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Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by tempem: 6:29am On Mar 04, 2016 |
Faith Some people claim to be religious, but they struggle to understand the meaning of “faith.” What is faith, and why is it important? What is Faith? WHAT SOME PEOPLE SAY: Many people think that a person who has faith simply accepts a belief without having any real evidence. For example, consider a religious person who says, “I believe in God.” If that person is asked, “Why do you believe?” he might reply, “That’s the way I was raised” or, “That’s what I’ve always been taught.” In such cases, there might seem to be little difference between having faith and being gullible. WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS “Faith is the assured expectation of what is hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities that are not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1 ) For a person’s expectation to be assured, he or she needs to have sound reasons for that assurance. In fact, the original-language word for the phrase “assured expectation” means more than an inner feeling or mere wishful thinking. So faith involves conviction that is based on evidence. His [ God’s ] invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship.” —Romans 1:20 . Why is it important to acquire faith? WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS “Without faith it is impossible to please God well, for whoever approaches God must believe that he is and that he becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him.”— Hebrews 11:6 . As mentioned earlier, many people believe in God simply because they have been taught to do so. ‘That’s the way I was raised,’ they might say. But God wants those who worship him to have genuine confidence in his existence and in his love. That is one reason why the Bible emphasizes the need to seek him earnestly, so that we can truly come to know him. How can you acquire faith? WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS“Faith follows the thing heard,” says the Bible. (Romans 10:17 ) So the first step toward building faith in God is to ‘hear’ what the Bible really teaches about him. (2 Timothy 3:16 ) Studying the Bible will help you to find solid answers to important questions, including: Who is God? What evidence is there of his existence? Does God really care about me? What is God’s purpose for the future? Jehovah’s Witnesses would be happy to help you study the Bible. As stated on our website, jw.org, “Jehovah’s Witnesses love teaching people about the Bible, but we never force anyone to become a member of our religion. Rather, we respectfully present what the Bible says, recognizing that each person has the right to choose what he or she will believe.” https://www.jw.org/en/publications/magazines/awake-no3-2016-june/faith-what-does-bible-say/ lalasticalala, seun |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by onetrack(m): 7:42am On Mar 04, 2016 |
tempem: Even if god existed, I would have no desire to please him. In any case the Bible is not proof of any god, rather it is proof that people can write books claiming that there is a god. 4 Likes |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by tempem: 8:08am On Mar 04, 2016 |
onetrack:What's your level of education? Here is a Prof who was formally an Atheist. You could read what later made him changed his view. PROFESSOR František Vyskočil of Charles University, Prague, is internationally known for his research in neurophysiology. Once an atheist, he now firmly believes in God. In an interview with Awake! Professor Vyskočil explains why he changed his viewpoint. What was your view of religion before you started your career in science? I was raised an atheist, and my father often made fun of the clergy. I graduated from college in 1963 with degrees in biology and chemistry. In my school years, I believed that the theory of evolution explained life’s diversity. Tell us a little about your career in science. In my postdoctoral work, I studied the chemical and electrical properties of nerve synapses. I also studied neurons, membrane pumps, transplantation, and drug desensitization. Many of the results have been published, and some articles have been selected as classical. In time, I became a member of the Learned Society of the Czech Republic, a community of scientists chosen by their peers. After the December 1989 “Velvet Revolution,” I became a professor at Charles University and was allowed to travel to the West to meet with colleagues, some of whom were Nobel laureates. Did you ever think about God? In a sense, yes. At times, I wondered why many highly educated people, including some of my professors, believed in God—albeit quietly because of the Communist regime. To me, however, God was a human invention. I had also been outraged by atrocities committed in the name of religion. How did you come to change your view of evolution? My doubts about evolution began when I was studying synapses. I was deeply impressed by the amazing complexity of these supposedly simple connections between nerve cells. ‘How,’ I wondered, ‘could synapses and the genetic programs underlying them be products of mere blind chance?’ It really made no sense. Then, in the early 1970’s, I attended a lecture by a famous Russian scientist and professor. He stated that living organisms cannot be a result of random mutations and natural selection. Someone in the audience then asked where the answer lay. The professor took a small Russian Bible from his jacket, held it up, and said, “Read the Bible—the creation story in Genesis in particular.” Later, in the lobby, I asked the professor if he was serious about the Bible. In essence, he replied: “Simple bacteria can divide about every 20 minutes and have many hundreds of different proteins, each containing 20 types of amino acids arranged in chains that might be several hundred long. For bacteria to evolve by beneficial mutations one at a time would take much, much longer than three or four billion years, the time that many scientists believe life has existed on earth.” The Bible book of Genesis, he felt, made much more sense. How did the professor’s comments affect you? His observations, along with my own nagging doubts, moved me to discuss the subject with several religious colleagues and friends, but I found their views unconvincing. Then I spoke to a pharmacologist who was one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. For three years he explained the Bible to me and my wife, Ema. Two things amazed us. First, traditional “Christianity” actually has little in common with the Bible. Second, the Bible, though not a science book, actually harmonizes with true science. Has your change of view hindered your scientific research? Not at all. Every good scientist, regardless of his beliefs, must be as objective as possible. But my faith has changed me. For one thing, instead of being overly self-confident, highly competitive, and unduly proud of my scientific skills, I am now grateful to God for any abilities I may have. Also, instead of unfairly attributing the amazing designs manifest in creation to blind chance, I and not a few other scientists ask ourselves, ‘How did God design this?’ |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by cloudgoddess(f): 8:30am On Mar 04, 2016 |
You can have confidence in a belief and it still be wrong. You can be "convicted" and still be completely wrong. That is what Christians are. You say you need evidence to believe in your god, but outside of personal emotions, illusions of the mind, and the bible (which itself is chock full of contradictions and inconsistencies) there is no evidence supporting the works supposedly carried out by the supernatural entities of Christianity. No external, independently verified evidence that proves the God of Abraham and Jesus as any more valid as the Hindu god Krishna. Also, for every atheist that returned to religion, there are likely at least 1000 religious people who turned atheist. It takes a very confused, fragmented, and probably emotionally-driven mind to go from reason back to irrationality. Then again though, people who are raised atheist usually didn't reason their way to atheism in the first place, so such people are still vulnerable to being sucked in to comforting religious dogmas. 4 Likes |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by tempem: 8:39am On Mar 04, 2016 |
cloudgoddess: And you, raised an atheist? |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by CoolUsername: 10:22am On Mar 04, 2016 |
tempem: But you see, how exactly did the speaker come to the conclusion that beneficial mutations should take longer than 4 billion years? Does he have solid evidence to back up his claim? Also, if he believes that 4 billion years of evolution isn't enough to be where we are today. Then how does he reconcile that fact with the diversification just about 4,000 years after the global flood that many Christians tout as fact? 1 Like |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by onetrack(m): 11:53am On Mar 04, 2016 |
tempem: I'm well-educated and work in academia. In any case, for every professor you can uncover who becomes religious, there are many more who do just the opposite. This is not meant to be an appeal to numbers to make my case, just saying that he is rather unusual, and his experience certainly does not reflect mine. Later, in the lobby, I asked the professor if he was serious Simple bacteria can experience beneficial mutations within a few years, not billions. Look at the drug-resistant tuberculosis and malaria diseases which have evolved in only a few decades. 2 Likes |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by cloudgoddess(f): 5:47pm On Mar 04, 2016 |
tempem:Nope. Raised Christian, became atheist in adulthood. 1 Like |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by tempem: 6:00pm On Mar 04, 2016 |
cloudgoddess:I knew! Sorry, if I may ask why did you become one? |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by ifenes(m): 6:16pm On Mar 04, 2016 |
Faith is trusting without evidence. 2 Likes |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by Marv650(m): 1:49am On May 27, 2016 |
onetrack: the good part of it is you said "god" not "GOD". Well it's up to you but that moment when you can make a dead butterfly fly once again beep me, maybe your assumptions could then have a foundation. On the other have john 3:16 actually said "whosoever believe in him"so it's not compulsory you do. |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by ValentineMary(m): 2:56am On May 27, 2016 |
The story of d professor is really funny. 4 billion.years is not enough for bacteria to evolve but 6,000 is enough for humans to get to their complex state Ever heard of why plasmodium falciparium is now resistant to peniciline? or ever heard of drug resistance in bacteria? Religion can blind even d most educated. 1 Like |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by lepasharon(f): 8:25am On May 27, 2016 |
ValentineMary: Plasmodium falciparum no be bacteria bro |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by ValentineMary(m): 11:47am On May 27, 2016 |
lepasharon:I never said it was. I know it's a protozoa. I was just giving eg of organisms that had undergone micro evolution. |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by taurus25(m): 5:05pm On May 27, 2016 |
ValentineMary:some times i just wonder......because the professor had an area where he wasnt really convinced in biology he hastedly came to the conclusion that man was magically formed......and such people call themselves scientists? It really does takes reason to become an athiests but emotional bullying and great hope based on fantasies to become religious. |
Re: Atheist Come In And Check The Real Meaning of Faith. by Oluwaseytiano(m): 7:19pm On May 27, 2016 |
I don't blame the prof, religion can make fools out of the wisest of all |
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