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Do you believe in God?


Chrism

  

2 members have voted

  1. 1. Do you think any God/s exist?

    • Yes
      190
    • Probably
      45
    • Not sure
      72
    • Probably not
      84
    • No
      315

This poll is closed to new votes


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I'm just interested to see how this plays out in the A community. :excl: I have NO INTENTION of starting any hot philosophical debates, partly for the reason that I would inevitably get carried away. I genuinely don't know what to expect from this, with such a wide range of nationalities and lifestyles...

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The poll's a little misleading. It's fully possible to be theist (believe in the existence of a deity) without being religious. XD

Such is the case with me. Although I was raised Catholic and still believe in the fundamental tenets of their faith, I dissociate myself with their religion because I have a strong distaste of all the dogma and doctrine you supposedly have to follow to end up in Heaven...as opposed to just being a good person and loving eachother as was Jesus' message. XD

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The Vampire Queen

I'm Christian. Not super-conservative about it though.

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Atheist here.

I feel a sort of magnetic attraction for religious myths though, whatever religion they may come from. They're like fantasy stories.

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Agnostic. Just sorta whatever you believe is fine by me, but don't force it on me 'cause I'm going to believe what I want to believe and it's not organized religion.

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The poll's a little misleading. It's fully possible to be theist (believe in the existence of a deity) without being religious. XD

Such is the case with me. Although I was raised Catholic and still believe in the fundamental tenets of their faith, I dissociate myself with their religion because I have a strong distaste of all the dogma and doctrine you supposedly have to follow to end up in Heaven...as opposed to just being a good person and loving eachother as was Jesus' message. XD

Ah yes, sorry about that, I do know exactly what you mean, having been is similar positions. I'll see if I can change something...

EDIT: Sorted :D Check out the new topic title

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My views are rather complicated, but to sum it up simply I consider myself an "agnostic theist". However, I'm generally leaning towards atheism when it comes to the Christian god. The theism comes in when referring to a deist deity because frankly if God is out there he doesn't give a sh*t about us. Also, I have a strong desire to believe in something, but don't want to be intellectually dishonest with myself.

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Member33070

*shrug*

I don't identify as agnostic, but I generally think that if there is a God, I should do my best to please Him so that we're OK and He doesn't hate me or anything. If there isn't, oh well, my life is better off by choosing to be good and avoid vices instead of being bad and doing them, I think. :)

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My views are rather complicated, but to sum it up simply I consider myself an "agnostic theist". However, I'm generally leaning towards atheism when it comes to the Christian god. The theism comes in when referring to a deist deity because frankly if God is out there he doesn't give a sh*t about us. Also, I have a strong desire to believe in something, but don't want to be intellectually dishonest with myself.

I can sympathise with you there.

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I'm an agnostic. I don't know. There may be some mystical force out there greater than we can comprehend. But, there has been no evidence for such a thing. But, my mind is always open for some sort of God out there.

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GraverNikooru

I'm an agnostic. I don't know. There may be some mystical force out there greater than we can comprehend. But, there has been no evidence for such a thing. But, my mind is always open for some sort of God out there.

Yeah, i'm gonna have to agree with ya on this one. I was raised in a Christian home but... Somethin' was always funky about it all. But my mind aswell is open to the possibilities.

On a side note, It bothers me to think I might never see "clearly" or "the whole picture" because i was raised a certain way. I think theres a good chance of me being a bit biased just because of how I grew up. Does anyone else think this might be true?

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I'm an agnostic. I don't know. There may be some mystical force out there greater than we can comprehend. But, there has been no evidence for such a thing. But, my mind is always open for some sort of God out there.

Yeah, i'm gonna have to agree with ya on this one. I was raised in a Christian home but... Somethin' was always funky about it all. But my mind aswell is open to the possibilities.

On a side note, It bothers me to think I might never see "clearly" or "the whole picture" because i was raised a certain way. I think theres a good chance of me being a bit biased just because of how I grew up. Does anyone else think this might be true?

That sort of brought-up bias is certainly possible, it happens all the time, it's how bigotry survives (I'm not implying anything about you!). But you don't appear to be particularly biased... Anyway, that upbringing bias doesn't seem to apply to me at all.

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The Great WTF

I have a severe and long-standing dislike of organized religion that can generally be summed as 'the world's oldest and greatest form of mind control' and 'Dear Christian-based-religions of the world, I am not a sheep.' Having said that, I do believe in a sort of higher power/cosmic babysitter that generally pokes us along in the right direction.

Granted, my views are very, very strange and I've often been known to refer to the human mind as a 'god' as well.

I'm an agnostic. I don't know. There may be some mystical force out there greater than we can comprehend. But, there has been no evidence for such a thing. But, my mind is always open for some sort of God out there.

Yeah, i'm gonna have to agree with ya on this one. I was raised in a Christian home but... Somethin' was always funky about it all. But my mind aswell is open to the possibilities.

On a side note, It bothers me to think I might never see "clearly" or "the whole picture" because i was raised a certain way. I think theres a good chance of me being a bit biased just because of how I grew up. Does anyone else think this might be true?

It's very possible. I've known people who were raised with a certain belief and, even though they themselves don't believe that way, they will still show habits or tendencies associated with it. My grandparents, for example, were both raised extremely racist. My grandma is not racist, but she still believes that interracial marriage is wrong, borderline immoral.

And, in the same sense, I had a very skewed and backwards form of Christianty shoved down my throat as a child that has given me a massive bias against religion. It's easy to see that I've developed a bias just because of that.

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I personally prefer to disassociate myself from the word 'god', not only due to its flagrant religious connotations, but also due to the more specific connotations it carries of a 'greater being' that is morally judgemental in nature, and therefore personally interested in cosmic affairs.

I can believe in no such 'deity' - (I confess I am something of a philosophical Pessimist) - and yet I am loth to call myself an 'atheist'. Anyone who has had some degree of exposure to the philosophical community is most likely aware that - [and when I say this I am speaking from the dark corners of the Western Analytic tradition] - 'atheism', in its present day context, more often than not implies a staunch advocacy of Physicalism.

I am no Physicalist. I see the physical universe, as perceived via the platform of space & time, as merely one possible means through which existence (in its broadest possible sense) can be interpreted and made sense of. I remain open to the possibility that there exists a multitude of other potential realms, platforms etc, upon which existence can manifest itself. As humans we are only made aware of two of such platforms - that of the aforementioned Physical, and the - much disputed - Mental.

Most of the self-titled atheists I have encountered laughingly eschew any suggestion of this ‘cosmic liberalism' - for want of a less presumptuous epithet - that I subscribe to, maintaining that the physical universe is ALL that exists - rather, its IS existence, for there IS nothing more - no 'potentiality', and therefore no 'unknown'. The very fact that I am open to the possibility of the supernatural instantly distances me from atheism.

But I still don’t believe in ‘god’.

Furthermore, the term ‘agnostic’ usually implies either an indecisiveness as to one’s views, or merely a lack of care altogether. I know what I do and don’t believe in, and I certainly care about my beliefs.

So, what to call myself? Eventually, after years of futile discussions with myself over many-a-Red Bull, I landed on the [simple, though regrettably somewhat inelegant] term ‘shallow atheism’. It has probably been coined by many before me – in fact, I have no doubt unconsciously stolen it from its fabricator, and for that I apologise. What I intend by such a phrase is roughly the following: if ‘deep’ or ‘hardcore’ (again, sorry) atheism were to entail the aforementioned, common-place stance where 1) – the denial of the existence of any god or greater personally-interested being, is tantamount to 2) - a denial of the potential existence of anything beyond the cosmos qua ‘physical universe’, then its more softly-spoken collateral – ‘shallow atheism’ – would entail 1) without necessarily involving acceptance of 2).

But I will [perhaps prematurely] conclude this now, as the risk of digression is becoming far, far too tempting…

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Imogen Manson

I don't know how to answer in the poll because I don't believe in a "god" but I am a pantheist in a sense. I don't believe in a higher power, I believe in the connection between all human beings and the earth.

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Didn't answer in the poll either, because as an apathetic agnostic, I simply don't care if there's a god (or gods) to the point that I can't even be bothered to think about it... and that's not one of the options.

That being said, I do believe in conducting myself in a manner that causes as little negative interference with other people as possible.

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GraverNikooru

That sort of brought-up bias is certainly possible, it happens all the time, it's how bigotry survives (I'm not implying anything about you!). But you don't appear to be particularly biased... Anyway, that upbringing bias doesn't seem to apply to me at all.

Mmm that is so true, I didn't really think of that. Its the only way for some of those dogmatic beliefs to make their way through the world. And what do you mean, you don't think theres a chance of yourself being baised? (just asking :P) How were u brought up?

It's very possible. I've known people who were raised with a certain belief and, even though they themselves don't believe that way, they will still show habits or tendencies associated with it. My grandparents, for example, were both raised extremely racist. My grandma is not racist, but she still believes that interracial marriage is wrong, borderline immoral.

And, in the same sense, I had a very skewed and backwards form of Christianty shoved down my throat as a child that has given me a massive bias against religion. It's easy to see that I've developed a bias just because of that.

Oh wow racist? I've never met a racist person before. Are they strict? And yeah, I guess I'll never know if I'm biased because it might be a whole 'subconscious' thing. I'm probably more "religious" then I'm actually aware of. Man -_-

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The Great WTF

That sort of brought-up bias is certainly possible, it happens all the time, it's how bigotry survives (I'm not implying anything about you!). But you don't appear to be particularly biased... Anyway, that upbringing bias doesn't seem to apply to me at all.

Mmm that is so true, I didn't really think of that. Its the only way for some of those dogmatic beliefs to make their way through the world. And what do you mean, you don't think theres a chance of yourself being baised? (just asking :P) How were u brought up?

It's very possible. I've known people who were raised with a certain belief and, even though they themselves don't believe that way, they will still show habits or tendencies associated with it. My grandparents, for example, were both raised extremely racist. My grandma is not racist, but she still believes that interracial marriage is wrong, borderline immoral.

And, in the same sense, I had a very skewed and backwards form of Christianty shoved down my throat as a child that has given me a massive bias against religion. It's easy to see that I've developed a bias just because of that.

Oh wow racist? I've never met a racist person before. Are they strict? And yeah, I guess I'll never know if I'm biased because it might be a whole 'subconscious' thing. I'm probably more "religious" then I'm actually aware of. Man -_-

I'm not sure why that made me giggle, but it did. Probably because of how innocent it sounded. *gives a cookie for being cute* But anyway...

My grandpa was extremely racist, but he was capable of getting past it. One of my best friends is very obviously half black (not to mention flamboyantly gay) and my grandpa loved him to bits after they got to know each other. As for being strict... eh. My grandma was very 'you must conform to the standards of a well-to-do and wealthy society', so she wasn't so much strict as just narrow-minded and kind of sheltered. She was the kind of woman who was raised with the mindset that two children sharing a bedroom meant they lived in squalor and anyone that deviates from the norm is poor and lacks education. My grandpa was the polar opposite, though, very free-wheeling and playful.

Everyone has their little biases and quirks, but those biases also make up who we are. Even though sometimes I wish they did not exist, more often than not our biases and varied beliefs that come from those biases make life so much more interesting. Rose colored glasses and all that.

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GraverNikooru

I'm not sure why that made me giggle, but it did. Probably because of how innocent it sounded. *gives a cookie for being cute* But anyway...

My grandpa was extremely racist, but he was capable of getting past it. One of my best friends is very obviously half black (not to mention flamboyantly gay) and my grandpa loved him to bits after they got to know each other. As for being strict... eh. My grandma was very 'you must conform to the standards of a well-to-do and wealthy society', so she wasn't so much strict as just narrow-minded and kind of sheltered. She was the kind of woman who was raised with the mindset that two children sharing a bedroom meant they lived in squalor and anyone that deviates from the norm is poor and lacks education. My grandpa was the polar opposite, though, very free-wheeling and playful.

Everyone has their little biases and quirks, but those biases also make up who we are. Even though sometimes I wish they did not exist, more often than not our biases and varied beliefs that come from those biases make life so much more interesting. Rose colored glasses and all that.

Heh, kawaii points for me!

And oh thats pretty interesting. I love that your grandparents were somewhat opposites, its awesome. And I guess its just hard for me to imagine what racism is like because even though my family is white and I'm black (I'm adopted), I've never seen anyone like that. (Though I'm sure they would probably hide any of that when they found out about me :P).

Yeah when it comes down to it, all these beliefs are what makes the world unboring hahah. Its so much more of a diverse planet when we have our own individual little bits and such. Guess I'll be happy with what I've got ^_^

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The Great WTF

I'm not sure why that made me giggle, but it did. Probably because of how innocent it sounded. *gives a cookie for being cute* But anyway...

My grandpa was extremely racist, but he was capable of getting past it. One of my best friends is very obviously half black (not to mention flamboyantly gay) and my grandpa loved him to bits after they got to know each other. As for being strict... eh. My grandma was very 'you must conform to the standards of a well-to-do and wealthy society', so she wasn't so much strict as just narrow-minded and kind of sheltered. She was the kind of woman who was raised with the mindset that two children sharing a bedroom meant they lived in squalor and anyone that deviates from the norm is poor and lacks education. My grandpa was the polar opposite, though, very free-wheeling and playful.

Everyone has their little biases and quirks, but those biases also make up who we are. Even though sometimes I wish they did not exist, more often than not our biases and varied beliefs that come from those biases make life so much more interesting. Rose colored glasses and all that.

Heh, kawaii points for me!

And oh thats pretty interesting. I love that your grandparents were somewhat opposites, its awesome. And I guess its just hard for me to imagine what racism is like because even though my family is white and I'm black (I'm adopted), I've never seen anyone like that. (Though I'm sure they would probably hide any of that when they found out about me :P).

Yeah when it comes down to it, all these beliefs are what makes the world unboring hahah. Its so much more of a diverse planet when we have our own individual little bits and such. Guess I'll be happy with what I've got ^_^

Racism is a pretty common thing where I live, though I try to avoid that breed if I can, and what little I do end up around a lot is more playful racism than outright hate. It's good to hear about people that are more accepting than the ones I'm around a lot.

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Ever Dream

Atheist of some sort here. I don't believe in God, but I do believe in good and evil. And ghosts. And demons. Oh and reincarnation. I do believe that the Earth holds the power energy of purity and corruption and when you die, you get a new life til you know what good actually means :P

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misscuriosity

I don't even think or talk about religions.

I get pretty annoyed by those religious groups coming to my apartment, knocking the door, trying to talk to me about whatever they believe in for a looong time. I always have to explain how busy I am with my final exams. Ugh.

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I'm kind of an unwilling agnostic atheist. When I was younger, I was devoutly religious, but after being exposed to enough strong criticisms of my belief system, it completely shattered. After that, I went through a militant atheist phase where pretty much all I did was read and watch videos about anti-apologetics and the creationism/evolution debate. When that phase ended, I found myself wanting to believe in a more-or-less traditional theism again, but I was too well-equipped with scientific, historical, and philosophical arguments against most of the popular religious systems to do so. I even tried to force myself to believe a few different religions, but "I wanna believe, damn it!" is a terrible foundation for a world view. None of them were able to sustain me for more than a few months.

I'm pretty content now, though. I've pretty much given up on the idea of finding a new replacement religion, and I almost prefer it that way. Makes life much less complicated.

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Kathy The Highlighter

I was raised in an extremely fundamentalist Christian home, and at this point am kind of worn out by the whole belief system, and am leaning towards agnosticism...it feels nice not to be constantly stressing about having to go to Church and be particularly "Christian", though I still follow the religion's moral code and might in the future get back into involvement with a much more liberal form of the religion than that which I was raised in. I'm not sure if I fully believe in a God, but there's certainly a possibility that one is out there.

*shrug*

I don't identify as agnostic, but I generally think that if there is a God, I should do my best to please Him so that we're OK and He doesn't hate me or anything. If there isn't, oh well, my life is better off by choosing to be good and avoid vices instead of being bad and doing them, I think. :)

This is the view I'm taking as well. I'm not sure if one is out there or not, but I think if there is He is hopefully a loving and benevolent God, and as long as I'm trying to follow the tenants he sets down He'll understand if my faith isn't always strong of if I have doubts.

I'm an agnostic. I don't know. There may be some mystical force out there greater than we can comprehend. But, there has been no evidence for such a thing. But, my mind is always open for some sort of God out there.

Yeah, i'm gonna have to agree with ya on this one. I was raised in a Christian home but... Somethin' was always funky about it all. But my mind aswell is open to the possibilities.

On a side note, It bothers me to think I might never see "clearly" or "the whole picture" because i was raised a certain way. I think theres a good chance of me being a bit biased just because of how I grew up. Does anyone else think this might be true?

I definitely have that same bias. I grew up in a very black and white, "this is fact and everything else is false and we KNOW this" environment, so now I'm very bothered by the idea of...not really knowing. That and it's so deeply ingrained into my brain I can't quite not believe, just as I can't fully believe. :P It's very confusing.

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Moon Thief

I'm quite indifferent to religion, and I wouldn't classify myself as atheist either.

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I'm an agnostic. I don't know. There may be some mystical force out there greater than we can comprehend. But, there has been no evidence for such a thing. But, my mind is always open for some sort of God out there.

Yeah, i'm gonna have to agree with ya on this one. I was raised in a Christian home but... Somethin' was always funky about it all. But my mind aswell is open to the possibilities.

On a side note, It bothers me to think I might never see "clearly" or "the whole picture" because i was raised a certain way. I think theres a good chance of me being a bit biased just because of how I grew up. Does anyone else think this might be true?

Yes, I'd definitely say so. It's much more likely that you would believe in a god, or be open to the possibility, if you were raised religiously. I think it's very hard for someone who grew up with religion to see how unlikely it looks from the outside.

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I voted yes, but if by god you mean the personal gods of the western religions (or any other personal gods of any religion) then it would definitely be a no. I'm a panentheist and I believe in an impersonal godhead (which I don't even like to call god as this word can be so misleading when applied to an impersonal "god"). I like to call it "tat", as the Hindus sometimes do, which simply means "that", a demonstrative pronoun.

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