Man you're talking about years of thological discussion not easily summed up in a post or two on a web forum.

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Slowguy

(insert pithy phrase here...)

Who ever god is I hope he likes me.

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customerjon @gmail.com is where information happens.

dude, you are god.

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f/k/a mclamb6

When you pray , and it ends up your way "that's GOD " / miracles / car accidents / survive medical problems , God is commonly confused with "shit house luck ". guardian angels

In the case of a Tsunami it gets sticky, He was asleep at the switch ?, ahh busy teaching jesus how to part two seas at once.

Shoving elephants & rich men through the eye of a needle,turning water into wine ( the good stuff $10 a bottle ),

Sunday rest day ?



Maybe it was a mini Sodom & Gomorra clean up indonesia. low sodium .

Who ever god is I hope "she" likes me.

I just hope god isn't in my age-group.

he doesn't race in the US, he is European ;-)

According to Bush, he's on our side. He must have switched sometime in the last century. I think we have better endorsement deals or something.

he is a double agent...pretends he works for you, but works for Europe...
he started with you mid 20th century and left because he thought food was dreadful.

He didnt like the freedom fries?
Maybe he didnt try them with the chili.

Sorry I threw the thread off.

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customerjon @gmail.com is where information happens.

the chili makes him fart...

God is the universal order that presides over existence.

Different cultures have developed highly defined (in human terms) and ritualized specific concepts surrounding God, largely in a the void of other information. An example of primitive "God" concepts are the polytheistic cultures that recognize a Sun God, Rain God, etc. Usually these cultures develop "God" stories to explain phenomenon they cannot otherwise explain. In the gulf of information, this God concept is fabricated.

A phenomenon of religion and God concepts is that the parties who often conceive these images or concepts then use them to weild power and enforce their doctrine through guilt and oppression. This is a human perversion of the real, natural God that presides over all tangible existence, and generally more restrictive and ultimately destructive than they are constructive.

Another phenomenon of the human interpretation of God is that, because of early origins of God figures at a time in human existence when geography and a lack of technology maintained a reasonable seperation of disparate beliefs, religions and God stories developed very differently, often times in conflict with one another. As technology developed and geographical proximity decreased between cultures then conflict emerged between different man-made God stories.

Interestingly, whereas early manifestations of science were at odds with a concept of God more modern, sophisticated sciences actually tend to "prove" the existence of a universal order or at least a cmplex set of recurring patterns that govern existence- God.

Things get fuzzy when people start talking about after-lives, etc.

In my opinion, any concept of an afterlife is unsubstantiated and amounts to, literally, a leap of faith. Having never been dead, I don't know that is is an afterlife. I do know there is a current life, it is tangible and real in my frame of reference, and it will expire. Therefore, given the limited energy a human being has- I argue that rather than be concerned about the ramifications of an afterlife that may or may not be- better to devote yourself to the best possible current life: Be kind, try to experience this world as much as possible, try to help others, do no harm...

I wager that when we die, we just simply die. The lights go out. I have no issue with that. I;ve already lived a very full life with very few regrets. I am often fatigued. Dying wouldn't be bad. At least I could get some rest then, although I would be concerned about the welfare of my cats.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Well to answer these questions adequaltely would require me being funded by a grant and taking a leave from work and publishing a book about my beliefs and opinions. (Seriously)

What is God? Firstly, God is the Creator. We can debate how God created by I don't see any compelling debate regarding "First Cause". IMO, it's is a requirement, and I believe that necessity is God ... or something we would call "God".

Secondly, God is Love ... just like John 3:16 says. IMO, God is hard to understand/comprehend. I also feel that it is another reason why God was incarnated into human form (Jesus). I feel Jesus had two purposes: [1] To suffer and die in attonement for mankind's sins (A LOT of sin translates into A LOT of suffering for Jesus), and [2] to show us the character of God and how God wants us to live and (specifically) how to treat our "neighbors" (everyone).

My personal favorite in this regard is the Book of Luke. http://bible.gospelcom.net/...ter=1&version=31

I have always felt there was a God, even if nothing more than a "First Cause". I personally feel the accounts of Jesus are very convincing. I believe the Jesus speaks as the authority of God (He is God), so I accept that the God of the Bible is the "real deal". It would be interesting to see what I would think about God if there had not been Jesus. Again, from what I know of the world's religions, the Big 3 all pray to the same God, and I don't think that Buddhists pray to a God. So, I don't really know how many "different gods" people are praying to.

The Bible speaks of God as being omniscient, omnipresent, all-powerful, etc. Those conepts are so far above my understanding that they are hard for me to conceive and describe.

I believe there is a heaven. I believe it is where our souls go when we die. In the Bible someone asks Jesus about a woman that was widowed and re-married. They asked, in heaven, who would be her husband, the first guy or the second? Jesus explained that in heaven there are no spouses, children, etc. I interpret this to mean that our earthly concerns are no longer present. Sort of a place where were "just happy to be with God". I don't know that I can really speak authoritively about heaven, who is there, and who is not. I admit that I don't like the idea of hell, and I really don't like the idea of people that I care about going there. But, by the same token, I don't see where I have the stature to argue with God about it. Instead, I pray and ask God for the right words to come out of my mouth that might lead them to God.

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-- Every morning brings opportunity;
Each evening offers judgement. --

God is whatever you want it to be, depending on what you are trying to argue

I don't know who God is, but I know that right now, God is laughing at all of our pathetic attempts to try to categorize divine existence. But that's typical human behavior for all of us, and it's to be expected, I'd say.

Ignatius Loyola

Too true. He must be waiting breathless with anticipation as yet another human goes through a convoluted thought process to come up with their personal idea of what he is, and then tries to convince others to conform with that idea. The level of thinking, or consciousness, that is displayed here is not very high. You can't solve a problem at the same level that you created it....So many people trying so hard to work things out. If only they could relax for a bit and find out how easy it is. The personal mind likes to exercise control over the world and keeps on categorising things in the illusion it then owns it. Some of the categorisations that people come up with show an incredible conceit, as if ones personal view mattered in the great scheme of things. You have to go beyond yourself and your personal thoughts if you want to make some progress.

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Those who know do not speak, those who speak, do not know.

He sent me an e-mail and said I was the only one who got it right :)

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Well, he told me I was his favourite :)

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Those who know do not speak, those who speak, do not know.

"I wager that when we die, we just simply die. The lights go out. I have no issue with that. I;ve already lived a very full life with very few regrets. I am often fatigued. Dying wouldn't be bad. At least I could get some rest then, although I would be concerned about the welfare of my cats."

First of all, you wouldn't be worried about your cats. You'd be dead. It's all a moot point then.

Second of all, I have a huge issue with the idea of just dying and ceasing to exist. That is the pinnacle of hopelessness. I would really hate to think that what we have here on this earth is all there is. Look at all the bad stuff that goes on. Even for those of us who have it pretty good, really bad things still happen. Think of all the backbiting, dishonesty, lying, cheating, stealing, gossipping, sickness, etc., there is out there. If this is the best there is, we're in bad shape.

Some people like to argue that all the bad stuff mentioned above is proof that God doesn't exist. However, I contend that it shows just how much we need God. God promises to help us through all of these things. Believing won't take this bad stuff away from our lives, but it will help us through it. And then when life is over, all this bad stuff will end. The Bible says that in Heaven there are no more tears, no more sickness and no more death. Think of the tears we've all shed, all the sickness and death we've seen. I love it here on Earth, and I love my family, friends and hobbies very much, but a part of me looks forward to the day when the pain and evils of this world will be no more.

RP