God Notes: A skeptic schematic

To be in my position is quite interesting when it comes to words.  After all it is these limited words I use to attempt to convey an experience or spark a remembrance in someone.  They are very limited indeed.  But, no word, in fact no subject brings up emotion like the word “God” does.  But how is it that this simple little word can bring up so much for all of us?  It reality IT doesn’t, it is of course our meaning which we give the word which does.

“Whenever I hear some use the word God or Jesus I immediately shut down.”

I recently saw the above line on a comment section of a UK newspaper.  It was in regards to a Vicar that was commenting quite harmlessly on Easter. 

I began thinking: "Of course you do, you have added much meaning to the words…and, only YOU have added that meaning.  I used to add meaning like that, I have now changed the meaning.  Now I no longer shut down…now I smile and my mind becomes open.

Here are some questions from the “thinking atheist” website:

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When I hear anyone saying the word, ”god”, I have a mixture of thoughts and feelings:

Here are a few of them:

1. What do they mean?
2. How dare they presume that I know what they mean?
3. How do they know?
4. Have they never been lied to before?
5. Have they not studied history?
6. Which of the many gods invented do they talk about?
7. Are all these gods mutually exclusive?
8. Why don’t they wait until all these gods fight it out among themselves and let us know the result?
9. What do their lives depend on: science or religion?
10. Do they count on their god or their engineers when they are flying or crossing a bridge?
11. Have they ever heard of Epistemology?
12. Don’t they see the self-serving power structure selling god?
13. If nobody ever told them, would they have invented the concept?
14. Based on what personal experience?
15. Do they know the difference between "know" and believe"?
16. How does their god resolve the conflict between millions praying for and against the same thing (like in a war)?

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I would like to answer some of these questions here.  

 

1. What do they mean?

What do YOU mean by “they?”  What this person is doing here is what’s called a “global” in NLP.  He is pointing at a group of made up people in his mind.  The people he is attempting to isolate are folks who say the word God…right?  Well that is most of humanity I suppose…even himself.  But we know that cannot be right, since he cannot be referring to himself in his own mind, so therefore it is a guess WHO he actually means.  To answer anything after this is quite superfluous.

But I’ll attempt to anyway since my mind is fabricating what his mind means by “they…” Plus it wouldn't be much fun without me assuming what he means.

2. How dare they presume that I know what they mean?

This “enemy” in his mind is more clearly defined and we are still only on his second thought when he hears the word “God.”  Who is this “they” he refers to? If he would be more specific (which persona said what/when) he would come up with a perhaps more lucid answer.  But could it be that is NOT his goal...could it be his ego does not really WANT to know?

Of course.

 

3. How do they know?

“know what?”

There is a God? How do you know there is not?  You don't...that is why you attack it.  More on this later.

4. Have they never been lied to before?

“Whom?”   

Everyone has been, is and will be.  You think you are sitting there writing this whole thing down and according to Physics that is NOT happening either. So therefore you are lying, to yourself.  Moreover everyone is lying to you and you are lying to everyone else.  When someone asks you how you are today, and you say "fine"...you are really lying since your parameters for knowing how you really feel are skewed.  Most of the time  we say those things automatically...aren't we "lying" in the purest form of the word?

5. Have they not studied history?

This line is very telling.  He now reveals he is carving down his theory of “they” to people who he believes have a history in religion and the wars that it “may” have spawned.  I wonder if he truly knows anything of that history?

Yes, I know much of History actually…and…? 

Will you now speak of wars?  Of Religion?  And then interlace the idea of God on top of them?  To what is YOUR war against anyway? What does GOD have to do with any wars?  Isn't it only the ego playing out through power hungry personas that uses the "word" God? 

 "They" distort the meaning just as "you."  "You" have much more in common with "them" than "you" think.

6. Which of the many gods invented do they talk about?

Here the person is creating an opposition to the “nothing” he claims does not exist.  But something powerful is prompting him…

The same one you crave as is so telling by the fact that you joined a website in “opposition” to the word (which of course you claim does not exist).  So why create an opposition to what is not real?  I am not on a site called “anti-unicorn, anti-winnie the pooh or anti-tinkerbell.” 

7. Are all these gods mutually exclusive?

Here the person is questioning the world in an extremely linear fashion…his whole argument is made up in his mind.  He assumes that everyone believes there are many Gods. He has some people, or groups in his mind he is NOT dealing with.  They are his true focus...not God.

But.

I know there is the One God which comes and may be seen as many. Since the thinking has to be multidimensional to understand that, you have to book a session with me to get the full impact. ;-)

8. Why don’t they wait until all these gods fight it out among themselves and let us know the result?

Here is some more projection.  As St. Augastine stated: “God created us in his image and we returned the favor.”

In some minds there is a possibility there may be a punitive God who will go “old testament” on you if you disagree with him, etc…

The observation is, that this questioner who asked all of this is no different than a dogmatic churchgoer he is attempting to address and separate himself from.  To him, God is punitive and to “they” God is as well.  They are ultimately the same although he sees himself as different. 

They would get along stellar...before they started a war with one another. Welcome to History.

 

9. What do their lives depend on: science or religion?

Neither.  It depends on God.

But you can tell the limited view and judgements of this person.  To him, religion is now GOD.  He is mixing the two and his whole belief system is skewed because of it.  Also, science is observational, science does not CREATE things, it watches and attempts to measure.  If this person understood the Heisenberg uncertainty principle he would also question his “science” part of this. Attempt to measure is different than measuring.  In Aramaic, measure means illusion.

The truth is, “science” has become a “religion” for this person.

10. Do they count on their god or their engineers when they are flying or crossing a bridge?

God.  But not “their” God; all of ours.  Yours too, your belief does not supersede the truth, it is only your belief.  Also, what made you think those engineers and God are somehow different?  Oh yes, because you somehow think God is separate from you and “them.”  More linear thinking.  I am certain this question actually seems to make sense to this person...It is exactly like thinking that since boats are present when a drawbridge goes up, that it is the BOATS that make the bridge go up.

This is NOT the case.

11. Have they ever heard of Epistemology?

I am not sure since I still do not know who “they” are and you have never really defined who "they" are yet. But speaking for myself yes I have. And?

Have you heard of created belief?  Epistemology is a way of saying we have no clue about what is truth so we argue and put it in a collective title such as “Epistemology.”

The following telling line is taken from Wikipedia: “Epistemologists argue over whether belief is the proper truth bearer”

In other words, these guys argue over what their beliefs are about beliefs.  Now THAT'S funny.

But truth and belief are two different animals.

12. Don’t they see the self-serving power structure selling god?

Hmmm, now this may be true.  BUT, I see a self serving power structure called the ego, selling EVERYTHING!  Why are you picking on only one?  What about every TV commercial, cruise line, airline, government & every business in the world?  Religious institutions have actually done NOTHING to ME (nor YOU) personally but these TV commercials have prompted me to spend thousands of extra dollars promoting my enhancement of my persona (means: “Mask” in Ancient Greek) if I just fork out a little more and BUY what they say I need to in order to make me more whole and special. 

It is telling you pick this one.  It shows you have an axe to grind with this one and that actually means you are torn on it.  You want it/need it somehow.  You are actually craving God. All your details (like spelling God without a capital “G”) is you going out of your way to try and “prove” others wrong.  This person is hurting, so they attempt to hurt.

 

13. If nobody ever told them, would they have invented the concept?

What concept?  Which religion, concept are you speaking about?  I would look googly eyes at you and pin you down on so many things you take for granted in your questioning.  Linguistically you are so filled with lost performatives and globals it is so difficult to answer all of these like I stated at the outset since I need to make so much up and add so much guessing into your questions since you really say or ask “nothing”.  You do not know what you are asking really in detail, so therefore your questions cannot be really answered. 

God, is known.  This is why you are so against it.  NO ONE ever really did anything to you in regards to God or you would have stated it.  What pastor raped you, priest robbed you?  What did God do to you?  You see, it is an old hatred, you attack it and take the time to write this in regards to something you say does not exist.  Again, I do not attack tinkerbell…you know why?  She doesn’t exist!   Many people believe in crazy things, which you leave alone.  But not God, hmmm…

 

One wonders why.  But we already know.

 

14. Based on what personal experience?

What do you mean by “personal?”  There is no “personal” to me nor in reality.  Personal is a made up concept…we point at something and say it is personal.  In reality…nothing is personal.  We just decide which concepts we want to keep secret (read: which make us more of an identity), to protect and keep special and call them personal.  When what we really believe is they actually make “us” more “us.”

Or do you mean scientific experience?  Again study the Heisenberg uncertainty principle.

 

15. Do they know the difference between "know" and believe"?

I was going to ask you the same question.  So…to what is your “evidence” to be based?  You do realize that EVERYTHING is really just a belief right?   Until you conceive that point you will scream from your armchair and hold yourself back.

To me what I know is what I know.  To you it is a belief, and vice versa.  But I do not attack your "beliefs" but you do to others.  This is the crux of this whole melee'.  You feel someone is imposing their beliefs on you.  Whom?  The religious right?  The government?  Coca Cola?  Yes, all of those are.  My point is why attack only ONE of them in return?  Every commercial you see is attempting to impose their beliefs.  

BUT, please remember you are still confusing religion and God.

16. How does their god resolve the conflict between millions praying for and against the same thing (like in a war)?

Because people make up (like you) what they wish to about God they think that God somehow has anything to do with all of this.  Did you ever consider it is YOU who have been duped by your own willingness to fabricate where the teachings of the Bible came from?  I sat with it, I studied it and realized men like Archbishop Athanasius, Bishop Irenaeus and King James, etc…changed quite a bit into what they wanted it to be.  Once again you confuse God with a book or whatever someone told you about it.  Can you possibly consider that it is YOU who are believing what you want to and making things up. YOU are believing THEM that a book called the Bible IS God so therefore you attack.  

If you want to know them, look in the mirror, because you are both exactly 100% the same.

 

Another statement from an email I have seen in regards to God:

Sometimes I think that God is a crutch for people, it would be so easy to say in hard times, everything will be ok because I know God has a plan for me, God will save me, etc.

Oh I just LOVE statements like this.

In my experience is NOT hard at ALL to be in YOUR position.  I remember how EASY it was to seemingly keep God away, to diss everything that is spirituality.  Now, the REALLY HARD thing is letting go and REMEMBERING the truth.  It is a CRUTCH for you to NOT believe...it is really work to believe (remember) since believing takes repetition and therefore work. 

In other words...it is a crutch for you and people like YOU to believe everything you do...since it is NOT the truth.  I remember what it was like to be you...and I know what it is now like to see things the way I do...NOW was MUCH harder...took far more courage and work.  So, I have BEEN in your position of fear and non understanding, now I am in another place.  So when you arrive you will know.

You think it's hard to have a baby?  Try NOT having one.  The inner turmoil and conflict and societal pressures are overwhelming and they extend into your future. You are always questioning and therefore always seeking. 

You think it's easy and a crutch to have faith?  It is the most difficult thing in the world actually.  Not to believe in the Bible or some pastor…but to really know God.  THAT is a difficult thing.  To surrender.  It is so obvious to me you are attempting to fight off the memory.

Just some thoughts I had about all of this…feel free to comment.