Look at it this way. I could be a total idiot and have faith in the lord. If I'm wrong, no harm done. If I'm right I've got a good shot of eternal happiness with the Lord. If you're an atheist and you're wrong then you could be screwed. So aren't stupid religious people smarter than intelligent atheist for hedging their bets and keeping open the possibility that something greater than their understanding exists. I mean are we really so egotistical in our knowledge of science and nature to say that we know for certain how life really started. Look at intelligent design for instance.
2006-08-23 13:35:37 · 11 answers · asked by Swordsman 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
i posted a question like this once, i got the phrase 'pascal wager' thrown at me. they have no answers
2006-08-23 13:40:38 · answer #1 · answered by Nikki 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I wouldn't call "hedging their bets" particularly smart, since the obvious inference is the faith is insincere. If you're doing it to cover all angles, you're not going to get to heaven ;-)
However, how intelligent is it to live a life of superstition, subject to the whims of preachers and priests, coughing up money in tithes or when the dish s passed around, conned by TV evangelists, filled with fear, self-loathing (we are all worthless sinners, right?), guilt and shame for not being perfect, begging forgiveness from a God who never answers, never forgives, never offers consolation or even a hug?
No thanks.
My father died an unbeliever, so it is really easy for me to say no to the God who designed the rules that condemned my father to Hell. It is easy to say no to his followers, many of whom are eager for Judgment Day and the reckoning of sinners.
As for intelligent design, the concept that -anything- which is not explained today -must- have been created, it is a silly notion for the religious to push.
Who created the creator? Who created the creator of the creator? Who created the creator of the creator of the creator? Who created...ad infinitum...the creator? And which of these is most deserving of worship?
All ID does is buy the religious a whole pack of problems they can never resolve. If all complicated things need a creator, then you need creators to make creators.
2006-08-23 20:52:05 · answer #2 · answered by bobkgin 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You must be stupid if you think you have lost nothing living in ignorance your entire life.
Do you think your god is also as stupid as yourself for not realizing that those who do turn to christianity out of fear of punishment are doing it for nothing more then to "hedge their bets"?
That a god may exist is possible in the sense that it has yet to be proven to not exist. Just as we can not prove Zeus does not exist. However just because you can't prove god does not exist does not mean you should believe.
Similarly, using your own "logic", if our inability to disprove something is all that is required to believe, then it is VERY hypocritical of you to not also believe in zeus, marduk and rah to hedge your bets against those deities.
I do not expect you to understand any of this though, being an admitted ignorant and stupid theists as you have said.
2006-08-23 20:46:36 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Athiest aren`t keeping their possibilities open, thats something different, I forget what though. Someone who`s a true Atheist believes that all religions, gods, ect. DON`T exsist, not that the may. On one hand, its a little ignorant to think you know greater than all the people who invented the religion and that there is nothing greater than humans out there, but on the other hand if everyone just assumed that god did everything then we wouldn`t know what we know today.
2006-08-23 20:43:35 · answer #4 · answered by Meg 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Look a bit more deeply into your claim... How many gods have people believed in in the past and present? Which god are you going to believe in? How do you know that that one is the right one? How do you know that any of them are right, or even exist. What if they all exist?
It's not as simple as a belief or disbelief proposition... added to this is simply believing there is a god enough to appease him? According to Christians it's not. However according to Jews you don't even need to believe there is a god. Furthermore these two worldviews claim the same god.
Pascal's wager, the argument you are using here, is severely flawed in this respect.
2006-08-23 20:44:51 · answer #5 · answered by ChooseRealityPLEASE 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I'm sure god will be really impressed that you've chosen to have faith in him "just in case", in order to benefit yourself. I thought faith was supposed to be about love for your creator, and true belief even when faith is tested. Not "oh I'm going to believe, because hey it gives me a better chance of getting in to heaven, so why not?".
Aside from that, your point is nonsensical because you've just selected one arbitrary god of all the many, many gods man has chosen to worship. One could say "I may be dumb, but at least I worship Zeus and I will go to heaven - whereas all the christians are not worshipping Zeus and they may be screwed". What's the difference...?
2006-08-25 09:42:41 · answer #6 · answered by ontario ashley 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am really so egotistical in my knowledge of history to see that religions have caused the deaths of millions and the destruction of more societies than one can count as well as the suppression of science and technology and even common sense knowledge. There has been no force ever conceived by man that has exterminated more than religions.
Who's stupid?
2006-08-23 20:43:07 · answer #7 · answered by sam21462 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Hedge your bets if you like, why should I care? But don't try to force your beliefs, values, morals on me. I have my own. And don't throw your money away on churches. As for intelligent design, it's non-science; just creationism with a fancy name.
2006-08-23 20:43:52 · answer #8 · answered by mlamb56 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
OMG...u r falling right into their trap. Do you think those muslims would have rammed themselves into the world trade centers if they weren't so gullable? NO! Christianity is no different...if you falter under those fear tactics you are just handing your brain over to whoever is feeding you this BS and wants to control you. Unfortunately the world is made up of a lot of people who can't see this and they DO falter under pascal's gamble...they cant relaize the only thing that is actually sent to hell by someones religous beliefs is our society.
2006-08-23 20:41:05 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
So what you're saying is that atheists should pretend to believe, just in case? No, if you're going to believe in God, you must have a true, deep and abiding faith. Not just a superficial belief, "just in case" God exists. Faith must be true.
2006-08-23 20:40:42 · answer #10 · answered by LindaLou 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋