Posted by Ezekiel 25:17 on April 05, 2001 at 00:56:50:
In Reply to: Re: symbolism, open heart, free will. posted by Believer too on April 04, 2001 at 12:02:08:
: These are some very tolerant notions but I think it is important to remind people that they do not have to believe in any one religion to believe in God and love God and trust God. That's a starting place. It's very easy for people to point there fingers at almost ANY religion and find things that they don't like about it. Most people, even Ezek, seem to believe that they must follow some religion to have some faith in God and that just isn't true
Lets do in your way :)
You don't follow any religion yet you believe, love and trust God. Where does your concept of God come from? If not from a religion, than surely it must be from some divine intervention?
If from a religion, most religions are flawed. If from some kind of divine intervention, lucky you :)
Taking God on his merits. Lets say he created this universe. That's a good thing. He created us, probably also a good thing. Is this the only reason we should love and have faith in him?
Imagine this, you are born, and raised in a foster home. You do not know who your real father is, and you don't even begin to wonder who he is until much later in life. Would you love your parents for abandoning you and having no contact with you?
I can hear you say it now, but God has not abandoned us. Well, the only people who have made up stories to the contrary are religions. Again, I'm excluding the possibility that all those out there have made contact with the almighty.
Next, I turn to those who have had divine contact with him. God seems to come to you when you are at your lowest point. Is it really free-will if God makes his appearance before you? Of course not, if you have contact with God, you would believe. Which begs the question, why doesn't God appear more often? Need we all suffer tremendous depression b4 he appears? What about the people in other countries who have never even conceptualised the existence of such a being? What of all those in the past who never even contemplated only one God?
If God is worthy of love, God should be a just and loving God. If God chooses a select few with utter randomness, he is a fickle God.
However, I'm not denying the existence of God, because it is likely the human urge to seek perfection in assuming God is perfect and infallible. God might exist, God might screw up a few times, and God might pick favourites to talk to when getting bored.
I think the point is, what most people don't seem to understand, is that they can be nice, loving, considerate people without needing to believe in God. Call it altruism if you must.