AhHah

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Posts by AhHah

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  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

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  AhHah

  Carmel,

  I would tend to agree.

  I should have clearly addressed my last post, as I was intending it for Theo. I would like to read his eventual arguments, regardless of his premises.
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  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  AhHah

  Theo,

  Also (in addition to Carmel's statement) who would not argue that the effect of splitting an atom is much greater than the cause (the energy required to split the first atom)?

  I would be interested in hearing your thoughts, however, regardless of the premise.

  Edited by - AhHah on 17 October 2000 0:35:2

  Edited by - AhHah on 17 October 2000 1:10:25
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  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  AhHah

  Theo,

  Since, hopefully, the point of this forum is to simply to share any thoughts that we would like to offer for consideration and discussion by anyone interested,

  allow me to kindly propose, if you will, that I will completely agree with any and all premises, assumptions, constraints or conditions that you would like to impose upon any thought that you would like to share.

  Edited by - AhHah on 17 October 2000 1:9:21
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  58

  Why Does God Allow Evil?

  by Frenchy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ahhah .

  i did not want to complicate paths thread.

  although this is directed to you, ahhah, naturally i welcome comments by all who participate here.. in reference to a portion of what i posted to seven:.

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  AhHah

  Could it be that they know what we've journeyed to find?

  That each moment is an answer from the universal mind?

  If our questions are all wrong and our doubt brings pain,

  Do we miss the truths that each moment contains?
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  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  AhHah

  I was hoping for some comment/discussion on my post on page 3. Is anyone out there?

  Posted: Oct 15, 2000 5:15:55 PM
  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Carmel,

  I also have a difficult time trying to reconcile the exclusivity of some religions -- we are right and everyone else is wrong -- we have eternal life and non-believers do not.

  Why would God choose to exclude vast portions of the world's population from a relationship or acceptable worship, only because those cultures do not have ready access to the exclusive religion?

  Those who believe in Christianity would state (as Theo did) that God will eventually make "The Way" known to every person on the planet so that the true religion, the true God, is obvious to all -- although convincing the world of such would seem difficult. For example, how many Christians would be prepared to abandon their whole concept of God and religion if God suddenly revealed to mankind that Islam is the true faith? Most would not even seriously consider the possibility, let alone accepting it. Would not every faithful religious person think that any miraculous intervention was proof of their own faith?

  If religion is more than just salvation (as has been argued recently), if it is about daily spirituality and peace of mind, then it would seem to me all the more unlikely that God would limit this opportunity to only a portion of the world's population. When it comes to thinking about all those billions of Buddhists and Hindus, etc. that are alive right now, most Christians seem to think about them only in terms of whether or not God in his mercy will murder them on judgment day for being unbelievers. What about their day-to-day spirituality, happiness, and peace of mind right now? Why don't they also qualify for his daily blessing? Only because they have never heard of Christ or read the Bible?

  I realize that the Bible itself encourages such exclusivity -- the us and them mentality. That is why I have a difficult time accepting all of it as from God. It seems so childish and unloving to me personally. I would think that an all-powerful, loving God should not be so insecure and jealous.

  Isn't it possible that God is available to everyone who seeks him, regardless of any belief system that they may or may not be aware of?

  Isn't it possible that God blesses the efforts of those sincere individuals to become more spiritual, regardless of their currently limited attempts to know him through any religion? And that their salvation is just as assured as everyone else's?

  Isn't it possible that God has not authored the Bible and other holy books -- even though they all contain some truths in common, and may have been written by sincere, God-fearing persons promoting their own concept of God?

  Doesn't this more open concept of God allow us to be responsible for our own spirituality and efforts to know God, without the divisive human need to validate our own faith at the expense of condemning the "unbelievers"?

  Doesn't this allow God to be responsible for others, while we content ourselves with being responsible only for our own spirituality?

  That is just my opinion. I could be wrong. What do you think?
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  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  AhHah

  Tell me, what aspects of the universe lead you to believe that there is a creator and what the character of that creator would be.

  Intelligence superior to humans and life forms that interact with symbiotic relationships seem to indicate planning and purpose.

  The fact that we are sentient and capable of pondering our own existence, is in itself intriguing and at the same time disconcerting.

  The universe is at once both a warm and nurturing cradle of life and a cold and heartless engine of recycled energy, seemingly without care for the individual and yet perpetually renewing. The breathtaking wonder of the cycles of death and rebirth inspire both awe and solemn resignation to the laws and powers that elude our ability to discern their greater significance and our individual relevance.

  We seem to cry out for permanence, for immortality. The universe seems to shout back at us that only renewal is important; the individual must surrender to the eternal order.

  As we contemplate our eventual death and insignificance, we rebel. We shall not go quietly into the night! We shall prevail! Death is not our master! We shall simply transform from our ephemeral state and meet our Creator in the resplendent purity of his same essence!

  We seek confirmation of our grand illusion and find only what has been for eons, the relentless cycles of death and rebirth.

  Is this just a small step in our journey to rejoin our Creator? Or are we another vibration of energy, ever changing, and never destroyed, cycling through the eternal vortices of time and space?

  Edited by - AhHah on 16 October 2000 16:47:37
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  11

  Political Statements of Value

  by waiting in

  1. social
  2. humour

  in keeping with the celebration of presidential elections in the usa, i've found the following memorial quotes pertaining to this national pastime:.

  "a conservative is a statesman who is enamoured of existing evils, as distinguished from a liberal, who wishes to replace them with others" ambrose bierce.

  "if we don't succeed, we run the risk of failure.

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  AhHah

  Waiting,

  Glad you brought that up. I do vote and I am very glad to say that it feels good to finally begin shouldering some responsibility for the political process. I am glad to be living where I still have a vote; I don't believe it is something to take for granted. If one does not care to vote, then one votes not to care (IMO).
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  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  AhHah

  No, I can only agree that the universe seems to have a Creator, for lack of a better explanation. I cannot say that I am currently convinced of any active interest, although that is certainly my sincere hope.

  Please see my survey responses and comments.

  Edited by - AhHAh on 15 October 2000 20:30:36

  Edited by - AhHAh on 16 October 2000 0:9:28
• 
  89

  Do you believe ...

  by AhHah in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  simply respond to each question with a yes or no answer (or '?

  ' if unsure):.

  before answering, please see my comments on general/main - "how about a survey?"..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  AhHah

  Theo,

  Yes, they are either both false or one is true, but two contradictory statements cannot both be true,

  unless the truth is a matter of perspective, that is, it is only in the eye of the beholder, versus an independently verifiable truth. To use your example, what if we all perceived color differently, for instance? Objects have no inherent color, only an ability to reflect certain frequencies of light in a given spectrum range. Our ability to interpret that reflection may differ (e.g. color-blind individuals) but that does not change the essence of the object reflecting the light, does it? Another interesting example is the proven relativity of time (Einstein). Time is not a constant even though it seems that way from the limitations of our commonly observable experiences. Time seems to slow down as an object approaches the speed of light.

  Wouldn't it seem reasonable for a secure all-powerful and loving God to accept all current limitations of contradictory beliefs from otherwise sincere individuals, knowing that in his due time, he will enlighten such persons, and then refine any errors in our individual concepts or perceived reflections of his essence?

  Doesn't this more open concept of God allow us to be responsible for our own spirituality and efforts to know God, without the divisive human need to validate our own faith at the expense of condemning the "unbelievers"?

  Doesn't this allow God to be responsible for others, while we content ourselves with being responsible only for our own spirituality?

  Edited by - AhHAh on 15 October 2000 20:19:17

  Edited by - AhHAh on 15 October 2000 21:1:52
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  51

  Commentary

  by Seven in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  who's demanding?

  faith in ourselves has superseded faith in god .

  early in the 19th century, disputing the religious dogmatism of the puritans, ralph waldo emerson preached that "it is by yourself without ambassador that god speaks to you.

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  AhHah

  Seven,

  Well said. I agree and I respect your faith. If only all religious people were so respectful of differences in belief!