by seekchristonly 194 Replies latest watchtower bible
How do spiritual things differ from imaginary things ?
Things like wind, odors
and atoms are real , though they cannot be perceived by normal sight.
Clearly invisable and imaginary are different words therefore the use of the word imaginary confuses the issue
Things like wind, odors and atoms are real , though they cannot be perceived by normal sight. Clearly invisable and imaginary are different words therefore the use of the word imaginary confuses the issue
All of those things can be objectively detected by senses. Spiritual things cannot. Cofty's question stands.
ditto
I didn't ask how "spiritual things" differ from invisible real things.
Spritual Things..... Imaginary Things..... Hmmmmm I see no difference
=
In a simpler sense, by its very definition a belief is something that one believes in. However, just because you believe something to be true or false does not mean you believe IN something. Belief is not a faith. I believe light will come forth when I flip a switch, but I don't put faith in it. Imagine the crisis of conscience I would suffer should the light burn out! The oversimplification of the wording causes an unnecessary confusion that those who insist that others MUST have some belief system purposefully trap themselves into to shield themselves from the digesting the freedom of non-belief. So far in 20 years, that seems to be one constant.
I will give an example. If I were to ask what your favorite color is, and you answered “black,” I would moan. A color is a visual reflection of light found in the color spectrum (or on the color wheel, if you will). Black is not a color... and neither is white. Black is the presence of all color and white is the absence of color. Black and white are each states of being relative to the color spectrum... NOT colors themselves. Yet, for the sake of simplicity to those who do not think in those terms, and to just move along in conversations without explaining the laws of physics that combat the misnomer, most people on the planet will just say “okay” to the response of “black,” and not think twice about it.
Similarly, those who believe that ALL paths to god are acceptable (think the “COEXIST” bumper stickers) and those who have an absence of belief in spirituality are not beliefs in the sense that is being discussed. They are not faiths, just an explanation of existence in relation to faiths. A life structure of being a good person, helping one's fellow man, and thinking in terms of humanitarianism is not only possible without god, it should be a precursor to belief in god. Some people do good because they WANT to, not because they HAVE to. Man was NOT created with a need to believe in god, and man does NOT have an internal desire to be close to a higher power. As proven by history, having either of those does not yield a decent human being.
The inability to accept such causes conversations where atheism gets discussed in terms of belief structures to reconcile the inability grasp this concept. That is understandable. But I, personally, refuse to let my extremely well-thought out conclusion and life structure be marginalized by generalized definitions of the simple minded. I have no belief structure in terms of faith and spirituality, and happiness comes with the ability to move about the world freely without the cumbersome weight of the forced acceptance of a fabricated story stolen from someone else's religion trying to guide my life from 2000 years in the past.
BSD, great points!
A belief does not a system of beliefs make.
Also, a lack of a belief is NOT a belief.
Are belief systems part of the evolutionary process if so why did the first humans have the desire to worship, at what point did they decide they needed to worship unseen things. Is it in built into humans.
That's a good question.
You may enjoy Michael Shermer's thoughts on the origin of belief. He proposes that, for good evolutionary reasons, belief is our default setting.
Click here for 20 minute lecture video, Why Do We Believe in Unbelievable Things?
lack of belief is not a belief
...maybe not a belief in God but belief in something... it seems logical to me each must have a base foundation to arrive at personal conclusions and
convicts by which they live. Otherwise do you not flounder in uncertainty.... morality is an ever present issue.
What is the purpose of my life ?
What is acceptable conduct within a community ?
What are noble goals for my life and family ?
What are the standards I have taught my children ?
SO if its our default setting then does that mean atheists have the desire to worship also
