I tend to think of myself as an agnostic because I really am not sure if there is a God or not and while I tend to lean toward there not being a God or gods there is enough of a doubt left in me concerning the unmoved mover that I can't say for certain that I don't believe in God but then there is the fact that I accepted Jesus into my life when I was like 23 and that was definitely a real experience that changed my life honestly ever since as as far as people that go to church with me know I am still a strong believe in the made up God man in the sky. Just to real fuck things around a bit I listened to Penn Gillettte and he said that since if you ask me right now if I believed in God I would say no that I am in fact an atheist so I really am confused right now am I an agnostic as I have believed myself to be for years, a Christian like my wife my kids, my mother and nearly everyone else in my life believes me to be, or is a magician that I really enjoy correct that I should call myself an atheist?
Why not be both? You can be someone who doesn't believe in God/s (atheist) and also at the same time believe it's impossible for anyone to know weather God/s exist or not (agnostic).
Personally, I like to listen to all the religions and look at the common thread. Don't just stop at being a Christian, but explore Plato and Pythagorean Greek roots, and learn... explore the beautiful Upanishads and the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Read the Tao and Confucianism, philosophy and history. If you stop at Jesus, you're missing out completely. I am not denying Jesus, but I'm just saying there are truths in our history that you cannot fathom if you do not explore. Reading the Bhagavad gita opened my eyes. I just don't let any (organized) religion bog me down. Someone once told me this and I understand and share it when I can "The Church is in your Heart".
Obviously, I need to do some more reading. I've lived my 65 years thinking that Plato was a philosopher but the perspective that his legacy might be considered a religion is new to me. Here is my starting point - The Religious Element in Plato's Philosophy on JSTOR
Unless you can read the Bible, in its original language's and know their culture's its like 31 flavors of ice cream X's 31. Ugly truth is most Christians are too lazy to really study what they believe in. Being lost or not knowing even what the first four words of the Bible is actually saying. Bringing in Blind faith and following un educated in the Bible con men and women. Your search will be by the way you inter your search words. You will get what ever answer you want just by the way your typing in the words. There are Interlinear Bible that are like KJV and are coded and in the back gives original language and word with its meaning. Its very very slow, e Sword has programs that do this as you run your curser over the word brings up original language word, meaning in that culture. Super fast. e-Sword: Free Bible Study for the PC | Downloads Everyone has the right to believe into what they want... The USA allows anyone to have any belief they want.. Good or bad.
I referred to Plato not really as a theologist, but as a base for Christian thought, and definitely as a philosopher. Although I should add that, even after reading the linked paper, the author forgets to point out the obvious (although I should re-read the paper to better understand it); that is, The Myth of Er (from The Republic). My point was to investigate the roots, and also the diversity, of religious thought. Have you had the pleasure to read the Bhagavad gita?
Unfortunately, there are those in elected office who espouse their particular religion as the overarching basis for our system of Government. I draw a distinct line between Church and State and have more questions than answers gleaned from the study of both. Sadly, it seems that interpretation plays a key part in the manipulation of the masses in regards to all religions as well as legislative edicts.
I'll assume you're referring to the Christian God and the Bible. Nothing can convince you to have faith, either you have it or you don't, and you don't. I've concluded that no one does. Those that claim they do have faith still have their doubts, just like you do, but they're afraid to express them because of what others may think if them and if course they think if they're wrong, they'll go to hell. As if God, should he be real, won't know they're faking the whole being a good faithful Christian routine. When I was about 12 or so I went thru the same thing. It was hard at first but I eventually came to believe if there was a loving God surely he wouldn't be so vain and petty to send good people to hell for not worshipping him properly and if that's the kind of God he was, he didn't deserve being worshipped. There are some good basic values to be learned from the Bible once you understand it wasn't God-given, it was man-written and subject to the morals of the times in which it was written and later edited which means it has some glaring contradictions. Trust your instincts, try to live the Golden Rule, and if the whole thing turns out to be true at least we can explain ourselves. It's the hypocrites who claim to believe but have no compassion for others, who steal, cheat, and lie their way thru life that will have a hard time explaining their actions to St. Peter when at the Pearly Gates.
Some people will never have faith in anything, because they don't have faith in themselves. Unless we actually do something, giving us knowledge and then wisdom what do you or we really know. Knowledge is worthless without wisdom.
Now please tell us how many Gods you do NOT believe in? Im an atheist and I probably only believe in one less god than you do. Your jewish saying is garbage, no offense.
The Maha Maya is that the mind tells us all of these things, like 'you should be this or that'... Why do we have to put a label on the infinite? Nonduality points to the so called person (from the Latin persona meaning MASK)... The 1st concept was "I am"... then all the rest of them came as taught by society, family, peers, parents, etc. Why be anything in this waking dream labeled 'life' or 'my life', why not just BE the witness to the phenomena as it is nothing really, just patterns, shapes and forms that appear for awhile, then fade and poof, they are gone, Much like clouds in a so called blue sky (part of the illusion or dream), the sky has never been blue and the sun has never risen nor has it set... That too is part of the illusion. It's all 'imagination', (story) and we all have one, 'the story of me' but the me is not real as it appears and has an expiration date, when the 'food body' drops and the earthly elements from food are returned to the earth. Most of us go through this whole drama from 'birth' to 'death' without a clue as to who we REALLY ARE... In order to be real it has to be eternal, non-changing, the ABSOLUTE... The nearest we come to this is in 'deep sleep', no body, no mind, no story or identity... We gladly give up all of that each night for the absolute bliss of deep sleep... Then pick up the story again on awakening, not missing a beat... No reason to identify with any label, group or ism as the mere appearing to be in a body is contracting and restricting enough, why add more shackles to a fictional already suppressed mistaken "me". WHO we are doesn't come from chasing experiences, titles roles, or degrees, but from sitting quietly watching the fickle mind go through it's endless spiel of story and drama.
I don't know about all that dude I spent 6 years of my life working on my PhD in electrical engineering and while I work in a completely unrelated field now I still identify as an electrical engineer
