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Are you closed minded?

charlie sc

Well-Known Member
Concerning god, most atheists are agnostic atheists or soft atheists. Therefore, their belief has some form of uncertainty. I, and I think other soft atheists, believe god(s) are possible, but unlikely.

Contrary to this, it seems most theists are absolutely certain god(s) exist. I’ve noticed, some theists will even say it’s possible their god does not exist but immediately deny what they said with some tangent. Therefore, they’re absolutely certain.

I propose that people who are absolutely certain about a topic, especially one as controversial as this, are closed minded. People who are closed minded cannot accept new information to the contrary; they’ll dismiss it without a thought. Even Socrates understood the immense problems with certainty. Even science does not use absolutely certainty.

Are you absolutely certain god exists or not?
VS Do you believe it’s most likely god exist but possible god does not exist or it’s unlikely but possible?

Here, I’ll go first.

I think it’s possible but unlikely god(s) exist. The end.

Let’s see how open minded or closed minded you are.

As a tracker, I'm going to see how many atheists vs theists answer this question. I'll try update this as much as I can and I won't name people to respect their identity :)

Atheists: 15 - Theists: 11
Uncertain atheists: 12 - Uncertain theists: 4
Absolutely
Certain atheists: 3 - Absolutely Certain theists: 7
 
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JJ50

Well-Known Member
Concerning god, most atheists are agnostic atheists or soft atheists. Therefore, their belief has some form of uncertainty. I, and I think other soft atheists, believe god(s) are possible, but unlikely.

Contrary to this, it seems most theists are absolutely certain god(s) exist. I’ve noticed, some theists will even say it’s possible their god does not exist but immediately deny what they said with some tangent. Therefore, they’re absolutely certain.

I propose that people who are absolutely certain about a topic, especially one as controversial as this, are closed minded. People who are closed minded cannot accept new information to the contrary; they’ll dismiss it without a thought. Even Socrates understood the immense problems with certainty. Even science does not use absolutely certainty.

Are you absolutely certain god exists or not?
VS Do you believe it’s most likely god exist but possible god does not exist or it’s unlikely but possible?

Here, I’ll go first.

I think it’s possible but unlikely god(s) exist. The end.

Let’s see how open minded or closed minded you are.

There is a possibility a god of some sort could exist, I hope that is not the case, but it would be wrong to rule it out completely. The gods worshipped by humans, the Biblical god, in particular appear to be very human creations, imo.
 

charlie sc

Well-Known Member
I am certain of what I've experienced. Nothing more.
I’m also pretty certain I experience things but that’s not the question I asked ;)

Out of curiosity, do you believe all experiences perfectly reflect reality or might some be false? Like, hallucinations, psychosis and false memories.
 

JJ50

Well-Known Member
I’m also pretty certain I experience things but that’s not the question I asked ;)

Out of curiosity, do you believe all experiences perfectly reflect reality or might some be false? Like, hallucinations, psychosis and false memories.

Since birth I have had many more weird experiences than most people, I am of the opinion there is a natural explanation for them all.
 

SalixIncendium

अग्निविलोवनन्दः
Staff member
Premium Member
I’m also pretty certain I experience things but that’s not the question I asked ;)

The question you asked is if one is certain whether or not god exists. However, you did not offer a clear definition for "god," and therefore, I answered your query to the best of my ability given the information provided.

Out of curiosity, do you believe all experiences perfectly reflect reality or might some be false? Like, hallucinations, psychosis and false memories.

I don't perceive the experience itself to be true or false. Experiences are experiences. All experiences perfectly reflect a reality. By what measure to you determine what reality is false? Can you be certain that you've experienced every reality? Can you be certain of which reality is true?

How open-minded are you? :)
 

Polymath257

Think & Care
Staff member
Premium Member
The question you asked is if one is certain whether or not god exists. However, you did not offer a clear definition for "god," and therefore, I answered your query to the best of my ability given the information provided.



I don't perceive the experience itself to be true or false. Experiences are experiences. All experiences perfectly reflect a reality. By what measure to you determine what reality is false? Can you be certain that you've experienced every reality? Can you be certain of which reality is true?

How open-minded are you? :)


I would phrase it differently. Our experiences are real. We have them. But they are not always true. They don't always reflect the reality. This is easily seen with optical illusions.

Here are some good ones:

BrainDen.com - Best Illusions

Our minds work by trying to find meaning. Sometimes they find meaning where there is none.
 

charlie sc

Well-Known Member
The question you asked is if one is certain whether or not god exists. However, you did not offer a clear definition for "god," and therefore, I answered your query to the best of my ability given the information provided.
I didn’t try make the post complex nor did I think that would be too useful. Anyone here, including yourself, can define what god(s) means for them and then try answer the question. If they want to, that is.

don't perceive the experience itself to be true or false. Experiences are experiences. All experiences perfectly reflect a reality. By what measure to you determine what reality is false? Can you be certain that you've experienced every reality? Can you be certain of which reality is true?
Ha! You can never be absolutely certain which reality is true or false. What you can do is corroborate with other individuals what reflects our shared reality. If it does not reflect our reality, there are more interpretations of this phenomena than just saying it's reality or it's true/false. A person may be hallucinating after taking some psychoactive drugs, and it's more likely this reality they're experiencing are a direct results of inhibiting/releasing an excess/decrease of chemicals in the brain. They may, for instance, believe they're time travelling while in this state. However, it's fairly unlikely since they're drooling while his/her friends are watching them.

How open-minded are you? :)
I'd like to think I'm open-minded, however this may not be the case. ;)

Now, would it be possible for you to answer the OP :p ?
 
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Thief

Rogue Theologian
Concerning god, most atheists are agnostic atheists or soft atheists. Therefore, their belief has some form of uncertainty. I, and I think other soft atheists, believe god(s) are possible, but unlikely.

Contrary to this, it seems most theists are absolutely certain god(s) exist. I’ve noticed, some theists will even say it’s possible their god does not exist but immediately deny what they said with some tangent. Therefore, they’re absolutely certain.

I propose that people who are absolutely certain about a topic, especially one as controversial as this, are closed minded. People who are closed minded cannot accept new information to the contrary; they’ll dismiss it without a thought. Even Socrates understood the immense problems with certainty. Even science does not use absolutely certainty.

Are you absolutely certain god exists or not?
VS Do you believe it’s most likely god exist but possible god does not exist or it’s unlikely but possible?

Here, I’ll go first.

I think it’s possible but unlikely god(s) exist. The end.

Let’s see how open minded or closed minded you are.

As a tracker, I'm going to see how many atheists vs theists answer this question.

Atheists: 3 Theists: 0
I have science on my side.....
Cause and effect
the universe is the effect
God is the Cause

atheists......strike out
Thief.....homerun

Thief ...one
and won

nonbelievers.....zeroes

oh....and I guess that makes me closed minded on this topic
 

Erebus

Well-Known Member
I'm of the opinion that uncertainty is healthy. Humans are fallible creatures after all and so my beliefs about what gods are may be way off the mark.

Also it's perhaps worth pointing out that there are degrees of uncertainty and that some forms of it are practically indistinguishable from certainty. For example, since I'm not currently observing Queen Elizabeth, I can't claim absolute certainty that her skin hasn't suddenly turned bright green with purple spots. For all practical purposes though, I consider that so unlikely as to make that uncertainty basically irrelevant.

What does this have to do with god belief? In terms of atheism, there are some who technically count as agnostic atheists but are nonetheless operating on that level of uncertainty. See the varied absurdist examples sometimes given by way of illustration (the invisible pink unicorn for instance). The same principle applies to some theists. They maintain a degree of intellectual agnosticism about their god/s but are otherwise indistinguishable from those who claim absolute certainty.
 
Concerning god, most atheists are agnostic atheists or soft atheists. Therefore, their belief has some form of uncertainty. I, and I think other soft atheists, believe god(s) are possible, but unlikely.

Contrary to this, it seems most theists are absolutely certain god(s) exist. I’ve noticed, some theists will even say it’s possible their god does not exist but immediately deny what they said with some tangent. Therefore, they’re absolutely certain.

I propose that people who are absolutely certain about a topic, especially one as controversial as this, are closed minded. People who are closed minded cannot accept new information to the contrary; they’ll dismiss it without a thought. Even Socrates understood the immense problems with certainty. Even science does not use absolutely certainty.

Are you absolutely certain god exists or not?
VS Do you believe it’s most likely god exist but possible god does not exist or it’s unlikely but possible?

Here, I’ll go first.

I think it’s possible but unlikely god(s) exist. The end.

Let’s see how open minded or closed minded you are.

As a tracker, I'm going to see how many atheists vs theists answer this question.

Atheists: 3 Theists: 0

I think it’s possible but very unlikely god(s) don't exist. The end.
 
There is a possibility a god of some sort could exist, I hope that is not the case, but it would be wrong to rule it out completely. The gods worshipped by humans, the Biblical god, in particular appear to be very human creations, imo.

Why do you hope God doesnt exist?
 
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