Originally Posted By RoadTrip OK... I'm taking a chance. But it is Easter week and I feel it is a chance worth taking. I hope we can all be civil and answer with a simple yes or no and why we believe what we do. No attacking the other side... that is not fair. For me... YES I think both God and Heaven are probably way beyond human comprehension and will be unlike anything we are taught in churches. But I think they are out there. I believe in the Big Bang and all that other stuff. But before the Big Bang, there had to be a concentrated mass so extremely powerful that the Bang could create a huge and ever-expanding universe. No scientist has ever come up with an explanation for what created that nucleus of creation. No scientist has ever even attempted an explanation. It is absolutely unknowable. For me, that answer is God. I am reminded on a daily basis that God is here. Sure, there is a lot of garbage in the world. God told us there would be. Evil exits almost everywhere we are. But there is also such astonishing beauty that I cannot believe it is purely the result of chance. I feel I have been given much in my life. Probably more than I deserve. I have a wonderful wife, wonderful kids, a great job, and a pretty secure financial position. The only way I could ever have achieved that is if there was a kind and loving God who recognized my belief and my efforts and allowed all the good stuff to happen. Not MAKE it happen... allow it to happen. That is how I figure God works here on earth. He doesn't make anything happen. But he allows things to happen based on our beliefs, our behavior, and the choices we make. I believe in God. I believe that Jesus was the perceived manifestation of God on earth and gave mankind the impetus to look for answers. I can't prove any of this. But I can't prove my wife loves me either. I accept both on faith and the daily evidence that both my wife's and God's love is there. So... who's next?
Originally Posted By Mr X I have no idea. Of course I hope so. Logically though, the answer is no. Hope that was civil enough.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<Hope that was civil enough. >> That was incredibly civil. I have no problem with folks saying either yes or no. Give your opinion and an explanation if you like. I think this could be pretty interesting. People I love a bunch (my son and daughter) say no, so I'm not looking to dump on anyone for their answer.
Originally Posted By iamsally God, as in salvation through blood on the cross. No A power greater than any human understanding. That I will not dispute and feel strongly that it is there.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Yes. There is just too much stuff in our world that works out very well (check out some of those really pretty physics equations!) for it to have been totally random. Plus, the Big Bang Theory is nice and all, but how did all that matter get into that itsy bitsy space before it exploded. It all had to come from some place. There is too much order in the natural world for it to have just come about randomly. There is too much good in the world for people to be working on their own without the influence of some greater being. So, yes!
Originally Posted By ShivaThDestroyer God, as in salvation through blood on the cross. Yes, no question in my mind. (we may be clones but we're just different enough to keep it interesting)
Originally Posted By DlandJB ^^What he said. Absoltutely yes for me, for more reasons than I can begin to share. And the more I live, the more I believe that we are made for a purpose and we are designed for eternity.
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo Ummmm, maybe, I hope so. I do believe that there may be a higher being. There are so many wonderful things in life that seem to link up, more than just a random set of events. However, though I find the teachings of many faiths to be interesting and have good morales, I cannot subscribe to one doctrine. So, I try to do the right thing, treat people as I would like to be treated, and if I am judged, I hopefully look forward to an interesting debate. And if I am not, I have lost nothing.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 YES! Beyond my abilities to articulate why. It's about faith, grace, devotion, forgiveness, love and so much more.
Originally Posted By Goofyernmost God, as defined as a creater, yes. God as a loving benevolent "being", not so much. This huge space that we live in had to start someplace and it is impossible to define the beginning of the universe without including some sort of creater. As a non-practicing Catholic, I do not subscribe to some things, like Adam and Eve. The whole rib thing makes me flinch. Even in my early catholic grade school years evolution always made more sense to me then the Merlin the Magician approach to creation. If, indeed, I thought that God always was and always will be then time was never a factor. It just seems more Godlike and mystical that things evolved from lower life forms to get where we are today, and it is not done yet. As for Jesus, well, to be honest, I'm not sure about that. I think it is a handy way for humans to relate to God by imagining that he, through Jesus, was here amongst us. Since there is no one around that existed back then, it is hard to confirm. The water into wine thing seemed a pretty petty use of supreme power, even if his Mother did request it. So, God? I'm thinking yes. Heaven? I haven't a clue, but, strangely I feel better thinking it doesn't exist. (from my checkered past, no doubt) Jesus? Could be, but, I am skeptical. The biggest thing I have a problem with is why a "loving" God would allow small children to suffer from abuse, terminal, pain filled illnesses, the Holocaust, Wars and the like when it would supposedly be within his/her/its power to prevent. Especially in light of the water/wine thing. In the meantime, I will just try and live a relatively good life and hope for the best.
Originally Posted By Mr X ***This huge space that we live in had to start someplace and it is impossible to define the beginning of the universe*** My personal take on that is that the universe is infinite both in size and within the scope of time. So, what we define as "everything", beginning with the "big bang", is just one nanosecond of one atom in some remote corner of "everything". It's really impossible to grasp for our minds (mine included, of course)...thus the idea of a creator of infinity also doesn't make any sense logically because "nothing" came first. It has always been. Always will be. One way to look at it is, if what we know as the "big bang" is the creation of the universe as we know it, what exactly was going on a hundred billion trillion light years from THAT place? We don't know, of course, but something was there, even if only the blackness of space. And a hundred billion trillion light years further there is something more. And so on and so on. And a hundred billion trillion years ago, something ELSE was going on somewhere. And a hundred billion trillion years before that. And so on. So an "all-mighty" creator, if you think about it, doesn't even make sense. But, again, I hope I'm wrong and there IS an afterlife (heck, who doesn't want to live on, for a long time if not forever!?), and if so hopefully the guy at the gate will forgive my cynicism.
Originally Posted By disneydad109 I don't worry about if I beleave in God ,I just worry that He beleaves in me.
Originally Posted By Mr X **thus the idea of a creator of infinity also doesn't make any sense logically because "nothing" came first.** This will read better... **thus the idea of a creator of infinity also doesn't make any sense logically because nothing "came first".** In other words, there was no "in the beginning"...things have always existed in some form, thus a creator that existed "before everything" doesn't make sense.
Originally Posted By wahooskipper Although I like to think that I am capable, understanding, intelligent, etc I know there is no way I could do everything I do if not for the love of God. Do I need proof? I suppose I have it. Every time I look into the faces of my children I know there is a God.
