Does anyone else wonder why there are still people who believe in God?

Question

I am an athiest, and I definatly fell as if I am in the minority. I have always wondered how people can believe in something that fictional. And I know that it is a crutch for people, but If people could tell me why people continue to believe that would be great.

Sorry about all the errors, slow pc. Not enough patience to correct. Am not dumb just lazy.

"It's not fiction and it's not a crutch. My faith challenges me to be a better person -- to care for others that I do not know -- to forgive when it would be easier to hate -- to hope when it would be easier to be cynical -- to be spiritual rather than materialistic. God speaks to you with a small still voice if you will only listen. If you do it will change your life. It is not easy but there are great rewards." JOHN H

But I do all these things out of my own will and power and I do not need a mythical deity to help me. I am dependant on only myself. Everyone is but many do not have the strength to see theïr potential without the monkey on their back that is god.

Answer 1

No. I don't believe in God but I don't wonder about those who do. Their leaders keep stoking their greed and weakness. They wrap themselves tightly in a cocoon of ignorance and rather than loose their la la fantasy land of eternity they cling to what their leaders say. They will always be used by their leaders who see religion as a means of control.

Answer 2

It's not fiction and it's not a crutch. My faith challenges me to be a better person -- to care for others that I do not know -- to forgive when it would be easier to hate -- to hope when it would be easier to be cynical -- to be spiritual rather than materialistic. God speaks to you with a small still voice if you will only listen. If you do it will change your life. It is not easy but there are great rewards.

Answer 3

There are people who think and there are people who think they think, but only compute. Garbage in garbage out. Is there a god? Is their a universal consciousness that keeps this mess together? Is the whole thing just an electrical or chemical mishap that would best be ended? To believe in a deity just because one has been told it exist is mindless programing. To have a mystical experience that allows one to come in contact with a higher life/life-form, that is knowing there is a deity or what ever term one chooses to use. I use to question, now I know. And now those who think they think call me a crackpot. The only person who can answer your question is you. And when you find the answer the no thinkers will still thank you are a crackpot.

on this one you can't win!

Answer 4

An athiest does not believe because he does not have proof. I believe because I have proof because I have witnessed. If God wanted to reveal himself to you he would have, maybe he thinks you do not care that much. But we know you do because you are asking this question. All I can tell you is do not assume we know everything, you might be surprised with what you may find out. We are just human minds, we are in a early developmental stages of evolution, we know nothing. I do not understand how God works, but you are clueless if you think we are alone down here.

Answer 5

Bryan,
Why do you insist on requesting a reason for the belief in God?
There are beliefs that are held for whatever need they serve. It is not for me or you to question. Respect & acceptance is the key to peace.
I believe because I feel the connection within every fiber of my being. I cannot explain, nor to I need to justify.
We all have crutchs...food, sex, people etc. So what?!
If it somehow gives people comfort & it's not hurting anyone then let it be.
Can you tell why you do what you do, eat what you eat, live where you live...the list goes on. What if someone questioned your every choice?

Answer 6

I thought the same thing when I was an atheist.

I returned to judaism because when I looked at it with an open mind, without being forced, it answered many questions that I had, and it just felt right to me.

I don't use it as a crutch, but I do use it as a guide.

Answer 7

When I was once in your shoes, I kept asking myself how the enduring notion of God was so pervasive. After all, I thought, I am a smart person, so what was I missing. Add to that the couple of billion that believe in a Christian God (not counting other monotheistic faiths), I felt that the law of large numbers might be a data point for further study.

There are many things in the world we do not fully understand or “see”, yet we have no problems in believing them. For example, solar physics is not fully known, yet we all objectively accept, using faith and scientific discourse, the "fact" that the sun will rise tomorrow.

Why is it we can believe in many things using rational analysis, even when what we believe is only partially known, yet when it comes to matters like a supreme being, we suddenly want the "show me beyond a shadow of doubt" proof? As Aristotle once stated, "It is the mark of an instructed mind to rest satisfied with the degree of precision which the nature of the subject admits, and not to seek exactness when only an approximation of the truth is possible."

Persons that seek absolute proof of something are inconsistently applying logic and rationality, for they do not seek this absoluteness in all things. Hence, their epistemologies are not fully formed; they speak without proper understanding of the nature of knowledge.

Then I wondered what could give me more information. So I read a lot, reviewing both sides of the issues, and eventually went to the source of my doubts, this book called the Bible.

I read the bible as a literary book. But as I read it, I could not help but wonder at the consistency of its messages across 66 different books contained in it, written by forty vastly different authors, over a period of 1,500 years.

It became clear to me that no human beings could have planned such an intricate combination of books over a 1,500-year time span. Bible manuscripts (remember, there were no printing presses until 1455) have survived despite weather, persecution and time. Most ancient writings written on weak materials like papyrus have vanished all together. Yet many copies of the Old Testament scriptures survived. For instance, the Dead Sea Scrolls contain all books of the Old Testament, except Esther, and have been dated to before the time of Jesus Christ. Now consider Julius Caesar’s Gallic Wars. Only ten copies written about 1,000 years after the event are in existence. In comparison, there are over 24,000+ New Testament manuscripts, the earliest one dating to within 24 years after Christ lived.

I also discovered that this book, the Bible, contained an enormous amount of accurate historical accounts, some of which were clearly not a whitewash of history, given their brutality.

In the end, I could not rationally reject what I was reading as something fictional or with no underlying meanings for what I observed in the world around me.

Given the weight of the evidence before me, I realized that I had to believe that something outside of the world existed. And after forty years from that day, I have not changed my beliefs that I made the correct choice, even after a Ph.D. in engineering, teaching math, science, and physics at major universities, and once studying as a pre-med student.

So, I would respectfully suggest that you re-think your opinions and perhaps dig a little deeper as I once did forty years ago. You may be surprised at the outcome.

Accuracy of bible:
http://www.carm.org/questions/trustbible.htm
http://www.carm.org/demo2/bible/reliable.htm

Answer 8

I am a Christian and wonder why Atheist spend so much time thinking about something they don't believe in.
I believe in GOD because he is. You can try all you like to wish GOD away but you can;t seem to get him out of your mind, and spirit. The fact that you are here confirms this. I do not believe in Aliens from outer space. The last place you will find me is the UFO sites.

Answer 9

Let me tell you that I've been through heck in back in the short 15 years of my life but God has been here for me through all of it, the medical problems I've faced, the deaths and the depression. God can lift that in a second. You can't just give yourself inner peace. I'm glad that you are confident in yourself but God can give you things beyond your measure if you would just cry out to him and I tell you that one day theres gonna be a situation that you can't handle and I pray that you look to God because he is always there as he is now waiting for you to realize you can't do it all on your own.

Answer 10

What makes you the expert? I personally think you are totally wrong!

Fiction is what you read in books and watch on TV. Don't mix this with reality (and no, I'm not referring to "Reality Shows" on TV).

If I were you, I would explore other religions aside from Christianity to get a better picture of what is fact and what is fiction...