147 replies to this topic

[Al Waysrite]

If you truly want to be informed on this subject read:

The Case for Christ
and
The Case for Faith.
Both books written by Lee Stroebel when he originally set out to disprove the Bible.

[UncleVinny]

OK, you biblical scholars, explain to me what THIS means,
and don't quote from some self-appointed expert.
Tell me what YOU think it means.

Genesis 6:

"Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land,
and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that
the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for
themselves."

It goes on later to say God laments his creation of man.

Verse 7: "I will blot out man . . . for I am sorry that I made them."

[supermom]

OK, you biblical scholars, explain to me what THIS means,
and don't quote from some self-appointed expert.
Tell me what YOU think it means.

Genesis 6:

"Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land,
and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that
the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for
themselves."

It goes on later to say God laments his creation of man.

Verse 7: "I will blot out man . . . for I am sorry that I made them."

That's easy. Read the passage above. For God created Adam and Eve and from them came to sons.

The two sons married and had children (from the wives of Gods first creations--who were not considered sons of God--meaning they did not choose to follow his word.

Thus you learn that even very early on, tribes of men had chosen to not be christian.

That doesn't mean however that christian men did not see the beauty of women who were not christians and marry into those tribes.

[CostcoLover]

I couldn't vote.

Where is the selection for 100% sure that noone on earth has the capacity to be 100% sure of existence or 100% sure of non-existence?

[CostcoLover]

Since some people are certain of whether God exists or not, and others are unsure, here's a test for you to help figure it out - and if some are still sure or unsure we can discuss the "Believer's Conundrum".

Here we go. First 10 questions with one more for extra credit. If you like those I have more.

1. Which of the following is the most compelling evidence for the existence of an intelligent and loving Designer?

1. A Caribbean sunset
2. The screams of a baby seal as it is torn apart by a shark
3. The first time your perfect new baby smiles at you
4. The speed of the Ebola virus converting an African child's organs into liquid

2. A deeply devout Catholic couple has just returned from their fiftieth anniversary celebration, when suddenly the husband falls to the ground, clutching his chest. What is the most productive action for the wife to take?

1. Call 911
2. Put him in the car and race to the hospital herself
3. Administer CPR
4. Fall on her knees and pray to the Lord to spare his life

3. You are the incarnated Son of the all-powerful and all-loving Creator of the universe. What would be a good way to demonstrate your compassion and power?

1. Cure cancer forever
2. Cause all the earth's deserts to bloom with food crops
3. Unite the world with a common language and an end to poverty
4. Conjure up a jug of wine and follow it up by walking on water

4. Since we can never "know" whether or not a God exists - it is fundamentally a matter of "faith" - it's best to be a believer since you have nothing to lose, but everything to lose if your disbelief is incorrect. Keeping in mind that the fate of your soul depends on the right choice, in which God should you place your belief? For extra credit, include a brief essay justifying your choice, along with the reasons why you reject the other three.

1. Zeus
2. Quetzalcoatl
3. Vishnu
4. The Holy Trinity

5. You are the Creator of the universe. Your chosen people are a tribe of nomadic herdsmen, presently in bondage on one of the millions of your planets. Their ruler is being quite obstinate. Keeping in mind that you possess not only infinite power but also infinite love, your best course of action would be to:

1. Cause the ruler to drop dead of a heart attack
2. Cause the ruler to fall off a cliff
3. Visit the ruler in a dream and persuade him to let your people go
4. Slaughter a great number of innocent babies who had nothing to do with the ruler's policies

6. What is the number of children born without arms or legs that have been miraculously restored by a visit to the shrine at Lourdes, France?

1. Too many to count
2. Over 1,000
3. Several dozen
4. Zero, but only because their faith was not strong enough

7. As we all know, there is only one true religion. What is the one true religion in each of the following circumstances?

1. You are born in Karnak in 3000 B.C.
2. You are born in Bombay in 300 B.C.
3. You are born in Baghdad in 900 A.D.
4. You are born in Mexico City in 1956 A.D.

8. Although you are new at golf, you have just hit a beautiful 200-yard drive and your ball has landed on a blade of grass near the cup at Hole 3. The green contains ten million blades of grass. The odds of your ball landing on that blade of grass are 10,000,000 to one against, too improbable to have happened by mere chance. What's the explanation?

1. The wind guided it
2. Your muscles guided it
3. There is no need for an explanation
4. You consciously designed your shot to land on that particular blade

9. Which of the following is most likely to be true, and why?

1. Romulus was the son of God, born to a mortal human virgin
2. Dionysus turned water into wine
3. Apollonius of Tyana raised a girl from the dead
4. Jesus Christ was the son of God, born to a mortal virgin, turned water into wine, and raised a man from the dead

10. We know that Christianity is true because the Gospel writers, inspired by God who can make no error, recorded the founding events. For example, on the first Easter morning, the visitors to the tomb were greeted by which of the following:

1. A young man (Mark 16:5)
2. No, no, it was no man, it was an angel (Matthew 28:2-5)
3. You're both wrong, it was two men (Luke 24:4)
4. Damn it, there was nobody there (John 20:1-2)

11. According to inerrant Scripture, the Savior prayed alone in the garden while the three disciples who accompanied him had fallen asleep. How did the gospel writer know the words of that prayer?

1. Jesus left them written down under a rock
2. They were recorded on a primitive taping device
3. The gospel writer was psychic
4. The three disciples were later hypnotized and asked to recall the prayer

P.S. Analyzing 43 studies, Bell found that all but four reported such a connection, and he concluded that “the higher one’s intelligence or education level, the less one is likely to be religious or hold ‘beliefs’ of any kind.” - Attributed to, Bell, Paul. “Would you believe it?” Mensa Magazine, Feb. 2002, pp. 12–13

[Chad Vander Veen]

I picked "Yes, but not 100% sure" because nothing is certain.

[ChipShot]

Do I believe in God?? Depends on the situation...

[supermom]

Since some people are certain of whether God exists or not, and others are unsure, here's a test for you to help figure it out - and if some are still sure or unsure we can discuss the "Believer's Conundrum".

Sadly, I think the worst part of this test--is the cynical and powerfully oppressant attitude of the writer.

A red flag is flying that that person is in a life crisis and is seriously disturbed.

Try finding something that wasn't written by a pyscho.

[CostcoLover]

Which question did you find too difficult?

[mrdavex]

I believe in God, but I don't believe in paying a minister 20% of my salary to tell me how to live, so that he can drive a Cadillac - plus I can talk to God for free anytime I want - don't need a middle man to do it for me.

IMO, too many religions these days are just a big $$ business - look how large some of the churches have become around here - it looks to me like those churches are more concerned with revenue income and building bigger places then they are about teaching people about God.

Why do people/religions need multi-million dollar super structures ? Is it because they are materialistic?

Let's not overlook that the more traditional religions can be materialistic as well. A simple browse of Egan's Church Supply Catalog:

A Purple Tapestry of Life Chasuble: $575

A beautiful communion cup: $325 each

A 5-foot statue of the Virgin Mary: $6700

A lifesize Nativity Set: $18,890 complete set, including Baby Jesus

Order within the next 10 minutes, and I'll throw in a free bottle of Sacramental Wine.

Don't forget that a really nice electronic organ can run $30k-$70k and if you want a nice pipe organ, be planned to fork out anywhere from $50k-$1,000,000

[Dave Burrell]

Let's not overlook that the more traditional religions can be materialistic as well. A simple browse of Egan's Church Supply Catalog:

A Purple Tapestry of Life Chasuble: $575

A beautiful communion cup: $325 each

A 5-foot statue of the Virgin Mary: $6700

A lifesize Nativity Set: $18,890 complete set, including Baby Jesus

Order within the next 10 minutes, and I'll throw in a free bottle of Sacramental Wine.

Don't forget that a really nice electronic organ can run $30k-$70k and if you want a nice pipe organ, be planned to fork out anywhere from $50k-$1,000,000

Good grief! what a racket - I'm in the wrong biz

and to supermom - I thought Costco's questions were very good and thought provoking - why the slam?

[mylo]

Religion professor: Why did Jesus die?

Student: Loss of blood?

[bordercolliefan]

I love that test, Costco. Very entertaining.

[dlutz]

If you truly want to be informed on this subject read:

The Case for Christ
and
The Case for Faith.
Both books written by Lee Stroebel when he originally set out to disprove the Bible.

As I always like to be truly informed, I'd be glad to pick these up when I have a moment. However would you be as willing and read "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins and "God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything" by Christopher Hitchens. After which we can discuss the points bought up by each.

[BIG PAKO]

An atheist buys an ancient lamp at an auction, takes it home, and begins to polish it. Suddenly, a genie appears, and says, “I’ll grant you three wishes, Master.” The atheist says, “I wish I could believe in you.” The genie snaps his fingers, and suddenly the atheist believes in him. The atheist says, “Wow. I wish all atheists would believe this.” The genie snaps his fingers again, and suddenly atheists all over the world begin to believe in genies. “What about your third wish?” asks the genie. “Well,” says the atheist, “I wish for a billion dollars.” The genie snaps his fingers for a third time, but nothing happens. “What’s wrong?” asks the atheist. The genie shrugs and says, “Just because you believe in me, doesn’t necessarily mean that I really exist.”