Why Some Rlgs Ppl Have No Respect?

[quote]pookie wrote:
1-packlondoner wrote:
I also have devout christian friends that go clubbing, treat women like shit, take every drug under the sun and STILL tell me that regardless of how I behave the fact I don’t believe means that come judgement day I am bang in trouble.

Scott Adams puts it nicely in his book “God’s Debris” (available for free here: http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris/ ):

[i]“Look,” I said, “four billion people believe in some sort of God and free will. They can’t all be wrong.”

“Very few people believe in God,” he replied.

I didn’t see how he could deny the obvious. “Of course they do. Billions of people believe in God.”

The old man leaned toward me, resting a blanketed elbow on the arm of his rocker.

“Four billion people say they believe in God, but few genuinely believe. If people believed in God, they would live every minute of their lives in support of that belief. Rich people would give their wealth to the needy. Everyone would be frantic to determine which religion was the true one. No one could be comfortable in the thought that they might have picked the wrong religion and blundered into eternal damnation, or bad reincarnation, or some other unthinkable consequence. People would dedicate their lives to converting others to their religions.”

“A belief in God would demand one hundred percent obsessive devotion, influencing every waking moment of this brief life on earth. But your four billion so-called believers do not live their lives in that fashion, except for a few.”

“The majority believe in the usefulness of their beliefs – an earthly and practical utility – but they do not believe in the underlying reality.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “If you asked them, they’d say they believe.”

“They say that they believe because pretending to believe is necessary to get the benefits of religion. They tell other people that they believe and they do believer-like things, like praying and reading holy books. But they don’t do the things that a true believer would do, the things a true believer would have to do.”

“If you believe a truck is coming toward you, you will jump out of the way. That is belief in the reality of the truck. If you tell people you fear the truck but do nothing to get out of the way, that is not belief in the truck. Likewise, it is not belief to say God exists and then continue sinning and hoarding your wealth while innocent people die of starvation. When belief does not control your most important decisions, it is not belief in the underlying reality, it is belief in the usefulness of believing.”

“Are you saying God doesn’t exist?” I asked, trying to get to the point.

“I’m saying that people claim to believe in God, but most don’t literally believe. They only act as though they believe because there are earthly benefits in doing so. They create a delusion for themselves because it makes them happy.”[/i][/quote]
thanks for the free link, I like the quotes.
Another book I have stumbled across is called “Science Friction” by Michael Shermer. It takes a more scientific approach to explaining topics related to this debate.
he has published several other books regarding these issues as well.

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
You could say the same thing about proper diet and exercise.

Most people KNOW that proper diet and exercise will extend their life, improve their health etc. and don’t do it.[/quote]

It’s not about belief here. It’s people prefering the short term payoff of eating a twinkie vs. the longer term payoff of exercise and proper diet. And it’s also easy to “cheat a little” and try to make up for it later. Also, they’re the only one involved.

But someone who really believes in an omnipotent/omniscient god knows that he can’t cheat or trick god… he’s not the only one involved when he disobeys a commandment and sins; or simply does not follow the teachings of some holy book.

Cheating on your diet doesn’t have the same implications as disobeying your creator, does it?

If god incarnated and was standing right there besides you, you wouldn’t sin (or you would, but then you’re a complete idiot). If you truly believe in god, you should act as if he really was standing there besides you all the time. Do you know people like that?

Again, I’m not sure “belief” is the right word here. They simply prefer the short term benefits now rather than the long term benefits later.

As for god, most people believe, or profess to believe only as much as it doesn’t become too inconvenient for them.

Of course, they spin a good yarn, talk is cheap after all; but when it comes time to walk the walk, suddendly, there’s nobody left.

It’s a fun read.

[quote]pookie wrote:
1-packlondoner wrote:
I also have devout christian friends that go clubbing, treat women like shit, take every drug under the sun and STILL tell me that regardless of how I behave the fact I don’t believe means that come judgement day I am bang in trouble.

Scott Adams puts it nicely in his book “God’s Debris” (available for free here: http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris/ ):

[i]“Look,” I said, “four billion people believe in some sort of God and free will. They can’t all be wrong.”

“Very few people believe in God,” he replied.

I didn’t see how he could deny the obvious. “Of course they do. Billions of people believe in God.”

The old man leaned toward me, resting a blanketed elbow on the arm of his rocker.

“Four billion people say they believe in God, but few genuinely believe. If people believed in God, they would live every minute of their lives in support of that belief. Rich people would give their wealth to the needy. Everyone would be frantic to determine which religion was the true one. No one could be comfortable in the thought that they might have picked the wrong religion and blundered into eternal damnation, or bad reincarnation, or some other unthinkable consequence. People would dedicate their lives to converting others to their religions.”

“A belief in God would demand one hundred percent obsessive devotion, influencing every waking moment of this brief life on earth. But your four billion so-called believers do not live their lives in that fashion, except for a few.”

“The majority believe in the usefulness of their beliefs – an earthly and practical utility – but they do not believe in the underlying reality.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “If you asked them, they’d say they believe.”

“They say that they believe because pretending to believe is necessary to get the benefits of religion. They tell other people that they believe and they do believer-like things, like praying and reading holy books. But they don’t do the things that a true believer would do, the things a true believer would have to do.”

“If you believe a truck is coming toward you, you will jump out of the way. That is belief in the reality of the truck. If you tell people you fear the truck but do nothing to get out of the way, that is not belief in the truck. Likewise, it is not belief to say God exists and then continue sinning and hoarding your wealth while innocent people die of starvation. When belief does not control your most important decisions, it is not belief in the underlying reality, it is belief in the usefulness of believing.”

“Are you saying God doesn’t exist?” I asked, trying to get to the point.

“I’m saying that people claim to believe in God, but most don’t literally believe. They only act as though they believe because there are earthly benefits in doing so. They create a delusion for themselves because it makes them happy.”[/i][/quote]
thanks for the free link, I like the quotes.
Another book I have stumbled across is called “Science Friction” by Michael Shermer. It takes a more scientific approach to explaining topics related to this debate.
he has published several other books regarding these issues as well.

[quote]pookie wrote:
As for god, most people believe, or profess to believe only as much as it doesn’t become too inconvenient for them.

Of course, they spin a good yarn, talk is cheap after all; but when it comes time to walk the walk, suddendly, there’s nobody left.
[/quote]

I think many people are not religious at all but that it is in fact a left-over from two thousand years imprinted on the human psyche and culture.

I don’t think that most people DO believe. You have the people like me that were not raised in a religious way at all, then you have the agnostics, who just seem a bit indecisive.

Then you have the ‘lapsed’ people of faith. Many people were raised being told about God and Jesus etc. and took it as fact in the same way as stories of the tooth fairy and Santa Claus, but when people grow up and see the world for themselves they often find truth and faith in more tangible things and the religious aspects of their past fall by the wayside, only rearing their head when the individual faces hard times (so many boxers in prison seem to find God for example), out of fear on their deathbed, or when a institution such a marriage looms.

In fact this last is even true of non-believers. I know many people who are atheists but who would still want to get married in a church as that is the ‘thing’ to do.

I’m not saying any of this is right or wrong - just an observation. Even I would get married in a church if it meant something to my future wife.

Just my tuppence worth.