h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

God of leaf, fur, scale and feather, why have you permitted this plague of humans, who rape, pillage and destroy? How have living creatures so offended You, that You permit this evil?

Pattern-chaser

"Who cares, wins"

Art thou in heaven?

B

Come on, admit it, your real name's Bob isn't it.

My questions:

Is the speed of light really constant?
How does gravity actually work?
Could you tie a knot in the super string for me?
Why does my superglue always disappear 5 seconds after I put it down only to reappear when I stop looking for it?
Why do people always have to ask you why you allow wars, murder, rape, etc. when it should be common knowledge that you deliberately gave mankind free will and left them to it?
If a tree falls in a forest and there's no one to hear it, does it make a sound?

One more:
Is there really a species of shark which can vomit underwater?

Or swallow hammers

Thou shalt not kill (a human). So where is the moral scale for killing other animals? In the absence of any moral guidance is it justified for me to kill everything I see just for fun?

Where is all the dark matter?

What was it like appearing on The Simpsons?

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Hiding in the shadows so nobody can see it.

You might be a good Agony Uncle but you ain't God.

If god walked into a bar and sat down next to me I would get up and walk out!

turvy

Hey, a man's gotta have aspirations.

Why did you make the evidence for your existence (til now) so poor? I mean, was it a set up? Did you purposely WANT anyone with two braincells and a functioning pair of eyes to stop believing in you, leaving only dullards, psychological inadequates and the mentally vulnerable in churches?

H.

Proof denies faith and without faith I am nothing.

Bugger... I'm doing it again aren't I? Mental note: I'm not God yet.

On a more serious note: why does everyone assume that putting your faith in religion means you are stupid? I know quite a few Christians (including my wife) and none of them are dullards, psychological inadequates or mentally vulnerable.

I keep hearing about how Christians are 'ignorant' and 'bigoted' surely it's just as ignorant and bigoted to assume this in the first place?

I think it's a denial mechanism that this is it, no practise run, nothing afterwards and hey we might be on our own in this ere cosmos.

"why does everyone assume that putting your faith in religion means you are stupid?"

A number of responses:

1. "Everyone" demonstrably doesn't assume that. In fact, most people DO put their faith in religion. But then again, most people (defined as "more than 50%") believe in ghosts, so that's no indication of rightness.

2. It doesn't mean you are stupid. It means you *might* be stupid. Or psychologically inadequate, i.e. unable to face the fact that the universe is pointless and random and death is the end. Or mentally vulnerable - I was specifically warned both times I started university that several kinds of organisations target confused, vulnerable freshers who don't know any better, knowing that if they catch them at a vulnerable time they'll probably have a customer for life - insurance scammers, high street banks, and churches. Religion can be a great comfort in times of stress, and to my mind its main value in the world is comforting people who are upset about something - death of a loved one, whatever - but the *problem* is that people who have been thus comforted are then exhorted to go out and try to sell this cure to people who don't have their disease.

And finally, it is neither "ignorant" nor "bigoted" to say that Christians can be so, at least, it isn't for ME. It's not ignorant because, well, ignorant of what? I KNOW bigoted Christians. I've talked with a few on this site. And it's not bigoted to point out a fact you've observed in the real world. It IS bigoted to try to *suppress* such facts - something Christians (and other religions) do all the time.

H.

<...why does everyone assume that putting your faith in religion means you are stupid?>

Is it "everyone", or is it Hoo, and one or two others? You can't reason with dogmatists.

Pattern-chaser

"Who cares, wins"

<<"Everyone" demonstrably doesn't assume that. In fact, most people DO put their faith in religion. But then again, most people (defined as "more than 50%") believe in ghosts, so that's no indication of rightness.>>

That's taking what I said a wee bit *too* literally...

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That doesn't make you psychologically inadequate, it just means you're not over cynical.

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Too true, saying that anyone *can* be something is not ignorant or bigoted. Implying that *all* members of a particular group *are* something *is* ignorant and bigoted. It is this implication which is most commonly used by anti-Christians.


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So do I, but as I said before I know plenty of non-bigoted ones. Tarring all Christians with the same brush does (I'm not saying you are, but a Hell of a lot of people do), in my opinion, display ignorance and bigotry.

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Do you know what? There are plenty of non-religious groups who devote a lot of time to surpressing facts too! Only a very small proportion of Christians actively try to surpress established fact, it's just unfortunate that they're the ones with the most real world 'clout'.

"it just means you're not over cynical."

It's over cynical to be realistic? Gosh.

What you seem to be saying is "ignorance is bliss". Which is only a cliche because it's true. However, offered blissful ignorance or enlightened cynicism, I'll take the latter...

H.

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If you can provide me with concrete proof that the universe is totally random and that death is the end of all things I will bow down to your point of view. Why is it unrealistic to have hope?