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I agree, 'good and bad' varies from culture to culture, from religion to religion and even within that from person to person.
We can only ultimately decide for ourselves the difference between right and wrong. I assume from what you have said so far that you use the Quran to decide that for you. Admittedly I don't pretend to know much about the Quran but I do know that every text is open to interpretation. Now I think that if every Muslim was a shining example such as our resident Woodrow LI here, the world would be a much more peaceful place, but even then I think some of Woodrows views such as treatment of women in Islam don't fall into my personal view of what is ethical (sorry not picking on you Woodrow).
I also know that the bible is littered with inconsistencies that Christians have to cherry pick through to decide which 'morals' are the right ones.
Atheists don't have any such ancient text. I live my life using one basic rule 'treat others as you would expect to be treated'. It's a very simple system and works extremely well.
Even on this forum, I would never say anything to anyone I wouldn't be prepared to say to their face in real life and I expect to be spoken to in a similar way. 'Treat people with respect' naturally follows.
Empathy is also another great leveller. Put yourself into another person shoes and imagine yourself as that person.
Simple guidelines like these are all you need. What never ceases to amaze me on this forum is the misrepresentation of atheism (not including you GoCardinals - this has been from my point of view a very civilised discourse) - that atheists are somehow bad people, when in my experience, nothing could be further from the truth.
Lets put it this way,
Hope your good deeds and your good thoughts will outweigh your short comings and your mistakes.
And God is pleased with you IF there is one out there.
And if it happened to be the God I believed in, I will tell him, "This Cruithne guy is a cousin, and a good friend".
If God wanted, he could create humans and keep throwing them in hell - no question asked. Why? because God is the creator and owner of the human being, and he can do WHATEVER he wants to do with them. God is not answerable to anyone!
So it's a mercy of God that he gave us choice.
So to answer your question with a reciprocal question,
Why does not man choose to accept God as his master and enjoy the fruits?
If denying God is a choice that leads to hell, then accepting God is also a choice that leads to heaven.
When man chooses to deny God, then this is also his own choice. God does not put a gun to the head of any person to believe or deny him.
Please tell me, why would you not jump out of an air plane without a parachute AT FREE WILL?
Why don't you put your hand in hot fire AT FREE WILL?
Why don't you jump into the cage of a tiger in a zoo AT FREE WILL ?
The answer is simple, you use your logic, intelligence and common sense to make the right choice that's not harmful to you.
Same is the case with believing and non-believing in God.
The believers have made a smart choice as per their logic, intelligence and common sense to avoid hell that is harmful to them.
That's all complete nonsense. What it boils down to is that (according to you christians) your god said, "Believe in me of your own free will or you will burn in hell." None of your twisting and spinning (fascinating as it may be to watch) can get around that.
So, thus my original point - if god truly wanted you to make your choice of your own free will, he wouldn't threaten you with eternal torture for choosing not to believe in him. That's like me pointing a gun at your head and saying, "Give me all your money or I'll blow your brains out." Then, when I'm arrested, I tell the judge, "Hey - I gave him a choice. Give me his money or I'd blow his brains out. He's the one who chose to give me his money; I didn't do anything to influence his decisions!"
Why does not man choose to accept God as his master and enjoy the fruits?
If denying God is a choice that leads to hell, then accepting God is also a choice that leads to heaven....
The answer is simple, you use your logic, intelligence and common sense to make the right choice that's not harmful to you.
The question that has to go out in front of yours is this: Is there any reason to believe that this god of yours exists and the holy book you subscribe to is his word? You are just spouting unsubstantiated asserted dogma. Demonstrate using logic, intelligence and common sense that the holy book is true and then we can move on to the next "simple answer". But first things first. Because the only way your contrived choice is "right" for anyone is if it's true in the first place.
You're simply putting lipstick on the pig known as "Pascal's Wager" and you haven't even demonstrated the merits of your constructed false choice, much less that other asserted deities don't have their own claims and demands on people.
So you think that for the crime of not believing in god, = the punishment of eternal hellfire is perfectly reasonable? And you call this 'justice'? You don't think that is a bit over the top as a punishment? In other words believe in me - or else! It's a choice! Except not really. LOL
That's all complete nonsense. What it boils down to is that (according to you christians) your god said, "Believe in me of your own free will or you will burn in hell." None of your twisting and spinning (fascinating as it may be to watch) can get around that.
So, thus my original point - if god truly wanted you to make your choice of your own free will, he wouldn't threaten you with eternal torture for choosing not to believe in him. That's like me pointing a gun at your head and saying, "Give me all your money or I'll blow your brains out." Then, when I'm arrested, I tell the judge, "Hey - I gave him a choice. Give me his money or I'd blow his brains out. He's the one who chose to give me his money; I didn't do anything to influence his decisions!"
I am not Christian so I can't speak for Christianity; however, to answer your point,
may be my assumption was wrong but please tell me why would you not put your hand in fire? What's your reason?
God does not put people in hell, they choose to go their. God gives them a choice, hell or Heaven, pick one.
As I said, we are here in this world, life was given to us without our choice, so let's deal with it.
4 - And let your heart honestly and bravely answer the question.
Nice as this sounds, it amounts to gravitating towards what appeals to you most, while pretending that the true god is "guiding" you. This will most likely lead a person to Christianity in a predominantly Christian society, since it's the path of least resistance. And the front-loaded assumption that the answers to life are in holy books and imaginary beings constrains the search for "truth" right out of the gate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoCardinals
And lets say, after your death you find that Yes there is a God but not the one you believed in, then you STILL have a better chance of attaining God's mercy when you say, "O'God, at least I tried to find you" - instead of saying, "I never believed in you".
Well in my case "never" isn't a claim that is valid. Nor is it for many, perhaps most, atheists at this point in history. Most of us tested various god claims, and many like me even believed at one time. The center simply did not hold.
So it comes down to the old boy's network in heaven, too, eh? BTW Cruithne is a gal.
That was only an attempt at humor with good wishes for Cruithne.
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