Faith

[Tacitursa]

Alot of the time i hear people say that god wishes us to beleive in him on faith.

If that is true why does he offer heaven for those that believe and hell for those that dont, Is that not completely biased and contradictory.

If people are rewarded for believing something and punished for not how do you expect them to believe from an unbiased passive stance.

From a very early age people are fed reward story after reward and hear tales of hell and punishment. That imo is not faith atall its brainwashing.

How does it differ from a parent offering their child a bag of sweets if they are well behaved.

Discuss.

[Groundtotem]

Well religion for me is brainwashing. Think about it, religion is a way to controll the masses, it has always been so. A couple of hundred years ago the churches had a lot of power.

If you obey and have faith in "god" you will be rewarded with heaven, but if you disobey "god" you will sent to hell. That's what makes people belive, they are to scarred not to.

Religion is a way to controll people, that's my opinion.

[Tacitursa]

I think it has more to do with being weak minded.

The majority of religious people were either spoonfed as children and almost forced into it on subconsious level or turn to god at an older age when there life isnt going to well.

Oh my wife has died i'll start believing.
Oh i lost my job i'll start believing
Oh im so very weak and can no longer handle life on my own etc etc


If nobody was introduced to religion as a child or at school and was tottaly unaware of it untill the age of 21.

How many people do you think would believe it if only introduced to religion at the age of 21? Assuming they were happy and had no problems with life.

My estimate is 0.

[persianfan247]

Well religion for me is brainwashing. Think about it, religion is a way to controll the masses, it has always been so. A couple of hundred years ago the churches had a lot of power.

If you obey and have faith in "god" you will be rewarded with heaven, but if you disobey "god" you will sent to hell. That's what makes people belive, they are to scarred not to.

Religion is a way to control people, that's my opinion.

I don't agree with the whole power things at all. I am sure the churches and those in power believe their fantasy as much as those that follow them, maybe some people have used religion just to control the masses but they are a minority out of those in charge of religions.

[Groundtotem]

I don't agree with the whole power things at all. I am sure the churches and those in power believe their fantasy as much as those that follow them, maybe some people have used religion just to control the masses but they are a minority out of those in charge of religions.

Well what i meant was that religion has and is still to this day being used to silence people and make them follow. This is quite clear if you look at history, the religions has been in power for a long time, it's just in the the last 200 years that it has starting to loose power over people.

[persianfan247]

Well what i meant was that religion has and is still to this day being used to silence people and make them follow. This is quite clear if you look at history, the religions has been in power for a long time, it's just in the the last 200 years that it has starting to loose power over people.

Oh ok, I guess its just the way people state that argument and it sounds as if the Pope and co are power hungry people merely using religion to their own benefit. But I understand now.

[Tacitursa]

Wizav85,

He doesn't offer heaven, He makes it a certainty. Of course it may be seen as bias but where is the contradiction about it?

I want you to beleive in me on faith alone.

If you beleive in me ill allow you entrance to heaven

If you dont beleive in my i'll send you to hell.

[Ummon]

Not really.

If you are what you are meant to be, you will choose to obey God, regardless of the presence or absence of prize and punishment.

This, the sickly fans of power and questioning-everything will not tell you. They will tell you instead that believers obey out of fear, because fear understands only fear and violence, only violence.

Faith is the act of acceptance of those who renounce these short-term fancies of control, whilst still being alive with their animal nature. A choice of sides is part of life.

[Vince Noir]

Faith is the act of acceptance of those who renounce these short-term fancies of control, whilst still being alive with their animal nature. A choice of sides is part of life.

Faith is illogical to the rational mind.

[Ummon]

The right investigation always leads to God. I personally was an atheist until 27-8.

[Tacitursa]

What lead you to start beleiving ummon?

[Ummon]

Knowledge.

[Groundtotem]

Knowledge.

How can you claim that knowledge led you to believe? If anything, religion is not about knowledge it's about faith in something that can't be proven and there are no evidence of. Of course no one can say that god does not exist but the evidence that he does exist is not there.

[iudas]

Knowledge.

You display a strange unwillingness to share this knowledge with us.

[Tacitursa]

I have never seen or heard of any fully grown adults converting that wasnt in a weak state of mind.

And children are in a weak state naturally.

I more likely do not have the time to post the synthesis of the synthesis, because it would be too long.

Just give us a brief description e.g

"My life wasnt going to well so i began to question so and so etc etc"

[Groundtotem]

I have never seen or heard of any fully grown adults converting that wasnt in a weak state of mind.

And children are in a weak state naturally.

I agree. The problem is that children will get feed with religion crap so they don't know anything else.

How many times havent we heard on tv or read about science beeing the work of satan, and it seems that many religious people actually believe this to. I feel sorry for people that still living in the dark ages instead of the 21th centuary.

[Ummon]

Only if the rational mind has limited rationality.

[Tacitursa]

Knowledge.

Care to go into detail?

What stage of your life were you in?

Were you happy? Were you sad? Did you understand the world around you? Were you confused?

[Vince Noir]

I dislike how faith is taught in religion to be a virtue. Faith inherently denies questioning and progressive thought. This is irrational. In fact, it is about as rational as the 'faith' I have that fairies at the bottom of my garden have been cutting my grass.

[Ummon]

I more likely do not have the time to post the synthesis of the synthesis, because it would be too long.