Posted on 04/12/2013 10:59:53 AM PDT by EaglesNestHome
Thank you, everyone in my previous post, who gave well thought out, articulate answers to these important questions of life (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2998030/posts )! Now, in philosophy class, we are exploring these questions in even more detail, and with an additional assignment of follow-up questions:
What do you believe, regarding ultimate reality? God? Matter? Something else?
Do you believe in God? If so, why? Why are you here on earth, and where are you going, for eternity?
If you believe in God, what is the most convincing evidence, for you personally? Is there any possibility that you may be wrong about the existence of God? If so, what are the consequences of being wrong, and believing in a God who doesn’t exist?
If you do not believe in God, why not? If you do not believe in God, is there any possibility that you might be wrong—no matter how small the possibility? If you are wrong, what are the consequences of being wrong?
What is truth; Are moral values absolute or relative? Are at least some moral values absolute? If so, where do these absolute moral values come from? Is the possibility of evil necessary, in order for human beings to be allowed free will?
I’ll start. I believe in God as the ultimate reality and first cause of the universe. I believe in God because of the convincing evidence of Christ’s perfect life, given for me, as well as the evidences of my own personal experiences. In addition, I find further support in my belief, from considering cosmological arguments; Everything which begins to exist requires a cause--the universe did not come from nothing. Why am I here? My answer is that I am here to have a love relationship with God and serve him by serving others. I can only have a relationship with God, through accepting Christ as my Savior. Where am I going? I have accepted Jesus as my Savior, because I cannot save myself. He is my King, and I will eventually join Him in His Heavenly Kingdom. Without Christ, I cannot save myself, because I am guilty of what the Bible calls sin—anything less than perfection. Not one of us can honestly claim perfection, yet if God allows anything less than perfection into heaven, it would be just as bad as earth. That’s why we need a Savior, Christ. (If you don’t know what I mean here, it is all in the Bible; a good place to start is reading the book of John.) What is truth; is there such a thing as moral values that are absolute, for all people? Yes, we all know instinctively that there are moral values that are absolute—every one of us will draw a “moral line” somewhere—usually when it comes to those people that we love. Each of us knows how we would like to be treated by others, although we may have a hard time recognizing when we don’t treat other people right. For instance, which one of us would not object, to the idea of someone breaking into our house and stealing all of our children’s toys? Clearly, there are moral absolutes, such as stealing is wrong—at least when it comes to our own property! (Some people could argue that it is okay to steal if your children are starving, but not if you want a new electronic gadget—but these are exceptions.) Not one of us can claim to be perfect, and yet we all know that certain things are wrong. Ravi Zacharias, in Addressing the Problem of Evil, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9b0PJDDof4 , eloquently and lovingly affirms the philosophical case that the question of evil; the recognition of the question of evil reveals the obvious existence of moral good. Zacharias noted that "When you say something is evil you assume something is good...a moral law...a moral Law Giver." C.S. Lewis also presents a well-reasoned explanation, here: In Mere Christianity, Book 1 (http://www.truthaccordingtoscripture.com/documents/apologetics/mere-christianity/Book1/cs-lewis-mere-christianity-book1.php ), Chapter 1, C.S. Lewis states that "human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and cannot really get rid of it. Secondly, that they do not in fact behave in that way. They know the Law of Nature; they break it. These two facts are the foundation of all clear thinking about ourselves and the universe we live in." Without the possibility of evil, there cannot be free will, to choose to do evil or good. If we were not allowed free will (the possibility to do evil) and our Creator forced us to do good, then the resulting (forced) good would be an evil. It is clear that this idea of good and evil is in all of us. Stories of good and evil are the mainstay of classic literature. This moral argument points to the existence of a Creator, who I have experienced as the risen Christ.
Great questions. But, more than can be addressed in my short time available. I will take a small stab at one of these...
In the Scriptures, believing in God is not like believing in anything else. It is not like believing in UFOs, or believing in taking care of children, or believing in the principals of the Constitution. These English uses of the word have smeared the edges of the use of the word in the Scriptures.
Within the Scriptures, the use of the word "believe" is more akin to "be persuaded to trust God". It is not "philosophical" belief, nor mere "intellectual" belief, nor is it an "emotional" belief, although it touches all of these when it happens. But, this persuasion to trust Him is a gift granted to those who are called His elect. They cannot hurry it up, they cannot slow it down. It is what we call "faith" and is not a human commodity.
While every human is guilty of rebelling against Him and as such no one begins with "belief" or "faith" in Him, some are granted eyes to see that He exists and are drawn to Him by Him. And, when they are drawn, they find the only God who exists is the Triune God of Israel, the Rescuer of souls, the Great I AM.
The rest will flail about, some manufacturing gods of their own, some denying any existence of God, some wishing that He were there...but unable to find Him. In reality, they are not actually pursuing Him, but they are pursuing (as I believe Luther noted) a relief from the pain in their soul. As Paul wrote, "No one seeks God, not even one." Until He draws a person, they are contemplating imaginary beings, nothingness, errant philosophies, false religions.
This may not be pretty to the whole world, but it is the situation as it exists. And, it is good news to those who are adopted into His family.
OK, it’s great to put on display a BA in philosophy: first, you need to define terms.The questioner needs to define “God”. If God = an impersonal supreme force, all the subsequent questions are meaningless. If God = a personal governing creator, the next question is: does the questioner attribute virtue(goodness) to God or just power. If just power, see question 1. If virtue then, logically, all human decisions either are, or are not, in harmony with God’s virtue. Following that path we exist, and all we do, must reflect God’s virtue (goodness) or reject it.If our lives reflect God’s virtue we choose harmony with God; if not we choose dissonance from God. If we choose harmony with God we live the Paschal Mystery of Jesus’ death and resurrection. If we choose dissonance, we cut ourselves off from that mystery and from God’s grace.
I believe in God. God created us all, we existed prior to our birth, in heaven with him - as part of the heavenly host. (see Jer. 1:5).
In heaven, we KNEW of God, thus our true nature was influenced. We didn’t truly have the free will to do as we would.
On earth, we have free will. If our souls have tendencies towards evil, we will gravitate to do evil things, we will hurt others, steal, beat and kill. If we are good, we will resist evil and strive to promote evil and will naturally seek the light of Christ (and if not Christ, due to geographic/religious boundaries- we will strive to be righteous).
For our actions on earth, we will be judged. Earth and our time here is a test, our mortal existence is a filter, some will pass - others will fail. But, each will pass or fail based upon the decisions they made and the actions they took of their own free will. Those actions will have eternal consequences - for better or worse.
Personally, I hope God grades on a curve. (that’s humor). All of us will sin, and for those transgressions we depend upon our faith in Christ as well as our actions of goodness to be granted forgiveness for these transgressions - for without them, we are all doomed.
I did not mean to indicate it was wrong. It seems odd - like a People Magazine version of a real philosophy class. Polling the general public seems random.
Is this a college level course?
I believe in God. He is the source of all reality and all matter. As you say, everything requires a cause. Nothing can truly be destroyed or created, except by God. We can only convert one thing into something else. Why am I here on Earth? I’m here because God decided to give me life. He has given me the ultimate gift of existence. For eternity, I am going to Heaven. I have absolute faith in what Christ did for me and have absolute faith that I will be forgiven for my sins.
The most convincing case for God is a hard thing to explain, because there is an unexplainable draw to Christ when you read about Him and what He did.
I think one of the most compelling things about it is the lack of the extraordinary that exists in the story of Christ. Yes, Christ walked on water, raised the dead, and was born of a virgin, but he appeared and bled a man. Unlike other faiths, God was never described as some creature of incredible size with multiple arms and the heads of animals. God Himself was a force whose only physical representation was Jesus Christ. Someone who seemed unremarkable to those who saw him in passing glances.He was humble. The King of Kings was unlike any king before Him. Has there been any other figure, let alone a god, who was so selfless, who gave so selflessly for humanity? No. This is what sets God apart from other divine beings. He does not view humanity as an amusement, something to play with. He sees it as an object of devotion. He loves us. That is the sign of a true creator.
For me, I believe in no chance that God does not exist. In his absence, nothing makes sense. Sense is only found through Him. Consequences? What consequences could their be? If you want to take it to a proven, science textbook fact issue, it has been proven that those with no faith are more unhappy than those with faith. Societies built around no faith have all been failures, without exception, and have usually ended in mass slaughter. The consequences of being wrong about God? Ask anyone who lived in Soviet Russia. That is a type of world in which God was just kept behind closed doors and in secret. Imagine a society completely devoid of God. Perhaps too horrific for us to imagine, and impossible, since even in foolish denial, He is here. He is everywhere, at all times.
Morality is absolute. There is no question. Someone once said, without an absolute nature, morality is just a man’s opinion, waiting to be crushed by a more powerful man’s opinion. Morals come from God. Some are hardwired into our nature and hard to override. Most are not. This is due to free will, yes. Man has to make the decision to follow God, to knock on the door. If he is not free to make that decision, his existence is meaningless. It has been said, many will fall and many will deny God, to indulge in the fleeting pleasures of sin. These people may find shelter in moral relativism, and they may find shelter in their disbelief in Satan as well. But then again, the deceiver does not want you to believe in him. If you don’t believe in him, you’re unable to fight him.
An atheist relative of mine once asked me why I believed in God and the afterlife. I told him that if all you believe in beyond this life is the cold, wintery earth, then whichever of us is right, that’s all you will ever receive. And perhaps Hell is not as artists depict it, but is instead a simple absence of existence, no past, no future, no present. Atheists may in fact believe in Hell and not even realize it. I believe in it, I just know I’m not going there.
Interesting topic.
Good point, about “ultimate” reality. However, I don’t take it to mean that “it must be differentiated between “God” and “Matter,” so I didn’t see it as a “trick” question at all—but I could be wrong. I’m not a philosopher. If you like, we could take out the word “ultimate,” and just as “What do you believe, regarding reality? God? Matter? Something else?”
Semantics aside, the point here is do you think that there is something beyond ourselves—do you believe, like the materialist, that we simply made up of matter, or are we created in the image of God, with a spirit that will never die? (I hope I made it clear that I am a believing Christian, and that we are created in the image of God—we are more than just matter—we have a soul.)
Yes, at a regionally accredited Christian college, which in addition to requiring students to read extensively in ancient and modern philosophers, also encourages students to think about and engage in other worldviews. So, I’d still like to know how you would answer. What’s your answer, as you must be very knowledgeable about a real philosophy class.
“I yam what I yam and dats all dat I yam!”
Popeye the Naval Gazer....
These are not philosophical questions. By my lights, they are not academic questions, either.
Thank you for your thoughtful and extensive answers. I really appreciate the time you put into your post. Most people go though life, and just accept what they are told in their college classes, or what they hear from their relatives and friends. I see that you have put a lot of logical study into your views. Thanks again.
I agree that it is hard to explain about the miracles of Christ. Although I was raised in church, I didn’t actually have a personal relationship with Christ until I was in my teens, and considered the testimony of the martyrs who died, still confessing the truth of Christ’s resurrection. No man will die for something that they know is a lie—so this convinced me of the truth of the Bible. So although there are many convincing proofs of God arrived at through philosophy (and until recently, most philosophers, even if they were not Christians, at least believed in God)for me the most convincing proof of God (and Christ), besides cosmological, is historical and experiential evidences.
I love the 5th book in the “increasingly misnamed” trilogy
whoah! thats a great quote
St. Thomas Aquinas’ five proofs of the existence of God.
I was raised without going to church. My parents never discussed God at all. I found Him in my late teens, and I never looked back. The historical evidence for the Bible is insurmountable. I remember there was a time when atheists argued that Jesus Christ never even existed. Of course, they’ve backed down on that now, as even non-Christians wrote about His presence and crucifixion.
I’m no fan of mathematics, but it is an often overlooked science when it comes to faith. For all the changing fads of astronomical and evolutionary theory, math remains pretty consistent and has concluded that spontaneous life is a mathematical impossibility. There is an old analogy about an explosion in a printing factory resulting in a complete copy of the dictionary. Life could not have occurred, especially in the time scientists conclude Earth has existed. The only explanation is design, and while I find those ‘Ancient Astronaut’ theories interesting, centuries of people did not pray, martyr themselves, obey moral codes .etc. for an asteroid or an alien. They did those things for a man who was not a man. A divine being who gave everything to free us from the evil in man’s heart through Him and through His forgiveness.
I assume you are referred to the Cosmological argument. Here’s how I understand the Cosmological Argument from Aquinas:
The world (universe) could not be the cause of itself. The world could not come from nothing. The world could not be an effect in an infinite series of causes and effects. Therefore, the world must be caused by a transcendent, cause (a cause independent of, or outside of, material universe). By definition, that transcendent cause is God.
“Do you believe in God,” Yes, I do, because I have met Him. I believe in His existence just like I would believe in the existence of every other person I’ve met. He entered my soul and revealed Himself to me, so that I not only believe He exists, I know (imperfectly, but truly) who He is.
Yes, because I am made in His image, and so have an innate knowledge of Him.
Yes, because He is revealed in the design of ourselves and all creation. We all testify of Him by our very existence. Life does not create itself.
So many philosophy courses teach abstract sort of ways of belief, yet, belief in Jesus is personal, because He is a person who knows you who you can also know.
“Is there any possibility that God does not exist?”
No.
To find these answers, read the Bible, attend a good church, and listen.
“What is truth; Are moral values absolute or relative? Are at least some moral values absolute? If so, where do these absolute moral values come from? Is the possibility of evil necessary, in order for human beings to be allowed free will? “
Jesus, Himself, is truth. He is the standard by which all things are measured.
John 14:6 “ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. “
Moral values are absolute. Truth is also absolute.
As I said in my previous post, unbelievers try to make it an abstract concept. It is a personal concept.
You might like mine as I took a riff off Adams’ style. I especially had a ball writing Havelock’s Corpse. (Not his corpse, but he does have possession; most of the time.)
“A Myth for the Reality Challenged” Three cantankerous witches are out to save the universe; whether it wants saving or not. Humor.
“Havelock’s Inheritance” Havelock ne’er-do-well uncle sends him a hot statue. Whether it’s worth anything is debatable, but somebody wants it and the bodies are hip deep. Humor.
“Havelock’s Corpse” While not technical Havelock’s corpse, it’s in his possession and he has to keep it hidden. But it keeps showing up at the damnedest times. Humor.
http://www.amazon.com/Havelocks-Corpse-Book-2-ebook/dp/B00BGT9OVK/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1363874051&sr=1-2&keywords=bern+pearson
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