Zone1 Coming to know God

[Meriweather]

Two thoughts to address: The first is how did you come to know God, and to have faith in God?

The second: Specifically what made you decide there is no God to know? What caused you to stop exploring the possibility?

As frequent posters here may know, I first came to know about God in children's Little Golden Books. At that young age, getting to know about God made me insistent that knowing about God wasn't enough. Abraham, Noah, Moses had their experiences, and I wanted mine. Little Golden Books started me out, and my own stubbornness and persistence took it from there.

Why did you continue...or, why did you give up?

 

[BULLDOG]

Because when I grew up and actually read the Bible, instead of a children's book, I found that the god depicted was far from the gentle loving god depicted in those children's books.

 

[ding]

Two thoughts to address: The first is how did you come to know God, and to have faith in God?

The second: Specifically what made you decide there is no God to know? What caused you to stop exploring the possibility?

As frequent posters here may know, I first came to know about God in children's Little Golden Books. At that young age, getting to know about God made me insistent that knowing about God wasn't enough. Abraham, Noah, Moses had their experiences, and I wanted mine. Little Golden Books started me out, and my own stubbornness and persistence took it from there.

Why did you continue...or, why did you give up?

Conceptually the same way you came to know God but I had no relationship with God at that time. That came much later. It wasn't until about age 34 that I realized something was missing. I was doing pretty well materially at that time so it's not like I was in dire straights and turned to God because of that. I just felt like something was missing in my life. That's about the time my journey started. I didn't immediately seek God. That didn't happen until after 15 years of searching and studying a wide variety of topics, none of which were religious. When I was 49 years old, I read Mere Christianity. That's when I realized I only had a conceptual or superficial belief in God. Which is a very nice way of saying I didn't really believe in God at all. That's when I began to study religion and the origin questions. I studied all of the major religions. I found they were much more similar than dissimilar. I found that they all taught to die to self. That to see reality one must seek the unvarnished truth and to find the unvarnished truth one must be objective and for one to be objective they must remove all thoughts of self. That's when my life changed. All the learning center of my brain got switched on and I started to see things as they were and not how I wanted them to be. That's when my relationship with God began. I was finally able to look back at my life and see how God had been there all along, pruning me so to speak. There are so many aspects I could discuss but I'll just end with I have peace through the storm because of my relationship with God. The keys to peace and joy in this world are being thankful (a consequence of praising God), being self reflective (a consequence of confession), random acts of kindness (a consequence of charity) and forgiveness (a consequence of charity).

 

[lg325]

Two thoughts to address: The first is how did you come to know God, and to have faith in God?

The second: Specifically what made you decide there is no God to know? What caused you to stop exploring the possibility?

As frequent posters here may know, I first came to know about God in children's Little Golden Books. At that young age, getting to know about God made me insistent that knowing about God wasn't enough. Abraham, Noah, Moses had their experiences, and I wanted mine. Little Golden Books started me out, and my own stubbornness and persistence took it from there.

Why did you continue...or, why did you give up?

Same for me at a young age. Plus I was going to Sunday school and church services at an early age. I came to know God personally as a teenager when I was Baptised by the Holy Spirit while struggling and filled with anger at the world.

 

[ding]

Because when I grew up and actually read the Bible, instead of a children's book, I found that the god depicted was far from the gentle loving god depicted in those children's books.

You saw what you wanted to see.

 

[BULLDOG]

You saw what you wanted to see.

I wanted to see confirmation of everything I had been taught, and believed. I was greatly disappointed when I read what was actually written. I didn't change my beliefs lightly.

 

[ding]

I wanted to see confirmation of everything I had been taught, and believed. I was greatly disappointed when I read what was actually written. I didn't change my beliefs lightly.

You have to walk your walk and I have to walk my walk.

 

[Donald H]

Two thoughts to address: The first is how did you come to know God, and to have faith in God?

I wasn't subjected thoroughly to believing in religion or a god and therefore I was able to think independently as a teen and was able to reject it due to a lack of any evidence.

The second: Specifically what made you decide there is no God to know? What caused you to stop exploring the possibility?

Stories such as a man living in the belly of a whale, destroyed any faith I had remaining for the indoctrination I received. There were other stories too that couldn't be reconciled with the reality I grew to understand as early as my teen years.

As frequent posters here may know, I first came to know about God in children's Little Golden Books. At that young age, getting to know about God made me insistent that knowing about God wasn't enough. Abraham, Noah, Moses had their experiences, and I wanted mine. Little Golden Books started me out, and my own stubbornness and persistence took it from there.

Those books contained the fantasies I didn't accept and I believe that's because I wasn't fed a steady diet of that at such a young age.

Why did you continue...or, why did you give up?

I gave up for basically the same reason why I gave up the Easter bunny, Santa, the tooth fairy, Peter Pan, and all the other sky fairies. That reason should be obvious to Christians too. Christians don't believe in any more than one of them. I just went one sky fairy further.

Thank you for the opportunity to explain some important answers to some relevant questions for an atheist.

 

[ding]

There's only two options in this world; you either worship the creator or you worship the created. But everybody is going to worship something. We are all free to worship pleasure, fame, fortune and power but in the end none of those will satisfy because we were made for more.

 

[Meriweather]

Because when I grew up and actually read the Bible, instead of a children's book, I found that the god depicted was far from the gentle loving god depicted in those children's books.

My own experience of God was such pure love I knew God loved everyone just the same...because that is who He is. Jesus' words of "Love one another as I have loved you" and "When you see me you see the Father"--plus--God being the same now and always had me truly perplexed about the Old Testament.

I loved Old Testament stories, but how could they portray God in the manner they had? Christianity's attitude was more dismissive than illuminating. I had read the Bible so now I turned to rabbinical commentary. And one of the first lines before me was the stories were to be studied, not read.

What struck me most was what was said about God outside the stories...loving, kind, just, and merciful...unknowable, impenetrable, inscrutable. Old Testament authors were deeply aware of this, and why the stories need to be studied, not read, is because the author is asking his listeners to take a look at human behavior. It is not God who is angry (we cannot know God's emotions), it is we who should be angry with our behavior. It is not God who eliminates this terrible behavior, it should be humans who need to eliminate unacceptable behavior. The ways some humans eliminated some unacceptable human behavior was unacceptable itself. Yet the overall messages stands--some behavior is truly unacceptable.

The Old Testament tells us about ourselves and the emotions that our own behavior should generate within us because we, too, are called to be loving, kind, just, and merciful. Are we also called to be unknowable, impenetrable, inscrutable? In a way, as all these attributes require exacting discipline within oneself.

You say you grew up and read the Bible. The next recommended step after that is to study the Bible. God is worth knowing.

 

[Meriweather]

I was finally able to look back at my life and see how God had been there all along, pruning me so to speak. There are so many aspects I could discuss but I'll just end with I have peace through the storm because of my relationship with God. The keys to peace and joy in this world are being thankful (a consequence of praising God), being self reflective (a consequence of confession), random acts of kindness (a consequence of charity) and forgiveness (a consequence of charity).

I love this part and we cannot emphasize it enough. As far back as Exodus we learn from Moses, God is best seen in hindsight. It seems it is only His fingerprints we are sometimes able to see in our present lives.

 

[Meriweather]

I came to know God personally as a teenager when I was Baptised by the Holy Spirit while struggling and filled with anger at the world.

God seems to have a special love and care of teenagers. We may not be able to see the extent of it until later, but our teens is a fine time to more fully develop our relationship with the Almighty.

 

[Meriweather]

I wanted to see confirmation of everything I had been taught, and believed. I was greatly disappointed when I read what was actually written. I didn't change my beliefs lightly.

I think I understand that great disappointment due to how greatly puzzled I was. We could be cousins in that regard. There was that absolute certainty of, "Something is not right here."

 

[BULLDOG]

My own experience of God was such pure love I knew God loved everyone just the same...because that is who He is. Jesus' words of "Love one another as I have loved you" and "When you see me you see the Father"--plus--God being the same now and always had me truly perplexed about the Old Testament.

I loved Old Testament stories, but how could they portray God in the manner they had? Christianity's attitude was more dismissive than illuminating. I had read the Bible so now I turned to rabbinical commentary. And one of the first lines before me was the stories were to be studied, not read.

What struck me most was what was said about God outside the stories...loving, kind, just, and merciful...unknowable, impenetrable, inscrutable. Old Testament authors were deeply aware of this, and why the stories need to be studied, not read, is because the author is asking his listeners to take a look at human behavior. It is not God who is angry (we cannot know God's emotions), it is we who should be angry with our behavior. It is not God who eliminates this terrible behavior, it should be humans who need to eliminate unacceptable behavior. The ways some humans eliminated some unacceptable human behavior was unacceptable itself. Yet the overall messages stands--some behavior is truly unacceptable.

The Old Testament tells us about ourselves and the emotions that our own behavior should generate within us because we, too, are called to be loving, kind, just, and merciful. Are we also called to be unknowable, impenetrable, inscrutable? In a way, as all these attributes require exacting discipline within oneself.

You say you grew up and read the Bible. The next recommended step after that is to study the Bible. God is worth knowing.

And I did study the bible to make myself a better Christian. That's when I learned what is really there instead of what some teacher or preacher said about it. If god doesn't get angry, as you just claimed, why did he order the deaths of so many children, and order the deaths of livestock and then to salt the earth so nothing could grow?

 

[Meriweather]

I wasn't subjected thoroughly to believing in religion or a god and therefore I was able to think independently as a teen and was able to reject it due to a lack of any evidence.

Why were you looking for evidence? Why not look directly for God?

 

[Donald H]

Why were you looking for evidence? Why not look directly for God?

I think the two were the same thing for me.

Your semantics are disingenuous in my opinion and I'm very busy with other replies to other topics right now.

Reply with some substance and I'll try to make time for this topic. AGAIN!!!!!

 

[BreezeWood]

Two thoughts to address: The first is how did you come to know God, and to have faith in God?

The second: Specifically what made you decide there is no God to know? What caused you to stop exploring the possibility?

As frequent posters here may know, I first came to know about God in children's Little Golden Books. At that young age, getting to know about God made me insistent that knowing about God wasn't enough. Abraham, Noah, Moses had their experiences, and I wanted mine. Little Golden Books started me out, and my own stubbornness and persistence took it from there.

Why did you continue...or, why did you give up?

and my own stubbornness and persistence took it from there.

rigidity and political expediency is a sad way to interpret the reasons for religion as the answers sought by many in their daily lives for solutions during their lifetime for comfort and joy ... from those very same distractions - and of corrupt written, organized religions.

 

[ding]

rigidity and political expediency is a sad way to interpret the reasons for religion as the answers sought by many in their daily lives for solutions during their lifetime for comfort and joy ... from those very same distractions - and of corrupt written, organized religions.

Way to address the OP

 

[Meriweather]

Stories such as a man living in the belly of a whale, destroyed any faith I had remaining for the indoctrination I received. There were other stories too that couldn't be reconciled with the reality I grew to understand as early as my teen years.

Old Testament stories are not Encylopedia or newspaper report. They have a lesson with a theme to convey. Instead of calling to mind a lesson or theme, people in modern times get distracted by a someone surviving in the belly of big fish for three days. Do you recall the theme at all?

 

[Meriweather]

Those books contained the fantasies I didn't accept and I believe that's because I wasn't fed a steady diet of that at such a young age.

Perhaps it takes a young child to distinguish between the imagination and the reality in the accounts. An older child is more distracted than entertained by the imaginary.