If God hadn't promised the faithful an afterlife ........

[naomi24]

Would you still believe in him ........ and, if so, what purpose would it serve?

[rojash]

mibn2cweus, your post makes a little more sense now, although I don't recall mentioning anything about "a divine and randomly motivated creator" - I'm an atheist.

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Octavius, reversal of the norm then?

[mibn2cweus]

rojash, I stepped all over you to make my point. Perhaps a different tack would have been more appropriate in responding to the thoughts your post provoked. My apologies.

None of what I wrote was intended as a characterisation of you personally and I never presumed that any of it applied to you directly. I'm glad you went to the trouble to point out that it does not and regret having made it necessary for you to do so.

I do not believe God or randomness exist in reality, however they do exist as misrepresentations of reality. The concept of "random" does however serve a useful function as long as one understands it invariably refers to a lack of understanding rather than a description of the nature of reality.

In complex systems the causal chain leading to a given outcome is often not readily apparent but describing them as random events (or as acts of god) does nothing to improve our understanding of what is actually taking place.

In my attempts to make sense of all this religious nonsense I appreciate your intelligence and your critical insight. Thanks!