For all the athiests.

[Truthabounds]

How will you feel when you find out that there really is a God and that you have spent your life mocking him?
I know of many athiests who have spent most of their life disbelieving, and then finding out they were wrong.
What will you do?

[naomi24]

.... except we don't know that they actually trundled through the pearly gates.

[Ankou]

exactly.

[jake-the-peg]

Naomi's right TruthAbounds could have saved time by just posting "Pascal's Wager"

I do hope he doesn't think it's an original idea.

One of my preferred responses is as follows:

There are dozens of Gods they can't all right

Rather than risk the wrath of an omnipotent deity by actively worshiping a false God it is better to hold that none of them are right.

Should I be wrong I have followed the path of rational deduction, a faculty that this supposed deity gave me. I don't think a God that would damn someone for that is worth worshipping.

[andy-hughes]

Paul - as I understand it, the point of Christ's doubt on the cross was the proof to all that he was a man like the rest of mankind, and held similar doubts.

The resurection then showed those doubts to be groundless - if the Son of God was in doubt, and was saved, then mankind must surely follow.

As for the issues around 'proof' of God's existence, then that surely is the essence of faith - a belief that cannot be proven, is a belief none the less.

Obviously, I am arguing from the Christian standpoint, and i do have some basis for it, as I attend mass every Sunday.

[mickrog]

he does exist and lives next door to father christmas.....i thought everybody knew that

[andy-hughes]

naomi24 - I assure you I do not believe in God as a Christian, or in any God of any faith.

That said, I am realistic enough to understand that if there is a God, he is going to have some say over the future of my soul, but I have no fear because I have tried to live a good life, not because I fear hell and damnation, but because I am fundamentally a nice person.

If, as I believe, there is nothing, then none of us will be there in any shape or form, so it won't matter who believed what.

[naomi24]

andy-hughes, //I am realistic enough to understand that if there is a God, he is going to have some say over the future of my soul,//

Is he? Why? Because that's what the church/mosque teaches? That isn't realistic understanding - it's acceptance of religious doctrine.

I suspect the soul exists, but for an atheist it makes no sense whatsoever to connect it to a God - so I don't.

[naomi24]

Truthabounds, you have proof that god exists? I do hope you're going to share it with us.

[LazyGun]

@Truthabounds - "I know of many atheists who have spent most of their life disbelieving, and then finding they were wrong" - I do not believe you. No self-respecting atheist would want to be around you long enough for such an event to occur, if in fact such an unlikely conversion occurred at all. You are full of rhetoric, short on credibility.

The first part of your statement presupposes the presence of God as fact, when we all know that God and all the other supernatural deities are human constructs, designed in more primitive times to give a kind of narrative to life.

So, to recap. Factually wrong in the first part of your statement, since no one can prove the existence of God., and patently wrong in the second part of your statement, since logic states that any atheist interacting with you would run a mile after the first 30 seconds of the nonsense you continually spout.

[naomi24]

LG, //no one can prove the existence of God//

Truthabounds can. He said so.

[mibn2cweus]

//LG, //no one can prove the existence of God//

Truthabounds can. He said so.//

She'll have to do a much better job than 'God' has to convince me.

[RATTER15]

Of course Truthabounds can prove the existence of God, he has read it in the Bible, just wait for this classic reply!

[4candles]

This seems relevant at 2:07

[keyplus90]

Truthabounds - Unfortunately you would not be able to convince any of the people about the existence of God on the basis of Bible you have today. Because unfortunately Bible itself is the reason for people to turn away from religion and so seriously that they have shut their minds and do not want to consider any other possibilities. And that reminds me of an old saying where I am from.

“One who gets bitten by a snake is usually scared of rope”

And I believe equivalent to that in English is,

“Once bitten twice shy”

Simple reason is that Bible is full of contradictions and other things that clearly cannot be possible if it had to be words of God. And I have asked many Christians but no one could ever give a satisfying answer and they accept that they do not have answers for many. And I know before someone say (knowing that I am Muslim) that so has Quran. But with one difference although I am not a scholar or something still I can answer every single (alleged) contradiction. But that is a different matter if someone does not agree and that is due to the fact I described in first paragraph.

Rest of it tomorrow morning now. So good night.

[joggerjayne]

If there is a God, He will be forgiving.

He will value my sincere, and well meaning, non belief, above the self serving obsequience of many church goers.

[welshlibranr]

here here jj!..........

[naomi24]

Oh gawd! More old sayings from Keyplus - from where he is from!!

zzzzzzz

Night all. x

[DaisyNonna]

Does a lack of belief equate mocking?

[joggerjayne]

"Does a lack of belief equate mocking?"

How could one mock something which one does not believe to exist?

So, no ... lack of belief, by definition, cannot possibly equate to mocking.