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What is God Like?

David T

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
That would be idolatry now wouldn't it be?
I think they call it deeply intelligent bob. You arent speaking the lingo!!! I told someone he your an idiot and my daughter is a genius in regards to god. They were offended!!! Hahababa sin sin sin defect defect defect. Two people one snake!!! It exists in a defectice sin state quantifying. !!!
 

The Reverend Bob

Fart Machine and Beastmaster
..not imo. It is only our limited perceptions. From a philosophical perspective, an idol is a representative object. It only has symbolic significance. If someone thinks an idol is God, that says more about them, than God.. like you said earlier.
So do you believe that your thoughts and ideas about God are an accurate description of God?
 

Darkforbid

Well-Known Member
Even that wouldn't perfectly correlate, as the ant AND Einstein are finite, mortal beings.

Einstein could not even match the ant, in that comparison, and he would be the first to admit it. :D

Well basically if you think only the divine can be compared to the divine, Oh and the ant was Mankind in the comparison
 

Quintessence

Consults with Trees
Staff member
Premium Member
No problem. Say what you think how the world around you describes the attributes of Deity. This is a logical exercise, concluding things about the supernatural, based on our perceptions, experiences, and analysis.

Sorry, let me walk that back a moment. Your god-concept assumes that gods are supernatural. This is not the case in polytheism. For many polytheists, gods are the world. Thus we experience the gods directly, as they are the land, sea, and sky. We don't need to conclude things about the "supernatural" based on our experience of the natural when the natural is the gods for us. If I want to learn about Storm Spirit, I... well... watch storms. And study meteorology. And occasionally, folklore about storms. :D
 

usfan

Well-Known Member
Yes i gave seen that thread. Much assuming and no substance,
And to accept without evidence is folly
Its about thinking beyond our personal beliefs and experiences, and considering other scenarios.
So do you believe that your thoughts and ideas about God are an accurate description of God?
..from my own limited perspective, at best. I could also be deluded. :shrug:

Well basically if you think only the divine can be compared to the divine, Oh and the ant was Mankind in the comparison
We humans only have our abstract selves.. soul and sense of Something More, to give us a glimpse into the Divine. There does not seem to be a natural, sensory perception of God.. for most people..
 

Quintessence

Consults with Trees
Staff member
Premium Member
Surely it would be easier for you, with ancient being more personified?

I personally avoid personification in my practice, though I understand why this literary device is used to approach the gods. By "more complicated" I mean strictly in the sense that not much can be said about the gods collectively because they are different with different natures. When it comes to actually getting to know them individually, well... I suppose "easy" is relative. Personally, I find the study of the gods to be engaging, but never easy when it spans from studying natural science to folklore to direct experiences. It involves a lot of work, when done right.
 

viole

Ontological Naturalist
Premium Member
Look at this like a 'what if' scenario. You can believe anything you want, but for discussion purposes, what do you think God is like? Use your observation powers, anecdotal evidence, implications, extrapolations, or your own experience.

Even atheists can participate.. just make the assumption that there is a God, then tell us what you think He is like based on the world around you. If that is too hard, no problem. 'I have no idea' is a good answer, too.

Now, if you have a personal issue with God.. if you have deep seated hostility or anger, i understand. It is hard to be objective with those emotions clouding your thinking processes. But perhaps you can relay what happened to you, personally, that resulted in your anger with God, & how that colored your perception of Him.

I'm not asking for theological orthodoxy, or denominational descriptions, or quotes from religious texts or someone else, on what they think God is like, but your own personal experience, perception, & analysis.

I'll start.

1. God is very mysterious.
Thousands of years of human history have not brought us to any consensus as to the nature or even existence of God. This is probably the central question of human philosophy, yet we don't really know much about Him.

2. God is distant. He has what seems to be a 'laissez faire' view of humanity. Things go on pretty much randomly, with no apparent goal or purpose. He does not seem to be involved in our social processes. He does not intervene if we are stupid or destructive, but lets us do whatever we want.

3. God is not moved by death. Humans are terrified of death. We agonize over it, pace around, wringing our hands over wrongful death, injustice, or suffering. But God seems unmoved by it. The whole system of life on earth revolves around death.

4. God has allowed or provided a beautiful world for us. Beauty & awe are all around us, & move us to powerful emotions. The natural world is both terrifying & beautiful. The variety is amazing, & the nature of the universe is beyond our understanding, even after thousands of years of collective knowledge. At least, He has instilled in us the capacity for Awe.

5. God is orderly. Laws of nature are consistent, & dependable. Humans may be fickle, but God is not.

Those are a few things to get things started.. this is a philosophical exercise, & we can examine or rebut any offers or descriptions. Please don't take offense FOR God, or anyone else, if someone's description does not meet your standard. I'd like to hear ANY opinions, even far out ones, if they have a rational basis.

I think God can only be described by means of apophatic theology. Ergo, not by what She is, but by what She is not.

Ciao

- viole
 

Road Less Traveled

Active Member
That this creation would be more disturbing and laughable than sensible. Pain and suffering everywhere. Species destroying one another in order to survive. Battling harsh terrains and weather. Grotesque food chain. Diseases. Animals just mindlessly doing what they’re programmed to do in humping, killing, eating, drinking, pooping, peeing, sleeping. Everything withering away and reseeding itself to more suffering and withering away.

Humans aren’t very intelligent. Ignorant, gullible, arrogant, control freaks, garbage nature, fearful, greedy, selfish, narcissistic, vulnerable all to varying degrees. Present the proper situation to any human and watch how ugly their nature and character truly are. Grotesque animals themselves doing the same as above. Peel a way a layer of skin and it’s grotesque. Peel more layers and it’s hideous looking bones and oozing fluids and chemicals and meat parts. Attracted to wet meat holes and meat rockets, 2 lumps of meat where stanky sh*t comes out from between.

Labor and consumerism always at the expense of others.

No choice whatsoever as to what circumstances and situations born into.

I can keep going.
 

Father Heathen

Veteran Member
I imagine that, if there was/is such an entity, it would be a being of pure love and pure logic. There anything devoid of compassion or reason cannot be of god.
 

viole

Ontological Naturalist
Premium Member
I am very interested in that concept: apophatic theology. How is it useful?

I don't know, you have to google. But personally I find the idea of God much more plausible when it is defined in terms of what She is not. There are attributes that, in the case of God, are definitely not fulfilled by that being.

Ciao

- viole
 

PureX

Veteran Member
Look at this like a 'what if' scenario. You can believe anything you want, but for discussion purposes, what do you think God is like? Use your observation powers, anecdotal evidence, implications, extrapolations, or your own experience.
When I was a small child, I experienced God one day. And it was inexplicable. I still can't really describe it or explain to my or anyone's satisfaction, even now. But what I came away with is the determination that if God does exist, It's nature is primarily that of unconditional love. Because that's what I experienced at the time. And that's what makes sense to me, still.
 

sun rise

The world is on fire
Premium Member
what do you think God is like?

First, like the Blind Men and the Elephant story, I can only give my partial and incomplete view knowing that God is truly beyond "imagination and conception".

From this biased perspective, God to me is beyond the limitation of words. The mystics use language like "the breath inside the breath inside the breath". And Kabir expressed this as
Search in the heart, in the heart alone:
There live Ram and Karim.
 

Trailblazer

Veteran Member
Good idea for a thread. :D
Now, if you have a personal issue with God.. if you have deep seated hostility or anger, i understand. It is hard to be objective with those emotions clouding your thinking processes. But perhaps you can relay what happened to you, personally, that resulted in your anger with God, & how that colored your perception of Him.
Oh, you wanna hear that? Sorry, you caught me on a particularly bad day. :(

Most of my life has been struggling to overcome my difficult childhood and most of my life has been suffering, not because I did anything wrong, not because I went against any of the teachings or laws of my religion. It was just the way it happened, it was my fate. No matter how hard I have struggled and still do I am not free of suffering, because my circumstances are so dire and my free will is so limited.

Meanwhile, many people do not struggle at all and their lives unfold perfectly, with only a few blips in the radar. They get married, have children, go to college, have a stable career wherein they advance, then they retire and enjoy their lives and their grandchildren. Sure, I know a lot of people have it worse than I do, I am not blind, but I also know that most people are happy in spite of their outward circumstances, as psychological studies show that.

Most of these 'happy people' do not care about the ‘other people’ who are suffering as long as they and their families are happy. That is understandable because humans are basically selfish unless they struggle against their lower nature, but God should care because God supposedly is All-Loving.

Why do you think there is such a discrepancy between individuals? What kind of a loving God leaves some people to suffer while others who do not even struggle have a relatively easy life and are happy most of the time? (I know all the religious apologetics for suffering and how it is ‘good for us’ so don’t bother with that. Even if that is true, and we reap the rewards after we die, we still have to live in this world until we die.)

My perception of God is that He does not really give a twit because it does not affect Him if people suffer. Now, this goes against what my religion teaches -- that God is All-Loving and Compassionate -- so it puts me at odds with all my fellow believers, including my husband. It also causes a huge inner conflict, because what I see and have experienced IS NOT what scriptures say about God. If God is a personal God this presents a problem for Him, only if God is a deist type God is He off the hook. :rolleyes:
1. God is very mysterious.
Thousands of years of human history have not brought us to any consensus as to the nature or even existence of God. This is probably the central question of human philosophy, yet we don't really know much about Him.
I agree, and I have no problem with that at all. I like mysteries. :)
Moreover, I would not even want to know anymore about God than I already know.
2. God is distant. He has what seems to be a 'laissez faire' view of humanity. Things go on pretty much randomly, with no apparent goal or purpose. He does not seem to be involved in our social processes. He does not intervene if we are stupid or destructive, but lets us do whatever we want.
I agree, and I have no problem with that. I do not want God anywhere near me. :mad:
3. God is not moved by death. Humans are terrified of death. We agonize over it, pace around, wringing our hands over wrongful death, injustice, or suffering. But God seems unmoved by it. The whole system of life on earth revolves around death.
I agree, God does not care about death, but God should care that humans agonize over death, Imo. Apparently, God does not care because we see no evidence that God cares. All we have are scriptures of religions that are so vague as to be utterly worthless. Yet God expects us to sacrifice our lives for service to Him and our religions yet not a word about what really happens to us after death.

Then there are the animals, not a word about what happens to them either. So we can assume from scriptures that God just put animals here for humans and when they are dead they are dead. If they have to suffer in the interim, I see no evidence that God cares about that. This alone could make an atheist out of me, but I am stuck being a believer because there is so much evidence that my religion is true and thus God exists and I readily admit I am afraid what could happen to me after I die if I drop out and become an atheist. :eek:
That certainly is not the only reason I do not drop out, I don’t because I know it is not the ‘right thing’ to do, and I have always done what I think is right, all my adult life.
4. God has allowed or provided a beautiful world for us. Beauty & awe are all around us, & move us to powerful emotions. The natural world is both terrifying & beautiful. The variety is amazing, & the nature of the universe is beyond our understanding, even after thousands of years of collective knowledge. At least, He has instilled in us the capacity for Awe.
Give me a break. Sure there is much beauty in nature but there is also tragedy and ugliness and suffering. This world is a storehouse of suffering, more for some people and animals than for others.
5. God is orderly. Laws of nature are consistent, & dependable. Humans may be fickle, but God is not.
I will give Him that much. :rolleyes:
 
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