Does God exist? I'd like to be clear in my mind

I had a strict Catholic upbringing. We were terrorised into 'believing' . I no longer do. Too many horrible things happen in the world and in my life. It never enters my head these days that there might be a God. Maybe I would find things easier if I did believe.

paddyann I totally agree. My nephew died of leukemia aged 16. I went to visit him every day that he was in the children's cancer ward, on and off for two years. I saw things that I can never forget. There were many people praying for my nephew. To no avail. When he died his dad, my brother, used to be furious when people said they would have a mass said and such like. He would tell them not to bother.

we are born with a genetic make up & with a combination of inherited traits , which when coupled with life’s circumstances & the way one develops will impact on how we behave throughout life.
Sometimes the recipe is going be lacking in vital ingredients & become very dangerous when this happens we have to make provisions to protect others.

There is no evidence to prove conclusively, whether he exists or not. However there is evidence that those who do believe in God and are church goers are more altruitic and environmentally thoughtful www.pewforum.org/2016/04/12/religion-in-everyday-life/

So living as if you had a religious belief and joining a church community, could be good for you.

nanou I am not saying everyone is born without flaws, you did ask’ why did his maker plant the seed of evil in his mind’

Some are born blind, deaf etc, I do not believe God chooses
‘That one blind, that one deaf’ . that one evil.

On a personal note, I had a still born baby in 1972 and in 1974,
my husband died in 1976. Was I angry ? Yes. Did I ask
‘why me’, yes, the answer was ‘why not you ? ‘.

So true, should I have wished it on someone else ? No. Did I grieve ? I ended up in a mental hospital a year later. I read
C S Lewis’s ‘A Grief Observed’, it was January, a visitor dug in
snow for some snowdrops for me. For me this was God leading me, strengthening me.

This is my experience of my faith in God.

M0nica - equally there is evidence to suggest the atheists have it better eg www.google.co.uk/amp/s/bigthink.com/10-benefits-of-atheism.amp.html

Ultimately, what is proven is that activities that are meaningful, healthy and connects us to others bring us comfort, peace and joy - whether that’s through non religious or religious activities.

I have been a Christian all my life, my faith has never wavered despite what life throws at you. I enjoy the love and companionship that surrounds me in the Church that I attend every week. Do not consider myself brainwashed, am a very down to earth person, my friends as a matter of interest are athiests, but this does not interfere with our friendship at all.

I think the concept of God was created by man to solve an eternal problem - and to act as excuse for men to wield power. All religions have sought to control people - usually men doing the controlling.

It is no coincidence that the doctrines of most religions reflect the culture of the societies where they began. For example, the idea of sacrifice and atonement are ones that make no sense, but they arise out of cultures where sacrifices to the gods were commonplace. The idea that an all-powerful god sent his "son" to be killed to atone for the world's sins is bizarre in the extreme - surely an all-powerful god would know pretty well what was going to happen to this person and had control over it.

I believe that an awful lot of life can be wasted trying to explain the inexplicable and that it is better just to get on with life with as much kindness in your heart as you can muster.

I am an atheist , none of it makes any sense .I agree with others. why would a god who is supposed to be benevolent,omnipotent and omnipresent allow people to suffer so dreadfully? The answer has to be
a) not benevolent
b) not omnipotent or
c) not omnipresent.

If not benevolent then that is just mean.
If not the other two then why are we bothering because s/he could not have brought the universe etc into being.
I am only a human being but quite frankly if I could make the world perfect with very little effort I would , so why won't a supreme being?
FWIW I was sent to a church school and read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and it didn't make any sense then and it makes less sense now.

Try to be good to yourself and others , that is all that matters.

I think atheists have the advantages listed not because they are atheists but rather they have come atheists because they have them, which is slightly different. They are already people of intelligence interested in the world around them and as a result look after their health, do well at work etc etc, and then are atheist.

I think if you were to compare them with religious believers with the same level of education, intelligence etc, you would find very little difference between the two groups.

So atheists tend to be more intelligent to start with?!

AnnieBach well, good on you to have such faith, it has helped you through rough times.

SirChenjin not more intelligent but perhaps they have more inquisitive minds and don't systematically accept what they have been taught which is a good thing, no?

I’m a bit nervous about getting into a debate about intelligence or inquisitiveness! I think it’s healthy to question, certainly, but I’m wary of generalising that atheists are/do X and people with a faith are/do Y

My friend was brought up by a strict Catholic and sees good behaviour as 'God fearing'. It's a shame she feels fear and guilt so much. I believe the majority of people are basically good and kind anyway!

We once lived next door to some very religious people, they held prayer meetings in their home, and their whole lives revolved around their church.

They were some of the nastiest, mean spirited group of people I think I’ve ever known.

I’m not suggesting all people with faith are horrible, but it most certainly doesn’t make them good.

Doesn’t make who good ?

people like our neighbors who made their religion their lifestyle, but who were actually very unpleasant, you don’t have to be religious to do good, but being religious, certainly doesn’t stop people from being cruel.
I’m not suggesting this is normal Annie, I’m sure it’s not, but we used to think some of the things they did in the name of religion was horrible.

SirChengin I agree with you.( ^but I’m wary of generalising that atheists are/do X and people with a faith are/do Y^)

SirChengin I agree with you on the subject of a debate. People tend to stay on their position anyway.

SirChenjin, no rudeness intended, the sentiments were followed with a smile- I attempted to use poker terms to present a riddle-

It didn't work-

My apologies - I misunderstood you, sorry

No problem-

Thank you all for such thought-provoking replies. I am touched and interested in all posts and will re-read. I really like the thought that we are all spirits and that life does not end. Thank you so much everyone. This all helps me a lot.

Hettymaud you need to read more and research more. Type in the internet why bad things happen to good people and read some of the threads. We cannot prove God exists anymore than we can prove he doesn’t. That is what faith is. I do believe but it is not always easy. Believing is not the soft option. You need to make up your own mind by reading and thinking. Many believers will tell you it’s something you feel inside that draws you.

For many years I was a devout, though always questioning Christian. I never felt God was like a slot machine: 'prayer and belief in = blessings out'. Nor did I thing God responsible for any of the good or evil in the world.

I did believe that if God existed at all, we had been told (by successive religious texts), a load of lies about Him.

Jesus was, in my opinion, a gifted child who grew up to be a gifted healer and a wonderful speaker whose main message was 'live your life with love'.

A Jewish rabbi with whom I studied, told me the name, 'Son of God' was used for many devout scholars of the Jewish texts and not, as the early church decided, that Jesus was the literal (and "immaculate") offspring of God.

Likewise, the word 'virgin' to which we now give a sexual connotation, simply meant an unarried woman. Mary, who was only betrothed to Joseph and not yet married, was therefore a virgin. In those days it was acceptable to be intimate with your betrothed, not shameful.

Emperor Constantine and the Council of Nicaea, decide Jesus was divine - and much more and that started hundred of years of misbelief. The contents of our current bible was decided at that time and the Gnostic Gospels rejected.

Archbishop John Shelby Spong reiterates all this and his books are well worth reading, especially, 'The Sins of Scripture' which explain how generations of Christians have been misled.

He doesn't turn anyone away from God or their own beliefs, on the contrary, he gives a much stonger idea of the kind of God we can accept and believe in.