My Theory On God: Narcissism (And Why Evil Exists)

[Clodhopper]

I hope God is God and power hungry people have distorted Him. The Papacy is a classic example of this.

I hope Jesus was right and God is ultimate goodness.

I hope. I don't know and I have little faith.

I AM certain that expecting God to interfere to sort out our problems is worse than futile.

Whether God exists or not, this world is up to us. And we've got a very challenging 100 years or so to deal with.

[MilkMoon]

Wow. I like this post.This is the reason I don't believe in or have faith in a god. I would like the ability to memorise it and recite it to the next religious callers that knock on my door. Although, the last time they came they left of their own accord because I had too many contradictions to everything they told me.
I've often wondered, if indeed there was a god, why on earth people would want to worship such an unmerciful entity. Look at the state of the world, wars in his name, famine, disease, evil in the most vilest forms. Why does he not come down here and sort it all out? If I neglected my children, like god does his, I'd have welfare at my door pretty quickly. Why is he letting his creations go to ruin?
There are so many variables on how to get to heaven, is anyone truly likely to get there at all anyway? Why spend your life trying and missing out on the fun stuff when you'll probably not get there at all anyway? I'm already doomed, I'm an unwed mother and have broken at least half of the 10 commandments. So no matter how much good I do now, I'm not getting to heaven, right? Doesn't really encourage us to be good now does it? Maybe if I slew a few sinners in gods name it might pave my way. If heaven's going to be full of vile, murderous extremists, I think I'd much prefer to take my chances downstairs where all the good people are going.

Thank you for the comment. I'm glad to hear you liked it. I used the children argument too once, against my parents, who are fundamentalist Muslims. You may or may not find this hard to believe, but I am 15, and therefore I still live with them and argue with them on a semi-daily basis. They remain as stubborn as ever. What can you expect from religious people? The most advanced science and technology won't impress them. They'd rather be impressed when 'God' stops something bad happening to them, or makes something good happen to them, even though it was obviously just chance.

As I said "I think I'll be better off in hell, wouldn't you?". I fully agree with you. And not only would people like you and me be better off in hell, but most likely all our friends would be there too, as somebody once told me.

Either way, I hope I get to meet you in hell, rather than go to heaven and meet Usama Bin Laden or some pedophile priest. Look forward to seeing you

[gmc]

I hope you don't find yourself estranged from your parents because you don't share their beliefs. Religion is one of the things that can make a parent turn their back on their children and reject them from the family for leaving the faith - I know several catholic/protestant couples where one or the other and sometimes both were rejected by their parents for marrying in to the "wrong" religion. They might have later on come to terms with it and accept the relationship but even so. Time heals all wounds they say but those families cause are the hardest to get over.

[Delorean]

Thank you for the comment. I'm glad to hear you liked it. I used the children argument too once, against my parents, who are fundamentalist Muslims. You may or may not find this hard to believe, but I am 15, and therefore I still live with them and argue with them on a semi-daily basis. They remain as stubborn as ever. What can you expect from religious people? The most advanced science and technology won't impress them. They'd rather be impressed when 'God' stops something bad happening to them, or makes something good happen to them, even though it was obviously just chance.

As I said "I think I'll be better off in hell, wouldn't you?". I fully agree with you. And not only would people like you and me be better off in hell, but most likely all our friends would be there too, as somebody once told me.

Either way, I hope I get to meet you in hell, rather than go to heaven and meet Usama Bin Laden or some pedophile priest. Look forward to seeing you

I find it unusual that children from a very religious family would question the how's and why's of their religion. It must be very difficult for you to feel like you belong, and also frustrating that you can't get anyone to see things from your point of view. Might I ask what made you begin to question your/your family's faith?

In many countries, religion is a dominating aspect of life, so I can see why generation after generation follows the same faiths and lifestyle. Here in Australia there is no one religion everyone follows, there is quite a mix of many religions or quite often none. I wasn't brought up in a religious family, and all religion I was taught outside the family was questioned by my father then later in life I began to see things from "outside the box" for lack of a better phrase, and began asking myself some of the questions I mentioned in my previous post.

I am sending my son to a private christian school next year because the education at these schools is significantly better than at state schools. I know I'm going to struggle with the religious aspect of his education. I think the teachings from the bible are great and will only make him a better person but I don't see the bible as anything other than fictional stories to teach us morals not unlike Aesop's Fables. I don't know what I'll tell him when he starts asking questions, I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Yes, I think we'll get along fine, I shall look forward to meeting you downstairs, though not too soon

[MilkMoon]

I hope you don't find yourself estranged from your parents because you don't share their beliefs. Religion is one of the things that can make a parent turn their back on their children and reject them from the family for leaving the faith - I know several catholic/protestant couples where one or the other and sometimes both were rejected by their parents for marrying in to the "wrong" religion. They might have later on come to terms with it and accept the relationship but even so. Time heals all wounds they say but those families cause are the hardest to get over.

This is another problem I have with religion. It's supposed to spread love, acceptance, and peace. Instead it encourages hate, violence, and rejection. I don't want to be estranged from them, so though I argue from time to time, I argue in a way that makes it look like I have a few problems with the religion, but still follow it. They don't know I've already drifted away from that island. I don't like lying to them, but what else can I do?

[MilkMoon]

I find it unusual that children from a very religious family would question the how's and why's of their religion. It must be very difficult for you to feel like you belong, and also frustrating that you can't get anyone to see things from your point of view. Might I ask what made you begin to question your/your family's faith?

In many countries, religion is a dominating aspect of life, so I can see why generation after generation follows the same faiths and lifestyle. Here in Australia there is no one religion everyone follows, there is quite a mix of many religions or quite often none. I wasn't brought up in a religious family, and all religion I was taught outside the family was questioned by my father then later in life I began to see things from "outside the box" for lack of a better phrase, and began asking myself some of the questions I mentioned in my previous post.

I am sending my son to a private christian school next year because the education at these schools is significantly better than at state schools. I know I'm going to struggle with the religious aspect of his education. I think the teachings from the bible are great and will only make him a better person but I don't see the bible as anything other than fictional stories to teach us morals not unlike Aesop's Fables. I don't know what I'll tell him when he starts asking questions, I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Yes, I think we'll get along fine, I shall look forward to meeting you downstairs, though not too soon

It was a very gradual build up, to be honest. When I was younger - aka, before I hit puberty - we weren't taught about rape, homosexuality, slavery, adultery, etc. So though there were a few things that I tried not to think to deeply about or just disregarded because they sounded utterly ridiculous (I mean please, crying trees and talking rocks? Be serious) I was still very young. However, things did upset me at that age. I distinctly remember coming home to my mother way back when I was only seven years old, crying hysterically, then proceeding to have nightmares at night because I was told that one of my best friends and all her family were going to hell, because she wasn't a Muslim. But I can tell you, she and her family were better people than all of the other Muslims I'd met combined.

So like I said, when I hit puberty, then I was bombarded with all kinds of crap nobody could hide from me any longer. Time went on, and at first it was 'I don't like that. It must be wrong', or 'I'm sure they misinterpreted that', but then it slowly developed until I finally said 'This is bullshit. I don't want to read this anymore, and I'm not letting this rule my life.' I guess it is unusual, but I've always been told I have a really inquisitive mind. All the answers to my questions only led to more questions, and when those couldn't be answered I'd get angry and frustrated and disappointed. All those emotions eventually find their breaking point. And the worst part was that nobody wanted me to question anyway. 'Just shut up and believe' or 'If you question you'll have doubts'. I was even told 'Don't read too much, you might become an atheist'.

That to me was very suspicious. If this is really the 'truth', why are you so afraid of me digging deeper? What are you afraid I'll find? 'Don't think too much don't read too much'. So is the point of this religion ignorance then? I'm naturally a thinker, and there were times when I couldn't get to sleep at night. I eventually found my answer. I think you can guess what it is.

My point is that the questioning was always there. The lack of reasonable answers eventually made me turn away completely. And I never had strong faith anyway. I used to skip prayers a lot, even when I was only 12 and hadn't heard all the more serious things yet.

I agree about the stories bit, but I can't agree that the Bible has good teachings. I'm obviously more familiar with the Quran than the Bible, but I think the most important quality to learn or teach is compassion and acceptance. I think religious scriptures encourage prejudice and discrimination, and are anything but merciful. Here's a link you can check out: wwwDOTevilbibleDOTcom/Evil%20Bible%20Quotes.htm
(just replace the 'DOT' with an actual '.' I don't think the forum allows links)

However, I wish you all the best for your son. Getting a good education would be the greater good in this situation. And religious schools would most likely focus on the good teachings to keep people from turning away...I think.

If you don't mind my asking, what is your stand against religion then? You mentioned that you ask questions, but are you an atheist, agnostic...or are you unsure? I won't judge you, obviously.

Oh no, obviously not. I hope you live a long and happy life before that happens.

[MilkMoon]

PS: My mom is liberal, and she sowed the seeds of many of my thoughts now. Animal abuse, women's rights, equality, etc. But she never pushed it as far as I did. I have her to thank for most of my thoughts and for my open-mindedness. The credit goes to her, as I only built up on it. I think she's a little scared now, and I feel really guilty about it. I don't want her to be scared. I want her to break free too, and do all the thing she wants to do. It's my dad who's the problem. He truly cares about us, his kids, and wouldn't dare hit my mother, but he has a lot of messed up things instilled in him that he won't let go. He's the kind of man who thinks God knows better than us and that questioning Islam will send you to hell, so he believes a lot of things he's told by it or by his parents. Slavery, rape, domestic violence, prejudice to non-Muslims, hell, homophobia, the whole deal, basically. Sex outside of marriage and rape are the same thing for him. And as far as he's concerned, women enjoy being slaves.

[gmc]

PS: My mom is liberal, and she sowed the seeds of many of my thoughts now. Animal abuse, women's rights, equality, etc. But she never pushed it as far as I did. I have her to thank for most of my thoughts and for my open-mindedness. The credit goes to her, as I only built up on it. I think she's a little scared now, and I feel really guilty about it. I don't want her to be scared. I want her to break free too, and do all the thing she wants to do. It's my dad who's the problem. He truly cares about us, his kids, and wouldn't dare hit my mother, but he has a lot of messed up things instilled in him that he won't let go. He's the kind of man who thinks God knows better than us and that questioning Islam will send you to hell, so he believes a lot of things he's told by it or by his parents. Slavery, rape, domestic violence, prejudice to non-Muslims, hell, homophobia, the whole deal, basically. Sex outside of marriage and rape are the same thing for him. And as far as he's concerned, women enjoy being slaves.

You have my sympathy. Hard as it may be you might find that at some point in the future you will have to walk away for your own peace of mind rather than keep your family happy. Eventually you start to see your parents as people as well as parents you don't want to offend. Christian sects can be just as bloody minded and prejudiced as any islamic one.

[MilkMoon]

You have my sympathy. Hard as it may be you might find that at some point in the future you will have to walk away for your own peace of mind rather than keep your family happy. Eventually you start to see your parents as people as well as parents you don't want to offend. Christian sects can be just as bloody minded and prejudiced as any islamic one.

Thank you for your comment, and for your encouragement. Oddly enough, I have been thinking about that a lot recently, and I'm pretty sure that's where I'm headed. Even if they don't agree, I'm forming a plan. I'm serious about my career and future. And when I get married (if I do) it will be because I found and choose this person on my own, even if Islam doesn't let women marry non-muslims. I don't believe in or follow religious doctrines, and I'm not letting any control my life. You're right of course, I'm sure it will be hard, but I'm not going to waste away my life dreaming about what could have been and all the things I'm missing out on...

[Delorean]

If you don't mind my asking, what is your stand against religion then? You mentioned that you ask questions, but are you an atheist, agnostic...or are you unsure? I won't judge you, obviously.

I guess I could be considered an atheist. I find it difficult to believe that everything came about as it was stated in the bible and that there is an all-loving god when clearly if there is one he doesn't appear to give two hoots about what happens to us. I wish I could believe like others do because that faith does seem to help a lot of people get by but there are too many things that don't add up, as well as all the things you mentioned in your OP.