Does a belief in a god show lack of education?

[BilliardsBall]

There is no "a religious belief".
There are sundry different & incompatible religious beliefs.

We'll have to agree to disagree that popularity
of a range of beliefs means that one sector
of them (Christian god) is The Truth.

No, respectfully, nearly every person who has ever lived has expressed belief that there was a power over them, the universe, and their destiny.

Nor did I say: "popularity
of a range of beliefs means that one sector
of them (Christian god) is The Truth.[/QUOTE]"

I'm AGAIN explaining how universality of religious belief shows--according to you--widespread irrationality, even insanity, which is de facto illogical, since you are unable to tell me of any other false belief other than spirituality that is prevalent in the face of opposing/lack of evidence!

 

[BilliardsBall]

Your answer in 244:

"Astrology, ghosts, homeopathy. When you combine all paranormal phenomena and all quackery the numbers are comparable with the number of the combined belief in any spiritual "higher power". (And it makes sense to bundle the non-spiritual irrational beliefs as you also bundle all the different and often contradicting god beliefs.)
Humans, on average, are not very rational in their beliefs."

Is not an answer--firstly, you claim "Humans, on average, are not very rational in their beliefs", then you claim "Nothing is as irrational as a belief in gods, therefore it must be true."

My actual argument is that you have it both ways, "Well, I guess spiritual people are irrational," which means 99% of people are irrational, which I DENY. You have restated your (lacking) argument falsely as mine!

 

[Revoltingest]

No, respectfully, nearly every person who has ever lived has expressed belief that there was a power over them, the universe, and their destiny.

This person never ever believed in sky fairies.
Upon discovering people's beliefs, I thought
they're crazy. I'm far from alone.
Many people would never experience what you
claim if not indoctrinated by parents.

 

[BilliardsBall]

I am. It is the point you keep claiming based on your questions. Perhaps you will answer my question. Probably not though.

Which question? I will happily answer it.

 

[BilliardsBall]

Where do you get your numbers to calculate percentages. Again, is belief by a large number or any majority evidence for that which those people believe. Or is it evidence that a large number of people believe something?

If your assertion is correct, then anything a large number of people believe thus exists or is true.

That is a false equivocation. Let's redact what I said to 90% and accept the (bogus) atheist claim that 10% of people worldwide are atheists.

Atheists claim evidence supports their stance, therefore, they are claiming that 90% of persons are irrational, which is de facto illogical.

Then I offer them a chance to prove their assertion: Name anything else in the universe that people believe falsely in these high numbers! We can even go back through history to see countless religious people and cultures.

Most people believe in evolution, in gravity . . . most people disbelieve in Moon landing hoaxes, that 9/11 was an inside job and that the Earth is flat. So I should accept that atheists believe that the ONLY thing universally mistaken by people is belief in invisible deity (deities)? That makes no sense.

 

[Revoltingest]

That is a false equivocation.

No, the poster was quite clear & logical.
He showed that your argument fails because
it would apply to any wrong but popular belief.
It's reductio ad absurdum.

 

[Muffled]

Generalizations are a hallmark of logic.
A generalization is reached through analysing the traits of individuals and identifying the communalities and similarities and constructing an idealized abstract. It is also important to keep the significance of the generalization in mind. Some are defining and others only have a higher chance of being true.
E.g.: in a pair of randomly selected atheists/theists I can't say who is more educated/intelligent but if I'd bet on the atheists in a series of picks, I'd win more often than not.

I believe more education and intelligence do not necessarily lead a person to the truth.

 

[Heyo]

Your answer in 244:

"Astrology, ghosts, homeopathy. When you combine all paranormal phenomena and all quackery the numbers are comparable with the number of the combined belief in any spiritual "higher power". (And it makes sense to bundle the non-spiritual irrational beliefs as you also bundle all the different and often contradicting god beliefs.)
Humans, on average, are not very rational in their beliefs."

Is not an answer--firstly, you claim "Humans, on average, are not very rational in their beliefs", then you claim "Nothing is as irrational as a belief in gods, therefore it must be true."

My actual argument is that you have it both ways, "Well, I guess spiritual people are irrational," which means 99% of people are irrational, which I DENY. You have restated your (lacking) argument falsely as mine!

Do we agree that a significant number of people believe in astrology, homeopathy or ghosts?
Do we agree that a belief in astrology, homeopathy or ghosts is not backed by evidence?
Do we therefore agree that a significant number of people are not rational in their beliefs?

 

[Heyo]

I believe more education and intelligence do not necessarily lead a person to the truth.

So do I and I have stated that previously. Nor do ignorance or stupidity.
An educated and intelligent person just has more tools at hand for the search.

 

[night912]

What are the statistical odds that most people who've ever lived are wrong?

What is an example of something that most people believe in error DESPITE evidence? For examples, a minority disbelieve in COVID vaccination, Moon landings and 9/11 as a result of terrorism. But you contend that most people who've ever lived--past and present--falsely believe in a deity despite evidence, is that correct? Name ANY other as-common deception.

Here's one. A lot of bible believers believe that the canonical gospels were written by first hand eyewitnesses despite there being no author assigned to them and the evidence against it.

 

[lukethethird]

Does a belief in a god show lack of education?
No, they learned me real good.

 

[Sheldon]

I said name ANYTHING in creation (person, place, thing, doctrine, concept) OTHER than God that the vast, overwhelming majority believe in

Argumentum ad populum.

 

[Sheldon]

Dan From Smithville said: ↑
Can you show that something exists simply based on the number of people that believe it exists? Based on that, many believed things would exist. Islam

That's not my point. Address my point if you would.

That is precisely your point, even if you don't understand that.

 

[Sheldon]

There is a religious belief that is believed by an overwhelming majority.

Sigh, argumentum ad populum, yet again, you're not getting this.

 

[Sheldon]

99% of people believe falsely despite the evidence OR
99% of people believe despite contrary evidence

Atheism is not a belief, what the majority believe tells us nothing about the validity of their belief, to assert otherwise is an argumentum ad poculum fallacy.

Neither you, nor any other theists have
demonstrated any objective "evidence" for any deity...

 

[Sheldon]

FINE! There is no evidence for God,

Quod erat demonstratum

I suspect your "unaware of my point" since you do not address my arguments or the wholeness of them. I'll restate: Name something in the known universe that 99% of people believe despite contrary evidence (or disbelieve despite firm evidence) other than God.

You seem to be implying that the number of people who believe something, lend some credence to the belief. That is a known logical fallacy called argumentum ad populum. Look it up....

The overwhelming majority's belief in God is proof of God

Sigh, argumentum ad populum, again...a logical fallacy whether you understand what it means or not.

There is no evidence for God, therefore, nearly every human who has ever lived is absolutely irrational.

If the cap fits...

Name ANYTHING other than God that everyone falsely believes in.

Oh your god, learn what argumentum ad populum means, and what it means for your ridiculous assertions about what the majority think or believe.

 

[Sheldon]

Where do you get your numbers to calculate percentages.

Same place as his deity, straight out of his imagination. .

 

[Sheldon]

Claiming that monotheism is a function of lack of education is just certain people lying to themselves.

Well it is a rather silly sweeping claim, that isn't true.

Einstein himself believed in a deistic sort of God.

The hilarity of god with a capital g there is pretty hilarious, especially after after his private correspondence have stated unequivocally that he had no belief in any cotemporary monotheisms, so can you all leave poor Albert alone, and defend your beliefs on their own merit?

As a professional counselor, I have to object to the misuse of the concept of mental illness by these atheists. In order to be diagnosed as mentally ill, a person must be dysfunctional.

A delusion is not necessarily a pathology.

scientific research has shown that those involved in religious communities are healthier, happier, longer lived, and have a buffer against anxiety and depression.

Nonsense.

I would encourage these atheists to stop with the armchair diagnoses -- they aren't qualified and are in error.

When theists stop claiming they know what an omniscient deity thinks and wants, and insisting others must play ball, and damning those who won't to Hell, and all without a shred of objective evidence, then I'll wind my neck in. Until then, get used to uppity atheists submitting bronze age myths and superstitions to critical scrutiny.

 

[IndigoChild5559]

The hilarity of god with a capital g there is pretty hilarious

The standard English grammar for this is that if you are talking about a monotheistic God, you capitalize the G. If you are talking about one of many gods, you say god with a lower case g.

 

[Dan From Smithville]

That is a false equivocation.

No it is not. The way you post, you are clearly saying that if a majority believes in something, that is evidence for what is believed in. That is a fallacy.

Let's redact what I said to 90% and accept the (bogus) atheist claim that 10% of people worldwide are atheists.

To what end and on what basis are you claiming that a 10% atheist population is bogus?

Atheists claim evidence supports their stance, therefore, they are claiming that 90% of persons are irrational, which is de facto illogical.

What I understand of atheism, it is that they claim there is no evidence, so they have no reason to believe. No one claims there is evidence to show their is no God. If they do, they have not shown anyone this evidence.

Then I offer them a chance to prove their assertion: Name anything else in the universe that people believe falsely in these high numbers! We can even go back through history to see countless religious people and cultures.

Whose assertion? Large numbers of people believe in Bigfoot, Nessie, alien visitors, witches, ghosts, etc. The fact of those beliefs by large numbers of people is not evidence for the validity of any of that.

Most people believe in evolution, in gravity . . . most people disbelieve in Moon landing hoaxes, that 9/11 was an inside job and that the Earth is flat. So I should accept that atheists believe that the ONLY thing universally mistaken by people is belief in invisible deity (deities)? That makes no sense.

How have you determined what most people believe? Many people accept the theory of evolution and recognize the evidence of evolution. The same for gravity. It makes no sense to view scientific theories from the basis of belief, since they are supported on reason and evidence.

Are you saying the moon landings were hoaxes or that they are believed by some to be hoaxes? As far as I know, most do not believe they were hoaxes. Just some. I could be wrong, I have not explored this as much as you appear to have. Perhaps you will share how you determined most.

I am not aware that atheists are claiming that a deity or belief in a deity is something they consider to be a universal mistake made by all people. A mistake in what way? In believing something they feel they have no reason to believe or that there is nothing there to believe? What you post is very confusing and difficult to follow. Perhaps you could summarize in one succinct post to clarify things.

Do you think that Bigfoot is taking advantage of your home and living there when you are not around? Why wouldn't you think that since so many people believe Bigfoot exists?