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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]New poster here. We are mixing a bunch of issues here, and I think this conversation would benefit from separating them out.

First, the question about how a God that is not a separate being can have a son (the Trinity question that's been going around). I don't find this idea challenging at all. The God who is not a separate being is all-powerful (I think we can agree that this power is still part of this concept of God), to the point that God created the heavens. the earth, and all the creatures in it including humans. So this idea of an all-powerful God-being is consistent with the idea that God can create another human, a very special human, to give his message to us. (As opposed to the proverbial bolt of lightening and voice from the sky, in the old testament, which works for me too as a way of God giving us his message.) You can believe it or not (I believe it) but I don't think the concept is very challenging from an intellectual standpoint.

It's a separate issue to ask whether this "being" can intervene in our daily lives. I think it's possible for God-being (as opposed to God the guy with a white beard) to intervene in my daily life [i]if he wanted to.  [/i]Again, this is consistent with my conception of God as an essence is consistent with a God who is endowed with many powers. But I think this is sort of besides the point. This is really a question along the lines of, does God care if the high school football team wins, if they pray before the big game?  To me, the answer is, no. God doesn't care if the football team wins; we can't know what God wants, but to me he wants people to love each other, be kind to the poor, et cetera. To me, "walking with God" is more like partaking of the goodness and faith that is his essence, trying to figure out what the Christian response would be in a given situation, and generally trying (not necessarily succeeding, but trying) to share in God's goodness.[/quote]

I’m a little confused about the god who is not a “separate being” being the  same as the god that is “being itself,” but that aside,  you seem to know that the non-being is all powerful, created heaven and earth, etc., etc., which sounds a lot like the god in the bible, including that he was capable of  sending  a very special human here to die for our sins, (pretty much like it says in the New Testament),  and that the non-being, did, in fact,  send his son for that purpose.   I suppose such an all-powerful non-being would be capable of doing anything, [b]so it’s very convenient that[/b] he decided to do what’s in the bible.  Clearly, [b]according to you, this non-being is a Christian, o[/b]r at least partial to Christians.

Some of the many things I wonder about this idea, are: How do you know so much about the non-being and its activities and motives?  Where did it come from and how can we determine its dependability?  How broad is this belief?  Is it openly taught in any churches or in Sunday schools?  Does it only apply to Christians, or does this non-being exert power over religions too?  If so, how does it manifest among Jews or Muslims?
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Sunday schools do [b]not [/b]teach that God is a big guy in the sky. Why are you so hostile to the idea that believers can imagine God as [i]anything but[/i] an old white dude with a beard? I'm here to tell you that [i]the vast majority [/i]of believers don't buy into the big-guy-in-the-sky image. You're problem is this: you're confusing (a) the big guy in the sky with (b) "God will answer all of my prayers", and here I will agree with you that many believers think that if they pray for the football team's victory, God (as spirit/essence, not as sky-daddy) actually cares and will pick winners. It's fine that you don't believe in God, but you need to sort these distinct issues out so that when you challenge believers, you are actually saying something relevant as opposed to just demonstrating that you are misinformed.

Your first paragraph seems almost entirely illogical, and I'm talking about your rhetorical (arguing/expressing) problems not your misconceptions about religion. This is surprising for someone who claims to be grounded in reason. You snark about how it's "very convenient" that "he decided to do what's in the bible" which means "this non-being is a Christian." I'm not sure where to start with your logic, but basically you're confusing cause and effect here: the Bible was written [i]after [/i]God took the actions that it records. Finally, you seem to be accusing me of believing "this non-being is a Christian". I am indeed a Christian, so your accusation doesn't bug me. What bugs me is the confused point you seem to be trying to make, by smooshing your accusation into the same para with your "very convenient" snark. Clearly, your hatred of Christians has clouded your ability to see that the first part of the Bible is shared by Jews, and that many of the events in the Bible are also in the Quran, sometimes in slightly different form. The point is, these holy books record God's many actions that are important to Jews and Muslims, so you can't write any of these holy books off as mere "convenience" or coincidence that Christians deceive themselves with. SMH.

And a final point: yes, it's true: Muslims, Jews and Christians believe different things about God. Which is fine. And it's fine that you don't believe in God. Just try to put away your knee-jerk hostility, because your hair-trigger accusations reveal your ignorance and also prevent you from even arguing basic concepts logically.

Anyway. I doubt you're interested in having an actual discussion. Judging by the lack of thought you put into your questions, and the silliness of your accusations, I'm pretty sure you're just throwing cr@p out there hoping something might stick. Good night, I won't be returning.
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