Should god -any- make sense?

[Emp-Naval]

I'm not entirely sure what the OP means by "make sense." Make sense to whom? By what standard?

I have to agree with illykitty's perspective that humans are quite limited creatures. Inevitably, some aspect of reality is not going to make sense to you by whatever criteria of "making sense" you set. To me, if reality starts making too much sense, then I'm guilty of severe confirmation bias, mistaking my map for the territory, or typical human hubris.

Well, maybe if I stated why am I asking it will become more clear..

I want to know how to approach the subject of god and religion, in order to sort all the mess up in my head.
So, I want to know if I should think about it logically, or somewhat different -devil knows how, though-?
I'm a simple man, with simple thoughts, unlike most of the guys here, who seem to be hardcore philosophers =p

 

[Sunstone]

I'm a simple man, with simple thoughts, unlike most of the guys here, who seem to be hardcore philosophers =p

I've learned to grab hold of my wallet and hang on tight whenever someone claims to be a simple man with simple thoughts. So what are you trying to sell?

 

[Quintessence]

My personal answer to that would be you should approach it in the manner that serves you and your path; put another way, take the approach that is fulfilling to you. I can't say I ever asked of my approach to the gods was "logical" or should be so when I wrestled through theology. The only thing I cared to ask was: what make sense to me? I don't care if it adheres to some particular standard of "logic" or not. I'm pretty utilitarian and value my right to have preferences: if it works and I like it, use it.

 

[Emp-Naval]

"I'm not trying to imply stereotypes here, but …"

Of course not …

Personal experience mate... But really now, I think this "stereotype" -if so you would like to call it- is a true one =|

 

[Sunstone]

So, I want to know if I should think about [the subject of god and religion] logically, or somewhat different -devil knows how, though-?

Would there by any downside to thinking about religion as logically as you might think about a computer program you're writing, or an automotive engine you're diagnosing?

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Personal experience mate... But really now, I think this "stereotype" -if so you would like to call it- is a true one =|

I suspect that all promoters of rank stereotypes believe theirs to be 'a true one,' but in the final analysis yours strikes me as little more than tired, anti-theist bigotry.

 

[Emp-Naval]

I've learned to grab hold of my wallet and hang on tight whenever someone claims to be a simple man with simple thoughts. So what are you trying to sell?

Somesort of frontal-lobe viagra =p

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

I've learned to grab hold of my wallet and hang on tight whenever someone claims to be a simple man with simple thoughts. So what are you trying to sell?

That theists are nothing more that ignorant purveyors of apologetic nonsense, of course.

 

[Willamena]

The cynic in me says the gods created humanity with just enough capability for logical thinking to be annoyed by illogical thinking while still not able to actually master logical thinking. In other words, they created our limited capacity for it as a means of annoying us.

I think rather than logic, it is language that's the problem: things meaning different things to different folk.

 

[Emp-Naval]

I suspect that all promoters of rank stereotypes believe theirs to be 'a true one,' but in the final analysis yours strikes me as little more than tired, anti-theist bigotry.

You are taking this too far my friend. I'm an Arab and believe me, I know how horrendous stereotypes can get.
Yes, I'm anti theist, but I try to stay as open minded as possible, and again I do state that my convection came from my personal experience.
I'll drop it here, because discussing this matter any further is pointless anyway =/

 

[LuisDantas]

Would there by any downside to thinking about religion as logically as you might think about a computer program you're writing, or an automotive engine you're diagnosing?

I can think of one. Computers and engines have little aptitude to deal with abstract concepts, individual peculiarities and ambiguities, while religion should know how to deal with them.

 

[Iti oj]

My personal answer to that would be you should approach it in the manner that serves you and your path; put another way, take the approach that is fulfilling to you. I can't say I ever asked of my approach to the gods was "logical" or should be so when I wrestled through theology. The only thing I cared to ask was: what make sense to me? I don't care if it adheres to some particular standard of "logic" or not. I'm pretty utilitarian and value my right to have preferences: if it works and I like it, use it.

I can understand that to a degree, but what you are promoting is simple answers intellectual dishonesty and laziness. Personal i understand my beliefs differ from my practices and my philosophies differ from both of those. So if something works for me I can use it, does not mean i think it its a truth.

 

[Emp-Naval]

Would there by any downside to thinking about religion as logically as you might think about a computer program you're writing, or an automotive engine you're diagnosing?

Somethings just make no sense at all, and still manage to be very real... say like errrm... Randomness? The human mind?...

 

[dawny0826]

What I'm asking here is NOT whether the concept of god makes sense or not, but rather should he/she/it?

I did a little search on the internet, and couldn't manage to find a discussion about this -then again I have the atention span of a chair's leg, so 15 minutes later I found myself reading some article about sea slugs...-

Anyway... This is a thought that I had after having a converstation with a theist, who after debleating his resource of apologetic nonsense, popped the never-old excuse "This is god's well, who are we to question it!".
Obviously this ended the discussion, but it made me wonder, why should any god be logical... There isn't anything that prevents him from being a complete lonatic, is there?

So my question is, why should a god abide the laws of logic?

Faith concepts do make sense to many people. I think your posed questions merely open doors to additional questions that only indvidivuals can answer as per their expectations and understanding of a faith concept like God and their openness.

Some people are not open to the concept of God, regardless as to what others might share or offer. Should God be make sense or be logical?

Does God not already make sense and "present" logically to a great deal of people? A lot of people don't view God in box-type terms. God would be above and beyond logic, as Creator.

Why do some find faith concepts logical and others do not?

 

[Tumah]

Change "capacity" to "desire", then.

In that case, I think the result would be an illogical world, where everything would seem haphazard according to the way we currently interpret data.

 

[Sunstone]

Somethings just make no sense at all, and still manage to be very real... say like errrm... Randomness? The human mind?...

I think both randomness and the human mind are ultimately understandable: That is, will be understood some day.

It's non-billionaires who vote conservative that seem incomprehensible to me.

 

[Emp-Naval]

Faith concepts do make sense to many people. I think your posed questions merely open doors to additional questions that only indvidivuals can answer as per their expectations and understanding of a faith concept like God and their openness.

Some people are not open to the concept of God, regardless as to what others might share or offer. Should God be make sense or be logical?

Does God not already make sense and "present" logically to a great deal of people? A lot of people don't view God in box-type terms. God would be above and beyond logic, as Creator.

Why do some find faith concepts logical and others do not?

Nice enough, but then why do you have faith?
I can't get the hangs of using logic only when it's convenient and then abandon ship into faith once things become problamatic.

 

[Emp-Naval]

I think both randomness and the human mind are ultimately understandable: That is, will be understood some day.

It's non-billionaires who vote conservative that seem incomprehensible to me.

So what you say is, everything that is real is logical, and everything illogical is mythical... right?

 

[Sunstone]

I can't get the hangs of using logic only when it's convenient and then abandon ship into faith once things become problamatic.

Neither can I. But that's almost a matter of personal taste, isn't it? Whether someone can accept blind faith as a reason to believe?

For that matter, I'm not sure that everyone who claims to have faith, has faith. Seems to me a whole lot of people who have faith seek logical reasons and evidence to justify to themselves their faith.

 

[Sunstone]

So what you say is, everything that is real is logical, and everything illogical is mythical... right?

Not at all! Logic doesn't in and by itself demonstrate the existence of anything in the natural world, so far as I can see. Logic is merely the rules or principles of valid reasoning. It tells you what's valid reasoning and what is invalid reasoning. But it doesn't tell you what exists.