Sooo...

[Roalith]

This whole religion thing.

<takes cover>

I've recently had my head buried in The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins. It's not the easiest going of books that I've ever read, and I'm only half way through or so thus far.

Generally speaking, I've always been of an agnostic, or loosely zen-gnostic viewpoint when it comes to religion. Something Dawkins describes as believing in the possibility of Einsteinian God, rather than the personal God subscribed to by the Abrahamic (Jewish, Christian, Muslim) religions.

However, what I've read of it so far: I'm rapidly swinging towards radical atheism. I cannot reccomend this book enough.

If you are a 'believer' in anything and want your ideas to be challenged, read it. Seriously.

 

[tris-]

i read "a brief history of time" over the last few days by prof. hawking.

basically we can try to understand what happened up untill the big bang but our laws of physics cannot apply before then, and anything that existed before then cannot have an impact on our current universe. his idea of a god is not the one religions use these days, making you goto church and saying there is a heaven. its more like a god set the universe in motion and decided the conditions and then left it to develop without intervening.

im still not sure tbh. if we dont need to know what happened prior to the big bang then it makes sense to just take the easiest explanation that a creator put it in motion. though thankfully the book did agree determinism which i currently prescibe too. that everything that happens, happens because it is the most likely scenario. so that humans exist because it is the most likely scenario they should exist, therfore meaning they arnt all that spectacular!

 

[cHodAX]

There is no religion, there is only 'The Way of the cHodAX' which is the true path to universal enlightenment, ask Docwolfe he will confirm it. If he doesn't I shall have to beat him for another 2 weeks in my dungeon.

 

[swords]

I find Dawkins comes across as a little bit too preachy on occasion... I'm still on the fence even after reading the god delusion.

 

[tris-]

can someone explain what an einstenian god is?

 

[crispy]

can someone explain what an einstenian god is?

Its kind of a god who just started the universe and lets it run wild. Omniscient, but only look, not touchy touch

 

[noblok]

can someone explain what an einstenian god is?

Wikipedia can. It's a rather short text and very understandable. (Albert Einstein - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Edit: Spinoza in the Stanford encylopedia of philosophy.

 

[tris-]

Its kind of a god who just started the universe and lets it run wild. Omniscient, but only look, not touchy touch

thats the same thing hawking talked about in that book.

 

[old.Tohtori]

If you are a 'believer' in anything and want your ideas to be challenged, read it. Seriously.

Had to comment on this line:

First, why the '' around believer? Rather rude. Same as me saying to you -you're a "man" and you should...-

Second, beliefs are not ideas.

Do continue, just that one line can put off even the most logical of recommendations.