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Why are you a theist?

PureX

Veteran Member
Many are malevolent, hateful, vengeful and cruel even when they worship the same God. Therefore, belief in God is no guarantee of the person being good.
People deify/demonize the characteristics they admire or despise. And their faith in them will work for them, either way. Faith is a powerful tool. So we need to be careful what ideals we choose place our faith, in. Faith isn't 'bad', religion isn't 'bad', money isn't 'bad', sex isn't 'bad' ... people are bad, or good, or some degree of both.
 

Sirona

Hindu Wannabe
I used to believe and no longer do, but I can't say for sure no deities exist, so I hate this not knowing. What makes you think there are deities?

Spent my childhood in a boarding school with the clear goal of being raised as an atheist. I got hold of a book on Greek mythology which taught me that there's a family of gods in the sky that sort of became "my" family. I switched to Hinduism as an adult as it roughly matched my belief and I didn't want to practice a dead religion. Apparently, the gods can be regarded as a coping stategy but I think this doesn't make them "useless" as there is "something" that escapes any description and yet "is there". It's something that I wasn't given by my family and that I painfully lacked. I don't remember the exact circumstances but as a kid, one evening I asked my father about the meaning of life and he replied "I can only hope, that one day, when my heart stops beating, I have achieved something." I found it shallow and disappointing to undergo the troubles of life for a reasoning like this. My mother, who believes in philosophical materialism, once told me she hoped that the atoms of her body might be "reassembled" as parts of a wing of a bird. But a wing of a bird doesn't have conscience. If you are "re-assembled" as the wing of a bird it doesn't say that you will actually know or feel that you are part of a bird, not to speak of enjoying it. So this second atheist answer didn't satisfy me, either.
I suppose by "coming out" as an atheist, especially in an oppressing religious climate, can be an act of liberation, but in my case it is rather the fact of coming out as a religious person which is considered odd.
 

paarsurrey

Veteran Member
Why are you a theist?

I understand "theist" is a philosophical concept from the etymology of this term and its different related terms:

theist (n.)
1660s, from Greek theos "god" (from PIE root *dhes-, forming words for religious concepts) + -ist. The original senses was that later reserved to deist: "one who believes in a transcendent god but denies revelation." Later in 18c. theist was contrasted with deist, as believing in a personal God and allowing the possibility of revelation.
Entries related to theist

theist | Origin and meaning of theist by Online Etymology Dictionary

Religions existed before these concept were in vogue, therefore, these terms are not exactly relevant to them.
I am an Ahmadiyya peaceful Muslim. Islam's uses the words "believers" and "non-believers."
As these terms pertain to philosophy and we have a separate forum titled "philosophy" to discuss, it is related there, I understand, not to Religion.
Right?

Regards
 
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Jacob Samuelson

Active Member
I used to believe and no longer do, but I can't say for sure no deities exist, so I hate this not knowing. What makes you think there are deities?
'I am that I am' is what God said to Moses. The name of God in this scenario is translated 'I am'. I have been fascinated by this descriptive name as it really gives more than a typical name like Jesus or Immanuel. It gives absolute ambiguity. On one hand it states the obvious that God is God, on the other hand it begs the question of "Well, who or what the heck is God?" It doesn't give us much additional information to God.
Stuff like that really frustrates me and, like you, I hate not knowing why things had to have been so two-sided and not direct to what I want to know.

After struggling for many years and speaking with countless individuals on their interpretations of the great I am. I had arrived to an idea that has allowed me to end my frustrations caused by the obscurity of who is God. I came to believe that I am God. Not I am THE God, but I am the Creator of my existence. God is not a name. 'I am' is the name. God is the entity or institution of eternity. An eternity that I am a part of therefore when I say I'm God. I am saying that God consists of me in combination with every other like existences that have or will exist in eternity. It is my belief that we may not be able to create worlds galaxies, universes etc.... YET. however we will sooner or later have access to those abilities as time is eternal and will eventually allow us to be creators in every meaning of the word.

Now God still has rules and laws that give structure and allow unity and balance for existence. We cannot say that God permits every individual regardless of their actions. God only permits unity and if there is even one contradiction or in other words if there is sin introduced to God, God would no longer exist, therefore perfect obedience to law gives way to eternal unity.

Now, is where I explain my religion is Christ. Because I in terms of perfection am completely ineligible for the perfect unity which is God. There are very few existences that would want to be with me for all eternity, they would most likely cast me out. However, Christ is the core of God. Because God wouldn't exist if no one could participate, Christ became the first perfect connection to God's structure. Because he is the epitome of what eternal unity would need to be, (for all existence to be able to withstand each other for eternity) If we would believe in Him and that He is God and that We are God, the connection we have to Him would eventually connect us to every one else. I can no longer be cast of from God's presence because I have a relationship to a perfect man that in turns has a relationship with everyone else visa versa. As God, my decision to cast someone out from my presence would largely depend on what Christ's relationship is with that person because of my dependency to Him in the first place

I know I have said a lot and there is still a lot more depth in this answer that can be expanded by more questions, but when I realized that I am God, the less I had to worry about who 'He is' and the more I care about who 'I am'.
 

osgart

Nothing my eye, Something for sure
I've considered a naturalistic poor man's God because I see that human kind has primitive, inherent natural purposes in their make up. So since nature has nothing ideal or supreme, nothing omniscient, and nothing supernatural about it, I have a primitive, junkyard God or gods to consider.

I am quite sure there is an unconditioned, fundamental eternal source reality out there. And I don't see the universe as eternal.

Plus I'm tired of being atheist because there's nothing to look forward too in it. I really don't want to fool myself though. Life is a fringe existence in our universe of mostly uninhabitable vast territory.

So natural theology interests me. And I wouldn't be surprised to find things beyond natural senses. Why? Because humans have more than blind, unintended functions to them. They have purposed intellect, and purposed parts to the body. These faculties have zero chance of falling into place mindlessly.

I've also learned not too just blindly accept expert theoretical reasoning. Nonsense is nonsense no matter how technical, and verbose people sound.
 

Sand Dancer

Crazy Cat Lady
'I am that I am' is what God said to Moses. The name of God in this scenario is translated 'I am'. I have been fascinated by this descriptive name as it really gives more than a typical name like Jesus or Immanuel. It gives absolute ambiguity. On one hand it states the obvious that God is God, on the other hand it begs the question of "Well, who or what the heck is God?" It doesn't give us much additional information to God.
Stuff like that really frustrates me and, like you, I hate not knowing why things had to have been so two-sided and not direct to what I want to know.

After struggling for many years and speaking with countless individuals on their interpretations of the great I am. I had arrived to an idea that has allowed me to end my frustrations caused by the obscurity of who is God. I came to believe that I am God. Not I am THE God, but I am the Creator of my existence. God is not a name. 'I am' is the name. God is the entity or institution of eternity. An eternity that I am a part of therefore when I say I'm God. I am saying that God consists of me in combination with every other like existences that have or will exist in eternity. It is my belief that we may not be able to create worlds galaxies, universes etc.... YET. however we will sooner or later have access to those abilities as time is eternal and will eventually allow us to be creators in every meaning of the word.

Now God still has rules and laws that give structure and allow unity and balance for existence. We cannot say that God permits every individual regardless of their actions. God only permits unity and if there is even one contradiction or in other words if there is sin introduced to God, God would no longer exist, therefore perfect obedience to law gives way to eternal unity.

Now, is where I explain my religion is Christ. Because I in terms of perfection am completely ineligible for the perfect unity which is God. There are very few existences that would want to be with me for all eternity, they would most likely cast me out. However, Christ is the core of God. Because God wouldn't exist if no one could participate, Christ became the first perfect connection to God's structure. Because he is the epitome of what eternal unity would need to be, (for all existence to be able to withstand each other for eternity) If we would believe in Him and that He is God and that We are God, the connection we have to Him would eventually connect us to every one else. I can no longer be cast of from God's presence because I have a relationship to a perfect man that in turns has a relationship with everyone else visa versa. As God, my decision to cast someone out from my presence would largely depend on what Christ's relationship is with that person because of my dependency to Him in the first place

I know I have said a lot and there is still a lot more depth in this answer that can be expanded by more questions, but when I realized that I am God, the less I had to worry about who 'He is' and the more I care about who 'I am'.

Thank you for this.
 
I used to believe and no longer do, but I can't say for sure no deities exist, so I hate this not knowing. What makes you think there are deities?
Experience. Theological contextual proofs. At the end of the day, faith is the vehicle to which we ride with a horse into the sunset or deal with a broken car. I cannot eat a sandwich and fulfil your needs. You have to buy the sandwich from a good store and eat the sandwich.
 

Sand Dancer

Crazy Cat Lady
Experience. Theological contextual proofs. At the end of the day, faith is the vehicle to which we ride with a horse into the sunset or deal with a broken car. I cannot eat a sandwich and fulfil your needs. You have to buy the sandwich from a good store and eat the sandwich.

What types of experiences?
 

RestlessSoul

Well-Known Member
Not sure if I am a theist, really; I'd genuinely never heard the term until I discovered this forum. Philosophically, I maybe incline towards deism or pantheism. The Universe itself, and our conscious experience of it, is to me mysterious, miraculous and divine. It's our destiny to ponder these mysteries; What is it that we are part of? What is it that we are?

But I also choose to believe in a God who is personal, who is concerned with his creation, and with whom we can develop a relationship. I was brought up Roman Catholic, and rejected that, but it remains part of my cultural heritage. In that tradition, He is the Father, and we are his children. And a loving father never lets his children down, even if, in order to let them grow, he cannot always protect them from hurt.
 
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