A question for Anti-Theists

[Athylon Prime]

Right, so you think I claimed something I didn't. Got it.

Explain to me your claim, then. I'm all ears.

[Mavorpen]

Right, so you think I claimed something I didn't. Got it.

Explain to me your claim, then. I'm all ears.

Hinayana doesn't refer to Theravada. That's literally my claim. That isn't to say though, that it isn't sometimes used to refer to Theravada. What it means is that factually it doesn't refer to Theravada. Rather, it refers to schools that have already died out and no longer exist today.

[Athylon Prime]

Hinayana doesn't refer to Theravada. That's literally my claim. That isn't to say though, that it isn't sometimes used to refer to Theravada. What it means is that factually it doesn't refer to Theravada. Rather, it refers to schools that have already died out and no longer exist today.

I digress. Simple misunderstanding.

[Mavorpen]

Hinayana doesn't refer to Theravada. That's literally my claim. That isn't to say though, that it isn't sometimes used to refer to Theravada. What it means is that factually it doesn't refer to Theravada. Rather, it refers to schools that have already died out and no longer exist today.

I digress. Simple misunderstanding.

Well, it's not entirely your fault. I should have worded it better, especially here:

No it doesn't. Hinayana is a general term that doesn't refer to any existing Buddhist school.

I read "which Mahayana refers to it as," and accidentally typed "no it doesn't," which made it seem like I was talking about Mahayana.

[Free Soviets]

i'm always amazed that the religious see nothing weird about that. like, they even have enough awareness to understand that religion is clearly just some cultural phenomena when it comes to other people. but the next step doesn't happen - the "hang on, what are my reasons for being of the sect i am?" question goes nowhere.

It's not easy to confront the fact that most of your values have been largely determined by where, when, and to whom you were born. At least it wasn't easy for me, and I've yet to meet someone who confronted that reality and reported it being an easy effort.

heh, i was just discussing this with my critical thinking students, actually. the importance of turning skepticism back on yourself. that without that recursive step, the tools i teach are just weapons for bashing other people rather than arriving at truth - like martial arts without discipline.

and yeah, it's definitely a hard thing to face. but...i guess i found it so glaring that it was impossible to ignore.

[Athylon Prime]

I digress. Simple misunderstanding.

Well, it's not entirely your fault. I should have worded it better, especially here:

I read "which Mahayana refers to it as," and accidentally typed "no it doesn't," which made it seem like I was talking about Mahayana.

Understandable. I'll remember while reading something not to jump to conclusions. Especially while reading something I believe to be a statement I don't wholly agree with.

[Anachronous Rex]

Well, it's not entirely your fault. I should have worded it better, especially here:

I read "which Mahayana refers to it as," and accidentally typed "no it doesn't," which made it seem like I was talking about Mahayana.

Understandable. I'll remember while reading something not to jump to conclusions. Especially while reading something I believe to be a statement I don't wholly agree with.

People being reasonable on NSG?

There is a god...

[Skrewalkers]

I guess my problem with an impotent or even just generally non-hostile God would be that he/she'd be like that hippy neighbor I had in Stockton.

"There raising the fucking parking fees."

"Yeah, man, but its only like five bucks."

"But that's bullshit!"

"Yeah, it's a hassle, but at least we don't have cancer or mutant cat AIDS or anything."

"GODDAMN YOU, GET UPSET ABOUT SOMETHING!!!!"

"You can borrow my bicycle, man. Don't you work down the block?"

"I fucking hate you, chill hippie. I hope you die."

"That's a pretty safe hope in the long run. You want some of this?"

"Yeah. Assholes."

[New Lesbos]

I simply find the idea of our lifestyle and morals having to be governed uncomfortable.

[Zottistan]

I simply find the idea of our lifestyle and morals having to be governed uncomfortable.

Whatever about lifestyle, having your morality governed is how societies work.

[New England and The Maritimes]

The fact of the matter is that belief in a god is used as a tool to sanctify ignorance and that isn't a good thing.

[CTALNH]

If I met a god I would kill him.

[Jamessonia]

If I met a god I would kill him.

But wouldn't that be impossible? If that was possible would he be a god?

[New England and The Maritimes]

If I met a god I would kill him.

But wouldn't that be impossible? If that was possible would he be a god?

To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

[Zottistan]

If I met a god I would kill him.

Why?

[Jamessonia]

But wouldn't that be impossible? If that was possible would he be a god?

To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

I'm not saying I would respect him. I'm only asking if it would be physically possible for a mortal to kill a (theoretical) god?

[CTALNH]

If I met a god I would kill him.

Why?

Taken from New England and The Maritimes post
To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

Nobody is my master except me.

[The Land of Truth]

What definitions of God make you uncomfortable and why do you think you feel most uncomfortable with this definition?

I am an Agnostic Atheist, and I have not really understood what makes people so uncomfortable and angry with regards to a the idea of God. I imagined it was with the idea that God was described as Omnipotent by Abrahamic God believers, but most existing Gods (Even the Abrahamic one) in mythology seem to possess limited power. None that I am aware of are omnipotent, as they are either subject and powerless to the will of human beings, or subject and powerless to the other factors in the existence of the universe like other powerful demigods in mythical stories. While I can understand finding specific gods like for example the Greek God Ares, the Mayan God Tlaloc, and the Canaanite God Sabaoth to be distasteful and crude with their promotion of violence, genocide, murder I would not go so far as to be hostile to the idea of a God existing. Not to mention there are other deities like Krishna and Atum-Ra which aren't exactly bloodthirsty Gods which aren't really contemptible and don't generally get viewed as an all powerful etc. So I couldn't really be hostile toward such conceptions of a god. However in order to be anti theist one has to hold these conceptions of God also in contempt to be something despised. While the idea of a malevolent god is not nice and is worthy of contempt in my opinion, the idea of an impotent God doesn't fill me with rage. Nor does the problem of evil weigh down so hard if we consider the possibility of an impotent god.

So, if we remove the problem of the existence of evil and declare God to be impotent in the face of evil like we are, why would one be hostile to the idea of a limited theistic God?

If he's limited, then why call him "God"?

[Central Kadigan]

What definitions of God make you uncomfortable and why do you think you feel most uncomfortable with this definition?

I am a Humanist and a scientist (analytical biochemistry, to be precise). There is simply no evidence that a god of any kind exists. Quite to the contrary, modern advances in scientific philosophy and theoretical physics have essentially proven that there is no god. As with anything, the burden of prove rests on those making the claim. To date, theists have proved no evidence whatsoever besides a Bronze age collection of superstitions musings and a resounding chorus of "because I said so".

[CTALNH]

To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

I'm not saying I would respect him. I'm only asking if it would be physically possible for a mortal to kill a (theoretical) god?

Who says their omnipotent and powerful?

[Brickistan]

To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

I'm not saying I would respect him. I'm only asking if it would be physically possible for a mortal to kill a (theoretical) god?

Terry Pratchett had a good take on this in Hogfather. Basically, you don't kill the god, rather you "kill" the belief in the god. If no-one believes in you... Well... Then you're not a god...

Of course, deconverting, for example, all Christians might be a rather difficult task for a single person.

[New England and The Maritimes]

What definitions of God make you uncomfortable and why do you think you feel most uncomfortable with this definition?

I am a Humanist and a scientist (analytical biochemistry, to be precise). There is simply no evidence that a god of any kind exists. Quite to the contrary, modern advances in scientific philosophy and theoretical physics have essentially proven that there is no god. As with anything, the burden of prove rests on those making the claim. To date, theists have proved no evidence whatsoever besides a Bronze age collection of superstitions musings and a resounding chorus of "because I said so".

If it is impossible by any measure to show evidence that your claim is correct, the thing to do is dismiss the claim as a load of crap. If your "god" has no energy signature, no physical presence, has no interaction with our universe, and is impossible to locate, then you're basically making up a story. Every time we examine the world looking for "god" it turns out we find our physical reality and nothing else. Nobody who looked into a microscope ever found "god," instead they found cells, DNA, atoms, electrons, etc.

[Zottistan]

Why?

Taken from New England and The Maritimes post
To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

Nobody is my master except me.

You're a statist, aren't you? The state commands often unearned authority.

[CTALNH]

Taken from New England and The Maritimes post
To be quite honest, any being proclaiming itself your ruler should not be treated with respect beyond that which all living things deserve. Nobody is your master and that is how it should be.

Nobody is my master except me.

You're a statist, aren't you? The state commands often unearned authority.

I obey the state because I choose to obey the state.

[New England and The Maritimes]

You're a statist, aren't you? The state commands often unearned authority.

I obey the state because I choose to obey the state.

If you chose not to, the state would make you.