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I don't believe in God because I've never heard a good reason to believe in God. I find it odd that you presume a need for a good reason to not believe in some

I don't believe in God because I've never heard a good reason to believe in God. I find it odd that you presume a need for a good reason to not believe in something. If I did need such reasons, I'd need a good reason to not believe in invisible pink unicorns, teapots in orbit around Saturn, and many other things. (Apologies if I've misinterpreted you.)

csomar 16y ago
Good answer. It means that you are ready to believe if there are a really convincing reason; which is what I'm looking for. But my question was mainly to check if you are not believing for a specific reason. A simple reason is "If God exist, why doesn't him make his existence CLEAR, without ambiguity by some kind of magical power or miracle."
- petervandijck 16y ago
  Of course, with a convincing reason I'll believe, that's the definition of "convincing" :) I don't think non-believers "not-believe" for a specific reason, just as believers don't believe for a specific reason. It just seems highly unlikely that there's a "god". Just as it seems highly unlikely that there are aliens from another planet living among us, or that I can levitate by merely willing it to happen. Quite unlikely, but happy to be shown/proven wrong :)
marcamillion 16y ago
Let's assume that neither of us know if God REALLY exists...don't you think it might be safer to hedge your bet and believe in a god - for the afterlife? What will it cost you to believe in God while you are alive? Nothing. What will it cost you if there really is a god and you chose not to believe? Could cost you eternity. So why not believe? The upside is (in the worst case) the same as not believing, but the downside (in the worst case) could be eternal damnation. This is ofcourse assuming that the person that does exist, believes in the right god.
- tkahn6 16y ago
  This is known as Pascal's Wager. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascals_Wager http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascals_Wager
  - marcamillion 16y ago
    Very interesting...never knew about this. Thanks!
- prawn 16y ago
  "So why not believe?" How is it that easy? We're not picking a team to support in the Finals series. The idea of believing in a "god" to me is as foreign as believing in a tooth fairy. When an employee of mine is openly religious, it is to me akin to him espousing a belief in something purely fantastical - tooth fairy, Santa Claus, etc. His choice and I don't deride it, but to me it is all entirely bizarre. When I look at mysteries of our existence, of the creation of our universe, at no point does any fibre of my being whatsoever think to consider that a god-like higher power might be behind it all. And even if you could force yourself to believe, without doubt, which god are you going to believe in to guarantee yourself some sort of 'eternity'?
  - frederickcook 16y ago
    Might not be the best idea to comment on your personal feelings regarding an employee's religious affiliation. It'd suck to have a HN post submitted as evidence in a discrimination lawsuit. Edit: Why the down-vote? The parent has his company and website in his info. No idea what it's like in AUS, but in the states, if someone was fired and there was any ambiguity regarding the reason, this comment could be be admissible in court to demonstrate a prior discriminatory attitude toward people based on their religion.
    - deleted 16y ago
      [deleted]
    - prawn 16y ago
calcnerd256 16y ago
or quantum

csomar 16y ago

Good answer. It means that you are ready to believe if there are a really convincing reason; which is what I'm looking for. But my question was mainly to check if you are not believing for a specific reason. A simple reason is "If God exist, why doesn't him make his existence CLEAR, without ambiguity by some kind of magical power or miracle."

petervandijck 16y ago
Of course, with a convincing reason I'll believe, that's the definition of "convincing" :) I don't think non-believers "not-believe" for a specific reason, just as believers don't believe for a specific reason. It just seems highly unlikely that there's a "god". Just as it seems highly unlikely that there are aliens from another planet living among us, or that I can levitate by merely willing it to happen. Quite unlikely, but happy to be shown/proven wrong :)

marcamillion 16y ago

Let's assume that neither of us know if God REALLY exists...don't you think it might be safer to hedge your bet and believe in a god - for the afterlife? What will it cost you to believe in God while you are alive? Nothing. What will it cost you if there really is a god and you chose not to believe? Could cost you eternity. So why not believe? The upside is (in the worst case) the same as not believing, but the downside (in the worst case) could be eternal damnation. This is ofcourse assuming that the person that does exist, believes in the right god.

tkahn6 16y ago
This is known as Pascal's Wager. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascals_Wager http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascals_Wager
- marcamillion 16y ago
  Very interesting...never knew about this. Thanks!
prawn 16y ago
"So why not believe?" How is it that easy? We're not picking a team to support in the Finals series. The idea of believing in a "god" to me is as foreign as believing in a tooth fairy. When an employee of mine is openly religious, it is to me akin to him espousing a belief in something purely fantastical - tooth fairy, Santa Claus, etc. His choice and I don't deride it, but to me it is all entirely bizarre. When I look at mysteries of our existence, of the creation of our universe, at no point does any fibre of my being whatsoever think to consider that a god-like higher power might be behind it all. And even if you could force yourself to believe, without doubt, which god are you going to believe in to guarantee yourself some sort of 'eternity'?
- frederickcook 16y ago
  Might not be the best idea to comment on your personal feelings regarding an employee's religious affiliation. It'd suck to have a HN post submitted as evidence in a discrimination lawsuit. Edit: Why the down-vote? The parent has his company and website in his info. No idea what it's like in AUS, but in the states, if someone was fired and there was any ambiguity regarding the reason, this comment could be be admissible in court to demonstrate a prior discriminatory attitude toward people based on their religion.
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
  - prawn 16y ago

calcnerd256 16y ago

or quantum