Is belief, or disbelief, in a higher power a conscious choice or are we born one way or the other?

Answer 1

there is a section in your brain that you are born with that deals with religious experience. You can deal with this one of 2 ways: 1) God put it there, 2) it explains away the existance of God and why we believe in him. That this area evolved to help keep societal order and explain away mysterious phenomenon like lightening.

Answer 2

We are born one way or other to that degree that the Souls that incarnate are on differenet levels of development. Very few are very advanced, a few are advanced, many are experienced and the majority are inexperienced. The more experienced Soul has already more wisdom accumulated in its subconscious mind when incarnating (at birth), such as more understanding about God and the laws of the Universe. When this person is then in the course of its life presented with certain concepts, they either "click" or they do not. There is a tendency for Souls to follow the same or similar belief in subsequent lifetimes. A very advanced Soul will be able to work out its own concept of God. A less advanced Soul will feel safer following the crowd, by joining an "official" religion, or settling for no belief at all.

So it is a little of both, to answer your question in just a sentence.

If the evolution of the Soul interests you, click on "Rational Spirituality" on the Dhaxem website.

Answer 3

In my opinion the belief of a higher power is a conscious choice. Yet some people raised in very religious have been trained all their lives to believe in a higher power, so they feel it comes naturally, like they were born that way.

I hope that there is a higher power just because I want there to be more than this life, and that the people that have died that I love are still around. The thought of not existing is scary to me, so to comfort myself I choose to believe in a higher power.

Answer 4

belief or disbelief in a higher power is just like belief or disbelief in any thing, its a conscious choice.

Answer 5

Most children believe in some higher power, even if it's only Santa Claus. But they don't hang on to those beliefs forever. It's a matter of logical thinking. People who maintain their faith must do so IN SPITE of logical thinking, so it's a choice...possibly a SUBconscious one in many cases.

Answer 6

I think we are born with a curiosity that innately recognizes the design of the Divine. It takes years of experience with fallen humanity to become as skeptical as some are around here.

Jesus said, "But if anyone causes one of these little ones who trusts in me to lose faith, it would be better for that person to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around the neck. "
Matthew 18:6

Answer 7

i became raised a Christian-Baptist. grew to alter into non-denominational. From there I grew to alter right into a Satanist, then an Atheist. Why? i began gaining awareness of with regard to the international, and then examine the bible from hide to hide, then in comparison it to the international. later on, i found out that devil in no way advised every physique that guy shouldn't lay with yet another guy, he in basic terms killed 10 people in the bible (in comparison to how many deaths have been by using God's "punishments"), and in no way pronounced that i became incorrect for doing issues I enjoyed to do. After awhile I in basic terms theory the finished supernatural being theory became in basic terms stupid and grew to alter into an Atheist.

Answer 8

its a conscious choice, but we seem to be born with an innate bent towards religious belief. primitive beginnings of religion began among pre-humans, such as neandertals.

Answer 9

It's a conscious choice.

Answer 10

God wants us—every one of us—to have a strong faith in Him. He wants us to have a faith that doesn't waver or come and go, and one that will be strong enough to see us through life's trials and temptations. Have you asked Him for this kind of faith?

Faith, however, doesn't just happen—any more than a strong body just happens. To have a strong body, you need to eat well, and you need to avoid things that could harm you or make you sick. You also need to exercise and take care of your body. The same is true with our souls. We need to avoid things that will harm us or make us spiritually sick, and we need to exercise our faith and put it into action. Most of all, we need to "eat" the spiritual "food" God has provided for us.

What is the "food" God has given us to strengthen our faith? First, He has given us His Word, the Bible. In it He tells us what He has done for us, and how we are to live in return. Then God has given us the privilege of prayer, so we can come into His presence and share our deepest concerns with Him. He also has given us other believers, who can encourage and guide us.

The Bible says, "Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come" (1 Timothy 4:8). Make sure you have committed your life to Christ, and then make use of the spiritual "food" God has given you to grow in your faith.