If there was definitely a god, would you pray to it?

So pharmaceutical companies can sell more products?

 

huh...?

are you challenging the diagnosis procedure? Because I can go ahead and tell you, this is some serious illnesses we are talking about and is not revved up so people can make money off of drugs, believe me.

 

Psychiatric diagnosis isn't rocket science. Before accepting the figures, I'd want to find out more, like who did the diagnosing. Was this some graduate student in soiciology, LPC, social worker, clinical psychologist, psychiatrist or what? But I wouldn't be surprised that Oklahoma is way up there. We're among the leaders in teen pregnancies, incarcerated women, divorces, etc., which would indicate a certain amount of social pathology. And as I said, some of the statements from our legislators give me pause--e.g., the legislature's threat to investigate the University of Oklahoma for allowing Dawkins to speak, State Rep. Sally Kerns' statement that homosexuality presents a greater threat to our nation than terrorism, Senator Coburn's concerns about the lesbian threat in the schools of eastern Oklahoma, etc. If these lawmakers aren't themselves crazy, the constituents who elect them sure are!

 

I would not offer a prayer to any god/goddess in any pantheon. If a god was proven to exist and it desired me to pray to it, I would ignore it. Any being with a capacity to create a universe and life should not need to hear 6 billion thank you's a day. That is some needy, almost desperate, shit from an omnipotent being.

 

Well stated. Obviously the god most often promoted lacks even the most basic interpersonal skills, and might benefit greatly if he/she were to appear and take advantage of some available modern psychoanalysis. Not having a Father or a Mother could result in some very difficult problems to cope with.

 

nope. i don't like begging. and if i wasn't able to get/do something on my own then having it handed down to me by a supernatural force/anybody else would be worthless to me.

 

Prayer isn't just begging. Petitionary prayer is just one kind of prayer. I doubt that the Serenity Prayer is regarded by most people who say it as simply begging for serenity, courage and wisdom. It's an affirmation that sends a healing message to the humans who say it and hear it. That would be true whether or not there is a God who answers prayer. In other words, if there definitely were not a God, I'd still pray.

 

Why would any being demand and enjoy being "worshipped" and having millions of ass- kissers asking him for things all the time? I thought to be humble was a quality to be desired. If the head honcho is not humble then where does that leave us? If there is a "supreme being",he/she needs to pay a considerable more amount of attention to the interactions of his/her creations.

 

No, because there is nothing in this world or beyond that can DEMAND my obedience and respect.

If asked, I would freely give. I'm yet to hear of any God-form that asks openly though.

 

considering how fucked up the world is, and how many things in it could obviously be better, any prayers I made to this God would NOT be positive ones

more like WTF? what the hell are you doing up there in heaven all day? smoking crack? come fix all the world's problems or let somebody else take over

 

I have short enough time on this planet and I wouldnt want to waste it grovelling and praying to some imagined beard in the sky!

 

Praying is for weak, what you do in your life is for the brave...
Chosen ones have no time to pray!

 

Haven't you noticed, somebody else has always taken over in every civilization. Initially, they did so claiming a God as their source of authority. Long ago, and still in a few cases today, the masses were/are able to be controlled through fear of the unknown, while the more educated modern humans are just as easily controlled by fear of the known.

While it may be true that God helps those who help themselves, it's just as that those who help themselves have no need of a God. Is it so difficult to determine right from wrong that some people need a God to make the determination for them? Even so, if you need the help of a God, that's your business. Just don't try to impose it on all others.

 

I think you share with many believers the notion that God is in the business of answering prayer and keeping bad things from happening in the world, at least if we ask Him properly. I think prayer typically takes a form that implies this, but I don't really take it literally. When I say the Serenity prayer, for example, it is in the form of beseeching a supernatural being for serenity, courage and wisdom, but what it really is is a focusing of my own thoughts on the importance of those qualities and my efforts on how to gain them. Recently, a friend of mine who belongs to the Unity Church, which preaches the power of positive thinking, was telling me how his pastor, who died from a Parkinsons-related illness, could not understand why he was dying. The pastor believed that if he asked properly, he would be healed, and couldn't figure out why it wasn't happening. It apparently never occurred to him, nor my friend, that it just doesn't work that way. I'm of the Marcus Aurelius school of prayer. Instead of asking to be healed, ask for the strength to accept not being healed. That way, you'll be more likely to have your prayers answered.

 

well when i was a christian i really didn't pray then and i believed in him.. now that i don't.. i know i wouldnt pray if he popped up tomorrow and showed himself to the world

 

I'd definitely pray to it, I think you'd be naive to not do so. But I don't know if I could change my life or "better my ways" for him though. I'd still have my fun. But i'd definitely give him a few minutes a day. If that makes any sense

 

Why, if it's not going to affect how you live? And do you think it would do any good, if (S)he was aware you were doing it as a token gesture?

 

First of all i'm not religious at all soo don't get the wrong idea. I meant I think you'd be nieve to not pray to a certain god if it could cost you your way into heaven. And if there is a god he/she would definitely not be bothered if you were in the right place praying to get into heaven.

Get it?

 

Essentially it boils down to "A God by any name is a God", and they all perform equally as well. Many ancient battles were won with the help of so-called Pagan Gods. So a God might be used as a tool or a crutch to allow one to focus their own thoughts, which I agree can be useful, except at times when it provides a basis of authority to impose ones thoughts upon others.

 

And of course a person who uses prayer as a tool or instrument is probably not going to be into imposing thoughts upon others.