I can't understand how people believe this. Can someone explain it to me?

I got talking to this guy I've known for two years on msn about God. He's generally a reasonable, smart kid, but this surprised me.

He told me that God was exactly like humans in every way except he perceives things differently, and that the "God made man in his image" quote proves this, backed up by a supposed passage in which Moses breaks God's hip.

Now, this kid here believes a creature that is exactly like humans in every way but perception and being all powerful has existed for eternity in nothingness (because he can't exist in something, for that would imply that that something was created or God isn't necessary) who is so frail a mere human can break his hip created and governs the entire universe.

When I told him "but that doesn't make sense", he simply replied "nothing makes sense anyway" and said "*shrug*" when I told him I saw no reason for believing in any religions.

Now, I can't wrap my head around this. This kid is a physics student, how can he believe something so dumb? Is there some sort of compartmentalising of the brain going on here? Can someone please explain how people actually buy this shit and then have the audacity to look down on those who don't believe in it (as he does)?

[boozehound420]

its the wonderfull thing christians invented called HELL, Fearing people into believing and doing what they say

no wonder governments use the tool of fear aswell

it still surprises me when highly educated people still believe in that shit though,

quote:Originally posted by Raw_Power:

I got talking to this guy I've known for two years on msn about God. He's generally a reasonable, smart kid, but this surprised me.

He told me that God was exactly like humans in every way except he perceives things differently, and that the "God made man in his image" quote proves this, backed up by a supposed passage in which Moses breaks God's hip.

Now, this kid here believes a creature that is exactly like humans in every way but perception and being all powerful has existed for eternity in nothingness (because he can't exist in something, for that would imply that that something was created or God isn't necessary) who is so frail a mere human can break his hip created and governs the entire universe.

When I told him "but that doesn't make sense", he simply replied "nothing makes sense anyway" and said "*shrug*" when I told him I saw no reason for believing in any religions.

Now, I can't wrap my head around this. This kid is a physics student, how can he believe something so dumb? Is there some sort of compartmentalising of the brain going on here? Can someone please explain how people actually buy this shit and then have the audacity to look down on those who don't believe in it (as he does)?

It seems you have a problem with understanding biew points that aren't your own.

Only when they're incoherent, it seems.



Entheogenic

quote:Originally posted by ate:

It seems you have a problem with understanding biew points that aren't your own.

It sounds like the kid doesn't even know what he believes, how can someone else be expected to?

'Dumb' is a relative term.

The only difference in the forming of your position and his are the starting assumptions.

And neither yours nor his starting assumptions can be proven to be 'better'.

[Hexadecimal]

From people I've talked to, we have this 'feeling' that isn't quite comprehensible, and with the inability to truly understand it, we often attempt to provide some definition of it.

Understanding to some extent that we can't understand what the feeling truly is, we prescribe all sorts of odd beliefs to ourselves in order to explain it...religions, philosophies, and so on. The coherency doesn't matter to most...we're attempting to provide ANY explanation.

This feeling makes about as much sense to us as your pal's idea of what God is. We don't know what the feeling is, how it came to be, why it is, when it happened. Every philosophy I've ever come across attempts to explain it in some manner; every religion I've ever come across does the same.

Common explanations are 'sin', betrayal of our roots, betrayal of ethics/morals, separation from god, a death-instinct, etc. The only factor of the feeling that is universal, is that it is universal to man: even psychopaths, who supposedly have no emotions, ethics, or morals to betray have spoken/written of 'voids within' and a variety of other reasons. The MOST common explanation I see for it, is that it's our 'soul'.

People have an amazing sense of incompletion in this world due to the very lack of understanding of this feeling.

I'm starting to view the sense of incompletion as part of my completion though...but I'm almost as crazy as Charles Manson when it comes down to philosophies on life, haha.

[Real.PUA]

quote:Originally posted by Raw_Power:

I got talking to this guy I've known for two years on msn about God. He's generally a reasonable, smart kid, but this surprised me.

He told me that God was exactly like humans in every way except he perceives things differently, and that the "God made man in his image" quote proves this, backed up by a supposed passage in which Moses breaks God's hip.

Now, this kid here believes a creature that is exactly like humans in every way but perception and being all powerful has existed for eternity in nothingness (because he can't exist in something, for that would imply that that something was created or God isn't necessary) who is so frail a mere human can break his hip created and governs the entire universe.

When I told him "but that doesn't make sense", he simply replied "nothing makes sense anyway" and said "*shrug*" when I told him I saw no reason for believing in any religions.

Now, I can't wrap my head around this. This kid is a physics student, how can he believe something so dumb? Is there some sort of compartmentalising of the brain going on here? Can someone please explain how people actually buy this shit and then have the audacity to look down on those who don't believe in it (as he does)?

They got him when he was young. The brain in children is very susceptible to suggestion (that's why kids are so guillible). The way we believe things is interesting..his core belief is that the bible is true, everything else is based on that. When you believe something it shifts everything else in your reality. Ask him what it would take for him to change his beliefs, he will either give a completely unreasonable answer or say nothing could change his beliefs.

[AngryFemme]

Dawkin's new book The God Delusion goes into great detail about what Real.PUA touched on - the power of suggestion at a young age.

This book is definitely worth reading, for believers and non-believers alike.

[jackketch]

quote:Originally posted by AngryFemme:

Dawkin's new book The God Delusion goes into great detail about what Real.PUA touched on - the power of suggestion at a young age.

This book is definitely worth reading, for believers and non-believers alike.

*makes a mental note to order from Library * Thanks AF

Bump, 'cause I'm tired of looking at King's stretched post.

quote:Originally posted by AngryFemme:

Dawkin's new book The God Delusion goes into great detail about what Real.PUA touched on - the power of suggestion at a young age.

This book is definitely worth reading, for believers and non-believers alike.

Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me. A radio show I was listening to got me interested in that.

The trascript is here - http://tinyurl.com/yfmj7o

They took down the streaming audio now though.



It is a difficult thing to pull yourself out of though, being born into Christianity. Seeing and hearing it every day of your life. Its only until I actively began researching things like astronomy, evolution and other sciences that things began to fall apart in that sense.

The way you are brought up in a Christian family, you feel as though you should not think negative or even objective thoughts about God. Faith explains away everything. Hell, even now I have an underlining feeling that I should not be writing this now.

I think if there was a God, I don’t see them forcing blind faith for fear of eternal suffering.

I'm not christain and I really dont believe anything the christains say happen. I do believe there was a man called "jesus" because thats been proven to be fact. But I dont think they created hell. I'm currently reading about ancient mythology in rome and greece and they had a hell (hades) well before christianity.

[inuteroteen]

It wasn't moses who broke his hip. It was Jacob