Yesterday, Jesus was the topic of discuss and after reading the article you might start to wonder: “are you saying the religion in based on myths, make-beliefs and ‘paganism’?” Before I answer that, let go another step futher into another myth that has been engraved into every relgious following – faith, prayers, and devil and some of the answers might pop.
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
-Bible (Hebrews 11:1)
This is the most quoted passage on faith (and its need). As earlier mentioned about the bible, couldn’t we have assumed it has been tossed in to prevent people from thinking about the logics the bible claims?
We can decide to have a back and forth notion on abstract terms, the fact still remains, me having faith in something doesn’t make it true!
Centuries ago, many had ‘faith’ in their gods, whom they believed saved them, will continue to save them and does miracles but today, we think them as ignorant and celebrate those who had the foresight to discredit their activities and for the modern man, it appears that we have something better to offer but, We are no better at having ‘faith’ today than they were centuries ago, we just practice it in a different form and maybe, at some point in the future, our grand and great-grand children will think of us as ignorant and maybe celebrate those, who have taken time to re-think the norm.
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My friend has adopted an Eco-system analogy for prayers. I really fancy this way of thinking of prayer as it removed the spiritual factor and replaces it with the human factor (read: non-abstract).
In essence, the Eco-system prayer theory is: A prayer said by you, has it’s answer in another person who might have said a prayer too (maybe not consciously), so in some way, it is a self-sustaining system. I say a prayer for bread, another says a prayer for meat, and has excess bread, some way we meet and both our prayers are answered.
As most would agree, “just” saying a prayer never really does anything, you have to make an effort which, with or without prayer would have happened anyways. Prayers just gives us some relieve that, a supernatural being is bringing fortune our way – herein lies the power of placebos
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The scientific working of placebo is out of my speciality but the point I intend to make is, many of the miracles often performed and acclaimed to super natural beings [God] are things that could have happened anyways with, or without prayers. The mere believe (or faith if you will) thatt we have in what is being said, gave the “power” to make that happen.
Similar to sick patients miraculously getting healed after a doctor treats them by giving dummy drugs (or maybe that was God too).
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Blaise Pascal made a note on believing the Christian God, he noted, after all one has nothing to loose. If he exists, you win, if he doesn’t idoesn’t make a difference.
And allow me add this, and I would have you meditate on it.
How about if the Muslim God is the true God and he is a jealous God too like Yahweh, or some other God. For the person that believes in God has got him twice pissed off as against some who doesn’t care about either at all.
aS I said, that was a thought experiment of course many can come up with better arguments.
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Shall we say, the devil has caused all this confusion and that he is only trying to lure people into hell and destroy the work of God?
The creation of good vs. evil, light vs. darkness, wrong vs. right has existed in all myths and at all times, it should therefore come as no surprised that it’s included in Christianity or otherwise, how do we threaten people to stay in perfect submission – invent a dreadful person.
My friend sent me this link that does some demystifying (http://www.lds-mormon.com/lucifer.shtml)and I would leave it at that.
Join tomorrow as we conitnue our visit through Godsville. It will be fun tommorow examining the origin of us all. Actually I wouldn’t have you wait that long, God made us all and the world is only about 6,000 years old.
If those answers are ok with you, you don’t need come tomorrow but if you prefer some serious debunking and more factual than vague, abstract response to our origin, see you tomorrow.
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