re: Poll: how many of you here consider yourself religious

It's pretty annoying for non-believers to insinuate or outright say that Christians or religious people in general are lacking in intelligence simply because they believe something that cannot be confirmed through the limited scope of scientific inquiry.

I've been a Christian for as long as I can recall. I've questioned what I've been taught and what I believe many times over and always have fallen back to believing the Bible's claims about sin and salvation to be true. That isn't due to a lack of intelligence. Belief is something the smart and the stupid alike can have. It's not about intelligence at all, but personal conviction.

We are simple minds encased in a world of logic. We can talk about forever but can't understand it. If you believe in God it defies logic. If you don't believe then our existence defies logic. Whatever you believe is impossible to prove or even explain. If there is a God where did He come from. If not, where did we come from. We always search for a beginning and an end. So believe or not believe is equal in terms of "logic" and "reality". Me I believe. Just look at Lewdawgs avator. That's not a random thing.

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We are simple minds encased in a world of logic. We can talk about forever but can't understand it. If you believe in God it defies logic. If you don't believe then our existence defies logic. Whatever you believe is impossible to prove or even explain. If there is a God where did He come from. If not, where did we come from. We always search for a beginning and an end. So believe or not believe is equal in terms of "logic" and "reality". Me I believe. Just look at Lewdawgs avator. That's not a random thing.

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That's not necessarily true. I don't think believing in our existence defies logic.

I believe "energy" is constant and infinite and "time" is the ultimate degree of it's measure. I believe our universe began 13.7 billion years ago from a single point, but that wasn't the first or last big-bang. I believe there were many before it and there will be many after. Our universe will one day stop expanding and begin retracting back to a single point and do all this over again.

To believe there is one omnipotent almighty being who created all this, however, does defy logic to me. If this being did exist, and he's so powerful to create all this, then "time" would be of little consequence to him because he would be infinite, without beginning or end. He would already know the outcome of our existence, because in an infinite existence he would have experienced every scenario of possibility infinite times. Or something so powerful would surely be able to manipulate time into it's own sequence and speed and surely be able to speed up or slow down our reality at will.

And with that being the case, then that means we have no purpose since the outcome is already known. And if we have no purpose, then surely the exercise in futility would be monumentally useless and irrational.

I think religion was first created to rationalize our existence and purpose. But soon after the greed of human nature realized the power of religion and how it could manipulate people and control them, and so that's what it became.

Religion shapes belief systems and gives people a sense of reason and purpose even though there's really no substantial proof to support that reason and purpose. But with this, humans have manipulated and controlled countless other people's actions and thinking and convictions.

It's funny that I'm a conservative who grew up in a Catholic family and both my kids are currently baptized, going through religious education to get confirmed, and we even go to church a couple times a month. But I really don't believe in any of this stuff. I have my kids going through it because I want them to grow up knowing right from wrong and good from bad, and if they choose to have faith, so be it, that's their free will. I won't deprive them of that. But I think religion has been used as a tool for controlling people. And all the tales and fables and scriptures are just things created out of thin air by humans (mostly men) to aid in this.

So what you're saying is I'm wrong because I can't explain something.

But you're right... because you too can't explain that same thing.

Yeah, good luck with that logic.

And I did explain my perspective quite clearly. Energy and time are constant and infinite.

"God" doesn't have to be some omnipotent singular being with cognitive thought. That's just what you want "him" to be.

That's convenient for you. It's easier to rationalize and explain. And it gives you a sense of purpose and why we exist. But it still doesn't make you right. Faith is nothing more than personal confirmation bias that has absolutely no substantiation or resolve.

My "faith" tells me that matter and anti-matter have always existed. There is no beginning or end. There was no "creation" and therefore there is no "creator".

The ignorance and superstition of fundamental religious groups is frightening and sad.

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Cmon whop be serious nobody is talking that kinda shite in here. especially for HERE lol. youre being a tad sensitive about the "tone"

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No, there is that tone. I never said I was a Christian, but religious, although you correctly assumed that.

Christians actually make very good martyrs as demonstrated through out history and now prominently in the Middle East.

If you, Chef, are an atheist fine. Again I don't judge. Do I owe you something for that decision on your part? No, that is laughable and really doesn't deserve comment.

In regard to the internet site requests, you are searching. Good. We all should be. But what you seek is not there, but within yourself.

Good travels.

I'd say that if you agree with the Apostles' Creed, you are a Christian. If you don't, then you disagree with with the core tenants of Christianity and are not a Christian but something else.

Agreeing with some of Jesus' teachings on morality is not being a disciple of Christ, IMO. He claimed to be the Son of God, not some moral guide offering self-help strategies for your best life now. His morality was specific to the law of God, which He needed to obey perfectly so He could be a sufficient substitute for the rest of humanity on the cross to take away the punishment for sin for those who trust in Him.

Learn to read. I didn't say I was right or wrong. I said no matter what anyone beliefs it takes faith because it can't be proven.

Yeah...that kind of defeats the whole faith and true believer core tenants of Christianity.

Is there a "hey, I'm just covering my arse" denomination ?

It's a weak apologetic and I'm not a fan of it.

The point is to be rewarded by ones faith. If Jesus and His atonement for sin were "provable" beyond any doubt, it wouldn't need faith at all.

Those who try to market Christianity as if it were a fast food restaurant completely miss the point and belittle the faith. Those who criticize the trivial nature of these apologetics and advertising slogans are right to do so.