Does it bug you that....

[cardero]

Does it bug you (as a believer in a god) that others don't believe in your god?

YOU K(NOW) what? That is their right and privilege. I do not need for anyone to LOVE ME or like ME or acknowledge ME. I AM LOVE, and I certainly have enough LOVE for the many who do not want to believe. I must confess that I find the whole concept of not believing in ME most intriguing.

HELLO IT'S ME: An Interview With GOD
Chapter: Preference
Pg:49

If it doesn’t bother GOD there really is no reason why it should bother me. Not many religions can claim this about their God without penalty or judgment.

yuvgotmel writes: Does it bug you (as a believer in whatever religion) that others don't believe in your particular "holy texts" or prophet(s)?

No, I think it is because I have nothing to lose. I don’t incorporate faith in my beliefs so I do not have to worry about convincing or fortifying this faith on/in others, I haven’t lost anything material and I don’t have any religious empires to support, I don’t have to be concern that I am right or be upset when am incorrect because I have enough friends surrounding me who can help me when I reveal my ignorance. And I certainly do not promote or manipulate my position over others from my REALationship wth GOD. If people do accept or are impressed with me, they will accept me for who I am and not who I K(NOW).

 

[Wandered Off]

I don’t incorporate faith in my beliefs...

In your view, how are faith and beliefs different?

 

[yuvgotmel]

YOU K(NOW) what? That is their right and privilege. I do not need for anyone to LOVE ME or like ME or acknowledge ME. I AM LOVE, and I certainly have enough LOVE for the many who do not want to believe. I must confess that I find the whole concept of not believing in ME most intriguing.

You're a trip!

 

[cardero]

In your view, how are faith and beliefs different?

Faith is personal, faith has to be practiced, beliefs cannot be owned and though they should be worked out, they do not respond well to repetitive training programs.

As long as a possibility exists, a belief is valid. Faith does not allow someone the luxury of believing in other possibilities.

A person practicing faith takes their faith with them when they pass away, a belief is usually available when you arrive and will remain after you pass away.

Beliefs can be reasoned with, faith cannot be reasoned with.

Beliefs are free, faith is very taxing.

Beliefs can either lead to Truth or Untruth, faith can often lead to disappointment or uncertainty.

 

[applewuud]

QUESTION:

Do you all think that people might be getting upset at others who disagree with them because of some sort of cognitive dissonance or doubt in their own beliefs????

Certainly if someone's secure in their belief, they don't get very upset about someone who disagrees with them. For example, until recently most scientists didn't bother to debate about evolution vs. creation and the age of the earth. It was (and is) regarded as a settled issue as far as the basic mechanisms are concerned, though they're constantly being refined.

But beliefs sometimes move into actions in the public sphere. For example, when creationists move to ban scientific texts from being taught in a public school, scientists "get upset" because it will affect the quality of education and the progress of technology...and eventually affect policymaking in a way that will be detrimental to what to them is proven fact. Carl Sagan and Richard Hawkins were moved to "campaign for their beliefs" on this basis, not because of cognitive dissonance.

On the religious side, there are those who feel that if a tide of irreligion or atheism comes over a society, God will bring a collective punishment. A less theistic "collective punishment" concept is a motivation for environmentalists to be upset about those who don't "believe in" global warming caused by human use of fossil fuels. Same issue here: these people are probably pretty firm in their beliefs, but get upset with disagreements because they fear the consequences of living in a society with those who don't believe what they believe.

That claimed-Unitarian Thomas Jefferson said something like, "it does not affect me in the slightest if my neighbor believes in one God, or twelve gods." While my tradition is tolerant to a fault, I've begun to see the limits of TJ's thinking here. Depending on what my neighbor's 12 gods are telling him to do out in the world, it does affect me. Even though UUs have a pretty big tent of belief and practice, in the end it does matter what we believe.