Believers/Nonbelievers, What evidence would you need?

Question

What evidence could possibly be provided to convince you that you were wrong?

Atheists: What could you see that would make you believe God was real (not good or loving, but real)?

Theists: What could you learn or experience to make you doubt God's existence?

Atheists: If you saw God, would you assume you were hallucinating?

Theists: If your Holy Book was proven unreliable, and science explained the beginning of the Universe and the nature of life without God, would you believe?

Answer 1

As a Christian, nothing could make me doubt the existance of God.
And as for Atheist, ? The only thing most of them will accept is for God himself to come down and show all His glory, and even then, many are those for when that happens will shake their fists at God and scream "How dare you proove you exist, how dare you!"

Answer 2

Real? Maybe a documented miracle - something that couldn't possibly have been faked, has no natural explanation, and is quite evident - not to mention, could only have been done by a god. However, that would only suggest the existance of A god, not a specific one. Not much short of that though. Until I see some solid evidence, I won't waste my time with religion.

Answer 3

I'm an atheist.

The evidence I would need to believe in God is the same sort of evidence I need to believe in atoms, quarks, gravity, and the wavelike behavior of light.

Between theory and reliable observation, likely supported by mathematics, scientists will one day discover undeniable proof of the existence of God. By then, our conceptions of the nature of the Universe completely different from our conceptions now. Explaining God's existence will go hand-in-hand with explaining how the Universe works and what it's made of- the sorts of things we're trying to explain now with fumbling attempts like string theory and the search for Unification Theory. In the year 2006, Science is only in its infancy. We have taken some baby steps in explaining this world we live in; we still have a very, very long way to go.

Answer 4

So are you asserting the theory of evolution includes Jews starting to be apes and swine (Quran 5:fifty 9-60)? Or that Adam superior from an in the previous primate and became into not made out of pottery clay or darkish slime or regardless of like Quran 15:28 says? Islam is a hodgepodge of in the previous religions that have been oftentimes used in Arabia, and customarily attracts from the pagan religions of Arabia (Kaaba, black stone, Ramadan). the place does the Quran say the Bible is corrupted? What bearing directly to the "Quran project"? It makes the same project for the Torah in Quran 28:40 8-40 9. If the Torah is corrupted, how might all of us understand we had some thing greater helpful? What might we evaluate the recent e book to if the Torah is corrupted? Quran 3:ninety 3 says use the Torah as information in case you're elementary. If the Torah is corrupt, what might it tutor?????

Answer 5

The books that are commonly used to describe "god" are clearly false, and this is easily proven.

Therefore, does that discount the existence of a "god"?

No.

However, without the "threats" that are listed in the aformentioned holy books, I see no reason to care if there is a god or not. But if there is, and it was important to him that I know he existed, I'm sure he would have ample power to show me. (By perhaps writing his name on the wall with a flaming hand, or setting a bush on fire and speaking through it, or perhaps by having a donkey come up and give me a discourse on religion)

Any of these experiences, I would of course scrutinize. But if it was "god" doing it, I assume he would be pretty convincing.

Answer 6

I would need contact with an Omnipotent being. After that, I'm still not sure I would believe. The universe is SO huge... We, as a planet, are SO young. We feel advanced, but in truth, we are still a group of kids trying to figure out the what and why. I think we are an energy source (like the current coming straight out of the wall) and when we shed our shells and rejoin the collective energy, at least we'll have an idea. I hope anyways :)

Answer 7

Finding out Jesus had sex with 9 year old girls -- even if they are his wife. I've already commited to Atheism if anyone can prove that.

If God is totalitarian and deminds or throws you to your knees.

A good God does not force you to kiss his boot. An even greater God would stop you from doing it on your own.

God does not want snivelling weasels worshiping him.

If God demands I kill for him, directly and personally. I don't worship a two faced God who commands NOT TO KILL and then says verbally go kill for me. God can do God's own dirty work.

I can't imagine God having any respect for me if I go kill when asked after God said for 5,800 years DON'T KILL.

Obviously I don't take God at his word!

If more than ONE culture of Space Aliens came and didn't have a religious or spirtual origin for all there is. That would make me ponder things, not stop believing, just ponder things. I'd have to hear what they say created all, but the sheer fact of them coming here and more than one species would have an impact on my thinking process.

If I got to Heaven and Adolph Hitler and Charlie Manson and Bonnie and Clyde were there, I'd want to know more about why they are there and WHO actually went to HELL.

A lot here would be determined by the explaination.

I don't live a good life and DO WITHOUT in the material world to find out that fornicators, murderers, rapists, pedophiles and theifs get to go to heaven automatically. If so, what's all the stuff in the Bible about. What's all the THOU SHALT NOTS all about.

Like I said, I don't like two faced Gods.

Answer 8

In response to your additional details -- yes, if I were to "see" God, I'd assume I was having a stroke, or some kind of psychotic episode. Such things have actually happened to stroke victims, so it's not out of the ordinary. My original answer given below stands. That's what I'd need to see.

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Usually people who ask questions in this forum are so insulting I don't bother to answer. But your question is polite, neutrally worded, and very interesting. I thank you for that.

As a confirmed doubter, nothing could turn me into a believer short of seeing someone I know to be dead resurrected before my very eyes. Were I to see THAT -- I would not believe -- I would KNOW.

Great question. Cheers, mate.

Answer 9

To make me believe in god, I would have to interact with an apparition which made a convincing case that it was god. Since god presumably knows everything, I would request an explanation of the Ultimate Theory of Everything, incorporating general relativity, quantum mechanics, and an explanation for the observed values of masses and physical constants. Einstein spent years looking for such a theory; he never found it, and neither has anyone else.

Answer 10

Simple test. Do something that does not adhere to our natural laws currently. Make gravity affect different people differently (that should be the simple task of changing the Cavendish constant). Make light go slower/faster than it currently does. Make the atomic weights of things change.

God's omnipotent, right? Should be an easy task to do - and it would be verifiable in a laboratory. Proof positive.

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Second question: If I "saw" god, I would assume I'm hallucinating, yes. I trust my eyes not to decieve me, but I also trust that if I'm experiencing something new and unexplainable, I'd have to test to see if what I'm seeing is in fact there.