[HighLonesome]

Religious threads suck. All they do is piss people off.

[lawdogg]

I definitely don't want to piss people off. Just wondering WHY people do or don't believe in God. It's obviously not because one person is 'smarter' than another - but probably does have to do with their exposure to religion vs. science as a child. Or at least I would venture to suggest.

[-Rudy-]

I know there's a higher being that exists. I just don't think he's like they describe him in most religions.

[Stamos]

Stamos - Your hypothesis is that men believe in God in order to be anally raped?

Anyone up for a serious discussion? Why DO some people believe in god and some people don't? Is it REALLY intelligence? Is it personal life problems? Is it at all related to socio-economic status?

I fail to see where I used the word "anal" but if that's what floats your Ark then so be it. However I will say that I am sure there has been anal rape disguised as the love of God. AND history has recorded the horrors brought upon the native people in the name of converting heathens to Christianity by Columbus. ** I think the belief or not in God (who's God though, Buddha, Jesus, God,Allah) is a matter of personal preference in what lies beyond for you. Some find solace in the belief that when they die they will go to a mystical place where it will be better than here on Earth (some even have virgins waiting for them!) while some believe that they die and there body gets stuck in the ground to rot. End of story....


**disclaimer* Wether any forced anal intercourse took place there is open to speculation

[jb4]

Originally Posted by lawdogg

Stamos - Your hypothesis is that men believe in God in order to be anally raped?

Anyone up for a serious discussion? Why DO some people believe in god and some people don't? Is it REALLY intelligence? Is it personal life problems? Is it at all related to socio-economic status?

I would posit with large brush strokes here - because like others have said its impossible to nail down everyone and their reasons...

first, in regards to this article:

1. 'intelligent' people are more skeptical by nature and will try to seek 'answers' to questions that aren't normally asked (is god even real? what really makes the sky blue?) and they will continue to review their stance and alter it based on new found information

2. 'less intelligent' people either aren't concerned with pursuing these questions because they 'know' the answer already and have no interest in questioning what they already know as 'correct' (either due to their own stubbornness, inadequate education, or purposeful deceit)

-----------


I think socioeconomic status and education are large contributors towards the 'belief in religion' but the most obvious issue, to me, is upbringing. if you're brought up into a Mormon family you're most likely going to believe what your parents believe. if you're brought up in a protestant household or the FLDS, or even as a sunni or shiite - the same thing goes for secularists as well though...

now obviously there are outliers all around, as a couple off the top of my head

1. turn towards/away from religion as a form of rebellion against a childs parents

2. life changing events leading to/from religion (maybe a 'miracle' cancer recovery, or 'god taking away X person in their prime') those are polarizing events no doubt

[GeekInJeep]

To clarifiy and teach, Buddhists do not worship Buddha. Every Buddhist seeks to become enlightened. When you reach that place, you yourself are a Buddha. Shakyamuni Buddha.. or Siddhartha Guatama was the first to be enlightened... not by any god, but through practice. He then taught what he knew. If you see Buddhists in practice, it will look like prayer or worship, but it is not.

Just sayin'.

It's a religion without gods.

-T-

[NaeKid]

Originally Posted by LaCeS OuT

To me religion is a business. Nothing more, nothing less.

I agree with you there .. RELIGION is a business just as SCIENCE is a business. Both are there to help a person be better, get better, or live better. Both are put on a pedestal by their followers and both are screamed about as one being better than the other.

Both equally suck!

One thing that I would love to point out is that I was talking about GOD and not talking about RELIGION. I don't believe in religion. Religion sucks. Religion is what man tries to impose on everyone else in the name of a higher power. When I see God, I will say my piece and if God likes what I have to say, great.

If I am wrong, and there is no god to judge me, then my ashes will be the last reminder of my short existance on this planet.

[LaCeS OuT]

Most religion is associated with God. Well unfortunately no one knows the truth and we can only "believe" what we want. I do not believe in God. Does that make me a bad person? Absolutely not. I was not brought up this way and decided this for myself. My parents try to convince me otherwise but until some guy comes out of the sky, I'll stick to my decision.

Oh well, to each their own, right? Whether you or anyone else believes in God will not affect my day to day life.

[War Eagle]

Originally Posted by XJRookie

...do you believe in the wind? You never see the wind? You feel the wind, you know it is there but you can't see it...there is a mystery to it.

No there's not. I've never smelled a ringtone either but that doesn't make my cell phone some kind of awe-inspiring mystery.

[Dr. Righteous]

More and more if people are not interested in spiritual matters I don't waste my breath.
The attitude of someone that is genuinely interesting in discussing spiritual matters is totally different.

But Jesus addressed this:

Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
Matthew 7:6 (KJV)

This verse is much clearer in a modern language translation

Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you're only being cute and inviting sacrilege.
Matthew 7:6 (The Message)

[Stamos]

...do you believe in the wind? You never see the wind? You feel the wind, you know it is there but you can't see it...there is a mystery to it.

I can't see a fart either..... I know it's there yet I can't feel it.

There is no mystery in it...just like the wind, it can be explained with science.

[jb4]

Originally Posted by NaeKid

I agree with you there .. RELIGION is a business just as SCIENCE is a business. Both are there to help a person be better, get better, or live better. Both are put on a pedestal by their followers and both are screamed about as one being better than the other.

Both equally suck!

theres no money in basic scientific exploration. but to youre point - I agree that Religion is a business and would certainly consider the act of removing ALL religions' tax-exempt status. it would do alot to immediately remove a major stumbling block that many people have with it

Originally Posted by Dr. Righteous

More and more if people are not interested in spiritual matters I don't waste my breath.
The attitude of someone that is genuinely interesting in discussing spiritual matters is totally different.

But Jesus addressed this:

Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
Matthew 7:6 (KJV)

using only scripture, being that its only a single source, is no less 'genuine' in discourse than using scientific observations and results.

Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to slogans.

so how isn't changing christs' birth to coincide with the winter solstice and previous pagan rituals not being flippant and silly?

[lawdogg]

Dr. Righteous - Would then the information in the bible depend on how the text is interpreted?

[Kyoseki]

Originally Posted by War Eagle

Interesting correlation but that's about it. While statistics can point out relationships between multiple factors the numbers alone don't explain why those relationships exist.

War Eagle nailed it, Lynn jumps to a conclusion not directly supported by the data - I'm wondering if he was being quoted out of context, but I'm not about to spend $35 on a copy of the report itself just to find out.

It does seem to be true that the greater the degree of education, the less likely that person is to believe in God, however, the conclusion that "smart people don't believe in God" Lynn makes is bogus.

The more degrees you have, the longer you've spent in educational establishments which are typically very liberal and less religion oriented (as they should be, unless you're in a seminary, or studying theology, religion has no place in education) so naturally you're going to tend away from religious dogma.

Additionally, the more time you spend in academia, the more likely you are to be exposed to viewpoints that are radically different to your own (I had professors who were from significantly different religious and ethnic backgrounds).

Then of course, there's the obvious one, the more you know about the physical nature of the universe, the less likely you are to believe in a supernatural explanation for it.

In the same vein as the original article, there was another "study" (more a statistical exercise) performed on SAT results that showed correlation between IQ/SAT score and degree of Biblical Literalism;
http://scienceblogs.com/gnxp/2008/05/biblical_literalism_or_low_iq.php?utm_source=reade rspicks&utm_medium=link

[SmithersGS]

Originally Posted by XJRookie

How can you adequately explain or fully understand a power that is so great He laid the foundations of the earth, created life, created the heavens?? You cannot. The irony here is that the supposed "intelligent" try to do just that, explain or explain away God....it is futile.

Intelligent people are less likely to believe in God because intelligent people know that they must constantly question themselves; they know that we don't know, so to speak. And if you don't know, you've got to find out. And until you find out for sure, there's no reason to commit blindly to something, just off of a strong belief.

I am agnostic, as I think any rational person should be. My belief is that a higher power does not exist; just the same I can't call myself atheist because I don't know that a higher power doesn't exist. Just as you don't know he exists. You can say "I know he exists" but that is a lie, you do not know for sure.

I've asked this question of religious folks many times, and I never get an answer. What if tomorrow morning, you went outside and up in the sky was some gigantic Hindu deity, or a deity from another religion? Faced with this evidence, you'd have to realize that the Christian god didn't exist. Now, after realizing you'd devoted your whole life's faith to a god that was fake, how would you feel? Would you regret blind faith? Would you feel stupid for believing in something without proof?