Comments on: The problematic concept of God

By: Sebastyne

Sebastyne — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 07:52:44 +0000

Well, they haven't exactly responded to me directly, as you can see from the lack of comments. I was just making a general point about how trying to “fight” religion with logic is futile because of the instalment of belief that anyone who tries to sway your unconditional/no questions asked -faith works for the devil. If it's insulting, fine. It's no more insulting than them telling me I'm a whore for living my life according to my own beliefs, is it?

By: ccRicers

ccRicers — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 07:35:45 +0000

People that have read the Bible have told me that Satan is a much more transparent and less conflicting personality than God, even though Satan does not actually appear that much in the Bible. Formally speaking, punishment should be served as a way to correct wrong behavior. Eternal punishment does not fit that. If God's form of punishment is eternal, then it's retribution.

The reason devout believers have a problem with your message is not simply because you're trying to lead them to hell. No, the reason is, if you tell someone that all the stuff he's been following nearly all his life is a farce, what he hears from you is, “your life has been a lie”. You didn't say this and probably didn't mean it, but that's what they year. More than any other part of your message, this is what gets them defensive. They feel insulted when someone dumbs down the lifestyle of faith they “work hard” to pursue.

By: Sebastyne

Sebastyne — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 02:52:44 +0000

By: ccRicers

ccRicers — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 02:35:45 +0000

By: boytrotters

boytrotters — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 12:32:50 +0000

I zeroed in on this one post above all others, but then you know me, Sebastyne… I was bound to do that.

I'm not going to debate this because, quite simply, I can't. I have my own questions that I ask about a God who rarely makes sense to me, and some of them are exactly the ones you have asked. How can I pretend otherwise?

I decided a long time ago that God has done a poor job of representing himself in the Bible (or is it a poor job of how he allows people to represent him in the Bible?), so he mustn't be terribly interested in the whole PR game. It's actually kind of shocking at how warts-and-all unapolagetic he is about his image in the Old Testament and then how he deigns to show us his gentler, tender side in the New Testament. It's as if he's saying, “I'm complicated, just like you. I would love it if you tried to figure me out.” I don't know. It's certainly gives me food for thought.

Ultimately, questions about God are something we either have time for don't, based on where the frustrating lack of concrete answers takes us. What may be too much like a fruitless chasing of the wind for some, may be a stimulating (albeit sometimes baffling) spiritual journey for others. I sometimes feel like I have a foot in both camps.

By: Sebastyne

Sebastyne — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 01:10:02 +0000

I'll put that on my reading list, even though I read like 3 books in 5 years. I know it's sad, but I just can't seem to get through them faster! (And when I was 12, I read maybe 8 books a month, how things change!)

It is a vast subject… And I could go on for days, too, but yes… I'll just blog for now. :p

Thanks for the comment!

By: Chris Kape

Chris Kape — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:59:58 +0000

Yes, couldn't agree with you more. Still, this is a vast subject, and cannot be dealt adequately, no matter how hard we may try. The problematic concept of God has been a main concern of mine for quite a number of years, and inevitably it features as a principal issue in my novel, “A Diary of Wasted Years,” out by Eloquent Books. You may want to check it out and share your comments. Anyway, great post. Keep it like that.