Has religion served its purpose?

@josephw said
Do you mean like the way you render "supernatural" meaningless?

I don't think I do "render supernatural meaningless". What a peculiar thing to say.

-Removed-

Comparing examples?

@fmf said
It is not "exactly what [I am] doing". My faith seemed real to me back then, just as yours seemed real to you in 2021.

Comparing faith, yes, it is what you are doing.

@ghost-of-a-duke said
It is a weak Christian indeed who 'needs' their personal belief vindicated by the eternal torment of non-believers.

I disagree; a weak Christian ignores the warnings in scripture to suit their tastes on what they think God should or shouldn't do to make them feel better. If warning of impending danger is weak, fine color me weak because some will be cast into the lake of fire where they will remain forever.

@kellyjay said
Comparing faith, yes, it is what you are doing.

It is you who has been willy-waving about your faith. I have been merely pointing out that there was a time when I believed in Jesus too, just like you still do.

@kellyjay said
I disagree; a weak Christian ignores the warnings in scripture to suit their tastes on what they think God should or shouldn't do to make them feel better.

Ghost of a Duke was commenting on josephw. You disagree with what Ghost of a Duke said. Does that mean you think josephw was being a strong Christian halfway down page 25?

@fmf said
It is you who has been willy-waving about your faith. I have been merely pointing out that there was a time when I believed in Jesus too, just like you still do.

As I said, we put our faith in what we trust. To say "just like you still do" compares you to me. There will be comparisons, those who believed and those who didn't, and the day of judgment will be part of the process. How we respond to the things in this life, the good and the bad, will matter.

Matthew 11:23
And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

@kellyjay said
As I said, we put our faith in what we trust. To say "just like you still do" compares you to me.

Saying we both have been believers in Jesus is not "comparing" faith.

@kellyjay said
There will be comparisons, those who believed and those who didn't, and the day of judgment will be part of the process. How we respond to the things in this life, the good and the bad, will matter.

I used to believe this kind of stuff too.

@fmf said
I used to believe this kind of stuff too.

But to what extent did you believe it?

That, I think, is the difference between you and a Christian who did not abandon the faith.

Unless there was a momentous tragedy in your life that prompted you to abandon the faith, I’d say your faith wasn’t very strong at all.

Have you written about why you abandoned your faith in the past?

@pb1022 said
But to what extent did you believe it?

That, I think, is the difference between you and a Christian who did not abandon the faith.

Unless there was a momentous tragedy in your life that prompted you to abandon the faith, I’d say your faith wasn’t very strong at all.

Have you written about why you abandoned your faith in the past?

To what extent does Neil Young remind you of Stevie Wonder?

Just because words can be strung together into a grammatically correct sentence does not necessarily make that sentence a valid proposition with any correspondence to reality as it is.

Why are you discussing FMF instead of the ideas set forth in the OP?

@kevin-eleven said
To what extent does Neil Young remind you of Stevie Wonder?

Just because words can be strung together into a grammatically correct sentence does not necessarily make that sentence a valid proposition with any correspondence to reality as it is.

Why are you discussing FMF instead of the ideas set forth in the OP?

You don’t think there are different degrees of belief?

“And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou son of David, have mercy on us.

And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.

Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.”

(Matthew 9:27-29)

“And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.”

(Matthew 8:13)