Go back
Hypothetical question for anyone

Hypothetical question for anyone

Spirituality

c

Joined
26 Dec 14
Moves
35596
Clock
28 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@ghost-of-a-duke said
If the person was of sound mind they would surely recognise that such a God, who would burn people alive for not believing in Him, was clearly the manufacture of flawed human beings trying to scare people into belief. Such a person should abandon that particular faith, not evangelise others to join.
But in this scenario, God has proven Himself to be true. It's no longer a case of faith or man manufacturing Him.

If God proved Himself to be true and real, it's doubtful that we would judge His rules.

diver

Joined
16 Feb 08
Moves
122153
Clock
28 Jan 21

@ghost-of-a-duke said
If the person was of sound mind they would surely recognise that such a God, who would burn people alive for not believing in Him, was clearly the manufacture of flawed human beings trying to scare people into belief. Such a person should abandon that particular faith, not evangelise others to join.
The current build of the scenario is that if you personally knew, without doubt, that a god existed and burnt non-believers alive for eternity, would you spend the majority of your spare time blogging online in a place such as this, or would you be attempting to save those on danger from the peril.

diver

Joined
16 Feb 08
Moves
122153
Clock
28 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@chaney3 said
But in this scenario, God has proven Himself to be true. It's no longer a case of faith or man manufacturing Him.

If God proved Himself to be true and real, it's doubtful that we would judge His rules.
How would you respond to this scenario?

Ghost of a Duke

Joined
14 Mar 15
Moves
29975
Clock
28 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@divegeester said
The current build of the scenario is that if you personally knew, without doubt, that a god existed and burnt non-believers alive for eternity, would you spend the majority of your spare time blogging online in a place such as this, or would you be attempting to save those on danger from the peril.
If I knew for certain that a building was on fire and those inside would burn if they didn't get out, I would clearly do everything in my power to get them to recognize the reality of the danger and act accordingly.

I dislike the scenario as you present it as it presupposes the existence of a God who would want to burn disbelievers alive for eternity, which I believe is incompatible with the notion of a God (especially the God of Christianity).

Ghost of a Duke

Joined
14 Mar 15
Moves
29975
Clock
28 Jan 21
1 edit

@chaney3 said
But in this scenario, God has proven Himself to be true. It's no longer a case of faith or man manufacturing Him.

If God proved Himself to be true and real, it's doubtful that we would judge His rules.
If a God proved He/She existed I would still not blindly follow the reasoning that it was okay to burn non-believers alive for all eternity. (I would require a pretty good explanation).

This I think is where theist morality breaks down, as part of their morality is handed over to an external power (God). - This feeds into my recent discussion with Rajk about good people being capable of doing evil things when done so in the name of God. A 'good' atheist (law-abiding, caring) wouldn't readily go around murdering people as his morality is governed internally and by his own conscience. A 'good' theist, however (law-abiding, caring) might be minded to kill people if he/she was convinced that is what their God wanted. They are not entirely in control of their moral compass.

diver

Joined
16 Feb 08
Moves
122153
Clock
28 Jan 21

@ghost-of-a-duke said
If a God proved He/She existed I would still not blindly follow the reasoning that it was okay to burn non-believers alive for all eternity. (I would require a pretty good explanation).

This I think is where theist morality breaks down, as part of their morality is handed over to an external power (God). - This feeds into my recent discussion with Rajk about good p ...[text shortened]... as convinced that is what their God wanted. They are not entirely in control of their moral compass.
I’m already aware that you would wouldn’t “blindly follow reasoning”. In this scenario you are not “blind” and there is no dogmatic reasoning, it’s about something else. But never-mind, it’s ok if you don’t want to explore the actual scenario.

diver

Joined
16 Feb 08
Moves
122153
Clock
28 Jan 21

@ghost-of-a-duke said

I dislike the scenario as you present it as it presupposes the existence of a God who would want to burn disbelievers alive for eternity, which I believe is incompatible with the notion of a God (especially the God of Christianity).
The scenario is a very real one for christian such as Sonship.

But it’s ok if you don’t like it.

Ghost of a Duke

Joined
14 Mar 15
Moves
29975
Clock
28 Jan 21

@divegeester said
The scenario is a very real one for christian such as Sonship.

But it’s ok if you don’t like it.
I'll refer you to FMF's initial reply:

'This is not a question an atheist can answer. Pardon me, but it reminds me of a question dj2becker once asked me: [my paraphrasing...] "If you believed in God and knew that everything taught about God was true, what justification would you have for continuing to be an atheist?"

diver

Joined
16 Feb 08
Moves
122153
Clock
28 Jan 21
1 edit

@ghost-of-a-duke said
I'll refer you to FMF's initial reply:

'This is not a question an atheist can answer. Pardon me, but it reminds me of a question dj2becker once asked me: [my paraphrasing...] "If you believed in God and knew that everything taught about God was true, what justification would you have for continuing to be an atheist?"
He was replying before I had clarified the scenario, you are just avoiding it. As I said, that’s fine of course.

As I said to you above, this scenario is very real for millions of Christians and particularly for sonship. You not liking it doesn’t make it irrelevant.

Ghost of a Duke

Joined
14 Mar 15
Moves
29975
Clock
28 Jan 21
1 edit

@divegeester said
He was replying before I had clarified the scenario, you are just avoiding it. As I said, that’s fine of course.

As I said to you above, this scenario is very real for millions of Christians and particularly for sonship. You not liking it doesn’t make it irrelevant.
In your OP you said 'For theists and atheists..."

Perhaps you should have limited it to theists. (Bearing in mind it was just a dig at Sonship).

c

Joined
26 Dec 14
Moves
35596
Clock
28 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@divegeester said
For theists and atheists:

Suppose your particular version of God existed and had unequivocally shown you that all non-believers in him would be tortured in hell for eternity by being burnt alive.

What would you do?
I mean literally tomorrow, the next day and the day after, what would you be actually doing based on having that knowledge which to totally believed to be true? Would your life be different?
Caveat: a warning of specific stipulations, conditions or limitations.

In the Bible version of God/Jesus, the caveat is that one must BELIEVE it's all true in order to get to Heaven.

I personally don't know if I can believe that, which puts me at odds with Christianity, so I can probably not answer your scenario correctly.

c

Joined
26 Dec 14
Moves
35596
Clock
28 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@ghost-of-a-duke said
If a God proved He/She existed I would still not blindly follow the reasoning that it was okay to burn non-believers alive for all eternity. (I would require a pretty good explanation).

This I think is where theist morality breaks down, as part of their morality is handed over to an external power (God). - This feeds into my recent discussion with Rajk about good p ...[text shortened]... as convinced that is what their God wanted. They are not entirely in control of their moral compass.
It would seem logical that if humans have a good moral code to live by, then their Creator would also have good morals, and likely perfect.

The Bible contradicts that logical conclusion though. I wish it didn't.

Rajk999
Kali

PenTesting

Joined
04 Apr 04
Moves
261330
Clock
28 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@chaney3 said
It would seem logical that if humans have a good moral code to live by, then their Creator would also have good morals, and likely perfect.

The Bible contradicts that logical conclusion though. I wish it didn't.
Do you think that an ant can understand and appreciate all the things you do and why?

c

Joined
26 Dec 14
Moves
35596
Clock
29 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@rajk999 said
Do you think that an ant can understand and appreciate all the things you do and why?
Just you asking that question proposes that you have no problem with God putting people in hell..... people that He supposedly loves.

Rajk999
Kali

PenTesting

Joined
04 Apr 04
Moves
261330
Clock
29 Jan 21
Vote Up
Vote Down

@chaney3 said
Just you asking that question proposes that you have no problem with God putting people in hell..... people that He supposedly loves.
Nobody goes to hell for eternity. That punishment is reserved for the Devil, the False Prophet and the Beast. Ordinary people who are evil will be cast into the lake of fire and destroyed.

There is no record of the bible stating that God loves everybody. However there are many references to God loving the righteous and hating the sinful and evil people.

Your problem is that you have believed too much church doctrines and have neglected to read the bible for yourself.

Cookies help us deliver our Services. By using our Services or clicking I agree, you agree to our use of cookies. Learn More.