Now come on now...One is One.

Why don't I believe in another God? That's not a tough question, not even really philosophical.

I believe in my God, I sure as hell don't want anyone else's god getting help. There is only one thing that hurts other gods, disbelief.

Look, if no one believes in a God, does he even exist? It is the belief in the God that even calls him into being, so if this belief falters, the God ceases to exist.

So, by default, by not believing in other gods, I am not contributing to their powers, and I am helping my God's strength grow.

You are putting God on purely a belief. By what you're saying is if i don't believe in your existance or anyone else existance, they cease to exist. Sorry you will still exist.

Seriously!

I think we have a break through opportunity here!
If everybody can agree that there is ONE God and it
then must be that your ONE God is the same as
everybody else's ONE God then we are only talking
about different peoples or cultures descriptions of
the same thing.

I demand a role call!

1. Do you believe in ONE God?

2. Do you admit that it must be the same ONE God
that other monotheists believe in?

3. Do you admit that it then does not matter what
religion you are as long as you follow the rules
for good and ethical behavior - amounting to
charity and kindness described in various ways
by different religions?

I'll start.

1. Yes I believe in ONE God.
2. Yes it is the same one for everybody.
3. Doesn't matter what religion you observe as long as you are good.

I eagerly await everyone's response to these three questions.
Let's hear it.

I'm waiting...

Wow! There is intelligent life on Earth after all.

You are from Earth are you not? Or did you post this from your starship computer as you just pass by Earth?

Just for the record, I actually agree with Slowhand that all beliefs in God are ultiamtely a belief in the same God, even if the believers are unware of this coincidence.

Well, Slow, I would love to say that you've "converted me", but in truth I've always believed this.

So I agree.

Good luck getting everyone to agree with #3.

I agree with number 3, but I think it'll be a cold day in the proverbial hell before the Christians will endorse that one.

Well let us see.
You agree with me so that is not very interesting!



I will not prejudge. I sincerely am interested
in hearing how everyone participating in this thread
answers these simple questions!

(you are right though btw)

1. yes, I believe in One God
2. No, not everyone believes in the same God I do
3. Yes, religious labels dont matter but following Gods word does

Thanks msharmony for answering but question 2 was not
asking if everybody believes in the same God as you.

It was asking if you think that all those who believe
in ONE God must be believing in the same God as you.

If there are two people and each believe there is only
ONE God. Then it must be the same God if there is only
one...Right?



I am serious here for once. I think it can bring people
closer if they can realize that the single God they
believe in must be the same single God that others
believe in....and if there is only one then it seems
extremely obvious. See what I mean?

Now you could say that some people might believe in an
evil midget pig god or something and that is different
from yours...but I am talking about all the major religions.
Jews, Christians, Muslims as well as eastern religions
that believe in one idea of perfection - pantheists who
view Nature as God or Wiccans who see a universal One.

It seems to me that all of these folks revere the same
God actually.

Actually no, that's not what I'm saying. At least I don't think I became a god, if I did, I want my 10%. Humans don't need to believe in real objects. Do you believe the ground is outside your door or do you just take it for granted because you've seen it?

God's may or may not exist, you can't prove their existence through visual, audio or tactile means. These are the qualifiers for things humans take for granted. A god (if you want to believe there is one there) is only there because of a shared belief in his(her) existence. It's a faith thing.

I have faith that it will rain, though I don't see a cloud right now. Soon my faith will be rewarded by the heavens, it's the same thing with religion. You believe in something you have no tangible way of knowing of its existence, hoping for a reward from the heavens at later date.

No, I'm not a god, I'm tangible, but you can worship me anyway. It might be wiser, you have an extremely slim chance of actually seeing me sometime during your existence.

the topic is why you choose a specific God not
whether there is a God.

but if you are a monotheist
then there is only one God.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJ2ZFVx6A4Q

I understand what you mean. I think its possible to believe in one God but to believe in a different ONE than others do though.

That reminds me. I never did address the questions in the OP outright:




No. I was raised into Christianity, but I saw through the religion by my late teens.



I've research most of the popular ones, including Native American, and the many forms of Eastern Mysicism. I also

looked into all the Abrahamic religions and various other Mediterranean mythologies/religions. In college I studied other

ancient religions such as the religion of the Mayans, Incas, and various other cultures including the Egyptians.

So I think I've studied about as many religious as makes practical sense. I found the history of Buddhism quite

fascinating. Most people aren't aware of this but Buddhism has covered a myriad of different beliefs and views since it's

birth with Siddhartha Guatama. There are versions of Buddhism that I find highly spiritually attractive, and other versions

that I find to be nothing more than glorified atheism.



I believe that my religious "knoweldge" is far more complete than the average person on the street. Most people I meet

aren't even truly educated in their own religion and have almost no clue at all of what other religions are even about. They

usually have extremely stereotypical views of these other religions that are almost always a complete distortion of what

those religions actually stand for.



That's an interesting question. Right about what?

Right about having chosen the correct religion? Or right about having rejected various other religions as being obviously

false?

Obviously I feel that I am right about rejecting Christianity as being utterly false. If I didn't believe that I was right about

then, well, duh,... then I wouldn't believe it. I'm throroughly convinced that Christianity cannot possibly be a story about

any genuinely all-wise and divine being. And I'm equally convinced that this holds true of all the Abrahamic-based

religions.

Are various forms of Buddhism true? I honestly can't say. I see no reason to outright reject them. But then on the other

hand, there's a lot of faith required to believe in some of the concepts they require.

But then again isn't that the very basis of religoin? Faith?

If I'm not going to have any faith at all, then I automatically become an atheist. An atheist is simply a person who has no

faith. I'm not sure if there was ever a time in my life when I was truly 'faithless'. There were times when I simply

surrended to the fact that I just don't know and it could indeed be that there is nothing more to life than our brief existence

in physical human form. However, deep down in the core of my being I could never truly buy into that concept entirely.

Neither could I accept it intellectually. I might add that I've been a scientist my entire life. You might even say that I

"worship" science and mathematics. Especially if Worship simply means to Love.

My greatest heroes are the great scientists and philosophers. Yet, I see nothing in science nor philosophy that points to a

spiritless world. On the contrary, it's my personal view that everything points to just the opposite. Everything points to

the idea that things are truly infinite, not only in a physical sense, but also in an intellectual sense. No matter what

questions you ask, all you get are more questions, never any genuine answers that could be veiwed as the "end of the

line". So knowledge itself appears to be infinite.

With all that in mind, I've actually turned back to religion. Mostly on intuitive grounds, but certainly not without intellectual considerations as well. Perhaps I shouldn't say "religion" maybe I should say "spirituality". However, it has come to my attention that the two are inseperable. To genuinely experience true spirituality requires active participate in specific activities (often called rituals) which must be done faithfully (i.e. religiously). So in a sense any path that leads to spirituality is necessarily a 'religious' path in the sense that it required active participation in various rituals.

Which rituals should one perform, and why?

Well, that is a very personal question. And this, in fact, leads me to my current religion. This will most likely be the religion that I continue to cherish until the day I die. I hate to give it a label, because to do so implies that it can be well-defined. But it can't be well-defined. It's a very personal religion. You might call me an Eclectic Shaman for lack of a better label.

My religion is a hodgepodge of ideas from many other religions. I use techniques of Witchcraft, and of Faerylore. I used concepts from the Qabalah, which I see as having originated with the Egyptian and Babylonean Magi, and having been adopted and expanded upon by the Hebrews. The concept is in constant evolution just like everything else, and today the "Witches' Qabalah" even includes Tarot interweaved within the map of consciouness. These rituals and maps are quite interesting and insightful. I find much spiritual meaning and pleasure in conducting these various rituals and ceremonies.

In some ways my exporations of witchcraft and shamanism has helped me to understand how Christianity actually became what it is today as well. Christianity (or the Abrahamic religions that founded it) began as a belief in the supernatural and just got lost in the fantasy, incorporating a jealous male Zeus-like humanly flawed godhead. It became a story that more and more people bought into and started practicing as their ritual untill so many people bought into it that it became the religion of the masses. This actually served to seperate humanity from "god".

I continue to use the Eastern Mystical view of God. "Tat t'vam asi". (you are it) When I use the Qabalah ritual I realize that I am Kether, and Malkuth, etc, etc, etc,. There is no distinction between who I AM and that I AM.

And THAT is where I AM.

1. Do you believe in ONE God?
>Answer: Yes

2. Do you admit that it must be the same ONE God
that other monotheists believe in?
>Answer : No; God is God by definition; not because a person or people claim a object,enity, image or spirit is the only one true God

3. Do you admit that it then does not matter what
religion you are as long as you follow the rules
for good and ethical behavior - amounting to
charity and kindness described in various ways
by different religions?
>Answer : God transcends religions. Good and ethical behavior is a result of being in a relationship with God. Good and ethical behavior independent from God has it's merits in this life but is without merit in the spiritual. God does not require works to be accepted, rather He desires "relationship" (out of which good works will flow)

There you have it Slow!

All good and ethical people are in a relationship with God no matter what religion they have accepted or how they view God. Even good and ethical athesits must necessarily be in a relationship with God even if they are totally unware of the relationship on a conscious level.

I certainly won't argue with this.

We're getting closer and closer to a consensus here.

Ab... you are a master of taking things out of context, the only problem in this case is the context is about a inch above...lol

To define "IN" context...it is the only good and ethical behavior that counts in the spiritual. To slightly expound, all you have to do is consider 'motive' in good and ethical behavior to call it into question
>2sparrows<

This really is interesting. I did not expect that people would be saying No to question number 2!

Especially with regard to the Abrahamic religions. Clearly Jesus believed in the same God as the Jews. Therefore the Jews and Christian God must be the same. Also the Muslim Allah is Abraham's God so Allah must also be the same as the Christian and Jewish God.

Since the usual accepted view of the Abrahamic God is omniscient, perfectly kind and caring, merciful and the origin of all things this also fits the description of the pantheistic God and Wiccan One and Buddha.

So I don't see how one would distinguish between them particulary with regard to the Abrahamic religions.

You'll get no argument here.

Before Abraham was, I AM.

Tat t'vam asi.

s1owhand wrote "Clearly Jesus believed in the same God as the Jews"

s1owhand; You might like this scripture:

john 8:42-44
Jesus said to them " If God were your father you would love me, for I came from God and now am here, I have not come on my own; but he sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father the devil,and you want to carry out your fathers desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.


This was spoken by Jesus to people who claimed to be Abrahams children and claimed the only Father they had was God himself. (see John 8:31-41 for context)

!!! I would say in light of what Jesus said; Jesus did not believe in the same God as all Jews.!!!

As for the other religions you mention; it is obvious they define God as some one he isn't; so by definition; a different god

>2sparrows<

This is what the Cathers believed.

They believed that the Old Testament was an account of Satan and that Satan and Yahweh were one in the same.

However, this doesn't fit in with the Christian view for several reasons.

1. It was supposedly the prophecy in the Old Testament the predicted the coming of Jesus. If the OT had been written by Satan and Satan was indeed Yahweh, then it makes no sense that Satan would have predicted the coming of Jesus.

2. The whole 'sacrificial lamb' thing actually depends upon the God of the Old Testament being appeased by blood sacrifices.

So if you're going to give the words of John any serious merit, you'd be far better off accepting my conclusions:

Jesus was a Mahayana Buddhist Bodhisattva who was indeed rejecting the entire Old Testament and "God of Abraham" as being false doctrine.

So if it's your claim that Jesus renounced Yahweh, then you're actually saying the same things I'm saying.

Yahweh and the entire Old Testament were false doctrine and full of lies.