If no god exists does the concept become meaningless

[Sha'irullah]

I of course argue no on this topic but I wish to hear other opinions.

If it is undoubtedly proven that no god possible exists would it make the concept of a god pointless in your own life?

So many religions are founded upon the realness of god or gods; their existence becomes the pivotal message of that religion. Monotheistic religion instead teach that only their god is existent and real and reject or deny the existence of other deities.
Yet if a religion promoted the absurdity of a god's existence and is simultaneous importance would that be a proper message to you?

Obviously their are Pagan atheists who understand this along with Dharmic atheists but can the same be said about Islam, Christianity or other religions?

Would there still be prayer, ceremony, worship and ritual? If so how are they useful if the existence of these deities are deemed false

 

[LuisDantas]

The way I see it, existence has never been a good fit to any deity, so I guess not.

 

[Dawnofhope]

Form a Baha'i perspective God is unknowable, but not non-existent. We can know Him through His Manifestations or the Great Teachers of the world religions. In this way He intervenes in the affairs of humanity and provides us with the means through which we can know and worship Him. He can provide assistance for us personally too for "Thou art more friend to me, than I am to myself".

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

No, because there's emotional, psychological, aesthetic, ethical and philosophical value in the concept.

 

[Valjean]

If no dragons existed would the concept be meaningless?
Things don't have to be real to be meaningful cultural memes.

 

[siti]

Things don't have to be real to be meaningful cultural memes.

Actually it seems it often helps if they're not, but I agree - and I think the establishment of a particular God-model as a cultural meme in a way reifies the concept and the meme becomes a real part of the culture - in that sense, I suppose all the gods are 'real' - but that doesn't mean they're all beneficial or appropriate. And that's the problem I have with the current propensity for perpetuating bronze-age models - as far as I can see, the gods of half the human population of the 21st century have changed less in the last 2000 years than they did in half that time before the birth of Christianity (the God of the OT is very different than the God of the NT for example) - you would have thought that with the increasing light of first the enlightenment and then the information age, we would have at least a few God-models that more closely match our 21st century cultural needs - of course we've had deism and pantheism but by far the most popular alternative to bronze age religion is no religion at all. If we need gods at all, I'd say we are certainly in need of some new ones.

 

[Kemosloby]

Well I'm going to go with what the Apostle Paul said. Religion is not only meaningless if there is no God but it is meaningless if there is no resurrection of the dead. If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the end is the same either way.

 

[siti]

Well I'm going to go with what the Apostle Paul said. Religion is not only meaningless if there is no God but it is meaningless if there is no resurrection of the dead. If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the end is the same either way.

A bit of a drastic way to test one's religion for meaningfulness I think...you die and then wait and see if you get resurrected...how long do we have to wait before we know it was all a waste of time?

 

[Father Heathen]

If no dragons existed would the concept be meaningless?
Things don't have to be real to be meaningful cultural memes.

This. Think "Smokey The Bear." Not real, but still represents an important message, right?

 

[Father Heathen]

Well I'm going to go with what the Apostle Paul said. Religion is not only meaningless if there is no God but it is meaningless if there is no resurrection of the dead. If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the end is the same either way.

Whether or not we come back as ghosts or zombies or whatever after our lives doesn't make what we did, learned, or experienced during our lives meaningless. That is what shapes and displays who we are as a person.

 

[Kemosloby]

Whether or not we come back as ghosts or zombies or whatever after our lives doesn't make what we did, learned, or experienced during our lives meaningless. That is what shapes and displays who we are as a person.

If you die and that's the end of it then the whole thing was pretty much pointless, is the way they see it. And that seems like a very practical veiwpoint.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

If it is undoubtedly proven that no god possible exists would it make the concept of a god pointless in your own life?

Concepts of gods, plural. There isn't one single concept of a god.

Would there still be prayer, ceremony, worship and ritual? If so how are they useful if the existence of these deities are deemed false

Prayer and worship: some religious traditions have prayers and worship directed toward ancestors who aren't considered gods per se; apart from that sort of thing, yeah: prayer and worship would be pretty pointless.

I don't follow you on ceremony or ritual, though. Are you seriously suggesting you see no reason for these things without theism?

 

[Lirille]

If you die and that's the end of it then the whole thing was pretty much pointless, is the way they see it. And that seems like a very practical veiwpoint.

The way I see it, if you're practicing religion with the sole purpose of having a nice afterlife, you're probably wasting time anyway. Religion should help you become a better person right now, not after you die.

 

[Kemosloby]

The way I see it, if you're practicing religion with the sole purpose of having a nice afterlife, you're probably wasting time anyway. Religion should help you become a better person right now, not after you die.

Sure it's your incentive to do good now instead of evil, because you get an eternal reward based upon what you do. But if there was no reward and it all amounts to nothing you're just blowing in the wind.

 

[Lirille]

Sure it's your incentive to do good now instead of evil, because you get an eternal reward based upon what you do. But if there was no reward and it all amounts to nothing you're just blowing in the wind.

It may sound odd to you, but I actually feel good when I do good. I personally like seeing other people happy. It brings me joy. It has nothing to do with a future reward.

 

[Kemosloby]

It may sound odd to you, but I actually feel good when I do good. I personally like seeing other people happy. It brings me joy. It has nothing to do with a future reward.

You don't need religion for that. But what about doing good when it doesn't make you happy?

 

[Lirille]

You don't need religion for that.

Indeed you don't. Religions are just signposts left by other people. You may choose to walk down the road on your own, or try to follow a mishmash of signposts. It doesn't matter, as long as you move forward. The destination is the same.

But what about doing good when it doesn't make you happy?

No one should do anything that doesn't make them happy. See that I'm not talking about temporary pleasure, but genuine happiness. If you do something and you don't feel good about it afterward, you probably shouldn't have done it.

 

[Kemosloby]

Indeed you don't. Religions are just signposts left by other people. You may choose to walk down the road on your own, or try to follow a mishmash of signposts. It doesn't matter, as long as you move forward. The destination is the same.

No one should do anything that doesn't make them happy. See that I'm not talking about temporary pleasure, but genuine happiness. If you do something and you don't feel good about it afterward, you probably shouldn't have done it.

Perhaps you are sinless then and will get by on your own good deeds. Jesus came to save sinners though, not everyone is so lucky as you to be so righteous. But if it all ends the same and there is no resurrection of the dead, well what's the difference...

 

[Lirille]

Perhaps you are sinless then and will get by on your own good deeds. Jesus came to save sinners though, not everyone is so lucky as you to be so righteous.

I think you misunderstood me. I never claimed to be sinless, or that I only do good, I just said I feel good whenever I do. I mean doing good can be an end in itself - you don't need an external motivator.

But if it all ends the same and there is no resurrection of the dead, well what's the difference...

The point is feeling happy, or at peace right now, regardless of the future.

 

[Kemosloby]

I think you misunderstood me. I never claimed to be sinless, or that I only do good, I just said I feel good whenever I do. I mean doing good can be an end in itself - you don't need an external motivator.

The point is feeling happy, or at peace right now, regardless of the future.

What about those people who are happy doing evil and find peace in happiness in that, too their own destruction. Won't you try to convince them to change their ways and be saved though they hate and despise you for it? Jesus said "Even the hypocrites love those who love them back"