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Do you believe in God?

Segev Moran

Well-Known Member
If so, Can you point to the reasons that make you believe in God?
Please try and Give an honest answer...

I Can tell you my POV, I Used to believe in a God..
Not a religious God but a God that is a part of my being.

I Am a very curious man, And as such, I Love to learn as much as I can and find how things work the way they do, what brings something to be as it is and such.

One of my biggest question was the notion of God.

I Studied a lot about spirituality and religion, I had deep conversations with dozens of people from various beliefs, I red books and saw lectures, I Experimented and experienced quite a Lot.
My family is a very "spiritual" family, and they have belief in a God.

To me it seems, that the more I was curious, The more I've learned about God and spirituality, The less i was convinced that all those ideas have anything to do with reality.

I Was raised to respect God, I Was raised to believe a God and I can admit that a lot of times I found myself wondering whether or not I am acting as God would won't me to...

Today I am a complete Atheist.

During my long (ish) life, I Have never found anything that made my belief stronger but rather made me understand that I was believing in things that have no validity to the universe as humans experience it.

I Try to be a kind person, I Try to be honest and do my best to raise my kids as Kind and "Good" persons.
I make mistakes as anyone else, And I find great satisfactions at times that I feel I've acted in a way that is beneficial to me and others.

It seemed to me, that the less I believed in God, The better person I became.

So I would love to hear how you became a religious / believer person?
Was it something you grew up with?
Is it a specific event that made you believe?
Is it something you cannot even put your finger on?
Have you questioned and tried to "fight" your beliefs?

Now, If you really are a believer, Can you speculate what is the difference between you and I?

Many times i heard things like, This is what God wanted for you.. or this is all part of Gods plan... Or that is free will and of course the great promise that I will probably rot in hell for not believing in God.

I Live in a religious state, It will be understatement to say that i suffer from a lot of things I am "forced" to follow in the name of religion that I have zero faith in.

Just to make it clear, I Have no intentions what so ever to "Believe" again.. That's not something I miss nor crave for.
I Do however will be glad to hear some of your thoughts of what "I Am doing wrong" in your POV ...
I Tried many things, I Had great beliefs, I Experimented and lived as a spiritual person for many years.

My life are great, I Have struggles and hard times, I Have ease and Successes... Nothing special for better or worse. There was no Single event I can point on and say "If that happened, There must be no God"...
Most of my years I actually believed that when **** hits the fan, It was God's way of "teaching me a lesson" about something.. Naturally, I find it absurd today...

Cheers and happy times :)
 
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George-ananda

Advaita Vedanta, Theosophy, Spiritualism
Premium Member
If so, Can you point to the reasons that make you believe in God?
:)
I'm sure you have/will find on this forum that even the word 'God' is a tricky word. Your background seems to be in the Abrahamic God concept and that is what the word God means to you. I think we are living in the days in the modern western world of decline of belief in the traditional Abrahamic God and some (as yourself, having discussed with you before) gravitate to a materialist view of existence. I was raised Catholic with all the trappings and then developed that materialist-atheist view as soon as I was capable of my own thinking (in my teens actually).

I next confronted some strong so-called paranormal evidence that just didn't fit with my materialist view. Even if Catholicism isn't right, neither is atheist-materialism. To make a long story short I was given reason to look east (to the eastern/Indian wisdom tradition) and what at first sounded like foreign irrational babble, I gradually began to understand that there was greater wisdom behind this than could be found in western religion and western science. I found the highest school of Vedic/Indian philosophy was Advaitic (non-dual=God and creation are not-two). It takes to time for a westerner to understand what this is saying and for some reason I felt the drive to want to understand.

So back to your question 'Do you believe in God?', my answer would be 'Yes' and I would shock Abrahamic reason by saying you and I are God behind the monkey mind on our surface.
 

Unveiled Artist

Veteran Member
I don't believe in the god of Abraham exist. I actually don't use the term god because of that association. If I defined god, it would be life. If I were to deify it, it would be a female deity. So, I do believe in god (or goddess) because I do believe in the value of life, the life of others, and my environment. To believe in god is to be in sync with life itself. Everything that we believe from our sacred scriptures to just giving cards to family members are us acting within god. We don't need to be religious to be part of god.
So I would love to hear how you became a religious / believer person?
I was not raised religious. My mother was indoctrinated but when she had me she told us she didn't want us to believe in things that didn't exist. So, we knew who Santa Claus was and we knew who the Boogie Man was.

Then my mother explained to us the Spirits that haunted our home when we grew up. The experience she had and the couple of distinct experiences I had made us believe in the Spirits. She'd talk to them and basically treat them the same as her family members and strangers; as any other person. So it became nature. She went into Witchcraft since my grandmother, a protestant Christian from the South (found out my whole family are from North and South Carolina on both sides) used to practice it. However, witchcraft wasn't the name for it because that word was associated with demonic practices in the Bible. So, I don't remember the name she called it.

Anyway, at twelve or so I remember reading my mother's first witchcraft book she got from someone overseas. Then I got into it in between my "painting my nails black" days. This was until about sixteen or so and we moved a lot. When my grandmother moved in with us, that's when I heard about Christianity. My mother wanted to have the "perfect family" literally: two kids a boy and a girl, a labor dog, a Christian family, and a loving husband. So she took all of us kids to church. I went to church with outside family during family funerals as well.

So, I studied the Bible. That's how I became religious. Not by belief and faith but by study. I wanted to be a nun and just study the Bible.

I never knew Christianity by the heart until about 31 (four and a half years ago) when I became Catholic. (Given I wanted to be a nun)

That's how I became religious.
Was it something you grew up with?
Given my background, yes and no. I've grown up on Witchcraft but my spiritual religious background started at about sixteen, and my devout practice stared about four and a half years ago.
Is it a specific event that made you believe?
Taking the sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church. Years ago, I used to write my prayers and wonder how Jesus is god. Then when I found out god is life, and Jesus spirit is the life in a Christian, and his death is our death crucified at the cross, it made more sense.
Is it something you cannot even put your finger on?
That's why I loved the sacraments. It's a distinct, physical, and emotional feeling and belief turned true. You are literally in communion with Christ and his body.
Have you questioned and tried to "fight" your beliefs?
I learned more about the Roman Catholic Church. I also read the Bible. Then I realize that Christ is not someone who spiritually saves you but by his physical sacrifice that is how we are saved.

I value life too much to use Christ as a scapegoat for my sins. Although the sacraments helped me see my sins; I felt more responsibility and understanding of myself when I valued life rather than sacrifice someone else's life to live it.

I did try to fight it in the manner that I love the Church, the sacraments, the devotion, and the devout prayer rituals. As long as Jesus is "seen as god" and he is a sacrifice, I can't go back.

So, I took the Eucharist the last time and, since my grandmothers are Christian, once in a rare blew moon I'd go to Mass and give my respects. I don't take the Eucharist anymore.

Now, If you really are a believer, Can you speculate what is the difference between you and I?

At the time, the difference would be devotion and experience rather than knowledge and ritual. I studied religions too. I practiced Zen for two years and Nichiren Buddhist Shoshu for two. Then SGI (Nichiren) for four years but none of which are my religions but I agree with Buddhist morals but not specifically Shoshu and part of SGI. Zen completely.

Knowledge can only get you but so far. With the actual experience, you will know the difference in what you believe and how. Experience doesn't mean indoctrination. It means making a mature conviction and affirmation that you will believe in X and make this your life. Without that confirmation, knowledge is useless.
 

interminable

منتظر
Sir
First of all everyone that is a seeker after the truth should look carefully and analyze his or her character and answer this very simple question purely without any ego

If I find a god should I obey god or god should obey me?????

Answering to this question will solve many problems and bugs that will happen in your mind

Some people are interested in homosexuality some like to sleep with every beautiful woman some like to do whatever they want

So I ask this question now!!!

These people when find that a god has forbidden these acts what would be their reactions???

Clear!
Denying god
Simply because god is irrational and has stupid orders and ....

Some of them are looking for a religion and god that is completely matched with their desires and unbridled passions
They definitely accept this god as deity

But

Is this the way we should seek the truth??
Should we seek a god that has no any order to do?

A god that has no purpose of creation and has no promise of hell!?!?


If u contemplate about this question and u don't believe that science is just physics and chemistry and logic is science too
I like to say that for proving the existence of god causality and infinite regress are enough

I can explain how but still I need to know your thoughts about that question
 
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bobhikes

Nondetermined
Premium Member
One of my biggest question was the notion of God.

I Studied a lot about spirituality and religion, I had deep conversations with dozens of people from various beliefs, I red books and saw lectures, I Experimented and experienced quite a Lot.
My family is a very "spiritual" family, and they have belief in a God.

To me it seems, that the more I was curious, The more I've learned about God and spirituality, The less i was convinced that all those ideas have anything to do with reality.

Cheers and happy times :)

It seems to me you learn to be open minded which is what the world needs to take it a step further, what is reality with or without God?
 

Kirran

Premium Member
An intelligent deity or force that is active in our day to day lives

Hmm, probably I don't exactly then. For me God is the totality of being and the true nature of the self. All that happens is God's play, and we experience God as a personal God and in all the forms and vibrations that make up our experience, but ultimately this is only guiding us to true realisation of unity. To not believe in God when God is existence and consciousness itself isn't really meaningful.
 

Segev Moran

Well-Known Member
It seems to me you learn to be open minded which is what the world needs to take it a step further, what is reality with or without God?
Reality will remain just the same if you know or know not that God exists.
The problem is, that the future of our reality might be determined by how humans perceive the universe.
I'll give an example:

We know that there is an asteroid headed earth.
If humans will believe that God will save us from the meteor, and will claim that science is not the answer rather prayer... I fear that will be bad news for Earth.
 

Segev Moran

Well-Known Member
Hmm, probably I don't exactly then. For me God is the totality of being and the true nature of the self. All that happens is God's play, and we experience God as a personal God and in all the forms and vibrations that make up our experience, but ultimately this is only guiding us to true realisation of unity. To not believe in God when God is existence and consciousness itself isn't really meaningful.
A personal God is not what I am asking about.
A Personal God is a self truth that no one can ever debate.
What you believe for yourself is your own truth.
I am talking about collective truth or objective truth (from Humans POV)
 

Segev Moran

Well-Known Member
I'm sure you have/will find on this forum that even the word 'God' is a tricky word. Your background seems to be in the Abrahamic God concept and that is what the word God means to you. I think we are living in the days in the modern western world of decline of belief in the traditional Abrahamic God and some (as yourself, having discussed with you before) gravitate to a materialist view of existence. I was raised Catholic with all the trappings and then developed that materialist-atheist view as soon as I was capable of my own thinking (in my teens actually).

I next confronted some strong so-called paranormal evidence that just didn't fit with my materialist view. Even if Catholicism isn't right, neither is atheist-materialism. To make a long story short I was given reason to look east (to the eastern/Indian wisdom tradition) and what at first sounded like foreign irrational babble, I gradually began to understand that there was greater wisdom behind this than could be found in western religion and western science. I found the highest school of Vedic/Indian philosophy was Advaitic (non-dual=God and creation are not-two). It takes to time for a westerner to understand what this is saying and for some reason I felt the drive to want to understand.

So back to your question 'Do you believe in God?', my answer would be 'Yes' and I would shock Abrahamic reason by saying you and I are God behind the monkey mind on our surface.
Do you think this Force you talk about, Is something outside yourself?
 

bobhikes

Nondetermined
Premium Member
Reality will remain just the same if you know or know not that God exists.
The problem is, that the future of our reality might be determined by how humans perceive the universe.
I'll give an example:

We know that there is an asteroid headed earth.
If humans will believe that God will save us from the meteor, and will claim that science is not the answer rather prayer... I fear that will be bad news for Earth.

The question was not weather reality will change on belief; it won't, but what is reality indeterminate to belief? It was my next step and I was recommending it.

As to the meteor question understanding what reality is indicates that humans will always perceive the answer differently which is key to our survival. We will produce more than one answer and equally try to develop more than one answer and one of the answers will actually work.
 

Saint Frankenstein

Wanderer From Afar
Premium Member
I believe in a Supreme Being or Ultimate Reality, yes. The best representation of this that I have yet come across is Kali. I view Her as the substrate of all existence. I came to this conclusion through my own reasoning and exploration.
 

George-ananda

Advaita Vedanta, Theosophy, Spiritualism
Premium Member
Do you think this Force you talk about, Is something outside yourself?
No, it is the spark of divine consciousness in all living things. (consciousness is not a physical thing in this view; also 'Force' is not really a correct term). As, I said it takes time to understand what this non-dual view is really saying.
 

Segev Moran

Well-Known Member
I'm sure you have/will find on this forum that even the word 'God' is a tricky word. Your background seems to be in the Abrahamic God concept and that is what the word God means to you. I think we are living in the days in the modern western world of decline of belief in the traditional Abrahamic God and some (as yourself, having discussed with you before) gravitate to a materialist view of existence. I was raised Catholic with all the trappings and then developed that materialist-atheist view as soon as I was capable of my own thinking (in my teens actually).

I next confronted some strong so-called paranormal evidence that just didn't fit with my materialist view. Even if Catholicism isn't right, neither is atheist-materialism. To make a long story short I was given reason to look east (to the eastern/Indian wisdom tradition) and what at first sounded like foreign irrational babble, I gradually began to understand that there was greater wisdom behind this than could be found in western religion and western science. I found the highest school of Vedic/Indian philosophy was Advaitic (non-dual=God and creation are not-two). It takes to time for a westerner to understand what this is saying and for some reason I felt the drive to want to understand.

So back to your question 'Do you believe in God?', my answer would be 'Yes' and I would shock Abrahamic reason by saying you and I are God behind the monkey mind on our surface.

I Also had very strong spiritual experiences.. why do you think you interpret them as a divine concept and I'm not? Is there a special sense (I am not being sarcastic or something, I just really really try to understand what it is that i am missing)? Is it a different brain maybe? is my brain working different than your? if so, why is it so?
I Don't care BTW if its Abraham's or not.. I actually intrigued about any notion of an interfering God
 

Segev Moran

Well-Known Member
No, it is the spark of divine consciousness in all living things. (consciousness is not a physical thing in this view; also 'Force' is not really a correct term). As, I said it takes time to understand what this non-dual view is really saying.
So if its a part of you and a part of me, means it is the sum of us.. which is like saying God is all the people in the world, which has no actual meaning behind it...( isn't it like saying that the universe is everything? or all the people? just in different terms? - which is btw not known as we don't know if there are other universes)
If you mean that the spiritual sum of me and the spiritual sum of you, Please explain what does spiritual means to you?
 

George-ananda

Advaita Vedanta, Theosophy, Spiritualism
Premium Member
I Also had very strong spiritual experiences..
Actually, you are ahead of me then. I have not had strong spiritual experiences as you have had but I wish I did.
why do you think you interpret them as a divine concept and I'm not? Is there a special sense (I am not being sarcastic or something, I just really really try to understand what it is that i am missing)? Is it a different brain maybe? is my brain working different than your? if so, why is it so?
Actually, I will give you about the opposite answer you might expect as to why I think we believe differently. I think I am more relentless and logical than 99% of the people. Once I started exploring information about the paranormal I demanded to go as far as I could to see where this led; thousands of hours studying religions and spirituality and the paranormal. I think most people shrug their shoulders and leave it at that.
I Don't care BTW if its Abraham's or not.. I actually intrigued about any notion of an interfering God
I don't really think the idea of an 'interfering God' makes sense in non-dualist (God and creation are not-two) thought.
 

LuisDantas

Aura of atheification
Premium Member
No, I don't believe in any deities.

Actually, I don't think deities were ever made for believing in. Their constructive purpose lies very far from belief in their existence.

Deities are best used as the inspirational devices that they seem to always have been meant to be.
 

George-ananda

Advaita Vedanta, Theosophy, Spiritualism
Premium Member
So if its a part of you and a part of me, means it is the sum of us.. which is like saying God is all the people in the world, which has no actual meaning behind it...( isn't it like saying that the universe is everything? or all the people? just in different terms? - which is btw not known as we don't know if there are other universes)
I'll explain something that for me took time to grasp. God/Brahman is the basis of all existence. God/Brahman is pure nonmaterial infinite consciousness. The universe is a creative play or drama of God/Brahman, where he separates himself from himself (in Act I) and then returns himself to himself (in Act II). We humans are at the stage of striving for realization of our Oneness. Why? Why do humans do art? For God/Brahman it is to experience finite existence and joyful evolution to Oneness.
If you mean that the spiritual sum of me and the spiritual sum of you, Please explain what does spiritual means to you?
Spirituality to me means experiencing our core Oneness beyond individual/ego concerns.
 
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