Why believe in god? The theist perspective.

Hey Leadfoot how are ya? Indeed I am a Christian and pledged my allegiance only to Lord Jesus for several reasons, he loves me and all humanity, my parents, my brothers and sisters, hes not anti-human, he values human life, hes honourable, hes not racist or sexist, hes not greedy, hes not scared or perverted, gees why would I want to trust a teacher him? Or Do you think I should trust you instead?

Hey Leadfoot how are ya? Indeed I am a Christian and pledged my allegiance only to Lord Jesus for several reasons, he loves me and all humanity, my parents, my brothers and sisters, hes not anti-human, he values human life, hes honourable, hes not racist or sexist, hes not greedy, hes not scared or perverted. Gees why would I want to trust a teacher like him for? or Do you think I should trust you and your credentials instead?

Did I ask you to trust me instead of him?

The only thing you said here that I disagree with is that he values human life. By human life, I mean the biological existence of human life. If it serves his purpose, a billion lives could be snuffed out today without a single regret on his part. He personally directed the wholesale genocide of human life on planet Earth except for a single family. If he valued human life, why would he do that?

You don't have to trust me on this matter, the evidence is all around you. And in the book you profess to believe.

Because otherwise theists would have to cope with the prospect of certain death. With a god, you can avoid such unpleasantness and instead dream of eternal bliss in Never-Never Land. Lack of evidence? No problem. Theists caan imagine that, too. They're good at imagining things.

Are you aware of the concept of "Mother Earth" and "Father Sky"(or Heavenly Father)? They are supposed to be the parents of all physical life according to some Old World cultures, God and Goddess. But the true quest has always been to know the spirit or psychology of God, not the physique of God otherwise you are merely searching for Disney Land. I think God expects us to work hard for our treats just like every other living creature, it seems more realistic. Our hard working Grand-dads have a saying "life is just blood, sweat and tears" But the saying should include "prayers" as well. Not all Christians think God is about fantasy Island or nevernever Land. I'm more impressed by the human family morality of Lord Jesus, we need that for our survival. The family spirit of our parents brought us into this world, without that spirit there is only a spirit of self-destruction. Are there other ways to maintain our sense of family morality?

a) There are buttloads of concepts that have no empirical support. I could create a new concept tonight out of my imagination. Unless there is empirical support for it, it would be no better than anything else that anyone else had imagined.

b) You're presupposing the existence of your god and spirits, not providing evidential support for their existence. Evidence would be more helpful than imagination.

This sounds like you worship the 'family spirit' rather than God, a clear violation of both first commandments (old & new).

My faith in Lord jesus helps maintain my sense of family, not the lonely me me, i hate everyone sense. Or are you implying that you could do better than Lord Jesus? Or I should believe in you instead?

The psychology of God is about the family spirit, thats how you were created, Mum & Dad

Mum & dad provided your body genetics and care and feeding. If you include the bible in your theology, there is ample proof that family is definitely to be second place to God. The stories of Abraham & Issac, Job, and many others clearly show where he expects your priorities to lie.

But probably the hardest thing for you to grasp is when Jesus said "There is no marriage in Heaven". But then again, maybe you belong to one of the religions that can't let go of 'family as number 1' and have decided that they are not going to heaven and have accepted the 'home version of the game' here on earth.

Are you implying that non-believers abandon their families and embark on a lonely, selfish lifestyle? https://www.google.co.kr/search?q=atheist+gatherings&newwindow=1&safe=off&biw=1024&bih=635&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAWoVChMI3_WXrPC4xwIVjBmUCh2BrQTV#newwindow=1&safe=off&tbm=isch&q=atheist+families



I'm not implying anything. I'm directly stating that you're assuming your god's very existence in your argument (petitio principii, begging the question fallacy). Why should a reasonable person accept such an outlandish story without evidence and when the claim contains errors in reasoning?

I studied the Bible in university, as a staunch believer, and that was what convinced me that the odds of those stories being true are negligible compared to the probability that they're just a collection of ancient myths.

Of course, if you have some genuinely credible evidence, I'm open to it. But having evidence would give you knowledge, which would eliminate faith, and faith is conveniently required in the Abrahamic religions, so...

I am a Christian indeed and therefore i only follow the family spirit of Lord jesus CHRIST. Family is a basic fundamental truth of existence whether one believes in a God or not. However, from your theogical perspective of the bible, The OLD: Honour thy Mother and thy Father. The NEW: Love one another as I have loved you. They are family virtues of God, are they not?

I did explain a fundamental truth of existence which is family or having a sense of family, one does not have to be a rocket scientist to figure that out, or hardly need any evidence. I'm not implying that non-believers (or other species) don't have a sense of family otherwise they won't exist. I am merely saying that the family spirit of Lord Jesus helps maintain my sense of family, otherwise i could i lose that sense from all the stress and challenges life deals to us sometimes, which is why i believe in God, the theist perspective.

I wasn't implying that family is not to be loved, just that there is a clear cut directive in the order of our allegiance. Family is just one of many things that people make idols of and put in God's place. The extended family (tribe) is what many Islamists put ahead of God and look at the results.

And notice that in the new covenant family does not even get mentioned. They are not to be elevated above anyone else.

OK, let me get this straight. You believe in your god because otherwise you'd desert your family? Or mistreat them? Or...what?

I don't claim to be perfect or superhuman, do you?

I give allegiance only to Lord Jesus, not to my family, myself or anything else.

No, but I don't need questionable scriptures in order to be a decent person. I donate, volunteer and go well beyond the call of duty to help my students outside of class because I want to, not because I believe that I'm being ordered to.

You are indeed a decent person, and whatever keeps you that way works for you, like Christianity works for me. I become a Christian because i think Lord Jesus is very honourable, hes not anti-human or greedy, he's not racist or sexist, hes not scared or perverted. I thought what an amazing teacher, i'd give my allegiance to a teacher like that any day. He reminds me how it is to be a human being and realize the value of human life. Sometimes if i feel down i can't stand people or trust them. But i can trust a teacher like Lord Jesus and not give in to all the negative thoughts going through my mind. I guess we all have our own ways of coping with life's ups and downs. Whatever keeps us well and striving must be good regardless of what others may think. I have my share of pains and pleasures just like everyone else. I never became a Christian because of all the magical stories about Lord Jesus, i was impressed by his morality and sense of family, he is a great family spirit in my mind. I do see myself as a realist, i do frown at other people who call themselves Christians and take the bible so literally. But i think our perceptions are determined by our experiences, which differ from others, so i can't expect everyone to understand my perception unless they have had similar experiences. It is a peculiar world that we live in.

Thanks for that. I think I understand you better now. Maybe I mistook you for a literalist. It seems that you're not.

Nevertheless, for many Western people, the question of theism revolves around the literal existence of this alleged creator, not the positive effects such a belief have on the individual's life. While I don't condone attacks on benign beliefs (everyone has the right to think/believe as s/he wishes), literalists tend to be the more malignant and aggressive. I would limit my criticism to them, with the caveat that science denialism is malignant, aggressive and detrimental to humanity as a whole.