Maz3 Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 I'm not sure you get my point. Before you (or any human) could conceptualise using language, before you could hold in your mind, the word 'god'; before you could do that, where then was god? Hang on, I'm confused by this, philosophically. Don't get me wrong, I'm an atheist, but for the sake of argument let's say God exists. Are you saying that if humans weren't around to believe in him/her/it or give the divinity a name, he/she/it wouldn't exist? When you leave the room, do you think it disappears? According to the Bible, God was busy creating light and separating the waters from the land, before humans turned up. Or are you suggesting God is a human construct, that people just hold in their heads? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryedo40 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Hang on, I'm confused by this, philosophically. Don't get me wrong, I'm an atheist, but for the sake of argument let's say God exists. Are you saying that if humans weren't around to believe in him/her/it or give the divinity a name, he/she/it wouldn't exist? I think he's suggesting god or gods were invented when people were capable of inventing gods. Before then, god or gods - like aliens, Yetis and other fashionable nonsense - didn't exist in peoples' imaginations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halibut Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 I think he's suggesting god or gods were invented when people were capable of inventing gods. Before then, god or gods - like aliens, Yetis and other fashionable nonsense - didn't exist in peoples' imaginations. I think you'd be very hard pressed to identify - with any degree of certainty - a period of human history where people didn't ascribe things they couldn't comprehend to a God or Gods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootsBooster Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Because for a while,they may feel an absence of that spiritual awareness they had previously. So faith is the same as 'spiritual awareness'? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 I think you'd be very hard pressed to identify - with any degree of certainty - a period of human history where people didn't ascribe things they couldn't comprehend to a God or Gods. Possibly because we lack any record of the beginning of modern human kind (sort of by definition because we hadn't invented the video camera or the written record). Do chimps show any sign that they believe in deities? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryedo40 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 I think you'd be very hard pressed to identify - with any degree of certainty - a period of human history where people didn't ascribe things they couldn't comprehend to a God or Gods. There probably was some stage in our very early linage where we weren't as capable with symbolic or abstract thinking. But I do think those capabilities were there - they just, like culture, improved overtime. At some stage, ideas of creator gods came along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janie48 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 So faith is the same as 'spiritual awareness'?It can be, but anyone can have a spiritual awareness at some point. A very firm minded atheist when commenting about a visit to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne on another thread not long ago, said the place had made him feel spiritual. But he avoided going into any detail about what he meant by the experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryedo40 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Janie, "spiritual awareness" or getting an emotional buzz from your environment isn't faith. Faith is something totally different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootsBooster Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 I think you'd be very hard pressed to identify - with any degree of certainty - a period of human history where people didn't ascribe things they couldn't comprehend to a God or Gods. That goes with what he's saying ---------- Post added 12-09-2013 at 13:06 ---------- Janie, "spiritual awareness" or getting an emotional buzz from your environment isn't faith. Faith is something totally different. I have to agree, "spiritual awareness" is not faith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janie48 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Janie, "spiritual awareness" or getting an emotional buzz from your environment isn't faith. Faith is something totally different. No, spiritual awareness is a part of faith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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