51 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

It's all just wishful thinking.

Humans excel at deceiving themselves and others; it's our super power.

That's fair enough,  so if i decide to deceive myself in believing in the existence of intelligence and, to various degrees, consciousness, in all the visible and invisible life in the universe, where's the harm in that ?

18 minutes ago, Sunmaster said:

No need to google it. I will define it the way I understand it.

For me, intelligent design doesn't mean that the world we live in ought to be perfect, although in a way it is perfect. With all of its imperfections,  it is the perfect environment for the tasks and lessons we set out to receive. 

This is true for me. Others may not see it that way and that's fine too.

Privileged Westerner outlook.  Try telling a Syrian that the world is a "perfect environment for the tasks and lessons we set out to receive".  What does that even mean?  "...tasks and lessons we set out to receive."?  I suspect there is a high correlation between a trust in pretty, nonsensical phrases and the belief in a supreme being.  If not, belief wouldn't be sustainable.

 

Belief is about faith.  Any attempts to rationalize it are futile.  Using terms like "intelligent design" to describe faith is silly.  Yet believers do, to bolster their own faith and to try to make themselves look less foolish.

 

Fail...

1 minute ago, NotReallyHere said:

Yet believers do, to bolster their own faith and to try to make themselves look less foolish.

Ok, and what's your plan to make yourself look " less foolish"?

.. or do you think that calling other people names is enough?

19 minutes ago, mauGR1 said:

Ok, and what's your plan to make yourself look " less foolish"?

.. or do you think that calling other people names is enough?

I didn't call any particular person a fool.  If you feel indirectly insulted by comments like mine, you are probably reading and participating in the wrong type of thread.  There are plenty of threads about visas you can read that won't leave you feeling offended.

27 minutes ago, NotReallyHere said:

Privileged Westerner outlook.  Try telling a Syrian that the world is a "perfect environment for the tasks and lessons we set out to receive".  What does that even mean?  "...tasks and lessons we set out to receive."?  I suspect there is a high correlation between a trust in pretty, nonsensical phrases and the belief in a supreme being.  If not, belief wouldn't be sustainable.

 

Belief is about faith.  Any attempts to rationalize it are futile.  Using terms like "intelligent design" to describe faith is silly.  Yet believers do, to bolster their own faith and to try to make themselves look less foolish.

 

Fail...

The lack of comprehension is entirely your own doing. I can't do anything about that, I'm afraid. 

If I attempted to read a paper about quantum entanglement and don't understand anything, I wouldn't blame the guy who wrote it. 

Does that make sense?

6 minutes ago, NotReallyHere said:

I didn't call any particular person a fool.  If you feel indirectly insulted by comments like mine, you are probably reading and participating in the wrong type of thread.  There are plenty of threads about visas you can read that won't leave you feeling offended.

I'm not offended at all, but i guess you're not answering my question.

Up to you ????

I've watched a lot of Youtube vids on the universe lately and never cease to be amazed at the immensity of it and what goes on out there. I'm told that I was created from stardust and stardust is what I'm going back to. God to me is the universe.

2 minutes ago, Sunmaster said:

The lack of comprehension is entirely your own doing. I can't do anything about that, I'm afraid. 

Your comment indirectly says I'm stupid, but I don't feel the least bit insulted by it.  It's as if someone said 2+2=5. and I replied "that doesn't make sense".  To which the original poster said my "lack of comprehension is my own doing".  I can accept that.  No problem.

2 minutes ago, mauGR1 said:

I'm not offended at all, but i guess you're not answering my question.

Up to you ????

Another nonsensical comment.  Your question doesn't make sense because I didn't call anyone any names.  Therefore, I can't answer it.

 

This is typical of this site.  People with weak positions (like yourself) keep changing the subject until they feel like they have "won".

 

My original point stands.  "Intelligent design" makes no sense, unless, of course, you choose to redefine it so that it says nothing about any "intelligence" in the design.

 

Some believers with weak faith feel the need to defend indefensible positions at all costs.

 

Probably too many missionaries on here.  This thread is what one would expect if one were foolish enough to open the door when they came knocking.

 

2 minutes ago, NotReallyHere said:

Another nonsensical comment.  Your question doesn't make sense because I didn't call anyone any names.  Therefore, I can't answer it.

 

This is typical of this site.  People with weak positions (like yourself) keep changing the subject until they feel like they have "won".

 

My original point stands.  "Intelligent design" makes no sense, unless, of course, you choose to redefine it so that it says nothing about any "intelligence" in the design.

 

Some believers with weak faith feel the need to defend indefensible positions at all costs.

 

Probably too many missionaries on here.  This thread is what one would expect if one were foolish enough to open the door when they came knocking.

 

Wrong again.

Actually you don't even know if you want or you don't  want to discuss the existence of God.

That's worrying, perhaps you may try to make peace with yourself ????

Here, I'll help, what are your arguments to deny the existence of God?

 

20 minutes ago, mauGR1 said:

Wrong again.

Actually you don't even know if you want or you don't  want to discuss the existence of God.

That's worrying, perhaps you may try to make peace with yourself ????

Here, I'll help, what are your arguments to deny the existence of God?

 

Jeeeeeesus Christ!

 

It's not possible to prove the nonexistence of something that doesn't exist.  "Prove" the Easter Bunny doesn't exist.  It is incumbent on the people who claim a supreme being does exist to prove it.  Smarter persons than you have been unsuccessfully trying for centuries.

 

The fact that you would even pose that question demonstrates you haven't given this topic any serious thought.

 

I won't be wasting any more time with you.  You're on my ignore list.

9 minutes ago, mauGR1 said:

Wrong again.

Actually you don't even know if you want or you don't  want to discuss the existence of God.

That's worrying, perhaps you may try to make peace with yourself ????

Here, I'll help, what are your arguments to deny the existence of God?

 

This is no longer a discussion of whether you believe in God but just apologetics. Sad. 

 

 

27 minutes ago, jesimps said:

I've watched a lot of Youtube vids on the universe lately and never cease to be amazed at the immensity of it and what goes on out there. I'm told that I was created from stardust and stardust is what I'm going back to. God to me is the universe.

But we are here, why you have to make it so distant? Stardust indeed, and stardust we will be 

4 minutes ago, mikebike said:

This is no longer a discussion of whether you believe in God but just apologetics. Sad. 

 

 

Hope you'll feel better soon, don't be sad ????

I never stop to be surprised that we have to make all goods so distant, and higher and further away us as perfect examples of something that was ment to cohabitate with the earths premises. 

 

We are here right now, do something about it! Respect your home, pray for your home, clean your home, do something for your home and everything and everyone who is living here! 

 

So much time and energy wasted on something if its there, would like us to care more for our home, and love our home more than we do! 

 

Simple as that! Amen

43 minutes ago, NotReallyHere said:

Your comment indirectly says I'm stupid, but I don't feel the least bit insulted by it.  It's as if someone said 2+2=5. and I replied "that doesn't make sense".  To which the original poster said my "lack of comprehension is my own doing".  I can accept that.  No problem.

Not at all. The same way I don't feel I'm stupid if I don't understand quantum entanglement. Some do understand it and I don't have a problem with that either. 

Believe in whatever, but don't expect god to do your job..

 

Belive in yourself, your common sense,.

 

For that keep a healthy mind, stay away from booze and drugs or other reckless behavioural patterns, get professional mental help if necessary, absolutely no shame in that.

 

Avoid to much red meat and stay away from getting drunk on a daily basis in the local sports bar

 

God will then catch up, no doubt.

1 hour ago, Sunmaster said:

Not at all. The same way I don't feel I'm stupid if I don't understand quantum entanglement. Some do understand it and I don't have a problem with that either. 

More nonsense.  You can't compare the flowery nonsense you wrote concerning "intelligent design" and "understanding it" with quantum physics.  The fact that you think you can speaks volumes.  You don't understand the simple concept of faith and that it isn't based on anything that can be proven.

17 minutes ago, NotReallyHere said:

More nonsense.  You can't compare the flowery nonsense you wrote concerning "intelligent design" and "understanding it" with quantum physics.  The fact that you think you can speaks volumes.  You don't understand the simple concept of faith and that it isn't based on anything that can be proven.

OK, you win. ????

2 minutes ago, Sunmaster said:

OK, you win. ????

More correctly.  Ok, I'm rational.  You're not.

1 minute ago, NotReallyHere said:

More correctly.  Ok, I'm rational.

Sure, whatever makes you happy.

Whose God?

Whose is right and whose wrong?

Preachers and Politicians have been ruling the World since the being of time.   It's all about power and money.   There are as many "spiritual beliefs" as there are political promises and they all threaten you with some form of punishment if you don't sign on.

 

4 hours ago, observer90210 said:

Believe in whatever, but don't expect god to do your job..

 

Belive in yourself, your common sense,.

 

For that keep a healthy mind, stay away from booze and drugs or other reckless behavioural patterns, get professional mental help if necessary, absolutely no shame in that.

 

Avoid to much red meat and stay away from getting drunk on a daily basis in the local sports bar

 

God will then catch up, no doubt.

All the fun?

On 2/24/2023 at 7:01 PM, Purdey said:

How thoughtful of God to arrange matters so that, wherever you happen to be born, the local religion always turns out to be the true one.

- Richard Dawkins

Richard Dawkins obviously knows less than he claims to. For a start that claim is nonsense, as in a country like the UK there are several "local" religions.

It would only apply in fundamentalist Islamic countries IMO.

5 hours ago, NORDO said:

Whose God?

Whose is right and whose wrong?

Preachers and Politicians have been ruling the World since the being of time.   It's all about power and money.   There are as many "spiritual beliefs" as there are political promises and they all threaten you with some form of punishment if you don't sign on.

 

Once again, you are talking about religion. The title of the thread doesn't mention religion.

7 hours ago, Sunmaster said:

OK, you win. ????

There really isn't any point trying to explain anything related to spirituality to people that apparently think science has all the answers.

The use of the words "quantum physics" as though that is something that is a point scorer says it all.

The truest words I ever heard from a scientist, was from a scientist involved with a new space probe investigating the origins of the universe that said they didn't know about 95% of what is out there.

8 hours ago, NotReallyHere said:

More nonsense.  You can't compare the flowery nonsense you wrote concerning "intelligent design" and "understanding it" with quantum physics.  The fact that you think you can speaks volumes.  You don't understand the simple concept of faith and that it isn't based on anything that can be proven.

The only way he doesn't understand faith is if you haven't actually understood anything he has written over the years this thread has been running. I don't agree with everything he writes, but I certainly accept he knows about faith.

 

We are not supposed to use the laugh emoji to convey that we think a post is bonkers, so I'm quoting you to use in the post.

 

 

9 hours ago, observer90210 said:

Believe in whatever, but don't expect god to do your job..

 

Belive in yourself, your common sense,.

 

For that keep a healthy mind, stay away from booze and drugs or other reckless behavioural patterns, get professional mental help if necessary, absolutely no shame in that.

 

Avoid to much red meat and stay away from getting drunk on a daily basis in the local sports bar

 

God will then catch up, no doubt.

Interesting post but what has it to do with believing in God?

10 hours ago, Hummin said:

We are here right now, do something about it! Respect your home, pray for your home, clean your home, do something for your home and everything and everyone who is living here! 

That sounds like something Jesus would say if he were here now.

 

People have fallen out of belief in God and into the false religions of greed and ever increasing "productivity" ( which IMO is a nonsense ), and follow fads.

It's a pity they are so consumed by stupid things like "social media", and "celebrity" that they forget we all have to live on planet Earth and need to look after it, not destroy it.

Hmmmm….. considered reflection on the question….. answer = nah