Are Christians mistaking their own intuition for God's voice?

Question

Catholic Crusader, this question was not meant to antagonize anyone. I respect everyone. However, I am just discussing what I think is a possibility. If the question offends you, don't answer it. You have that freedom, you know.

Answer 1

Why are Christians the target of these antagonistic posts? I don't care what you say, I have been watching the questions here for quite a long time, and at least over 90% of anti-rligious questions are aimed at Christians. Why is that? If you think that God is a fairy tale and religion is bad, then why don't you include Jews, Muslims, or Hindus in this question? Well, I know one big reason why: Because Institutions of Higher Learning (what a joke!) have systematically attacked Christianity and indoctrinated their minds-full-of-mush students into believing this garbage. Most of you attackers come out of a post-christian cultural situation in which blaming Christiasnity for everything is acceptable and politically correct. In fact, bigotry against Christians (and especially Catholic Christians) is one of the last acceptable prejudices in America. If you insult a homosexual or a Muslim you have commited a hate crime. Insult a Christian and you're a hero at UC Berkeley. These attacks are better proof than any other proof I know of that Christanity is the true religion: Why else would the world attack it so hard?

Answer 2

It never ceases to amaze me how a clear majority (christians) can cry oppression when they are the oppressor. How can a minority of 8% oppress a majority of 78%.

Crusader is the classic religious right fundy, participating in groups that seek to oppress theminorty while crying oppression. I believe the reason these people act this way is that deep down they know the wrong that they do and compensate for it by pretending to be victims as well.

As to the question - I believe that christians and people of faith in general do themselves a tremendous disservice. They always claim that is was the voice or god, or the acts of god that are to be given credit for their success or luck. They do not take credit for results that are schieved by hard work and dedication and the efforts actually came from within.
I believe that this part of their conditioning that helps to reinforce the control that the church wishes to maintain over them. So inner thoughts are really gods voice, and great achiements are gods will and gods work.

I find that so demeaning and insulting.

On the other hand the voice of god could also be a psychological disoder and an audible halucination.

<ٕ>ٳ<~ Evolve

Answer 3

It's not my own intuition at all, in fact sometimes it goes against what I'd do lol. My own base self says that someone who has injured my family and set fire to my life deserves to be hurt by me in any way I can think of. But the Bible (the voice of God, btw) says to treat my enemies well, give them food, drink etc. So, the voice of God is Scripture, and that's what we hear when we say we "hear God's voice".

Answer 4

A lot of people are sincere in what they believe. Centuries ago people believed that the gods of war caused thunder. We now know that their sincere belief was superstition. At one time people also believed the sun rotated around the Earth. Then Galileo demonstrated that this isn’t true.
When you get right down to it, no one really wants to look very closely at faith and spirituality, life and death. We’d rather live for today and not be worried about tomorrow. It’s a lot easier to be sincere, do the best that you can to live a good life and hope that it’ll all count for something in the end.
Where is truth found? When it comes to being free, the Bible contains a very interesting concept in John 8:32. It says when you know the truth, the truth will set you free. Jesus himself is the truth that sets us free. He’s the perfect standard of what’s right. Jesus frees us from the consequences of sin, from deceiving ourselves and from the deception of Satan. And He clearly shows us the way to life after death with God. Jesus not only gives us freedom to do what we want but also the freedom to be all that God designed us to be.
While it may be politically correct to say that all religions lead to God, it’s just not possible. If you start examining different religions, you’ll see that their essential concepts — God, truth, reality, the basic problem of humanity and the solution — are very different. Sometimes they actually contradict each other.
Honestly compare Jesus to all the other religious leaders in the world. When you do, there will be no doubt in your mind why you should choose to follow Him.
Christianity isn’t about a set of ideas that we believe; it’s about a relationship with Jesus Christ. All other religions — including Wicca — tell us what we need to do. Christianity tells us what God has done for us.

Answer 5

This is a very good question. I'm an Ordained Bishop and a devoted follower of Jesus Christ (not necessarily in that order) and I believe that at times, sincere people mistake their own desires and intuitions for God's voice. When I feel that God is speaking to me, I must check what I feel or sense with the Holy Scriptures and prayer. If their is never a settled peace in my heart, then I must believe that it's not God speaking. If we truly desire to know the truth, God said He would reveal it to us. There is so much more I could add, but hopefully this will help.

Answer 6

I believe so. Perhaps it's because they are conditioned to believe that they are worthless and sinful creatures, destined to fail in every attempt at life without the thought of Jesus. From this point foward, anytime they feel an intuition that fulfills an agenda, they claim it's God talking to them.
President George Bush has claimed he was told by God to invade Iraq and attack Osama bin Laden's stronghold of Afghanistan as part of a divine mission to bring peace to the Middle East, security for Israel, and a state for the Palestinians. However, God never told him about the weapons of mass destruction.....hmmm

Answer 7

Of course. I think a lot of organized religion is basically an indirect form of solipsism. It's amazing how God happens to agree 100% of the time with every fanatic and zealot out there--not that fanatics and zealots make God in their own image or anything like that.

They never actually test the voice to see if it's God or just their imagination. If I propose a test like "OK, have God tell you the first number on page 300 of your local phone book then go look it up", then they're come out the the age-old cop-out, "Thou shallt not test thy God." Just another reason I think that religion is only the product of human imaginations...

Answer 8

Interesting thought...but what if it is the reverse...what if non-believers are mistaking God's voice for their own intuition? What if that "knowledge of good and evil" thing that our ancestors just had to have caused us to develop the ability to hear the voice of God telling us what is good (and also allowed us to hear voices that urge us to do evil). What if that thing you call intuition is really God speaking to us...warning us about the evil around us. What if, by simply acknowledging that the voice is from God and not merely a product of our own mind, we are able to become better attuned to his voice...that our "intuition" becomes stronger allowing us to more easily avoid things that can harm us?

Answer 9

You're assuming the existence of intuition. Sure, we have an inner voice (whether it's what you would call intuition or not is another debate), but it's not the same as God's voice.

Answer 10

Yeah, I think so. We all have "intuition" and conscience that sometimes influences our actions from what feels like a different part of our consciousness (I think some famous psychologist called those mental voices the "chorus", but I forget who) . Religious folks seem to like to attribute those natural, normal aspects of the human psyche to external influence from god. Just as they like to blame normal sexual and violent impulses (the id) on the devil.
I guess none of them really get to think or feel anything for themselves...

Answer 11

It is my experience that christians don't rely on their own intuition so much as they rely on what they've been taught from the bible.

I applaud anyone who trusts their own intuition over that of someone else. If they think its coming from God, that's a step in the right direction, so long as it comes from within rather than without.