity, infants and children included.
You can keep him.
Get off her ass you weak minded holy freaks. You place belief totally following psychological manipulation that so childish in it's application as to be an embarassment to all involved. I'm not saying if God is or is not. I'm saying that so many decide what they believe is IT and no way anything else is. That's the mentality that caused so many to be persecuted and often KILLED for thinking things like, the earth is round, the Earth revolves around the sun etc. Lets look at a similar example of the manipulation type, say the childhood Santa Clause thing (I'll be adlibing here so the example fits). Child is told he/she must be good and believe in Santa or no gifts. Now this isn't even as manipulative because the child has the x-mas gift as evidence that he exists. Now how about churches, they want you to believe not only that God IS, but God wants you to financially support the church or to hell you go. I'll tell you now, I'd really be amazed if there is a Hell, a Heaven. IF God is, then everything points to a mostly hands off approach to our existence, and that God is not such that our eternal burning would be a thing that would be of benifit to the cause. I.E. NOT a VENGEFUL God. Now I'm not saying there wouldn't be repricussions mind you, but more along the lines of you are a bad apple, you no longer exist on any plane of existence. And Satan. Really? Look in the bible, I believe the Bible (along with the other prime religious manuals were originally legit. But too many bad apples had changed them to their benifit over the centuries. As far as Satan being THE main bad guy, no way. Even referenced in the Bible early on that Satan has a job. Temptation has to exist. One thing that is VERY lightly masked is that life is a test. You cannot take away sin. Satan provides the temptation to weed out the bad apples. There will NOT be a great battle of God and Satan. Satan is not a bad guy, he just has a dirty job, but someone's gotta do it. And the coup de grace, I have a hardening belief that an athiest who lives their life right without the need for the fear of damnation or the anticipation of eternal glory of heaven, but treats every person as they would like they themselves want to be treated, and find the pleasures of life without it being at the expense of others. (better to be owed more than you owe). And they live right because the have true empathy and really care about their fellow man, woman, and child, and because that's the way we should be. No temptation or fear of the afterlife. That non-believer WILL be a trusted favorite of God. I'm not saying my beliefs are for sure dead on, but I am saying non of any of yours are either. Keep your minds open and treat each other right regardless of what the other person believes, because one thing I can say for sure is about the only thing that God would take vengance for more than profiting from Gods free word (are you paying attention televangelists and Vatican?) would have to be destruction and killing of creation in Gods name. All of the holly books have been manipulated. Most of the important stuff is still in them. Weed out the stuff that seems self serving to the religious upper brass. Follow the commandments to be in favor. Jesus was an awesome being but even HE never said you have "Take me as your savior or it's the inferno for you". Come on people this stuff isn't that hard. for those of you that read this and think, thank you. To everyone that reads this, have a nice day.
What do you get when you cross an agnostic, with a dyslexic, with an insomniac?
Someone who lies awake all night, wondering if there really is a DOG? Heh!
Right on, Sandy in Missouri! The sooner we remove the sickness of religion and the silly belief in satan, the better off people will be. Think of all the world problems that would disappear of religion became the a thing of the past, like thinking the world is flat.
World problems, Tobylil? The world hasn't seen anything yet! Just wait until God begins to pour out his wrath upon this unrepentent and unbelieving world. There is no disaster movie that could compare to what is going to come upon the earth and its inhabitants. His wrath will be carried out via seven seals, seven trumpets and seven bowl judgments and by the time it is over with and Jesus returns to the earth, the population will have been decimated and the world goverments dismantled.
When the antichrist comes, that beast, people will think that he will have all the answers to the world's problems and they will worship him as God, but it will be a lie and many will perish because they will worship him and receive his mark and that so that they will be able to continue to be able to buy and sell, which will seal their fate. What many don't know is that, the system that mark will use is already here and people are using it and being conditioned and prepared for when the key to that system changes from debit card to personal computer chip in order to credit and debit their bank accounts. Currently, the debit card allows individuals to credit and debit each others bank accounts, so it will not be a big stretch to go from debit card to computer chip under the skin. Eventually, cash, checks, credit and debit will be made obsolete by him and the false prophet, leaving only that computer chip (mark) to be able to perform electronic monitary transactions, forcing people to receive or reject it. The good news it that, no matter what sins a person has commited, the offer of salvation through Christ is available for the asking through faith. But without him, you're headed for the lake of fire, the second death (Hell). It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God!
Hooga Booga Hooga Booga!!!! The religious are blind sheep. Arguing over different religions is like arguing that Star Trek is truer than Star Wars. It's all made up bulls**t!
I am sure Don hands over his 10% tithe into the collection plate every Sunday like a good follower is supposed to.
TobyLil, Although I reached the conclusion that religion was nonsense many many years ago, I disagree that all world problems would disappear if religion disappeared. Religion does tend to increase strife for its own sake, but sadly there will always be people who are not moral. One half of the first version of the ten commandments (Exodus 21:1-17 & Deuteronomy 5:4-21) are actually reasonable moral guides. (The second version, (Exodus 34) is quite different and is where we learn that God's name is "Jealous"!)
The human mind is like a very powerful organic computer. A regular computer is not very useful without programs. Similarly, we humans need programing (education) to better utilize our mental abilities. Unfortunately, the ability or even desire to discern between childhood nonsense (the tooth fairy, Santa Claus, magic) and adult nonsense (Satan, life after death, 'power of prayer') is lacking in many people. In one sense, culture and religion are learned, taught, and spread in the manner of an infection. Moderate, nondestructive religion, can be thought of like a vaccination against the destructive extremist religions.
"Just wait until God begins to pour out his wrath." Waiting. Still waiting. Stiiiiiiiiillllllllll Waaaaaaaiiiiiiitttttttttiiiiiinnnngggg.
Yeah, problems won't go away if religion went away... we'd just find another excuse to hate eachother, and another book to cite in order to judge others, and another way to answer questions that we don't have any real answers for.

Haha, I remember as a kid my mom used to tell me if I didn't eat my vegetables, the boogeyman was gonna get me. I was skeptic even back then. This whole fire and brimstone nonsense is like the boogeyman for adults - pretty much gets the same 'raised eyebrow' reaction from me though..
Don...the Antichrist is here... his name is Pope Rat@!$%#z.
Don... the Antichrist is here ... his name is Pope Ratsh i tz.
And 76 trombones.
Don..give Harold Camping a call. We need anothe polyanna to scream about the end of the world like Christians have been doing for 2000 years. Yawn...
My sperm donor, shortly before he died, answered the question of whether or not he was afraid of death, "do you remember what it was like before you were born? It will be exactly the same after you die."
That's great.... it should be on a bumper sticker !
After my brush with a fatal illness last year my belief system didn't change at all. I knew even before this event that there were indeed "atheists in foxhills." I guess my main question for believers is this: if you are going to go to "a better place" when you die, why do you want to live? This is especially true if you have a potentially fatal illness that can send you to that "better place" sooner and with a whole lot less pain, hassle and expense. Just wondering.
let me get this straight, dying and being nothing after your dead is scary? i don't think so! dying and continuing to be alive is very scary, especially if you insulted the most high. If you want to refer to the most high as God, OK. God says in virtually every holy book, that God will honor those who honor God. atheism is a religion. it is a religion against God, it can be no other way. atheist's don't honor God. like the saint said, if you have a choice to believe or not believe, then believe. all this BS about atheist's being more psychologically well balanced and able to face reality more bravely or strongly is a crock. this in no way is an endorsement of any religion by me, it is an endorsement of God. having said that, everyone has a right to believe what they want.
double talk. You make the statement we are against god so now you have a right to attack us hence we don't have a right to believe what we want.
Atheism is not a religion and it is not a against god. How can one be against something that does not exist. The thought that you are with us or against us is mindless...there is a third path...I don't really care what you believe.
And you know this to be true because you did a study?
The problem that most often arise is the infringement on ones belief system and hence the need to defend ones belief. It is religion that is most often the aggressor for if that were not the case you would most likely not know we even exist.
Thanks, Summer, for pointing that out. Buddhists by and large do not believe that the historical Buddha is a divine being. He was a man, much revered and respected, who became the first enlightened human and showed other humans how they, too, could become enlightened. A great teacher, in other words, but not a god. If you ask ten Buddhists if there is a God, you will get twenty different answers and forty deep discussions, none of which will fully answer your question and all of which will lead to many more questions. That is the nature of Buddhism. You have been warned.
Jennifer in Dallas...........wow ! Sounds like most politicians are Buddhists !
You're welcome Jennifer in Dallas, I would like to point out that Buddhists don't believe the current Buddha is the first human to become enlightened or to be a Buddha. According to Buddhism there have been many Buddhas - when Buddhism is lost to people, a new Buddha comes forth to be able to teach people about the pathway. Siddhartha Guatama Buddha was given permission to become the next Buddha by Dipankara Buddha. Siddhartha Guatama Buddha will not be the last Buddha either.
From the content in the rest of your post, this last sentence is not what you truly believe. Doesn't your God say 'Thou shalt not lie?' Be honest with yourself, and I think your God would like you more.
My belief system says 'There is no one true way', and the way you find is only good for you, and no one else, because what you perceive as the truth will never be the same as what anyone else perceives as the truth. So, while I may not agree with your belief system, neither am I going to try to convert you to mine.
So you Christians should stop trying to convert me to yours.
I don't go around shoving flyers about the Wiccan Rede into people's hands; I find it annoying and intrusive and so I wont be similarly annoying and intrusive to anyone else. However, not day goes by without someone on the bus shoving a Christian flyer into my hands going to and from work. What happened to 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you?'
A Christian can shove their flyer into my hand and I cannot say I am offended, but I could not shove a flyer about Wicca into their hands without them LOUDLY declaring that they are offended. What's good for you is good for me, right?
oh no, why would atheism exist at all except that it is a movement against God? you keep mentioning religion, i support no religion because i think religion has perverted the entire concept of God. regarding a study of the atheist supposed superior psychology, i don't need a study to see what is plain to see, i know many agnostic and atheists types, (many are friends of mine) and i see no superior lifestyle or attitude. regarding the existence of atheists, i know you exist because your proselytizing for your faith in nothing, i see it all the time. believe what you will but don't ask me, because i have an opposing position, to ignore your views.
I'm going to out on a limb here and say that the average Atheist is going to say they do not have "faith" and/or Athiesm is an absence of faith. In fact, I would assume that an Atheist would think that a religious person has "faith in nothing." (The Atheist assumes that there is no God - in which case God is nothing and thus it is the religous that have the "faith in nothing.")
I suppose that is being a little pedantic, but whenever I read a discussion thread like this I see a very clear inability for those posessing "religious faith" to comprehend the position of those that do not - and a distinct tendency to try and put each other in similar belief structures.
Amanda, and be a moron: one last try. i am not a christian and i never put any flyer in your hand or anyones elses hand. i could care less what your beliefs are. but i refuse to read nonsense about superior capabilities of atheists above other people. or, that they are more character driven than other people. that's an illusion that you are trying to sell.
Atheism is not a religion. If atheism is a religion, then my favorite TV show is "off," my hair color is "bald" and my favorite hobby is "not collecting stamps."
Furthermore, most of us don't choose not to believe, we realize one day that we are no longer able to; that the arguments presented no longer convince us, that the lack of evidence is damning, and that the whole thing seems like a waste of energy. We don't choose to be atheists, we just choose to accept it.
I noticed a peculiar thing in this article. When speaking of "deities", it freely lists Allah and Buddha, but avoids listing Jesus Christ - which in Whom Christianity is based. Only once in this article is the name Jesus used, instead preferring "Christian God" or "Christian Deity".
Unlike some in this thread, I respect everyone's right to believe as they wish ... and will not insult others. For myself, I believe wholeheartedly in Jesus Christ as Almighty God, and my savior. I don't push my views on others, although as my Lord commands, I offer to share with anyone willing to hear. And for those of you who rest on "believing in God", don't be fooled. That will not save you, as even Satan himself believes in God. It's only by faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that saves us.
Richod; Jesus Christ is the son of God,he prayed to his Father the night before his death. Pentacost is when the Holy spirit came to aid the Church. 3 Beings , one God. So Jesus Christ is not the Almighty God just a 1/3.
everyone is entitled to an opinion, mine is a little different regarding Jesus. Jesus is just what he said he was, a man who by his own efforts (over many turns on the wheel) turned himself into a god (not caps). he said, "you can do greater works then me". I'm afraid God could not make that statement. many like Jesus exist but most are not as famous as Jesus because he was one of the few that actually had a defined mission and was an avatar before birth here.
Richod, What I noticed is that they said agnostics may believe (when thinking about death) in any deity and lumped Buddha in with those deities. Buddhists don't believe Buddha is a deity, so, anyone believing Buddha is a deity doesn't understand Buddhism.
All the stories about "what Jesus said" were dreamed up 200 years after his death (the Gospels)
megictx - I think we basically agree - but I would add that God is one, in spite of existing in the form of three persons ... God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
Except the Christian view of death is a canard. Death existed on earth for billions of years before JC got himself nailed in. Romans 5:12 is wrong. Death has nothing to do with sin; it's a property of life, like wetness is a property of water.
Whoever told you that satan believes in god was a liar. You can't "believe" in something you've held a two sided conversation with.
Not even close to a foxhole.
It still all boils down to "no one ever came back and told us!!"
Maybe there's a "religion" gene that can be identified and eliminated. Would make for a much better world.
Unfortunately, you can't fix stupid, so religion will be around for quite a while, spreading their hate and idiocy.
Jesus and Buddha were gifted souls, but not divine. mesmerising orators, no doubt. Too many people thump the bible, but do not read it. I am an atheist. I also read everything I can lay hands on. Can't understand why "Christians" would think that a beautiful soul like Jesus could be the son of that evil dude in the old testament who was always sending down plagues, flooding the world, telling folks to stone people for being people, wanting to smite folks here and there, turning women into pillars of salt just for looking back, (how many of us have never looked back?), and what about killing all those kids during that passover thing. No, Jesus is definitely not the son of the old testament god. Just look at the evil carried out in the name of religion. Oh well, I always say, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't grow stone on a moss. Yep! That's what I always say.
You are actually in the upper 1% of humanity, B Hatfield, KY! Approximately 99% of the human race all want religion handed to them on a silver platter. (Those lazy imbeciles and bastards!) Let's see if you can match the potential of the upper .01%, B Hatfield/KY. Our human world has actually been under covert biocybernetic warfare attack by outside offensive totalitarian ETs, who are conspiring to one day steal and annex our extremely valuable celestial real estate, and eventually render all of mankind extinct on this planet. Believe it or not, all three of these terminal religious Abrahamic belief systems were covertly installed by these outside offensive totalitarian ETs, for the purpose of one day crashing and exploding our emerging human world in a final programmed cataclysm of global warfare fueled by WMDs, known as the Christian Apocalypse or World War III. These offensive totalitarian ETs are doing this so they can eventually use their eminent domain rights of military intervention in our sector of the Milky Way galaxy in order to one day steal and annex our extremely valuable celestial real estate, while once more masquerading as Divinity toward mankind, this time as the returning Christ or Messiah. OK so far, B Hatfield/KY ??? - RC
Interesting, to say the least, Mr. Carter. A much more plausible theory than Genesis. I have always blamed money-grubbing preachers for the plague of organized religion. If you recall, Old Moses was quick to put Brother Aaron in charge of the temple. Um um. Fatted calves and goats. Fine wine and oils. Love that showbread. Gimme some of that. It is just a means of scaring the poorly informed so those cards and letters keep coming in.
Sounds suspciously like an L. Ron Hubbard story....
My parents are devoutly religious, and I respect them immensely. I, however am not religious in any sense of the word and find the concept of God laughable. I continually struggle to comprehend how so many continue to believe such nonsense despite overwhelming contradictory evidence.
Exactly what contradictory evidence are you referring to? So many BELIEVE thru FAITH. God's love is everywhere, and he who cannot see it, is truly blind. Lack of spirituality is what is wrong in this world. People choose evil over good, caring more for self, then the good of the whole community. America is fast going to hell and only thru God's wil,l can we become strong again.
Have a blessed day
Tom - I too am in your boat and full agree with you.
Jake - scientific evidence is overwhelming, not enough space here to list it but since you are on a computer I suspect you are tech savvy and have already heard it all...so you can play dumb all you want but the bible is a total lie.
Faith is he substance of things not seen but hoped for....that says it all in a nut shell.
Ethics, morality, caring for one another are not religious or virtues of so called godly people, it is what makes us truly human.
As for America fast going to hell, I bet it felt that way to the slaves, the American Indians as we committed genocide on them, the Civil War, WWI, the onset of the Great Depression, WWII, the Cuban missile crisis. We have been going to hell for a very long time but I guess if you keep saying that eventually something might happen and you will be right.....be careful what you wish for.
Jake,
Here is a few facts you should check into- Based on the Jewish culture and tradition, Jesus could not have been the son of God and the son of David at the same time. That belief comes from a Roman-Greek tradition not a Mesopotamian/Middle-Eastern tradition. And if Jesus was the son of God, what about his twin brother? And you should really read into some of the early beliefs of the church. It was a lot more diverse in it's beliefs than you might think. Some had one God some three, others three hundred, and all claimed Jesus as their leader. So if there is only one true religion, how can there be so many of them?
Jesus was from David through his mother, Mary. He is the son of God, as Mary's pregnancy was through the Holy Spirit, not by Joseph. He couldn't have had a twin brother, as only He was through the Holy Spirit, but he did have half brothers (and half sisters) through His mother Mary. As far as early beliefs of the church (I'm assuming you mean the true Christian church), there has always been one God, in the form of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Of course, there can always be ones who pervert the faith, as we also see today.
Richod....so where do the Easter Bunny, Santa, and the Tooth Fairy fit in ?
Actually, the concept of the Trinity came about namely with the councils of Nicea and during other early attempts to form the Christian orthodoxy. It was indeed one of the many concepts, but the divinity of Jesus was a pretty hot issue for much of the early Church's history - largely because many saw it as a form of polytheism. The whole 3-in-1 metaphysical nonsense explanation from Athanasius was born from this dissonance - his creed eventually being adopted by the orthodoxy. Eventually though, the more powerful 'Trinity' folks beat out the less common non-divine Jesus folks - who were then labeled heretics and slowly but surely stamped out, violently.
Jake,
God's love is nowhere to be found, and he who cannot see it, is truly blind. Spirituality is what is wrong in this world. People choose evil over good, caring more for self, then the good of the whole community. America is fast going to hell and only intelligence, lt can we become strong again.
Have a day
Richod,
Not that it matters much to the devout, but a son traces his ancestry through the father not the mother in the middle-eastern culture. So in order to fulfil the prophecy he had to be able to trace his line back through the male side of the family not through Mary. He wasn't even thought of as the son of God until long after his death. And by individuals who had brought some of their pagan beliefs with them when they had converted.
Jake says America is 'going to hell'...guess he kinda forgot about the bloodiest war in US history, between Christians, regarding owning other human beings. Christians, who didn't even have the morality to know slavery was wrong, shouldn't be telling us anything about morality at all.
Richod - If you actually take the time to read your holy book instead of just listening to its priests (who do not tell you what it actually says), you will note that the lineages in Matthew and Luke BOTH end with Joseph and not Mary. She is not even mentioned in passing. It is also rather interesting that the two accounts do not match up. If, again, you actually would read your book you will also see the accounts of the birth story and the resurrection story have significant differences in each of the gospels, much more so than just different accounts of the same event. Top all that off with the fact that jesus and his gang where all illerate and never wrote anything down makes it more than suspiscous that actual conversations could be written accurately many decades later. Fact is that if there actually was a man called jesus at that time, his words were never recorded by anyone at the time he was supposed to have lived. There are no actual eyewitness accounts of his existence who bothered to write about him. Plenty of documents were written during that time, but none about this jesus fellow, not until loooooooooooong after and then the stories are wildly different.
Actually I can't see how these researchers came to their conclusions, from this study. But then who cares what they think. Jesus is the Savior and God will reward the faithful. The rest will learn their fate soon enough. God is not TOLERANT, and he will judge in the end.
Did you read the article or just the first paragraph? It is obvious you don't see much...blinded by the bible.
Yes let's just take the only reliable method from discerning fact from fantasy and throw it to the wind in favor of ancient dogma that uses spiritual extortion as a means of propagation. (/sarcasm)
They really need to add a few more buttons to this dropdown list :
B U LL S HI T
YAWN
IDIOTIC
and
RIDICULOUS
Jake... I'd press all 4 for your comment.
You are going to die and no Allah or God or Buddha or 72 virgins for that matter are waiting for you....However maggots will appreciate your arrival under..
Death is a very serious matter. Regardless how many comments there may be about it. Even the "experts" know nothing about it because they have never returned back from it. I'm not talking about someone who was dead for 5-10 min (clinical death), I'm refering to someone who has been dead for at least one day or more. Each one of us must make a decision about the reality of death. If you lost all of your limbs, YOU still reside inside that body. Not a part of you, but all of you (your consciousness, and your will) . If you are asleep, unconscious, or even brain dead your body is still alive. Therefore you are not just flesh, blood,and electronic voltage. These are only material and physical properties which helps to keep your body alive and functioning normal. There is much more to you than only this, and it is not tangable. If you only believe in what you can see touch and taste. I think you will be in for a schocking awakening. I am a follower and believer in Christ Jesus, but I did not always believe that way. I use to think religion was garbage and that Jesus was just a good teacher, along with many other religious leaders; but I was challanged to research the evidence for myself to see if he was real and if what so many say about him was true. I did and contrary to so many of the fables and tales about Jesus Christ. The evidence about him is unrefuitable. Jesus Christ is God the son, who historically lived on this earth, proclaimed himself to be the Son of God, was condemned by the religious leaders, and Roman authorities was whipped and tourtured, and then crucified on a Roman cross....And three days arosed from the dead. this was not done in a corner, or in secret. After he arose he was witnessed by more than 500 people at one time. Finally he was also witnessed by many others when he ascended into heaven. Please check the evidence for your self. This was not only spoken about in the bible, but non biblical resources as well. As for the person who mentioned that the writings about Jesus was 200 years after his death..I must correct that person to check out their sources ..those were the knostic Gospels which was refuted and proven false by the early believers of that time. I encourage anyone to check out the book "Evidence that demands a verdict" by Josh Mcdowell. Finally for the person who asked why are believers in Christ still here and have not killed themselves to be with Jesus, My answer is that Jesus did not command us to kill ourselves, but to share the truth with you in love, hoping that you too will seek him; but The choice is yours. God does not want you to die the second death, but he will not force you to seek him...and the result of your choice will be forever..You will never be able to blame God, because U made the choice. By the way for anyone who believes Jesus was just a good man; I say to you after what Jesus said about himself he was either a liar a lunitic or something worse; ...or he was who he said he was The Son of God..He didn't come to this earth just to be a "Good "Holy" Man
YAWN.............. #1... who cares, #2... in MILLIONS of years not ONE person has ever come back from the dead to tell anyone anything, #3...believing in skyfairies is childish and foolish at best , #4 God, Jesus, Xenu, Ganesh, etc etc are all clever figments of some great manipulator's imagination and nothing more.
Well that was total drivel. You obviously have not taken any effort to see what neuroscience has discovered about the brain. However, if you ever find that you might like to live in reality a bit and not fantasy land, you could research it on your computer (made possible by science and not woo woo religion).
There is no soul, no everlasting life, no Heaven or Hell. No God, no divine purpose. The electrochemical processes that occur in our brain is what makes our consciouness. When we die, when those processes cease, so will we.
A religion based on a ridiculous story to cover sexual infidelity. Ridiculous. Supposed civilized people believe the story 2000 years later. Unbelievable. Spirituality and the inexplicable human need for it is humanity's grossest defect.
what a fairy tale , when your a little kid your told you better be good because Santa is watching then when that no longer works your taught religion , we used to have to say a prayer in school and I remember at a very very young age how stupid that was . Religion has been used by people to kill , rape and start wars if this is what people want to promote and believe in then Im glad Im an atheist !
I generally agree. However, I would submit that it is not religion that has been used by people to kill, etc. It is religion which has made it possible for people to kill, etc. and then justify what they have done and obtain forgiveness. Religion is like a narcotic drug. Religions set standards for personal behavior that are impossible for anyone to meet. Then when the person fails, they feel guilty. Through their religion (faith) they obtain forgiveness. They feel better, but then they 'sin' again. Normal people without religion (Atheists) learn to avoid this cycle. The very religious frequently cannot get enough of the sin/forgiveness cycle. That is the reason that infidelity, divorce, etc. are all significantly higher among the very religious.
You are all missing the point. No, they are not all finding God in the foxholes...but they are all calling for their Mom!
I have heard that about some. At least their mother's existence can be verified.
Agnostics, however, do become more willing to believe in God when reminded of death. The only catch is that they're equally as likely to believe in Buddha or Allah as the Christian deity, even though all the agnostics in the study were American and thus more likely to be exposed to Christian beliefs."These studies offer an improved understanding of how and why religious individuals tend to believe so strongly in their own religion’s gods yet deny the gods of competing religions," the researchers wrote.
What is so crazy about religion is that Budda and Allah are God, those religions just gave them different names. The religious texts of those religions are almost identical to christian religious texts, they are equally fantastical, equally violent, and equally loving. The only difference between these religions is that they require followers to worship God differently, yet they are in fact worshipping the same God, crazy stupidity seems to be the foundation of all religions. Oh, and one other thing religion is NOT faith.
Morlack: Buddha is NOT a god - Buddhists don't believe Buddha is a god. Buddha became enlightened, but remained here for a period of time to teach others the pathway to enlightenment. He is a venerated teacher, but he was not and is not a god.
Another bit of tripe from one who thinks he's got it all figured out but has never bothered to actually research any religion, not even his own. How utterly tiring it is to see posts of those who have such witless minds as to propound on things for which they have no basis or evidence for supporting them. Wishing or just feeling like it is true doesn't give any credence to an argument, particularly about religion or any of its supernatural entities. There is an abundance of information about such things at your fingertips now that we have the internet. Challenge yourself to look at as much of it as possible before pulling drivel such as that out of your behind.
Yes, I agree with Herb but would also ask this: do the people doing the study realize that the atheists were NOT ACTUALLY IN FOXHOLES facing death when they took the survey?
LOL...funny. Get a clue Adam.. most Atheists, like myself are Atheists because we've studied/practiced NUMEROUS different religions and have found them ALL to be nothing more than superstitious, childish bulls hi t. No atheist will suddenly ' turn to god' when facing death. it's laughable... it's like finding out that fire burns and then all of a sudden you're going to stick your hand in it again ? Or like trying to 'UN-hear' something. Once you become educated by REASON and LOGIC... there Is no going back to ignorance and 'magical thinking'.
@Adam You might want to check out and see for yourself what they that are atheists who have been in foxholes have to say.
Google military atheists dot org to see for yourself how they react.
I am I am, from dust to dust, nothing created nothing destroyed, everlasting life to eternal sleep. Then who am I? I am God, able to gaze upon myself in wonder and behold the marvels of my universe. After that, eternal sleep once more.
So then, does thoughts of life and living make one an Athiets? No wonder fundies are such downers.
A true scientific study would interview self-reported atheists before and after something like the Battle of Fallujah or a similar hotspot in Afghanistan.
As well, when I was a 20 year old college student, I had an overconfidence and flip attitude towards the real trials of life. And I have seen that kind of attitude make for both a more dogmatic--less caring--Christian as well as a proud atheist become more hardened in their beliefs.
Looks like the researchers in a sense did the easy thing: they grabbed the closest people near them on the comfort of a university campus. Doesn't sound like a very scientific statistical sample/demographic or environment.
Man has invented hundreds of gods through the ages.
I think my favorite is Thor, because I really like lightning.
As for religions, I think they are just a crutch for weak, uneducated minds.
Just my opinion. I don't fear death, but I'm in no hurry. I just understand that I will eventually become fertilizer so the cycle can continue.
I like Jambi. Mekka lekka hi. Mekka hiney ho. All your wishes will be granted.
Coolness! Thanks.
I personally believe that all religion comes from folklore but I also believe the the theory of evolution is full of holes. Sadly though the world is full of fanatics and idiots that believe that their truth is the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The problem with evolution is that it does not explain how mindless cells could transform themselves into something as complex as the human body. According to the theory of evolution we should be seeing massive mutations and birth defects. I believe in intelligent design and the Golden Rule not any particular religion but by the way the world is going it sure looks like a lot of religious doomsday prophesy is being fulfilled. We have the technology to put the whole world to work and make it a heaven instead of a hell but it seems that the evil in mankind's hearts will never let that happen. We now have the technology to destroy like we have never had before, where it goes from here is anyone's guess. I don't claim God or gods with intelligent design I don't know but the complexity of life and the interactivity goes far beyond random chance and mutations. As far as death goes I don't fear my death but I do fear anything happening to those I love, the way I see it there wasn't a problem before I was born so why worry about after I am gone, I just hope though that I do not get reincarnated because I wouldn't want to have to go through this world all over again.
You are showing your misunderstanding of the ToE. It actually does "explain how mindless cells could transform themselves into something as complex as the human body."
Also, it's not all about random chance and mutation. Read up.
Just FYI.
Mark isn't too bright so doesn't know evolution has a testable mechanism: Differential reproduction through natural selection. Yes, evolution does explain the brain. ID doesn't. All ID says is 'somehow, something happened and we're here, and that something is god'. That's not science, it's not even magic. It's delusion. Creationism was wrong before Darwin and it's wrong today