christian, jew, muslim, pagan, agnostic, all of you?
I realise being human doesn't come with a manual. And the universe can seem like a cold and pointless place. And that this whole life thing can be hard to explain and even do, especially when you've got a bit of a brain and you think about these things.
But don't you think that saying 'god X did it' and following whatever arbitrary rules he/she/it/they/whoever thought of it set is a bit of a cop-out? I mean, once you accept any god the endpoint for any important question will be 'he/she/it/they did it'. It's easy, but it also seems limited.
2007-01-27 13:38:05 · 35 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Wow. Somebody actually said "Being a non-believer is a cop out because you can do immoral things and basically blow them off in your heart because there is no belief in a higher power watching you". Which to me says he would lie, murder and steal if he ever thought there is no god. Newsflash: humans can be compassionate and kind and just without gods. The can also be cruel, harsh and unjust with god. And anything in between.
2007-01-27 13:49:48 · update #1
SheiksOnAPlane, I don't know where you have been getting your facts but crime rates have been dropping all over. Sorry, your rapture is not coming today. And thanks for the personal attacks, a sure sign that I am hitting the mark.
2007-01-29 00:56:08 · update #2
more like intellectual suicide
2007-01-27 13:43:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 6⤋
my dear, there is no "easy way out" no matter what path you choose. As a Christian you have help in this life and eternal life to come but you also have an adversary after your soul who doesn't give up. So you have to learn spiritual warfare and how to use the spiritual weapons (prayer and the Word) that you've been given. Then of course there is always the struggle to say "no" to the carnal side of your nature and learning to yield to God and His Spirit. Nothing is "easy." And if you are not a Christian - well I can't even imagine what that must be like - with no help, no living relationship, no hope, no peace ---- no thank you
2007-02-02 07:37:09 · answer #2 · answered by wd 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is limited to some...I am a Christian, but I don't believe my church is the answer machine. I study science and religion for myself. There are many things that have been proven scientifically which are also biblical. The things we don't understand will be revealed after study, and research. Some believe it's not for us to know...that's because they don't understand that God designed us to be inquisitive...to seek truth and knowledge. If we don't we stagnate and become dangerous. Many modern medical discoveries were made by Christians seeking to cure those problems...we believe that God gave us a mind to do these things. It is pretty archaic to think that we can't use something scientific to improve our health or lifestyle when God's creations developed science. No! The Earth is not flat! Humans discovered it, and the archaic thinking people set the world back...we can't blame God for the mistakes of people.
2007-02-04 10:41:28 · answer #3 · answered by Jalapinomex 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well for many people it is a cop out, an escape from reality. That is differently a bad thing. If someone uses the easy way of by creating everything and blaming everything on their God, it most certainly does limit the mind. Particularly if someone takes their myths literally.
Now, I while I do practice a religion, I do not believe that the universe was created, I believe it evolved as did all life; and I do not take my religion (or any other religion's) mythology as literal fact, I see it as merely symbolic. I'm well aware that mythology is a collection of stories handed down. For me I practice a religion because I like to, I find it comforting, and because it makes me feel more connected to my ancestors.
2007-02-01 12:59:48 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
It's as fair question. I'm sure it will offend plenty of people, but your premise is certainly understandable.
I agree that often times "God" is used to explain things we don't understand. Whether this is simply the easy way out or not is going to depend on each individual's views. There are a lot of questions through time that humans haven't had the answer to. The explanation has been "a miracle of God". Later, science, or whatever, has been able to explain why the phenomenon occurred. Yet, there are still questions that we can't answer.
For some people, that answer is, and always will be, "God". For others, "God" isn't enough. It's a personal thing. I'm personally agnostic, but I don't view religion as a the easy way out. Just a different way. No better or worse.
2007-01-27 13:45:00 · answer #5 · answered by eastchic2001 5 · 3⤊ 2⤋
I like your question. Cold & pointless place, so wrong that God or a God has to sacrifice his only son to make it right? Only human? Yes, almost everyone suffers{sins} from a case of mistaken identity, brought about by the society & religion they were raised in. Believing a religion is really the hard way because alot of the truth has been lost to "beliefs". You see the truth of what I am saying because the truth is in you. Thats why you question. And in a way to, it is also harder to question than to go along with the herd & believe. Here is a truth someone once said "seek and you will find". You noticed he did not say "believe". So yes, you have a very good point.
2007-01-27 20:03:32 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
No, it's anything BUT the easy way out. It takes a lot of strength and integrity to live compassionately, to love and forgive those who hurt you, and to try to be the best person you can be. That's what my religion teaches, and even though I'm far from being the person that I should be, I have the merciful and loving Jesus as my example.
Believe me, it is not easy to forgive those who attack us Christians or call us names here at this forum, but that's what Christ commanded -- to love those who treat us badly. Even so, I'd rather do my best to live in peace and have compassion as He did, rather than be full of anger and bitterness.
And that takes a lot of very hard work sometimes.
2007-01-27 13:52:14 · answer #7 · answered by Wolfeblayde 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
It is the other way around my friend. Ever heard of the strait and narrow? By denying religion and the moral standards that come with many of them people would think they could do whatever they want and never be punished. Look at most of our laws today, many of them come from Christian and Jewish moral standards. Most of what we deem as right or wrong also come from such standards. People who accept most religions follow strict codes of right and wrong making there life honestly harder then people who do what ever they feel like. Those who deny religion believe as long as they aren't caught they won't be punished while those who follow God know they will answer for all evil they do even if in secret because God sees all.
2007-01-27 13:54:42 · answer #8 · answered by Joshua 2 · 5⤊ 1⤋
The easy way out is sleeping in late Sunday, then logging onto YAnswers over a bowl of Sugar Pops as you spam hatred against something you don't believe in, whether that's Bush or Clinton or Christianity or Islam. C'mon dude. The easy way out is talking instead of acting. And you know it.
But furthermore, the world has not become better as atheism has taken foothold in our schools and institutions of higher learning. Worse rape rates, worse violent crime rates, worse domestic violence rates, more gangs, more drug use. You may gloat that Christianity (which you seem to have a special problem with) failed. But face facts- your atheism isn't faring any better, or as well, in fact.
Time for people of mediocre intellect to quit playing the Einstein they will never be and to return to 'Love they neighbor', isn't it?
2007-01-29 00:36:49 · answer #9 · answered by SheiksOnAPlane 2 · 4⤊ 1⤋
really being a Christian is a hard life, we live with temptations everyday...but at the end of the day i can lay my head on my pillow and know that if I die in my sleep, I will be with the Lord, and that's a comfort, and well worth the put downs, the ridicules, people treating you different, saying mean things ...that's OK..if we are living the life of a christian , and truly trust and have faith in what the Bible says and in God...then nothing anyone can do or say will hurt me enough to make me turn from my belief's.....I'd rather die first....than to give up my Lord!
2007-01-27 13:56:44 · answer #10 · answered by purpleaura1 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
God has no limits...slogging thru life believing that you're nothing more than an animated bag of flesh, controlled by electrical impulses and a combination of hard-wired and learned behavior patterns with nothing at the end of life but a short-circuit and decay seems, at least to me, terribly limited...and i can only speak for myself, but being a Christian is NOT an easy way out...it's not an easy journey, but the destination is to die for!
2007-01-27 13:47:29 · answer #11 · answered by spike missing debra m 7 · 4⤊ 2⤋