Salam
Some people feel faith or lack of it is not a choice. I think it's not in a vacuum.
Do we want there to be a next world or do we want this life to be the only life?
An advantage in this being the only life, is that you don't worry for moral accountability for your actions.
An advantage in being a next world is that you do worry for moral accountability for your actions.
Did I just contradict myself? No. They are both advantages but for a different part of you respectively. For lower self or for higher self. For animal self or for spiritual reality part of you.
There is also other factors. Sometimes we want to sin, then don't want to be wrong, we want the act to be okay or even good, and as the only religion with proof condemns it, so we avoid to seek the proof for religion and instead create our own morals or choose a religion based on what we desire out of caprice.
There's more to it. To be convinced of philosophical proofs or spiritual truths, takes a bit of discipline. It takes silencing the mind from irrational thought and seeing the truth in a humble grounded way. Are we ready to be be humble?
Still, while faith is not on and off switch there are other factors. For example, we may love our family, our people, or a person we are attracted to and don't want it to be they are on falsehood or that they are evil and so we will deny reality as is, the true justice and balance and measurement of deeds, all so the people we love are not accounted in a negative way.
Reflection can be a headache. It can literally hurt the head. It's easier to just go with small talk, life goals, party, have fun, and not think about things involving justice. It's easier to not see the solution for world problems but ignore them. Easier to be apathetic then live a life striving for justice.
Still, more to it. Is that we choose to be truthful to ourselves or not. If we come across proofs and are dishonest about it to ourselves, then this a choice.
Lying to ourselves or being true to ourselves is a choice.
Being honest about what one knows or not, is a choice.
Running away from the higher road towards all "fun and games" is a choice.
Not regretting our evil actions and seeing it as good to deceive ourselves we are good is a choice too.
How important truth is for us is a choice.
All these factor in.
And if we know God exists, if we decide to want to be guided by his guidance or seek the world while just blindly following clergy class is a choice too.
If God revealed a book, how we read it, is a choice. Are we playful? Are we sincere? To we impose our opinion on it or seek to learn from it? Do we take seriously the plausibility of it or come towards it seeking faults without acknowledging our bias maybe the fault generator?
Do we see miss the forest for the trees when reading God's book?
This all factors in. Did we reflect over what would prove himself or his religion? This is a choice. To read the book with reflection or ignore it or not read at all except what some people quote here and there is all a choice.
Some people feel faith or lack of it is not a choice. I think it's not in a vacuum.
Do we want there to be a next world or do we want this life to be the only life?
An advantage in this being the only life, is that you don't worry for moral accountability for your actions.
An advantage in being a next world is that you do worry for moral accountability for your actions.
Did I just contradict myself? No. They are both advantages but for a different part of you respectively. For lower self or for higher self. For animal self or for spiritual reality part of you.
There is also other factors. Sometimes we want to sin, then don't want to be wrong, we want the act to be okay or even good, and as the only religion with proof condemns it, so we avoid to seek the proof for religion and instead create our own morals or choose a religion based on what we desire out of caprice.
There's more to it. To be convinced of philosophical proofs or spiritual truths, takes a bit of discipline. It takes silencing the mind from irrational thought and seeing the truth in a humble grounded way. Are we ready to be be humble?
Still, while faith is not on and off switch there are other factors. For example, we may love our family, our people, or a person we are attracted to and don't want it to be they are on falsehood or that they are evil and so we will deny reality as is, the true justice and balance and measurement of deeds, all so the people we love are not accounted in a negative way.
Reflection can be a headache. It can literally hurt the head. It's easier to just go with small talk, life goals, party, have fun, and not think about things involving justice. It's easier to not see the solution for world problems but ignore them. Easier to be apathetic then live a life striving for justice.
Still, more to it. Is that we choose to be truthful to ourselves or not. If we come across proofs and are dishonest about it to ourselves, then this a choice.
Lying to ourselves or being true to ourselves is a choice.
Being honest about what one knows or not, is a choice.
Running away from the higher road towards all "fun and games" is a choice.
Not regretting our evil actions and seeing it as good to deceive ourselves we are good is a choice too.
How important truth is for us is a choice.
All these factor in.
And if we know God exists, if we decide to want to be guided by his guidance or seek the world while just blindly following clergy class is a choice too.
If God revealed a book, how we read it, is a choice. Are we playful? Are we sincere? To we impose our opinion on it or seek to learn from it? Do we take seriously the plausibility of it or come towards it seeking faults without acknowledging our bias maybe the fault generator?
Do we see miss the forest for the trees when reading God's book?
This all factors in. Did we reflect over what would prove himself or his religion? This is a choice. To read the book with reflection or ignore it or not read at all except what some people quote here and there is all a choice.
