Is There A God?

[Blue Calx]

I've heard an opinion that (roughly) states that there was a collision between two systems at equillibrium, and that provided the energy necessary to cause the big bang, like a finger touching a still pond supplies the energy to make ripples. Either way, it's just a vibrating medium. Damn, I should shut my layman mouf before I piss off an actual professional physicist

[TimmyPage]

Im just going to put one sentence of an essay that a friend of mine wrote for philosophy on the subject of religions, that I think is rather important as there seems to be some religious clashing in here, albeit mostly between athiests and theists.

Love God and Love yourself. Dont worry about Religions, have faith in yourself...

And that's what I believe essentially. It's a mix of religions, however I am not part of one. I believe in God, and in the end that is all that's important. God did create all, but in a way where he gave things the ability to form together, to adapt etc etc etc... Evolution and creation.

Accept all people, and take knowledge from everything you can.

[Blue Calx]

Didn't mean it was truth, just that the majority believed it.

At that time they believed it, yeah, but science advances and changes are made when new things are discovered. That's what makes science so powerful: its flexibility. I think the problem that some of us have with the creation myth is that it never ever changes, despite advances that show that other possibilities are very likely. No scholar, let alone anyone on this board actually knows for sure what happened... it would be as ridiculous to make that claim as it would be to continue to hold the belief that the earth is flat.

[shredaholic]

God is.


Whether or not I believe is irrelevant to that fact.

God is... ....what? What is God?

[ratherdashing]

I've never understood the need to fill in the blanks of our understanding with "God did it".

Is it so hard to simply say "I don't know"?

If there is currently no reasonable explanation for something, or your limitations (we all have them) don't allow you to understand the explanation, this does not mean the answer must be "God". That's a big-time cop-out.

Before you say it's God, or Vishnu, or Richard Simmons who is responsible for something, look into it a little deeper. No one knew what an electron was 120 years ago, and no one knew what DNA was 60 years ago. We know about these things now because instead of saying "that's God's work", someone said "I want to learn why things are the way they are."

In summary:

Bad: "It was God."
Good: "I don't know the answer."
Better: "I don't know the answer, but I intend to find out!"

[Guitarist]

God let me see his/her eye in my time of need. It was almost alien looking. It was completely void of sexual identification. It was full, large, and eternally loving. The presence was beyond vision as he/she filled me with a feeling of complete protection and warmth.

...and yes, it was everywhere.

[firebirdVII]

At that time they believed it, yeah, but science advances and changes are made when new things are discovered. That's what makes science so powerful: its flexibility. I think the problem that some of us have with the creation myth is that it never ever changes, despite advances that show that other possibilities are very likely. No scholar, let alone anyone on this board actually knows for sure what happened... it would be as ridiculous to make that claim as it would be to continue to hold the belief that the earth is flat.

Ok, just as long as we can claim that the world is only a few thousand years old.

I think a lot of people don't realize just how big the universe is right now. It's huge, to say that evolution into humans is so unlikely that it's impossible makes sense when your considering earth, but when you get further and further out, it makes plenty of sense. Something somewhere was going to eventually evolve, and who says something else somewhere else didn't too? There could be hundreds or thousands of life forms.

But many people still will say, no it's not possible. I mean come on, when it takes a beam of light 100,000 years to cross our galaxy and there are inumerable galaxies out there, why shouldn't it be possible?

[firebirdVII]

I've never understood the need to fill in the blanks of our understanding with "God did it".

Is it so hard to simply say "I don't know"?

If there is currently no reasonable explanation for something, or your limitations (we all have them) don't allow you to understand the explanation, this does not mean the answer must be "God". That's a big-time cop-out.

Before you say it's God, or Vishnu, or Richard Simmons who is responsible for something, look into it a little deeper. No one knew what an electron was 120 years ago, and no one knew what DNA was 60 years ago. We know about these things now because instead of saying "that's God's work", someone said "I want to learn why things are the way they are."

In summary:

Bad: "It was God."
Good: "I don't know the answer."
Better: "I don't know the answer, but I intend to find out!"

That is why I love physics!

You're constantly surrounded by people who are not content and are interested in finding out about the very basis of our universe. Plus, you get to learn some of the coolest stuff.

[Blue Calx]

God let me see his/her eye in my time of need. It was almost alien looking. It was completely void of sexual identification. It was full, large, and eternally loving. The presence was beyond vision as he/she filled me with a feeling of complete protection and warmth.

...and yes, it was everywhere.

That sounds pretty wild.

[Blue Calx]

Ok, just as long as we can claim that the world is only a few thousand years old.

I think a lot of people don't realize just how big the universe is right now. It's huge, to say that evolution into humans is so unlikely that it's impossible makes sense when your considering earth, but when you get further and further out, it makes plenty of sense. Something somewhere was going to eventually evolve, and who says something else somewhere else didn't too? There could be hundreds or thousands of life forms.

But many people still will say, no it's not possible. I mean come on, when it takes a beam of light 100,000 years to cross our galaxy and there are inumerable galaxies out there, why shouldn't it be possible?

Where do you draw the line between "life" and just plain ol' organization?

[Blue Calx]

No scholar, let alone anyone on this board actually knows for sure what happened... it would be as ridiculous to make that claim as it would be to continue to hold the belief that the earth is flat.

Oh, crap, I just realized that this could be taken to mean that if you believe in creation, then you're ridiculous. I didn't mean that. Even if you believe in creation, you STILL don't know how god did it. Ok, I'm out!

[firebirdVII]

Where do you draw the line between "life" and just plain ol' organization?

I don't know if there is a difference. That's not my primary area of interest to tell you the truth, but somewhere, I'm sure someone is writing a book on it.

[big_black]

Nope. You can't repeat cosmic or terran evolution in a lab. That's why it's still called "the Theory of Evolution". However, natural selection, i.e. survival of the fittest, is fact, it just gets lumped into the theory of evolution. Natural selection tells you why there are more white moths of a species than black moths, not how an amoeba eventually transformed into a moth.

Of course, it's called science. Any person with a knowledge of basic science understands that theory is not fact.

I suppose we should be teaching our children that the Earth was formed in seven days a few thousand years ago, dinosaurs are trickery of the Devil and the female of our species was formed from a male rib bone. That makes so much more sense.

[flank]

I suppose we should be teaching our children that the Earth was formed in seven days a few thousand years ago, dinosaurs are trickery of the Devil and the female of our species was formed from a male rib bone. That makes so much more sense.

LMAO

[davedvdy]

No offense intended at all, but I'd like to make sense of how exactly a god would go about creating galaxies and solar systems? Did he create dirt in his hands, pack it into mudballs and bat them out into space? And how would he create the space? Blow his breath into the darkness? I'm grasping for ideas on how a figure that cares about each and every one of us did all this in 7 days. Now let's say he DID do all that. That's an impressive feat. Why did he stop? If there was a figure that created it all, he wouldn't have left all that work out there undone. Supposing we were created in god's image, why would he stop with a bunch of creatures here? It seems to me that if he were a creator, he'd be filling up other stars and planets with life. We have exhausted all efforts of finding life in the universe, because as far as we can see, we're the only ones. This leads me to believe that we're more likely to be an evolutionary accident, based on cells that utilize anything it can to survive, mutating itself to adapt over hundreds of thousands of years. You can't possibly believe the Adam and Eve story, can you? That story isn't even biologically feasible. Just my thoughts on the matter.

No offense taken. How did he create all this? because those who believe in God believe that he is all-powerful. I don't have all the answers, and either does anyone else on Earth. If they say they do, they are lying or in serious denial.

You say why would he stop there? do you know how big the galaxy really is? we only live on one planet...

So the Big Bang really proves how all these different creatures got here, bang-- there's a sun and moon, stars, oxygen on a planet inhabitable for many different species. It doesn't make any sense to me. Even though it is hard to understand how God always existed, it makes a lot more sense imho, then that all this "stuff" just got here.

Many scientists have come to the conclusion that a God exists, simply because the more they find, the more it seems impossible that everything just got here. I will never believe that. Darwin trashed his theory towards the end of his life, even though there are still many followers of that one. My question to that one is always: "Why isn't the evolution process still continuing to repeat itself"? No one seems to have the answer to that one.

I respect anyone's Religions or beliefs even though I will state my opinion on why I think they are wrong, and in the end we are all just spitballing theories.
I have felt God in my life, and that is all the proof I need, even though there are plenty of unanswered questions that I have....

[Fresno Bob]

I am my own god, I am my highest power...and only I control my destiny.

[WORSHIPTEAM]

Of course, it's called science. Any person with a knowledge of basic science understands that theory is not fact.

I suppose we should be teaching our children that the Earth was formed in seven days a few thousand years ago, dinosaurs are trickery of the Devil and the female of our species was formed from a male rib bone. That makes so much more sense.

O.K. then how do you explain to them that in Glenn Rose, Tx. there is a set of Dinosaur prints that have human footprints in them? Look it up. I don't consider dinosaurs a trick of the devil. They were actual living creatures. They just went the way of the do-do. When God told Noah to build the ark, he didn't say to take two of every craeture, He said to take two of every creature after it's kind.

[ratherdashing]

O.K. then how do you explain to them that in Glenn Rose, Tx. there is a set of Dinosaur prints that have human footprints in them? Look it up.

Okay. Here's a pretty comprehensive site:

http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/paluxy.html

"However, the "man track" claims have not stood up to close scientific scrutiny, and have been abandoned even by most creationists."

[firebirdVII]

No offense taken. How did he create all this? because those who believe in God believe that he is all-powerful. I don't have all the answers, and either does anyone else on Earth. If they say they do, they are lying or in serious denial.

Why would he stop there? do you know how big the galaxy really is? we only live on one planet...

So the Big Bang really proves how all these different creatures got here, bang-- there's a sun and moon, stars, oxygen on a planet inhabitable for many different species. It doesn't make any sense to me. Even though it is hard to understand how God always existed, it makes a lot more sense imho, then that all this "stuff" just got here.

Many scientists have come to the conclusion that a God exists, simply because the more they find, the more it seems impossible that everything just got here. I will never believe that. Darwin trashed his theory towards the end of his life, even though there are still many followers of that one. My question to that one is always: "Why isn't the evolution process still continuing to repeat itself"? No one seems to have the answer to that one.

I have felt God in my life, and that is all the proof I need, even though there are plenty of unanswered questions that I have....

There are a few misconceptions in this post.

[big_black]

So the Big Bang really proves how all these different creatures got here, bang-- there's a sun and moon, stars, oxygen on a planet inhabitable for many different species. It doesn't make any sense to me.

There is quite a bit more to it than BANG...there is is. If you knew more about the theory, it would probably make more sense to you. Crack that old grade school Earth Science text book, it might all start to come back.

My question to that one is always: "Why isn't the evolution process still continuing to repeat itself"? No one seems to have the answer to that one.

Ummm...I do. Evolution on a grand scale is not something that generally happens in 50 years, or 100 years. I'd suggest reading up on that theory too.