tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7251693339364322895.post835917439459761723..comments2024-02-16T07:42:10.015-06:00Comments on SKEPTIC REFLECTIONS: A CHRISTIAN THOUGHT EXPERIMENTJOHN PHILLIPShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06357524637192990158noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7251693339364322895.post-47057802565929589602013-12-03T21:17:55.291-06:002013-12-03T21:17:55.291-06:00I am trying to understand the thrust of your comme...I am trying to understand the thrust of your comment. Are you saying that everyone believes in a Christian God, which clearly is not the case? Or are you saying that everyone believes in his or her personal self? <br /><br />And by the question you ask: "What would life be like if you did not believe in your self?" I assume you mean the reality of one's self-identity. I think that, because of the way our brains are constructed, we have this strong sense of an inner life that gives rise to a self-identity. Just speaking personally, I developed such a sense at an early age and have carried it continuously ever since. I'm guessing I'm not much different from everyone else in that regard. It is this sense of an inner life that distinguishes me from the rest of the world. That is what I understand by your term "self." But I feel that this sense of self is,strictly speaking, an illusion in that at the end of the day we are simply part of the world. We are comprised of matter and energy just like everything else. So in an intellectual sense, I don't believe in my "self" as something separate from the rest of the universe, but from an emotional perspective, I don't believe I will ever relinquish my sense of self. <br /><br />Let me know if I caught your question properly.JOHN PHILLIPShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06357524637192990158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7251693339364322895.post-84160461856253441532013-12-03T20:32:48.278-06:002013-12-03T20:32:48.278-06:00Everyone believes in a God ... albeit the Christia...Everyone believes in a God ... albeit the Christian God, Self ..... I would pose the question ... what would life look like if you did not believe in your self???Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7251693339364322895.post-52510680957623649312013-11-28T14:54:10.799-06:002013-11-28T14:54:10.799-06:00John,
That is so well said. I agree with you enti...John, <br />That is so well said. I agree with you entirely on everything. I can change my belief in God and you can change your unbelief. We just would still live our lives as we do now. Nope you didn't put words into my mouth.Wandanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7251693339364322895.post-62738318821405038772013-11-28T07:03:46.210-06:002013-11-28T07:03:46.210-06:00Wanda,
If I understand you correctly, you are agre...Wanda,<br />If I understand you correctly, you are agreeing with me on this one. We agree, I think, that you can no more voluntarily change your beliefs about God than I can mine. But you also agree, as a conclusion to this little "thought experiment," that how you conduct your life would not change whether you believed in God or not. Your beliefs may affect how you take comfort in your life, but they don't affect how you relate to your fellow humans. Belief in God doesn't make us better or worse humans. Hope I'm not putting words in your mouth.JOHN PHILLIPShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06357524637192990158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7251693339364322895.post-42358133109465066802013-11-28T06:31:08.701-06:002013-11-28T06:31:08.701-06:00John, it would be impossible for me NOT to believe...John, it would be impossible for me NOT to believe in God and Him with me each day. I don't believe my life would change and I would still be a "good" person wandanoreply@blogger.com