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I've been never so conflicted in my whole life..BUT in reading here..It's apparent that those that preach God is Perfect and yet declare Human's on earth are so evil, wether it's politicians, or certain religious affiliation humans or cultural ones.
SO..My question is..according to Christians Purists..GOD makes NO MISTAKES..Yes or NO..Then say..It's God's will to confront it ..demonize it and declare WAR on "GOD's Creation??
Can you see my dilemma ?? Of course personally I am not so confused to accept Purist's interpretations of biblical texts. God creates ( at least the souls) life..and it's how humans treat each other that actually is the TEST..Outcomes and behaviours demonstrates to HIM just what level of "Humanity" that soul has reached..
In the meantime..Political Climate NOW proves Humanity required a WHOLE NEW Growth ..Whether you are Religious or not..It's rather obvious Humanity is off the rails in America..which was the beacon of freedom..Not so NOW!! Ohh unless you **** or belong to the Correct group...
The reason I'm so confused is..Just what is it that some think is the Goal of Christians? Because I am so NOT on board with so many who claim to be Christians.. AS they blame, bash, and declare hatred towards anyone who doesn't agree 100% with a very NARROW view???? I always believed God wanted Unity?? Guess I am wrong..at least according to American Politics right now
That is quite a dilemma and not a new one. A Christian would probably tell you not to worry about it and trust in God, but you can't easily switch the brain off. All I can suggest is a sort of Christian humanism. Make humanity your highest ideal and recognize that we are far from perfect - but we could be far worse than we are. We live together is Reasonable amity to an astonishing degree. Let God have some time off and let humanity take the strain.
That is quite a dilemma and not a new one. A Christian would probably tell you not to worry about it and trust in God, but you can't easily switch the brain off. All I can suggest is a sort of Christian humanism. Make humanity your highest ideal and recognize that we are far from perfect - but we could be far worse than we are. We live together is Reasonable amity to an astonishing degree. Let God have some time off and let humanity take the strain.
Did Jesus teach some sort of Christian humanism ?
Jesus gave us the illustration of the neighborly good Samaritan.
We are to widen out, or broaden out, in showing love even to strangers in their time of need on a one-on-one basis.
Jesus fed some, cured some, resurrected some, but his main focus was teaching - Luke 4:43 - about God's kingdom.
Jesus gave his followers the same teaching assignment - Matthew 24:14; 28:19-20; Acts 1:8
Meaning we are to tell others the wonderful works Jesus performed was a small preview, or coming attraction, of what Jesus will be doing on a grand global scale during his coming 1,000-year governmental rulership over Earth when even enemy death will be No more on Earth - 1st Corinthians 15:26; Isaiah 25:8 - truly good news coming for mankind.
Did Jesus teach some sort of Christian humanism ?
Jesus gave us the illustration of the neighborly good Samaritan.
We are to widen out, or broaden out, in showing love even to strangers in their time of need on a one-on-one basis.
Jesus fed some, cured some, resurrected some, but his main focus was teaching - Luke 4:43 - about God's kingdom.
Jesus gave his followers the same teaching assignment - Matthew 24:14; 28:19-20; Acts 1:8
Meaning we are to tell others the wonderful works Jesus performed was a small preview, or coming attraction, of what Jesus will be doing on a grand global scale during his coming 1,000-year governmental rulership over Earth when even enemy death will be No more on Earth - 1st Corinthians 15:26; Isaiah 25:8 - truly good news coming for mankind.
Whoever wrote those ideas, they are open to consideration - in view of a changing society, too. All sorts of mediums - books, films, plays -can make us think and question. But we should not just accept these suggestions or exhortations as valid without question. Certainly not just because they are in a Holy Book.
I want everyone to close their eyes and think of our universe and the life that's in it......think about animals, plants, weather, etc. Really contemplate this.....every aspect of it. Our universe runs like a well-oiled machine.....in every way. Animals that are born and know what to do without being taught, the way the earth is situated in the perfect position making life possible, the way the seasons change and everything and everyone adapts to it, etc. All of these things can be explained scientifically, but that doesn't mean something bigger isn't responsible for it. Everything is too perfect to be an accident or a giant coincidence or a fluke. Events in the Bible have been proven to be true time and time again. Just about everything that was prophesied in Revelations and the Old Testament has come to fruition. It's hard to believe this universe exists so it's not a stretch to believe that God exists and is the Maker of this wonderful place! We don't have all the answers, and we're not supposed to. We have been given enough evidence as proof of His existence, and it'd be selfish of us to refuse a little faith. That's all He wants.....our faith and to save our souls eternally. To give us eternal life in paradise, and all we have to do is believe, have a little faith, let Him love and guide us.
Some notable intellectuals who believe in God and made the list are:
1. Andrew Magdy Kamal – apparently the highest IQ ever recorded, at 231.734.
2. Abdessellam Jelloul – apparently the highest IQ ever scored by an adult- an adult IQ of 198
3. Christopher Michael Langan – has a verified IQ of at least 195
4. Christopher Hirata – has a verified IQ of 225
5. Evangelos Katsioulis – has apparently scored a 198 as an adult.
6. Rick Rosner – has apparently scored a 192 as an adult,
7. Mislav Predavec – has apparently scored a 192
8. Gary Kasparov – is alleged to have an IQ of 190
9. Kenneth Ferrell – has apparently scored a 190
I want everyone to close their eyes and think of our universe and the life that's in it......think about animals, plants, weather, etc. Really contemplate this.....every aspect of it. Our universe runs like a well-oiled machine.....in every way. Animals that are born and know what to do without being taught, the way the earth is situated in the perfect position making life possible, the way the seasons change and everything and everyone adapts to it, etc. All of these things can be explained scientifically, but that doesn't mean something bigger isn't responsible for it. Everything is too perfect to be an accident or a giant coincidence or a fluke. Events in the Bible have been proven to be true time and time again. Just about everything that was prophesied in Revelations and the Old Testament has come to fruition. It's hard to believe this universe exists so it's not a stretch to believe that God exists and is the Maker of this wonderful place! We don't have all the answers, and we're not supposed to. We have been given enough evidence as proof of His existence, and it'd be selfish of us to refuse a little faith. That's all He wants.....our faith and to save our souls eternally. To give us eternal life in paradise, and all we have to do is believe, have a little faith, let Him love and guide us.
Please let's not turn this into yet another I.D discussion, let alone, evolution. But to give an answer, yes - it is counter intuitive to suppose that the incredible complexity and design of the universe came about naturally. But, when one looks into it, that is actually the way it looks.
I've never heard of any of the people on the list from the obviously biased web site, nor do I care what they believe. Why should we care about the IQ of Dawkins or Gervais, again?
BTW, can you explain what the real, practical difference is between the thinking ability between somebody with an IQ of 145 versus the thinking ability of somebody with an IQ of 185?
I've never heard of any of the people on the list from the obviously biased web site, nor do I care what they believe. Why should we care about the IQ of Dawkins or Gervais, again?
BTW, can you explain what the real, practical difference is between the thinking ability between somebody with an IQ of 145 versus the thinking ability of somebody with an IQ of 185?
The difference is in the degrees of problem-solving skills.
Can someone with such an advanced level of intelligence possibly submit themselves to the God of the bible? The common thread with these individuals is an extreme obsession with their craft. Also they might believe in an “intelligent design”, but not biblical principles. I’m not sure if God would appreciate someone giving most of their lives to their craft, but not to Him. However they have impacted how we see and understand this world. Some of the scientific discoveries on how vast and complex this universe can be has helped strengthened my faith in God’s existence. Then you have people like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates who have revolutionized our lives through technological innovation. I wonder if a believer who is endowed with a genius mind can make that same impact in the world and still be right with God?
Wikipedia
Religiosity and intelligence
The meta-analysis discussed three possible explanations: First, intelligent people are less likely to conform and, thus, are more likely to resist religious dogma, however this theory was contradicted in mostly atheist societies such as the Scandinavian populations, where the religiosity-IQ relationship still existed. Second, intelligent people tend to adopt an analytic (as opposed to intuitive) thinking style, which has been shown to undermine religious beliefs. Third, Intelligent people may have less need for religious beliefs and practices, as some of the functions of religiosity can be given by intelligence instead.
According to biopsychologist Nigel Barber, the differences in national IQ are better explained by social, environmental, and wealth conditions than by levels of religiosity. He acknowledges that highly intelligent people have been both religious and nonreligious. He notes that countries with more wealth and better resources tend to have higher levels of non-theists and countries that have less wealth and resources tend to have fewer non-theists. For instance, countries that have poverty, low urbanization, lower levels of education, less exposure to electronic media that increase intelligence, higher incidence of diseases that impair brain function, low birth weights, child malnutrition, and poor control of pollutants like lead have more factors that reduce brain and IQ development than do wealthier or more developed countries.
A 2016 Pew Center global study on religion and education around the world ranked Jews as the most educated (13.4 years of schooling) followed by Christians (9.3 years of schooling). The religiously unaffiliated—a category which includes atheists, agnostics and those who describe their religion as “nothing in particular”—ranked overall as the third most educated religious group (8.8 years of schooling) followed by Buddhists (7.9 years of schooling), Muslims (5.6 years of schooling), and Hindus (5.6 years of schooling).[11] In the youngest age (25-34) group surveyed, Jews averaged 13.8 years of schooling, the unaffiliated group averaged 10.3 years of schooling, Christians averaged 9.9 years of schooling, Buddhists averaged 9.7 years of schooling, Hindus averaged 7.1 years of schooling, and Muslims averaged 6.7 years of schooling. 61% of Jews, 20% of Christians, 16% of the unaffiliated, 12% of Buddhists, 10% of Hindus, and 8% of Muslims have graduate and post-graduate degrees.[11] The study observed that the probability of having a college degree in the U.S. is higher for all religious minorities surveyed (perhaps partly due to selective immigration policies that favor highly skilled applicants), including the unaffiliated group which ranks in the fifth place, being higher than the national average of 39%. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religi...d_intelligence
Any consideration of I.Q. immediately becomes controversial, because modes of intelligence are so variable. One thing does become obvious however. Analytic intelligence is directly related to the quality of the input and therefore the complexity of the thought process it engenders. People with higher levels of education and who have been subjected to complex problems in logic are better able to think questions through to their complete and logical conclusions, based on the current level of available evidence, than individuals who have not been subjected to the need to consider analytical questions in depth.
An example is Isaac Newton, who is nearly unanimously considered to have been one of the most intelligent individuals who ever lived. Three hundred years ago Newton formulated laws of motion and universal gravitation that are still valid today. But Newton himself recognized that while he could explain how gravity worked, he could not explain why it worked. Having no evidence that gravity was the result of natural forces, he concluded that a supernatural force was necessary to explain why gravity exists. Newton was intensely religious. Two hundred years later, Albert Einstein was able to explain why gravity works and his explanation was based on natural forces at work. Einstein was a believing Jew as a youngster, but by the time of his death he had developed into an archetype of an agnostic. If a supreme power exists, he reasoned, it has no connection to anything Biblical. The better we understand the workings of the universe, the more clearly we understand that the universe works according to natural causes, rather than supernatural causes.
As a result we are observing that, as new evidence has become available, superstition and religious beliefs are inevitably being eroded away. As the possibility that supernatural intervention is not necessarily required to explain the workings of the natural world have become more thoroughly understood and commonplace, and therefore acceptable to contemplate, the more widely religion will be regarded as simply the archaic and outdated result of ancient superstition and make believe at work.
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