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No, it's an answer all right, and it may satisfy you; it doesn't work for me, though. You are assuming that this is the reason most believers don't ever stop believing, but that's nothing more than speculation on your part. If I could come to realize, as a pretty young child, that Santa Claus is just imaginary, I am certainly capable, as an educated and intelligent adult, of doing the same thing with respect to God. And since I don't believe in "unremitting agony" for non-believers, fear is definitely not a motivating factor for me.
God - belief is an instinct. I know you don't agree and neither will Katspur, of course. But I'm merely saying what I think - and you know that I have good reasons for thinking it.
If I'm understanding you correctly, I actually agree with you more than you probably realize.
I believed in the Christian God for the same reason that I believed in Santa Claus: my parents told me he was real. I suspect this is true for a lot of people. But our parents eventually told us that Santa wasn't real (if we hadn't figured that out on our own by then). Not so for God.
So...why do so many adults still believe in God even though they gave up their belief in Santa as children? Isn't believing in God just as silly as believing in Santa? I realize that "God" can mean almost anything, depending on who you ask, but God is usually considered to be a person who can somehow watch over us and reward us / help us if we are "good." Why do so many adults still believe such a thing?
You can't stop blinking for half an hour - doesnt it tell you that someone else has more control on your body than yourself?
No, it's an answer all right, and it may satisfy you; it doesn't work for me, though. You are assuming that this is the reason most believers don't ever stop believing, but that's nothing more than speculation on your part.
Yes there are any number of deep psychological reasons that people believe in God(s), not just one single reason. That's what this thread is all about. Trout's point was simple: there's a lot of emotion tied up with belief in God, since the stakes are much higher than whether or not one gets gifts on Christmas. I simply agreed with him. I don't know what your personal reasons for belief are, I don't consider it any of my business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katzpur
If I could come to realize, as a pretty young child, that Santa Claus is just imaginary, I am certainly capable, as an educated and intelligent adult, of doing the same thing with respect to God.
The main reasons I didn't "come out" for so long were fear of disappointing older relatives and lightening insurance. I also think that some older relatives and other people I know or have known absolutely believed with no doubt. I really wanted that to happen to me. I think it would be easier to have faith than doubt. But I am not sure that is true because I can't prove it and I have this affliction that only allows me to believe things if they can be proven.
So you're saying that God gets his divine kicks by making my hand and fingers involuntarily twitch all the time?
No. God has given you control and choice on a significant amount of things - and he did not give you control on certain things. And the biggest of them two are your birth and your exit out of this world - you have no control over both.
If you think you are not subject to certain things and you have full control over everything then try not to blink for half an hour - it will tell you your worth.
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