If you had proof that God didn't exsist, would you show the world?

[sokka14]

i tried to for years.
then i gave up.

 

[RebelRising]

Why does X hate Y/Was (Insert War Here) Right/Gay Rights/Religion X/Generic
Political/Generic Hot Button/Generic Misanthropic Topic has been
talked about to the point of redundancy. Do we really need to
discuss it again? Why not find one of the many, many older
topics on it already made in this forum to post your generic
regurgitation of something we've already heard before; reworded
slightly differently in a poor attempt to sound intelligent on the
subject?

How about you actually put forth some effort into being
creative/interesting by making a topic on something new and unique?

The Peanut Gallery has spoken.

Agreed... so much agreed.

Can't people just stop trying to shove their shit down everyones throats? Seriously. It got old months ago. You anti-theists are so much worse than Jehovas Witnesses. They just bother you, they don't carry on bangng on and on about the same thing over and over again. Just stop it. Go away. Start your own church and preach there.

Why do you always attack people who theorize over the possibility of the non-existence of God? These people are simply wondering what the implications of that are. I understand your frustration over zealous secularists, but those people aren't actual atheists. Additionally, there's a very distinct difference between religion and faith in God, and most current-day believers glaze over that point.

Would people knowing the truth be for better or for worse? It can only extend as far as opinion and hypothesis, as no one has the facts for one way or another. But why go out of your way to perpetrate the stereotype that all atheists automatically are against God, too?

No. I attack those who are evangelical atheists.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN GOD! Understand? But because of this insane fundamentalist atheist movement, people like me are being given a very bad name.

I never attack those who are "simply wondering", I take issue with those who state that they have all the answers and anyone who disagrees is retarded. They aren't "simply wondering", they are doing the exact same shit that Jehovas Witnesses are doing when they come knocking at your door, and they are doing it in a considerably more aggressive and less respectful fashion.

Fair enough, but you are letting them get to you. You can't fight for everyone. Fortunately, those fundamentalist atheists aren't the majority of non-believers, but they do represent an extreme that people of any ideology/religion do have to bear with. They will always be there, and as long as only a marginal few people stand for rationalism and open-mindedness, the it's the zealots who will, sadly, establish the undiplomatic balance. Whether it's "magic wizard guy in the sky" or "all blasphemers will burn in Hell," that's the way it's going to be, and simply responding with more condescension or ad hominem attacks (sorry) isn't going to make a difference.

If it helps at all, as an Agnostic, I consider having a definite opinion on the matter to be overrated. If you find security in that the reasoning against God's existence outweighs the argument for it, then that's all that is needed. Further than that, it will end in caring too much about the pettiness of human nature regarding our absolutist stances on how the Universe began and how it ends.

 

[GloatingSwine]

You first implied that there were no religious scientists. The gentleman informed you that you were mistaken. You then said that those were scientists who were all retarded because they are from way-back-when. I then provided you with a list of contemporary scientists who are religious and have actually made very valuble contributions to science.

Actually he didn't, that was just the straw man you chose to respond to. He stated that the appearance of religious scientists in large stretches of history could not be taken out of the context of the times they lived in.

You think that people who actually speak out for logic and reason are "giving you a bad name" because you don't understand that you embody the Golden Mean Fallacy. When two or more conflicting opinions are held with equal fervour, it is possible for one of them to be wrong.

 

[Iammatt]

It really pisses me off when atheists believe everything in the bible WORD FROM WORD.Yes it probaly was overdramatized.But on the history channel they actually proved that a great body of water happened in the middle east(where Noah was) and caused a flood to create a black sea.They believe the noahs arc story was refering to that.I believe in the big bang, but i also believe in the bible.And didnt god actuallyy say when he made the earth and the universe-"Let there be Light!"And the big bang is often described as a mass amount of light.

 

[thiosk]

how exactly does one prove something doesn't exist? you'll still get 5 billion people who say "yeah but, uh, maybe you missed it"

i've also met a guy who believes soap is an insidious government plot.

 

[oktalist]

If you had proof that God didn't exsist, would you show the world?

...and more importantly, would anyone listen?

 

[cuddly_tomato]

Fair enough, but you are letting them get to you. You can't fight for everyone.

I have to try. It might be ironic and hypocritical but I absolutely hate hate groups. Whether it be neo-Nazis, anti-religious fanatics, Westbro Baptists, or the Klu Klux Klan. All it takes for evil to flourish is for decent people to accept it. I believe that anti-theists are essentially racists. Here?s what racist white people in America say about black people: they say it?s not the skin color, it?s the culture. Same thing goes for evangelical racists atheists. They don?t have a skin color to pick on, but they?ll say it?s everything else. The rituals, the practices, the things religious people tell their kids. It?s part of the religious culture. If they can't respect that, if they just can?t let them have those things, then they are no more than racists themselves.

Fortunately, those fundamentalist atheists aren't the majority of non-believers, but they do represent an extreme that people of any ideology/religion do have to bear with. They will always be there, and as long as only a marginal few people stand for rationalism and open-mindedness, the it's the zealots who will, sadly, establish the undiplomatic balance. Whether it's "magic wizard guy in the sky" or "all blasphemers will burn in Hell," that's the way it's going to be, and simply responding with more condescension or ad hominem attacks (sorry) isn't going to make a difference.

If it helps at all, as an Agnostic, I consider having a definite opinion on the matter to be overrated. If you find security in that the reasoning against God's existence outweighs the argument for it, then that's all that is needed. Further than that, it will end in caring too much about the pettiness of human nature regarding our absolutist stances on how the Universe began and how it ends.

The opinion, or even the truth, doesn't really matter all that much to me. God, no god, something else, lots of gods... whatever. I don't really care. One day I will either find out there is some kind of god or I will be buried in the ground and feed worms. Why stress over it? What does matter to me is what happens here on earth, between us as people, while we are alive. When one group of people treats another group as inferior, then belittles, attacks, and makes ignorant hate speeches against them I have to fight that. Not just for others but also for myself. I don't want to live in a world were people hate each other for being different.

 

[jnethery]

You first implied that there were no religious scientists. The gentleman informed you that you were mistaken. You then said that those were scientists who were all retarded because they are from way-back-when. I then provided you with a list of contemporary scientists who are religious and have actually made very valuble contributions to science.

Actually he didn't, that was just the straw man you chose to respond to. He stated that the appearance of religious scientists in large stretches of history could not be taken out of the context of the times they lived in.

You think that people who actually speak out for logic and reason are "giving you a bad name" because you don't understand that you embody the Golden Mean Fallacy. When two or more conflicting opinions are held with equal fervour, it is possible for one of them to be wrong.

You're putting words in my mouth. Stop that. I'm just sick of people making such a huge distinction between religion and science. I happen to know or know of many religious scientists; A few, coincidentally, are pretty famous and influential.

EDIT: And if all the scientists were just bowing to the Church's will, explain why Galileo was outcast from the Roman Catholic church for his scientific beliefs. (Note, the Roman Catholic church does not represent ALL of Christianity)

 

[jnethery]

The basis of the question is unsound, because you can't prove a negative except within strictly limited conditions.

So what I would do is assess the evidence I had and work out what it actually meant before forming a positive hypothesis and attempting to publish that instead.

Kudos, This is why so called "christian science" isn't science, because rather than assessing the data and reaching a conclusion, they start with a conclusion and try to find data to support it.

Coincidentally, Christian science isn't Christian, either. So what IS it?

 

[Mr.HomerSimpson]

Maybe.

 

[Hunde Des Krieg]

Fair enough, but you are letting them get to you. You can't fight for everyone.

I have to try. It might be ironic and hypocritical but I absolutely hate hate groups. Whether it be neo-Nazis, anti-religious fanatics, Westbro Baptists, or the Klu Klux Klan. All it takes for evil to flourish is for decent people to accept it. I believe that anti-theists are essentially racists. Here?s what racist white people in America say about black people: they say it?s not the skin color, it?s the culture. Same thing goes for evangelical racists atheists. They don?t have a skin color to pick on, but they?ll say it?s everything else. The rituals, the practices, the things religious people tell their kids. It?s part of the religious culture. If they can't respect that, if they just can?t let them have those things, then they are no more than racists themselves.

Fortunately, those fundamentalist atheists aren't the majority of non-believers, but they do represent an extreme that people of any ideology/religion do have to bear with. They will always be there, and as long as only a marginal few people stand for rationalism and open-mindedness, the it's the zealots who will, sadly, establish the undiplomatic balance. Whether it's "magic wizard guy in the sky" or "all blasphemers will burn in Hell," that's the way it's going to be, and simply responding with more condescension or ad hominem attacks (sorry) isn't going to make a difference.

If it helps at all, as an Agnostic, I consider having a definite opinion on the matter to be overrated. If you find security in that the reasoning against God's existence outweighs the argument for it, then that's all that is needed. Further than that, it will end in caring too much about the pettiness of human nature regarding our absolutist stances on how the Universe began and how it ends.

The opinion, or even the truth, doesn't really matter all that much to me. God, no god, something else, lots of gods... whatever. I don't really care. One day I will either find out there is some kind of god or I will be buried in the ground and feed worms. Why stress over it? What does matter to me is what happens here on earth, between us as people, while we are alive. When one group of people treats another group as inferior, then belittles, attacks, and makes ignorant hate speeches against them I have to fight that. Not just for others but also for myself. I don't want to live in a world were people hate each other for being different.

A noble cause if ever there were any.

 

[axelmaxima]

no, its not my place to tell who's right and who's wrong in the debate over the true religion.

 

[bmf185]

The proof is already all around you.

BWAHAHAHA

 

[Vigormortis]

I wouldn't.

Religion, while it causes fights, also brings an untold number of people happiness. When WYD came to Sydney, I was annoyed because it was disrupting my lifestyle for something I didn't care about. But walking past the pilgrims, and seeing them so happy, it changed my opinion on religion.

So no. I don't think that sort of thing is really necessary. And people would still keep believing, but it would just give the evangelical atheists more ammo.

Crack makes people happy, but that doesn't mean it's a good thing. Faith is a wonderful state of mind, but religion is a bastardization of faith. Religion, throughout history, has done FAR more harm than good.

If I had "proof" that God didn't exist I'd what to show it to the world, yes, but I'd also question why I could only disprove the existence of God and not, say, Zeus or Thor. I'd also come to the realization that it would make little difference as most devout or zealous believers ignore or actively denounce any bit of scientific or logical evidence that throws even the tiniest doubt into their faith.

It really pisses me off when atheists believe everything in the bible WORD FROM WORD.Yes it probaly was overdramatized.But on the history channel they actually proved that a great body of water happened in the middle east(where Noah was) and caused a flood to create a black sea.They believe the noahs arc story was refering to that.I believe in the big bang, but i also believe in the bible.And didnt god actuallyy say when he made the earth and the universe-"Let there be Light!"And the big bang is often described as a mass amount of light.

Not really. In fact, it's been shown that light wouldn't have even been around until a few million years after the big bang. The universe was simply too dense and too hot for photons to even form. As for the flood, I saw the same program. It was quite intriguing. However, it only stated what I've known from the start. That many of the stories within biblical texts are nothing more than exaggerated tales of true events. (but most of the stories and people are made up) I can't honestly say there is or isn't a deity or deities, but I can say that every religion that's ever been or will ever be will never get it right. Faith is one of our greatest creations. Religion is one of our worst.

 

[Caimekaze]

Crack makes people happy, but that doesn't mean it's a good thing. Faith is a wonderful state of mind, but religion is a bastardization of faith. Religion, throughout history, has done FAR more harm than good.

Crack doesn't make people happy; It messes with chemical levels in the brain to induce a state of euphoria. There is a difference.
Religion is an outlet for faith. When religion has caused harm, it has been from people taking things too far.
This happens regardless of whether it's based on religion or not; So really, it should be "Taking things too far, throughout history, has done FAR more harm than good."
You can't actually say that something has done more harm than good unless you know exactly what would have happened in its absence. Religion being a unifying factor behind nations, is one of the reasons said nations actually came to existence. Without it, whether or not nations would have been formed or if society grouped into city-states is unknown.
/ramble

 

[KValentine]

Sure, why not?

The atheists will have a smug "I told you so" look about them and the religious faithful won't believe me anyway. So nothing changes.

 

[c0ld3r]

hmm... end religion? in a heartbeat

 

[Vibgyor]

Yes then i would yell i told you so.
several million times