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a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?

1 edit

Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?
a. Yes anything contrary, such as a materialistic explanation for the emergence and
diversification of life is irrational on the basis of both lack of evidence and
mathematical improbability.

b. yes, one needs faith to determine that which is invisible/hidden.


Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?
a. no, anything contrary, such as a magical explanation for the emergence and
diversification of life is irrational on the basis of both lack of evidence and
mathematical improbability.

b. yes, one needs faith to determine that which is invisible/hidden.


Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?
An ode to this forum

Your post, I dread,
Like many a thread,
Will soon coalesce
Into a mess
Where some will wallow,
And others will follow,
Along the same lines,
In spite of the signs.
There are just a few memes,
Maybe ten themes,
That make up the mire.
There are warnings so dire,
Of brimstone and fire.
For mistaken readings,
Are promised beatings.
For wrongful belief,
There will be no relief.
The purveyors of truth,
Will act less than couth,
And demanders of proof,
Will stand all aloof.
While the few lurkers,
Go slowly berserkers,
And the rest of the forum?
We really borum.

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Originally posted by robbie carrobie
a. Yes anything contrary, such as a materialistic explanation for the emergence and
diversification of life is irrational on the basis of both lack of evidence and
mathematical improbability.

b. yes, one needs faith to determine that which is invisible/hidden.
Aaaah yes, the self confessed 'closed minded' 'ignoramus' talks about the evidence he's too afraid to look at. You up for the book deal yet or are you still

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Originally posted by JS357
An ode to this forum

Your post, I dread,
Like many a thread,
Will soon coalesce
Into a mess
Where some will wallow,
And others will follow,
Along the same lines,
In spite of the signs.
There are just a few memes,
Maybe ten themes,
That make up the mire.
There are warnings so dire,
Of brimstone and fire.
For mistaken readings,
Are promised beat ...[text shortened]... of.
While the few lurkers,
Go slowly berserkers,
And the rest of the forum?
We really borum.
😵

Convincing questions

“I have noticed,” said Mr. K., “that we put many people off our teaching because we have an answer to everything. Could we not, in the interests of propaganda, draw up a list of questions that appear to us completely unsolved?”

B. Brecht

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Originally posted by robbie carrobie
a. Yes anything contrary, such as a materialistic explanation for the emergence and
diversification of life is irrational on the basis of both lack of evidence and
mathematical improbability.

b. yes, one needs faith to determine that which is invisible/hidden.
Come one Robbie...you're not going to play the old "oh what were the chances the universe would turn out like this?" card again are you?
swiftly followed by some ill-conceived probability measure of course


Had the universe turned out any different
(whether or whether not we would be around (as a species) to discuss it)
the chances it would have turned out as such would be equally improbable. The thing is the universe "had to"
I suppose there didn\'t have to be a universe in the first place)
play out some course - it just so happens it was this one.

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Originally posted by JS357
An ode to this forum

Your post, I dread,
Like many a thread,
Will soon coalesce
Into a mess
Where some will wallow,
And others will follow,
Along the same lines,
In spite of the signs.
There are just a few memes,
Maybe ten themes,
That make up the mire.
There are warnings so dire,
Of brimstone and fire.
For mistaken readings,
Are promised beat ...[text shortened]... of.
While the few lurkers,
Go slowly berserkers,
And the rest of the forum?
We really borum.
nice!

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Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

I believe so yes
I believe there has to be a reason for everything, a cause, and God seems
to be in my opinion the reason that makes most sense to me.

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?

I believe no, and it is not even close!
The devil believes in God and he is neither faithful or true.

Kelly

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Originally posted by KellyJay
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

I believe so yes
I believe there has to be a reason for everything, a cause, and God seems
to be in my opinion the reason that makes most sense to me.

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?

I believe no, and it is not even close!
The devil believes in God and he is neither faithful or true.

Kelly
what is the rational basis for the existence of god? why does there have to be a reason for everything, it would be great if there was a reason, we would all like to think there was but why are you so confident there is?

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Originally posted by stellspalfie
what is the rational basis for the existence of god? why does there have to be a reason for everything, it would be great if there was a reason, we would all like to think there was but why are you so confident there is?
Can we take baby steps and ask what 'the existence of God' means?

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Originally posted by JS357
An ode to this forum

Your post, I dread,
Like many a thread,
Will soon coalesce
Into a mess
Where some will wallow,
And others will follow,
Along the same lines,
In spite of the signs.
There are just a few memes,
Maybe ten themes,
That make up the mire.
There are warnings so dire,
Of brimstone and fire.
For mistaken readings,
Are promised beat ...[text shortened]... of.
While the few lurkers,
Go slowly berserkers,
And the rest of the forum?
We really borum.
If that your own work, you are talented at making words rhyme in a meaningful way. Very good 🙂

1 edit
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Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?
1. For most there is none. For someone to have a rational basis means they must have had some kind of visitation [for want of a better word] from God or Christ or angel etc. For most belief is based on irrational faith.

2. No. Belief in the existance can occrur without having faith.

eg A person can believe that God exists but have no faith. His lack of faith is demonstrated by is lifestyle which is contrary to a God-fearing lifestyle. Many Christians actually live out this double standard. They have all the outer visible trappings of a Christian who believes in God but their faith is made void by their evil works ... their worldliness, their greed, their opulent lifestyle, their lack of charitable deeds and love for their fellow-men .. etc etc.

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Originally posted by Bosse de Nage
a) Is there a rational basis for the belief that God exists?

b) Is belief-in-the-existence-of-God synonymous with having faith / being faithful?
a) Not by any definition of rationality that I know or accept.
However answering this question to any satisfaction would require an agreed definition of rationality.

b) I would say that given the total lack of evidence then belief in god or gods must be via faith.
Again, disagreement often centres on definitions of the words evidence and faith.


Now arguments over definitions tend to be intensely boring and unproductive and often times words have
multiple meanings all of which are valid uses of the word.

So perhaps you might expound on what you meant by those words (rational, evidence, faith/being faithful)
for the purposes of knowing where we stand in this particular debate.

I don't want to presume you mean the same things by those words that I (for example) do.



I often say that there is no evidence for the existence of god or gods.
And I am right, based on my definition of what constitutes 'evidence for something' [in this case god
or gods]
However others claim to have evidence for their beliefs in god none of which ever meets (or comes remotely
close to meeting) any standard of evidence I would ever accept.
I can only assume that this is because they are using a different definition of evidence than I am.

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Originally posted by googlefudge
a) Not by any definition of rationality that I know or accept.
However answering this question to any satisfaction would require an agreed definition of rationality.

b) I would say that given the total lack of evidence then belief in god or gods must be via faith.
Again, disagreement often centres on definitions of the words evidence and faith.

...[text shortened]... only assume that this is because they are using a different definition of evidence than I am.
You do talk a lot.

My response: To say that God exists is to deny God.