The Search For God

reply to post by CirqueDeTruth

I downloaded the book by William James to PDF. I will read it later when I have some more time. Hopefully it will lead to more ideas for a thread.

Oh it will...it's based on college lectures he gave during a semester as a guest professor (psychologist). Not the kind of quick-read fun stuff, way more the go-slow-reread-stop-think-continue....Yeah, it's not a quick read (for me, anyway)....and I've not finished it yet. Would love to have an online discussion of it with someone. I'll get back on it as soon as I'm done with Wright's book.

reply to post by Iason321


Hello Iason. I can give brief definitions of some of the different philosophies our great thinkers have helped create.

Atheism: Do not believe in deities or a deity.
Agnostic: Neither believes nor disbelieves. In a sense they are neutral. Skeptical of claims without proof.

There is also Agnostic Atheism and Theism. I felt they related to the post, and may help show how beliefs overlap.

Agnostic Atheism: Goes further and states that if a deity or deities exist, time has shown that they are unknowable.

Hope this helps a little. All definitions came from wikipedia.

Originally posted by CirqueDeTruth
reply to post by apushforenlightment

 

Hi A Push For Enlightment - Thanks for the reply. I watched the first video, the second I don't have time for! I have kids I run after and pop in and out of here as the time allows. So I was able to take some time and watch the first video.

Quantum Science is very interesting to me. The idea that the Universe and everything in it is likened to a computer. A quantum computer.

I liken our existence to what we observe in the ocean. We are all in a fishbowl of some sort or another!! When we break everything down into waves of energy, I liken our existence being more like a web. Which is rearranged constantly.

You stated that "Science also seems to go towards reality not being as real as we think."
Could you expand on that idea?

I do not have any links or source to point to so I can only tell you from the point I percived and I am not sure I am getting it. I saw a science program this week where they discussed the theory that when something matter enters a black hole it loses itself but maybe the thing that enters the holes information is stored on the layer between the black hole and the rest of the universe. When they pushed this theory further they where suggesting that our reality might be seen as a 2d projection of the black hole. How that works with other black holes I do not know and I was probably not as concentrated so I might not have understood it correctly.

I am also not sure ihow far people in fact can change the reality they live in by telling/willing it to change. I am not sure whether there is one reality that we are all sharing that is in one way or if in fact every single thing that percieves has his/her own reality. What if what you think/learn limits the reality around you and what you can do in it? I myself feel that the everybody have there own reality idea is a bit harder to think about and accept but that can be because of my indoctrination. Maybe I am limiting myself. But if I am who cares in the longer perspective. I will understand it one day and if there is one theme in my life then it is "be patiant".

Originally posted by Iason321
reply to post by Klassified

 

You call yourself an Atheist but you're describing yourself as an Agnostic.

You should look at the differences between Atheism and Agnosticism.

I have. And I get stuck on that word deity. I unequivocally reject the notion of god, and/or a deity. But I can accept the idea of a being that is far superior to us. I just cannot bring myself to assign "divinity" as I understand it to any being or entity.

It could be that I fall somewhere between the two I suppose.