For you Atheist's (like me) or anyone for that matter

[Fljotsdale]

quote:

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Originally posted by Worm:


Bleh. I try to walk the path of least resistance to hold values to heart to molds one life after these values to truely not live that is tyranny. Tyranny of one's self in trying to keep yourself form influences you are limiting your spectrum of life. Take all things into your heart to not fight the one coming tide nor let it wash you away stand still and experience the feel of the water against your skin. Life is meant to be experienced not meant to be battled against.

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Totally off-topic point, Worm: In your sig, the word 'your' is obviously short for 'you are' and should therefore be written 'you're'. I wouldn't mention it if it were just an in-post mistype, but a mistype in your sig is seen by everyone.... Hope you don't mind me mentoning it?
*Fljotsdale ducks to avoid missiles*

[Fljotsdale]

quote:

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Originally posted by Yorick:


No. He has no belief in (a) God. Neither does a cat or an ant. Nonbelief is not a belief, it is the absence of belief in the thing referenced.

It's funny how we can turn "nothing" into something isn't it. What's in that box? Nothing? Actually there's air inside it.

Space is true nothingness. The absence of anything. Yet it's so beyond our experience that it perceptionally becomes a "thing" or a "place". Space. Up in space, through space.

Space is just that. Void.

Similarly not believing in something is simply having no belief in it. A negative line. Belief is positive. Like any positive action, it's harder to excercise belief than not. It's proactive.

I realise that as an apostate you have a different view on the matter as you excercised choice to reject that which filled your life for so. Still, I believe the definition stands, in spite of whatever mental processes brought about the current state on "nonbelief". (notice the negating language)

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Hey! We are going to disagree again! YES!!

Belief can be negative as well as positive! I BELIEVE there is no such thing as a ghost. I cannot prove I am right, therefore, my conviction is a BELIEF. Negative belief.
Jabidas BELIEVES there is no god. He cannot prove there is not, therefore his conviction is a BELIEF. Negative belief.
YOU BELIEVE there is a god, but you cannot prove it, therefore your conviction is a BELIEF. Positive belief.
(Don't say you can prove god exists! You can't prove it, which is why christians and others with a belief in a god are called BELIEVERS).

Belief can be either positive or negative, but if a thing is not proveable, but you are convinced of it anyway, it is a BELIEF! So there! [img]tongue.gif[/img]

[Fljotsdale]

quote:

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Originally posted by jabidas:
Can I put it to you this way Fljotsdale I don't try to enforce or dictate my beliefs to anyone and I believe it to be sheer arrogance on the part of anyone to do so.

Next I believe them fools because in telling how to live their lives they are assuming they have the wisdom to do so. I doubt sincerely that they do because they are only human and only you can know how to live your life.

The existence of God? the arguments for tend to entirely based on faith and let me be perhaps a little blunt and somewhat painfully honest about this. Im not going to base my decisions on what a bunch of medieval superstitious two rungs above monkeys people thought about 3 or 4 thousand years ago at all. No chance. The arguments against God are more logical, while I don't completely discount instinct or if you will a sense of something greater I wont base my life on a feeling I don't get my self.

To be quite frank I wouldn't really care if he exists or not, I live to the best of my ability anyway and in the way that I choose

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Hm. I appreciate the points you make, Jabidas, and I agree with a lot that you say. I am an atheist myself!
One point, though: I don't think it is always arrogance that motivates one person to try to convince another of his/her viewpoint. It is often conviction.
Take an example: You have a terrible dream that your house is on fire and you wake up to the smell of smoke..... You are convinced the house is on fire so you rush round waking all your family and trying to get them to leave the house. Some wake up and leave (or try to help wake others) but some tell you to shut up and go away, then turn over and go back to sleep. Do you leave them and run? Or do you keep shaking them and keep yelling 'FIRE!'?
Now, it doesn't matter, for the sake of this example, whether the house is on fire or not... what matters is your conviction and your love for your family. It is not arrogance that makes you try to save your family, it is conviction of danger. Right?
The same is true of very many who have a religious conviction... they truly believe that by convincing you to become a believer they will save your life. They do not try to FORCE you to believe, but they earnestly WANT you to do so for YOUR BENEFIT - as they see it.

Don't be too hard on them. [img]smile.gif[/img]