Does intelligence factor into religious debates? Does it matter?
2007-03-22 15:40:40 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I only ask this question because I've been confronted with emails about my lack of intelligence.
2007-03-22 15:47:34 · update #1
I agree with you J.P. It doesn't take a smart person to be a believer, or a non-believer.
2007-03-22 15:48:24 · update #2
You too Cheshire Cat!
2007-03-22 15:49:21 · update #3
Nope. As far as I'm concerned, mentioning your IQ just destroys any credibility you might otherwise have had.
Hawking has a policy of ending any conversation and leaving when his IQ is asked. It's a good policy.
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Actually, it's more that IQ and 'smarts' don't mesh.
If you put me in a room with 99,999 randomly selected people, I would have a very high probability of having the highest IQ (statisticians: I just told you my IQ via standard deviation). However, someone with a lower IQ who actively works to learn, instead of just passively absorbing the information around him or herself, would likely be a lot 'smarter' than me, because that person would have an active stake in it... whereas I hold only a passing, moderate interest.
In short, he/she would probably care more than I do.
A person with a 220 IQ who never reads a book and spends his entire life playing World of Warcraft or Eve Online will probably have a lot less 'smarts' than a person with a 100 IQ who struggles through The Great Gatsby and pre-calculus.
IQ is nothing. Desire and imagination are EVERYTHING.
2007-03-22 15:43:48 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 7⤊ 2⤋
Well; only when I speak because I have a 149.5 I.Q. !!! On a more serious note, intellect for the most part, doesn't factor into the "equation". This is attributed to the whole issue revolving around spirituality and not religion. If it were an issue of religion, I.Q. would encompass everything. Spirituality, on the other hand, is based solely, in relationship - not I.Q., per sec.
P.S. People, who attack you and not the issue at hand, are the ones pointing the finger at themselves. It is a mark of a superior mind to attack the issue at hand but NOT the person presenting it.
2007-03-22 22:48:37 · answer #2 · answered by guraqt2me 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
High IQ? Bah! Who needs it??!! I have a 150-ish score too. But I'm also high functioning autistic with Tourette's and ADHD thrown in there too, so it's kind of hard to tell hehehe.
Intelligence does not factor into religious debates, except for the spelling and grammar aspect of someone's book smarts.
2007-03-22 22:59:22 · answer #3 · answered by Rapunzel XVIII 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well if you want to be 100% fair you can only argue with someon else who has an 149 I.Q
2007-03-22 22:44:15 · answer #4 · answered by zed10096 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Being a 146 I must say no for IQ is nothing more than the ability to problem solve and see outside what others deem as normal. It actually has no link to degrees, books or even wisdom.
I've know plumbers with IQ's of 140's and Doctors with IQ's of but 112. Smarts and IQ are separate, many confuse this separation.
Sucks being like us doesn't it.....I mean, few "get" what we say at times. I'm always like 3 yrs ahead of my friends and even after all the times I've said " see, I told you so " they still don't listen to half of what I say.
2007-03-22 22:47:51 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
I don't think it does. The siren song of religion is the promise of an afterlife, and we all - no matter how high or low our IQ - have a natural fear of death. And want to believe the promises. Hell, I STILL wish I could believe again. It would be wonderful beyond description to be reunited with my lost loved ones....
2007-03-22 22:56:51 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It matters if you use your intelligence to consider the other side of the debate. Otherwise you might as well just copy and paste your arguments which requires very little intelligence.
2007-03-22 22:49:33 · answer #7 · answered by Martin S 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Hey! You're I.Q. is the exact same as mine.
Frankly, I don't think that it's a large factor in religious debates. You don't need to be a genius to have your own ideas about religion or to regurgitate other's ideas about religion.
2007-03-22 22:46:16 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
did u know I.Q doesn't matter when it comes to faith, U just need to be able to think, and ask father in heaven, threw his son Jesus, and it shall be given unto u. What ever u ask in my name, so shall it be done. Jesus was smart, ask for wisdom. Jesus had to eat, ask for food, and so on.
2007-03-22 22:56:27 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
At 149 you should know all the answers. Don't tell me, let me guess..you make 5 million dollars a year, too.
2007-03-22 22:45:20 · answer #10 · answered by steve.c_50 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋