Why one earth would you WANT a supreme deity--someone who judges every move you make as a human being?

Question

"I have something to say to the religionist who feels atheists never say anything positive: You are an intelligent human being. Your life is valuable for its own sake. You are not second-class in the universe, deriving meaning and purpose from some other mind. You are not inherently evil—you are inherently human, possessing the positive rational potential to help make this a world of morality, peace and joy. Trust yourself."

-Dan Barker.

What's so bad about believing in yourself? What's so wrong about giving into your desires (so long as they don't hurt others)? What's so shameful about sex before marriage or material possessions? What's so bad about having pride or envy or lust or occasionally glottony and sloth? And heck, even occasionally feeling wrath in your lifetime is good for your mental health.

WHY would you want to believe in a God when you can believe in YOURSELF?

"It is by faith in him where I find the strength to over come my weaknesses."

You can't overcome your weaknesses on your own or through the support of your family and friends? How sad.

"Why on earth do you atheists care what anyone else believes?"

I don't care. You guys always ask how we atheists can handle not having a God--I want to know how you can handle HAVING one.

"Having faith allows a person to be humble and not turn out to be know it all's like you. This way one does not have to carry the weight of the world on their shoulders."

Who said I was a know it all? I didn't give a shred of scientific data in this one.

And I don't carry the weight of anything. Only religious people carry the weight of things on their shoulders--doubt, anger, hate, sadness, guilt, shame...

"Sex before marriage can lead to mostly physical relationships, leading to a higher chance of breaking up, which leads to higher chances of divorce."

My parents had me when they were eighteen. Got married at nineteen.

They've been married for seventeen years, with very few problems.

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Alright people, let me get this straight: I'm not claiming to be right. I'm not claiming to be wrong. I don't know where people are getting this "arrogant" thing from when I've not bothered using a rational appeal in this question.

Everything in this question has to deal with MY feelings, and I was simply wondering why people would want to believe in God (particularly the Christian one).

And no, I am not discouraging believing in a god at all--I feel that believing in a god so much that you can no longer have any fun is sad and unhealthy, but again, that's just my opinion.

I was simply stating my opinion on the matter and I wanted to hear other opinions.

I had no intention what-so-ever of sounding "arrogant" or like a "know-it-all" (both of which, again, I don't understand...but okay.)

Perhaps things come across different on the computer than they do in my head.

So, if you were offended, I apologize.

Answer 1

My first instinct is to say "ughhh" and move on.

But Im going to answer seriously because I feel that you've asked seriously.

1. God created you. You (and the world) did not just spontaneously appear. God might just have a good idea about what makes you tick.

2. He is a perfect judge.. but not to be a jerk. It is because He is perfect. Without him.. we can only measure ourselves against our peers. Unfortunately everybody falls short of perfection. In this way He makes a perfect measuring stick for sin... and the perfect judge for it.

We live in a fallen world. Sin only goes to harm us... in ways you clearly do not understand.

If you would just accept your sin, you then could look to what you need to be saved from it.

But since you have no sin, you will not look.

I am Christian. What does that mean? That I am without sin? NOOOOOO! Im as much a sinner as anyone else in God's eyes.

We are saved only by the Grace of God. Not through works.

Your question is arrogant. Perhaps since you know so much, you are more powerful than God andwe should start worshipping you?

Not likely.

The only way you can improve your life is to accept your faults.

Howabout starting there.

And when you add faith... go to a local church and they should give you a free Bible.

Give it a read, you seem intelligent enough to get what is inside of it. You just lack the faith to begin your journey. There are some very important places you need to go, and you can't get there without God.

God Bless You.

Answer 2

If you believe in God or not, he is real and he believes in you. You are right in many aspects. Most of humanity is intelligent.Our life is valuable.God has never considered any of us second class. Where did you hear that? He would never give his sons' life to save us if we were.We are also not inherently evil. We are born into sin because of what Adam and Eve did. We are human and God realizes this. He knows we are not perfect but he does want us to try to do right.We all do have the potential to make the world a better place. Sad because so many still just make it worse.God knows all of this other stuff is going to happen. Lucifer is on this earth. We will all do things we really shouldn't. We have to try though. Read the book by Doctor David Dyer. He will tell you how to be totally happy. You walk on a lot of people to get there though. This is what God doesn't want.

Answer 3

Because as a person, we can fail and we make mistakes.

There is nothing wrong with believing in yourself, but when a person does this to the point of self-centeredness and hurting others in the process, then it crosses the line.

As a Christian, I have made the choice to believe in God, largely because I love the teachings of real Christianity. It is where we learn the gifts of love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith, humility and self-control. These attributes serve me better in the long run, and make me a more pleasant person to be around. It also helps me to do my part to make the world around me a better place to live in.

Think of what happens when you put yourself first in every situation. And then think about what happens when you use wisdom and discretion to determine whether to take care of yourself, or to help another person. When you do that, the world improves.

Answer 4

Some people have anecdotal proof (not scientific, unfortunately, but not necessarily untrue or delusional, either) of spirits or God or deities or whatever. You see something you can't explain, you might believe something other people don't.

Most people are in basically the religion they were in as children. They may not even believe it that much, but they enjoy the social aspects of going to church, connections, references, activities, etc.

Some people feel humans are pathetic and born with original sin or something like that. Some people are very down on humanity, and you can't just get rid of insecurities that easily. It means THEY feel pathetic, too...how many people can you think of who feel pathetic? Worthless? Hopeless? For these people, religion is kind of a support group, and it's too bad they aren't very self-confident, but whaddaya gonna do? It's a common problem.

For some people, religion is nice, fulfilling, pleasant, even uplifting or inspiring.

There are lots of reasons behind religions. I can't condone religions that restrict people's individual growth or well-being, whether they're cults or merely very mean, nasty religions...but there's a lot of stuff in the world I can't condone. If a religion makes a person better, then that's OK. If a person is truly better and makes the world a better place because of their beliefs, then that's OK.

It's better than being miserable and depressed.

Answer 5

Actually, there is nothing bad about any of the things that you mentioned...but not everyone who believes in a supreme deity thinks that there is. You cannot judge all religions or believers based on the teaching of a few. There are several people, particularly in the Pagan community, who feel that all of those things are perfectly acceptable and still believe in a higher power. There are plenty of other alternative views to look at besides Atheism, Christianity, or Islam before making such a broad statement....

Answer 6

well, i agree with you completely. Im sorta in the middle. I believe but, i have my doubts. Humans (us) are extremely amazing. There is nothing else on the planet or universe (that we know of) that comes even close to having the same brain power. We have great potential without the help of some superbeing. Some people believe in SOMETHING for the fact that when you die what happens? My friend... my best friend said to me one day, how can something as great as life end in nothing? Thats a good question, do you just become non existant or do you really become something else or go somewhere else. Even with our great intellect, i dont think anyone could ever accurately imagine what becomes of us once we die. I guess thats the most difficult subject for our brains to compute. Not believing is, in a sense, the easy way out. Im not saying you're wrong but whos to say you're right? Or me or the next person? It takes alot to put faith in something your whole life just for one defining moment, death. At that point everything is made clear. One way or another.

Answer 7

Why separate God from the Self in the first place? Some people choose what they believe as a result of being turned off by what others believe. This I understand because some people are very pushy and fundamental in their religious views.

Yet when I, as an individual with an inquiring mind and experience of suffering as a human, looked beyond myself, well indeed, there was a presence there. I do not care what others call this presence. I call Him Father.

There is a huge difference between being spiritual and being religious. From what I read I am not sure that atheist recognize this difference.

Answer 8

Why do you care about why others believe? Plus, having excessive pride, envy, lust, sloth, and gluttony is indeed bad if it is not controlled. As a Christian, I do not believe that people are free from those, but at least when we strive to put those feelings down, we try to better ourselves. That is what the idea is at least. Because pride can lead to others feeling put down (pride in this sense is hubris). Envy can lead you to feel bad about your material possessions (bad feeling). Lust can hurt another person if its not consensual, and some people may regret it later. Gluttony, well that leads to bad health unless you have extremely quick metabolism, or dont get addicted to anything, which is highly unlikely. If you are a sloht, you dont get much done. If you dont suppress feelings of wrath, you can hurt others.
I am not one of those Christians that say that being an atheist is wrong, but I do believe that you are jumping to conclusions without looking at it from others' points of views. I hate Christians who shove religion down others throats and I hate atheists who shove their beliefs down others throats. Live and let live.

Answer 9

I really think that it's easier to handle the stresses of day to day living if you can convince yourself that there is some great god watching over you and protecting you. Some people apparently need that type of security blanket to make it through life.

Which is all well and good as long as they realize that not everyone wants or needs to live by their beliefs.

Answer 10

My dear child,you have only been on this planet for a minute,and mankind 2 mins,so why would I not worship a God that can create a Universe with planets ,people and things ,when man can only use what is already created from God?
I cannot deny nor would I be so arrogant and foolish to believe mans word ,whoever the heck they may be ...can Rival Gods' Magnificence.