Religious faith

I don't know who the supreme being is, I'm at that at stage where I will have to find out that answer by myself.

I believe the constant doubt will lead one to find the answer by questioning oneself. I personally want to get into meditation to become self aware and to be at peace.

This reminds me of this funny sketch xD

 

Let me start by saying that I'm a pentecostal christian.

"Why do you believe what you believe?"

Because the earliest sources say that Jesus claimed to be God and that He died for our sins.

"Why don't you believe in something else?"

Believe me, I have done research. I'm a student of comparative religion. I used to be a muslim, but I left Islam after I found out that Muhammad contradicted the Qur'an. He said that a person who leaves Islam must be killed. The Qur'an, on the other hand, says that there is no compulsion in religion.

Because of the threat of death, this leads to many people following Islam out of fear. They want to leave Islam, but the threat of execution prevents them. If there is a true religion, people should be free to come and go as they please. The Qur'an also says that men can beat their wives in certain circumstances. Shariah is an oppressive system.

"How do you deal with the inevitable cognitive dissonance and doubt?"

I never have doubts that there is a God, but I sometimes doubt that He cares about me. Sometimes the temptation to sin can be so intense that I start to wonder if God even considers me one of His devotees. When those doubts come, I listen to sermons or pray (sometimes I pray in tongues).

 

Maybe you have not searched enough..
It is similar in Christianity:
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.ph...#Punishment_for_Apostasy_in_the_Old_Testament

https://www.answering-christianity.com/death.htm

https://www.answering-christianity.com/sami_zaatri/law_of_apostacy_in_the_bible.htm

ِAbout Islam, The Quran said (There is no compulsion in religion) which is meant for non muslims by origin, that no compulsion is allowed at any person who is not muslim and he or she has the right to practice their belief freely.

Prophet Mohammad said who leaves Islam should be killed meaning Apostacy. That in Islam it believes it is the righteous belief and who accepts it means he realizes who is the true God -according to the Islamic belief - and understands the basics of the religion's doctrine, and it is said this punishment is given so not anyone enters it and leaves it so easily, because this will be a big impact on the society, not himself only. Yet whoever abandons it is asked for the reasons and answered for them. If he still refuses then the judge takes the decision.

 

There is nothing left to believe in.

By the way, there is a group for religious and political discussions on the forums. Might wanna try posting and engaging there.

 

Did he really say that?

Personally I do not believe these Prophets, Christs, Buddhas etc. said what is being told to us. The original words have been lost over time. Humans have this fault of editing and altering anything for their own purposes, and religion has always been a lucrative office for such folks.

So whatever you may or may not believe in. One thing is certain... religious texts, messages, gospels etc have been manipulated and changed one too many times for anything resembling original truth.

 

Even if you were a muslim or a christian or whatever, it's a true reality that porn is freezing the world economy (and even more) and we have to work to stop it

 

Why do you believe what you believe?

Some things I have a complete understand of and believe because of my own analysis. Some things I take on trust due to having been told by someone who has done such research and analysis themselves. Still other things I believe due to lacking the experience or the knowledge of any alternative. There are many different kinds of belief, and I am still learning.

Why don't you believe in something else?

See above. There is a difference, though, between not believing something and actively disbelieving something. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

How do you deal with the inevitable cognitive dissonance and doubt?

I believe the truth lies in such places. There is no one quite as cocksure as one who has only understood one side of the argument.

 

so you dont believe in anything? that is an oxymoron in and of itself, because if you say that, you say, that you believe, that you dont believe.

the only bizarre thing for me are people that dont believe, because they contradict the basic principle of thinking, that is, the principle of sufficient reason: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principle_of_sufficient_reason

this principle states that everything that exists has a cause or reason.

on that principle our whole thinking, life and being is based on.

if someone one morning sees the window in his kitchen broken, he wont say: this just happened so. he will ask for the cause.

if archaeologists dig up a blade or skull, no one will say: it is just here.

Thus it is a contradiction to say, everything has a cause, only the nature in which we live in not.

The logical conclusion, in regard of the universe, therefore is:
1. everything that has a beginning has a cause
2. the universe has a beginning, therefore the universe must have a cause

so the next question for the sane minded would be: what is the cause? what or who would create such a thing as the universe, space and time itself? if a high intelligence is required, to even gasp those things, how much bigger the intelligence then must be, that has laid the perfect foundations of the universe with all its natural laws?

this is, what a rational mind would guess if it came to this conclusion. but it does not often, because it is not rational. it is prideful and emotional. it believes just because of some gimmicks of this modern era that it is intelligent. oh my. i have a master of science degree and i know how little i know. yet there are some who have not even an education and they claim to be smart

can science help in the search for this first cause? natural science deals with this - nature. how could it help in the search for this first cause, if this first cause per definition is supernatural? yet this is the part of science that most uneducated, ignorant or prideful people refer to when they are looking for answers. the only science that is helpful, is one that will teach man how to remove the wooden log before his eyes and free him from his pride.

also here is a video for you:

 

Hmm, that is the nice question

 

yes, as a matter of fact, it is called agnosticism.

just, no. this is not an argument. the principle of sufficient reason is an universal law. even the biggest anti-religious thinkers like schopenhauer, nietzsche or kant did not deny it, they in fact, all of them, stated, that it is the fundamental principle on which all their philosophical ideas are based on...

i repeat it for you: this principle states that everything that exists has a cause or reason.

if you do not believe this, there is no point in having a conversation. not even those thinkers that i mentioned would deny this.. yet you do? who are you? i would like to get to know you because you must be the wisest man on earth..

just, no. it is the principle of sufficient reason. we are not in physics or thermodynamics here.

no, it is not unclear at all. do you even read what i wrote? about the principle of sufficient reason?
also, we know today that the universe is expanding. the sum of the masses in the universe is going in different directions. which means, if we apply newtons law, that at one point back in time the sum of mass was at one point in space. big bang.

what is the definition of north pole? it is a geographic location.
what is the definition of the origin of the universe? it is not a geographic location. it is a cause.

i appreciate the fact that you are searching. keep searching and you will find the answers. wish you all the best

 

im glad

it seems like an innocent question, and i could give you all the logical answers to it, and there are plenty, but i wont do it, because the most important answer is this: faith is a gift from god.

 

Yes, he did say that. It's been acknowledged by many muslims and even some Islamic scholars of high eminence. The idea that apostates should be killed is in the hadiths. Hadiths are basically their oral traditions that were narrated by Muhammad's companions (it's kind of like what the Talmud is, which are jewish oral traditions).

 

I was born in Spain where the Christianism is the most popular religion. My parents are religious and since I was a kid they told me God existed so I believed in God without considering if he existed or not. I used to go sometimes to the church to pray and all that stuff, I'm baptized and I made communion. However, some years ago I started thinking that God didn't exist. I was asking myself things like: Why I always "talk" to God but he never answers me? Why does God let wars and poverty happen? And more questions like this. Now I don't believe in God or any religion anymore and I'm not agree with some things the church does but I respect those who believe in God like my parents and a lot of people I know.

 

I believe that Jesus Christ came to earth fully God and fully man, was crucified on the cross, died, and was resurrected and ascended to heaven because of the evidence.

Was it always that way? No. I was raised in the church and I didn't used to be a skeptical person at all. I mostly accepted what authorities I loved and trusted told me was true.

But just in the past few years, I've listened to so much incredible research on the Bible and why it is a reliable source that we can trust historically. I'll be honest, even I didn't know there was as much evidence and support for scripture as there is. I used to think it was more about somewhat blind faith. But I know now that isn't the case, and if it was, I wouldn't be very comfortable with that

I think any belief system that asks you not to think too hard about it is a major red flag. Truth should have no reason to fear skepticism, doubts, or intense questioning. It should easily stand up to any doubts or questions.

That's why I believe in the Bible as the word of God, and in Jesus as my savior.

If you want some more info on why I say this, this playlist of videos would be a great place to start.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ3iRMLYFlHuhA0RPKZFHVcjIMN_-F596

I would say especially the ones about how we got the old and new testaments. It's important to understand how they were created and where they came from.

To me, someone rejecting the truth of the Bible would be as silly as saying you can't believe George Washington was ever president, because you weren't there to see it.

 

This question is an interesting one and somewhat difficult to answer.

I don't really think I have any cognitive dissonance when it comes to the Bible. And it's certainly not inevitable, nor is doubt.

If something is true, it should hold up to severe scrutiny. I've seen at every turn that the Bible does just that. Every time I've had doubts or someone has presented an argument that makes me think "huh, I don't know how to answer that," I have always found that it was only due to my own lack of knowledge and understanding. And once I studied further and understood the contexts of what I was reading, those questions are answered and those doubts go away.

Now is that to say I don't have any doubts or confusion at all? No. I do have doubts and confusion sometimes. But I've seen time and time again that those doubts are always my own lack of understanding, not any actual contradiction in scripture. So I'm willing to accept the fact that some of my doubts or confusions might just be because of my lack of ability to understand things beyond my human way of thinking.

 

These are great questions, by the way! I love these kinds of questions. I think it's a very false, but unfortunately common misconception that God doesn't like us to question him. The Bible is full of examples of people have doubts and fears and God meeting them where they are at, with grace and understanding. He isn't afraid of or offended by your questions, and Christians shouldn't be either. Jesus fulfilled so much prophecy, in part because he was giving everyone solid reasons to believe he is who he says he is. He didn't just come to earth and say "I'm God, and you need to have faith in me or I'm sending you to hell!"

God has never required blind faith from us. He gave you a brain and critical thought for a reason. He gave the disciples fulfilled prophecy and miracles and a ton of grace to continue proving himself to them in the midst of their doubts.

I just wanted to add that, because I think it's a great shame when God is misportrayed in that way. I would never want to accept a religion or ideology that tells me I must believe it without thinking. That's a big red flag that someone is lying, if they won't let you use your reason and critical thought to back up what they're saying with facts and evidence.