Religion – your views

Xenon said:

There haven't been 100 billion human beings on Earth... the population has been rapidly increasing since humans walked the planet. I reckon there wouldn't be any more than 30 billion.

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Most scientists actually agree on that point.

I think I read that teh current population is about 1/10th of people who have ever lived.

You think so? If you consider that there are 6 billion people in the world right now, and people have been around for quite some time already...

Yeah, but the population wouldn't have grown so quickly. Remember, the more people there are, the quicker more are born. And plus there have been times long ago when the human race was nearly completely wiped out...

Jona said:

You think so? If you consider that there are 6 billion people in the world right now, and people have been around for quite some time already...

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Actually I believe I read something like that as well.

Population tends strangely to inrease where there's poverty. The more advanced and prosperous a country gets, the more its inhabitants wish to devote their time only to leisure and work in some cases, leaving the issue of having children, last.

On another note, I'm actually quite amused over some of the reactions dwelling around here. XD Let's see if any of you can beat this combination:
I'm a kid of Jewish origin(from Mom's side), going to a Benedictian(Catholic) school, while maintaining the thought that there might or might not be a god, but having an open mind towards the subject. I have no particular belief, though like I said, I don't realy have issues in speculating of a governing force above us. Actually, why not? XD And I'm sure that even scientists are restless, because you can't say for 100% sure that God doesn't exist, and with people who search for proof, evidence, solution, etc., it's gotta be bothering them. XD

Another atheist here. I just have no belief in any god at all.

Take a look at this image:



If you follow the trend, the population decreases hugely as the years drop. I now reconsider the amount of people, and I say there have been 70 billion. But I still don't think there have been 100 billion.

Zay-el said:

Population tends strangely to inrease where there's poverty. The more advanced and prosperous a country gets, the more its inhabitants wish to devote their time only to leisure and work in some cases, leaving the issue of having children, last.

On another note, I'm actually quite amused over some of the reactions dwelling around here. XD Let's see if any of you can beat this combination:
I'm a kid of Jewish origin(from Mom's side), going to a Benedictian(Catholic) school, while maintaining the thought that there might or might not be a god, but having an open mind towards the subject. I have no particular belief, though like I said, I don't realy have issues in speculating of a governing force above us. Actually, why not? XD And I'm sure that even scientists are restless, because you can't say for 100% sure that God doesn't exist, and with people who search for proof, evidence, solution, etc., it's gotta be bothering them. XD

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No, you can't be 100% sure he doesn't exist. However, it's highly improbable that he does. There are simply barely any trustworthy indications that it is true, and that's what I'm saying. Everyone lays awake at some point in their life thinking about what may come after this life. I don't see the point in believing in something that's has as origin: lack of knowledge. I prefer to go by what you do know, than what you don't know. That's the approach you need if you actually want to find out how things really work. And that may as well be the ultimate desire of mankind, to find out how we ever got here. Nowadays we got the knowledge to build further on, and on and on until we get closer and closer to finding out our origin. If we ever do. But no matter what I find it a fascinating idea...

I have an open mind on this. I think there can be a god ( yes, i belief in God ) but it hasn't been proven, neither was evoluton proven. You shouldn't say God is bullshit. It doesn't mean that something sounds stupid, that it isn't like that. I, as a believer can say evolution is bullshit, but i won't because none of the two is proven.

We don't know how the world was created, so let everyone believe what he/she likes, and don't call it bullcrap.

Spiraldoor, God didn't torture a women because she was raped, humans did, because humans tought God wanted to. But he says that you shouldn't judge nor kill. So the humans where wrong. And if you had readed about Jesus's life, you would know that he wouldn't kill a women for being raped, but help her out and forgive her.

You're right. Infact, he does do that very same thing in John chapter 8.

And, Spiral, women weren't stoned to death if they were raped, they were stoned to death if they committed adultery.

Joshua822 said:

I have an open mind on this. I think there can be a god ( yes, i belief in God ) but it hasn't been proven, neither was evoluton proven. You shouldn't say God is bullshit. It doesn't mean that something sounds stupid, that it isn't like that. I, as a believer can say evolution is bullshit, but i won't because none of the two is proven.

We don't know how the world was created, so let everyone believe what he/she likes, and don't call it bullcrap.

Spiraldoor, God didn't torture a women because she was raped, humans did, because humans tought God wanted to. But he says that you shouldn't judge nor kill. So the humans where wrong. And if you had readed about Jesus's life, you would know that he wouldn't kill a women for being raped, but help her out and forgive her.

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Even if evolution hasn't been proven, which of the two do you think has the most supporting knowledge revolving it, and is more likely to have happened? The evolutionary process or some higher form of life creating the earth (what about the rest of the fucking universe then???) in seven days?

Say what you want, but evolution is something that has actually been done RESEARCH on, and is thus far more likely to have taken place. Of course nobody can say whether or not there really isn't any god who looks down upon us, electrocuting us with thunder if we indulge in sin and whatnot, but really, if you use your common sense and look around, do you really think that a story with random events is more likely to be TRUE than things that are being researched thoroughly?

I actually cannot believe that one could possibly believe that it's true without any indication of it being so. People believe because others have always brainwashed others in the past, to get more followers and become mighty persons, and to fight wars with the people who might take a stand and get in their way. It has never been about the quest for an afterlife, or about the origin of the universe. In fact, the people who tried to figure out what was really going on (like saying that the earth turns around the sun instead of the other way round), were often threatened to be killed, just because that would make other people less likely to believe in all their made up stories! Come on, it's so obvious that they were completely devoid of any knowledge, and just wanted to be powerful.

I'm sure there were people who interpreted it the right way, and used it to help poor people and the such, and to give people a sense of security because they don't know what comes after death, but really, I myself see no more point in religion as of today. If it gives you a feeling of security, I won't stop you from doing your thing. But it just strikes me as odd that one could REALLY think it's the truth. It's just the way I think, and I will stick to that.

Shawn seems to be trying to ignore all instance's of his God's evil.

For example, why does God order the deaths of every first born son in Egypt? How is that justified? Don't forget all the emotional suffering that these boys' families will go through, either.

Shawn won't be able to give an answer for that. The truth is, that was an horrific act of indiscriminate mass murder, and I can't think of any better way of describing it.

And he still hasn't given an excuse for the flood of Noah's time which wiped out the entire population.

God killed an estimated thirty-three million people in the Bible, while Satan killed only ten - and he killed them because God told him to.

If God exists, then why is there no evidence? Why does it have to be that way?

Shawn said:

spiraldoor said:

Also, the Bible says that if a woman is raped, that she is to be stoned to death.

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Sounds like something you would enjoy doing. (stoning someone to death I mean.) I recall some of the things you said in the "Poll of the Day" topic. Quite interesting torture ideas you had there. Not to mention quite painful.

Also, didn't you also say that the girl who committed suicide over a Harry Potter spoiler deserved to die? I hope God helps you, cause Satan certainly won't.

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WHAT? What are you talking about?!? No, I would not enjoy stoning an innocent woman to death, you moron! And God is far more evil than Satan! Everything you said in that post had nothing to do with anything!

Joshua822 said:

Spiraldoor, God didn't torture a women because she was raped, humans did, because humans tought God wanted to. But he says that you shouldn't judge nor kill. So the humans where wrong. And if you had readed about Jesus's life, you would know that he wouldn't kill a women for being raped, but help her out and forgive her.

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No, the Bible says that God told the humans to stone a woman to death if she is raped. Read it.

And yes, Jesus did in fact have a prostitute friend, whose name was Mary Magdalene. He seems perfectly willing to forgive prostitutes, but if a woman is raped, she's out of luck. Or "a women", as Shawn would say.

Shawn said:

And, Spiral, women weren't stoned to death if they were raped, they were stoned to death if they committed adultery.

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WRONG. You are WRONG.

The Bible says that if a betrothed virgin is raped in the city and doesn't cry out loud enough, then "the men of the city shall stone her to death".

Rape. Isn't. Adultery.

I'm not sure of the exact number of people that have lived. Estimates vary wildly. But every person, according to the Bible, dies because God didn't like the way Eve ate an apple.

So the apple is the evil one among all fruits! Heh, that could well be why I love nicely fresh apples

And good point too about that mass murder thing. So a god would punish people because they sin? What explains that even the best people in the world get car accidents, and all kinds of unlucky things happen to them, while there are thousands of people who take advantage of others and live a nice good life without being electrocuted from above even a single time? Haha, don't make me laugh really.

To me, the most credible reasoning I can find for the belief of a god of some sort is because, when religion was first created, science was not technologically advanced enough to provide realistic predictions of how the world began... from hindsight it's easy to quickly pass this as poor judgement of realism, but seriously think about it, I can understand why in such times people chose to turn to a force... a God of some kind, simply because they didn't know any better. xD

However, although it's PROBABLE that the world was not created by God or any other god, I'm still open-minded about the whole thing because I have no idea about how things started and I don't want to be making any quick assumptions about something I know nothing of.

By the way, has anyone got reference to the exact parable where God exclaims all women who are raped shall be stoned to death?

Nope, cause it never happened. (not in the context Spiral portrays it anyway.)

Well, you'll all see once you're dead.

Yep, then we'll see. Or not that will remain the question.

A fantasy of mine is that when that happens, you do get to find out everything about the universe and how it started, and if it will end, and what happens to all the energy in the universe. Another fantasy of mine is that you end up fulfilling all the dreams and desires you had in your life, but couldn't manage to in the real life. But I won't be getting my hopes up all too much.

Shawn said:

Nope, cause it never happened. (not in the context Spiral portrays it anyway.)

Well anyway, you'll all see once you're dead.

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How can you know that?

About the monster God of the Old Testament: There is no passage that tells you to kill women who get raped, but there are a lot of other nasty passages in there. Here are some of them (change the number behind 'darkbible' in the URL to see more).

Shawn said:

Well, you'll all see once you're dead.

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And if there's someone who can't wait, just contact me.

First off spiraldoor, those are the laws of moses, the stones that God would have given to Moses are the real laws f god. and a woman won't be killed for being raped cause it clearly states " Ye shall not judge" and " Ye shall not kill "