When you say "God exists" or "God doesn't exist", what precisely do you mean by "exist"?

Question

I mean.... just so we're all on the same page here.
Language can be a confusing thing sometimes.


So what does "exist" or "existence" mean to you?

p.s. Circular definitions will be heavily penalised. Replying that A means B and B means A when neither means anything but the other.... is not an acceptable definition.

[ To Jolly Roger :~ You just made the same mistake you were trying to avoid. I'm not looking for meaningless synonyms; I'm looking for a definition.]

Answer 1

I mean that if I can't smell / hear / feel / see / taste it nor any signs of its passing... with or without help..... then it bloody well isn't there!
If I can for any of 'em... then it might well be... somehow.

Answer 2

With "existing" I mean "being an object of valid perception" (which thereby includes merely nominal or conceptual objects). You can also describe the same thing as an "object of comprehension".

I'm sorry I can't give the whole picture in a short answer, but I have to commend you for raising the question, since this aspect is sadly missing from almost all discussions about what exists and what does not, which usually renders the answers strictly speaking nonsensical.

Answer 3

The problem when we talk about God is that all we have is human language to try and convey something that is too big for our small minds. Of course, when we say that he exists we simply mean that he is, that there is some form of existence out there we can't describe in words, but have experienced.

Phew, I don't think I'm clever enough to do this, but who is?

Answer 4

"To be manifest in any manner"


If I can detect X myself, or detect X's interaction with the world (or build a machine that can detect that interaction) under repeatable controlled conditions then it exists.

If I cannot, then either X not exist, or it does exist and has no material interaction with the world in which case we may as well assume it doesn't exist for the purposes of reality.

Answer 5

Existence is a reference to the ontological status of a particular reality or idea. Existence is equated philosophically with being, the most general property of all reality and the ground and conditioning subject of all metaphysical and empirical inquiry.

Answer 6

When I say that God exists I mean that I do believe that there is a God. I believe that He created this world and He created us. I believe that He is in control over everything.

Answer 7

Similar in essence to Amelie's reply:

"Existence" is before words. Existence precedes us, existence is ontically prior to the occurrence of our minds. Anything we say about it is in effect "too late." Anything we say about it is necessarily interpretive and essentially figurative.

Put lyrically -- anything we say about that which is more fundamental than our own minds must be a "poem."

"God" is a poem some persons speak to reference and celebrate that Truth that is more fundamental and original than any words.

(This is why many contemplatives choose not to speak of That at all. Their experience is of a truth they participate in once they have let go of their conceptual ideas and come to rest instead in something more experientially immediate and sober -- "a naked, blind feeling of being" -- the sheer clarity and obviousness of which they consistently report they would not trade for anything in this world. It is not for them, in other words, a matter of "belief," but one of a direct and conscious engagement. And the contemplatives outline procedural experiential methods for use for others to replicate that manner of experiencing.)

EDIT: This is all exquisitely simple ... but I just woke up this morning, and my own groggy mind's always already too late words ain't too gracefully poetic at the moment.
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Answer 8

Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except by Me."

Jesus said "I am life." Jesus is the ultimate "existence" because He is life itself. Without Christ, there is no life.

Jesus said, "there is life in the blood." God said, "He breathed life into Adam."

Anything that has life - has God. God gives life. God is life.
God holds all life together.

Without God, there is no existence.

Answer 9

I would say "is" or "is not" but that would also depend on what your definition of "is" is.

Perhaps a better way of saying it would be "is real" or "is not real".

Edit:
There probably will arise questions about what "real" means, espcially when you move away from things that are definitely real to those that may be questionable.

Answer 10

the existence of god is not the problem
its only an issue if you believe s/he can do physical things

Answer 11

well to be completely honest i think id have a hard enough time explaining how i exist. but im here in the "physical" and i think God is there in the "spiritual".