Just Say Why

What Proves God Exists?
by
Paul J.

I hear people telling me, all day long, about all the things that proves to them that God exists or that there is intelligent design or whatever.

Sunsets are beautiful because God exists. See? It’s proof. Birds fly because God designed them. See? It’s proof. Back in the cavemen days, they would say, When I jump up, God brings me back down. See? It’s proof.

But when asked for actual evidence, well, no one seems to have the proof. Why would God hide the proof from us when so many are seeking it? A cruel hoax?

Well, let’s change the question around a little bit. If there was one fact, that if proven, would convince you that there is no God, what would that fact be?

What facts do you have that if proven would make you question your god?

If something can’t be disproved can it be proven?

America a Christian Nation

Paul J.

Ever wonder if America was founded as a Christian nation? Ever heard that we must be since we are founded on Christian values? Well, if someone said it must be, well, then it must be.

If you are not so inclined to believe just anyone about such a grand assertion, you’re probably wondering where you can find information on the issue. Well, of course, you can find it right here. But, why stop there? Why not read the actual words of America’s founding fathers?

Here is a link to Thomas Paine’s works. See what he says and then come back here and tell me you believe America is a Christian nation.

The Sacred Text
by
Paul Johnson

I heard a fundamentalist Christian warning of the dangers of reading the Bible without having an experienced member of “his” church there to help you interpret. After all, it was the true and real word of God and so there’s no way just a simple layperson could possibly understand the subtle nuances embedded in the holy scripture.

I was so shocked at his comments that I had to actually ask him what he was talking about.

I was shocked at how similar this fundamentalist sounded to the Muslim fundamentalists explaining how just because the Koran says to cut off the hands and feet of thieves, it doesn’t really mean that and you have to have an imam interpret the text for you.

That was a big warning flag for me and it should be a big warning flag for anyone relying on others to interpret their religious texts. Here is why.

There are two possibilities. Either the text is the real word of God or it’s not. So let’s look at the two options:

Your religious text is the true word of God

If this is the case then you can be positive that God knew how to produce the text in such a way that they can’t be misinterpreted. Surely God could do something as simple as that. God would not produce scriptures in code that only those who think they know how, can interpret them. That would destroy the value of  having the word of God at all.

Your religious text is not the true word of God

If, on the other hand, the text is not the true word of God but rather a written history written and transcribed and interpreted by many over the years, then the text has already been interpreted by man, by error prone man with a purpose to spread the word. In other words, it has to be taken with a grain of salt.

Worse yet, the text may be interpreted one way but a century later may need to be interpreted again as languages change over time.

Another issue, still, is the condition of the original writings as preserved over time. The original texts were written is a way that they could not be interpreted without error. The original text had no breaks between the words, no spaces in the text. This means that the original text could have been interpreted many different ways and each way would be correct.

If these are the true words of God, then He wants us to read them as a guide, not as laws.

Beware whenever you encounter someone telling you that you can’t interpret the words, yourself. If you can’t, then your god isn’t much of a god. He can’t even write so average people can understand it. Not too likely, now is it?

Now, since it’s obvious that you should be reading the texts yourself, go out there and start reading. I suggest grabbing a Bible and reading the New Testament if you’re so inclined. It is so much easier than trudging through the books that even Jesus took with a grain of salt.

What Makes Miracles

by
Paul Johnson

It’s Easter season again and it’s time to think about the nature of our religions, and in particular, the nature of miracles. Easter is full of stories of miracles. In fact, the entire Bible, as most religious texts, is full of miracles. But what, exactly, is a miracle?

This is something that all elementary schools and every church should teach, but unfortunately it is neglected.

Back 3,000 years ago (or 6,000 according to some), when the Bible begins, there were things that we humans saw that had no explanation other than being the hand of God. Today, we would see most of those miracles and realize they come from the laws of physics or the laws of nature. A simple example is the miracle of an eclipse.

So we must ask ourselves, which of those miracles that we’ve heard about thousands of years ago were really miracles and which were easily explained with the knowledge available today?

A Miracle History

Imagine that you were to see a miracle today. It’s your imagination, so imagine what you want. I’ll imagine a neighbor who has such great skill at hypnosis that he can help people regrow amputated limbs.

Over time, two things could happen.

1. Others, standing on the shoulders of giants, would find ways to do this same service, in which case it would no longer be a miracle, or
2. No one can repeat the miracle in which case it remains a miracle.

If the case was situation #1 above, then the only way that it would remain a miracle is if a group of followers demanded that this miracle worker did things differently or better than everyone else following. That burning bush was a miracle, that sunset was a miracle, that eclipse was a miracle. This would require a very dedicated following with very rigid books of examples of how their miracle worker was different.

If the case was #2 above, then after enough time the miracle would just fade away into folklore. Even books and literature reminding us of the miracle would eventually become suspect as there will eventually be no evidence of the miracle.

To summarize, history will eventually fade all miracles into obscurity. Eventually even the translated books of the translated books of the translated books of the miracle will become suspect. This is a problem that all modern day miracle-based religious books suffer with and put considerable time into trying to address.

The Miracle Impostors

As we’ve discussed above, there will often be groups who want to memorialize the miracle even if it’s proven to be less a miracle than a law of nature. How many times do you hear people explaining how “their God” did this or did that? It’s quite common.

That’s not to say that these are bad or evil people. They are trying to save the life of a religion that they believe is the only true one. They are trying to convince themselves by trying to convince others of the validity of the miracle that they can no longer prove.

God’s Solution to Forgetfulness

So, how does God go about performing miracles and keeping them around so He doesn’t have to keep proving His magical powers?

If I can start a cult with a counterfeit book of miracles and have a following that will keep the lies alive for centuries, then who will know it’s any different than the real book of miracles which no longer has evidence? No one can tell for certain that one is the real one the other is not.

It is obvious that the only solution to this forgetfulness is the constant display of miracles.

This assumes that the miracles are a fundamental part of the religion!

Let that sink in. That is the point of the entire essay. If the miracles cannot be proven then either God will recreate the miracles to keep people believing or he will put more emphasis on the other aspects of the religion.

God Knows Everything

Or, at least God knows everything there is to know about mankind.  So, why does he hide his miracles from us?

God knows that we’ll forget the miracles over time. He knows we’ll question the miracles. He knows that well-meaning cults will rise up that have their own false miracles.

He lets us forget the miracles because they are not a fundamental part of the religion.

Say What?!!! You’re saying the miracles of Lent, Good Friday, Easter are not a fundamental part of Christianity?

Yes. That’s the whole point. And, that’s why we aren’t presented with reruns of the miracles regularly.

It’s not the miracles that are the important part of Christianity, it is the underlying principles.

Now, stop, take a breath, and ask yourself, what are the fundamental underlying important principles of your religion? Is it because of the miracle that God gave his life to save you from your sins or is the important principle of your religion rules on how to live your life?

The Need for Repetition

In order for the new generations to continue to believe the miracles, they can either believe blindly or they can be privileged enough to see miracles for themselves.

Why would God let his miracles fade to the same level of validity as any hoax or cult? Because it’s not the miracle that’s important.

Who Do You Believe?

You and I live in a day when we don’t see miracles. Many people around us will try to attribute common sense things to the miracle of God but we all know they are just laws of nature. I hear the term, the miracle of a new born or the miracle of a beautiful sunset or this miracle or that, but we are expected to believe in a God that no longer shows himself to us.

Are we left trying to decide which of the countless different histories of miracles to believe and hopefully we’ll be lucky enough to choose the right one, or risk living eternity in punishment? No, that’s not the actions of any God I can imagine.

Hopefully by now you’re beginning to see that it’s not the miracle or the history of the miracle (Bible) that matters but what matters is how we decide to live our lives, without the miracles. Do we choose the path of “Greed is Good” (the Republican way and the Ayn Rand way) or do we choose the path of helping ourselves, our neighbors, and our world? These are the decisions we must make, and quit paying attention to the stories of miracles.

Stop with the miracles. Use the opportunity of Easter to celebrate the teachings of Jesus. Help thy neighbor, heal the sick, feed the hungry, and vote out the money changers.

Celebrating Jesus
by
Paul Johnson

Today I saw a sticker on the back window of a car that made me sad. Why was I sad?

The sticker was a picture of a tortured pained grimacing face of Jesus, wearing a crown of thorns. How very strange that we celebrate Jesus’ life by endlessly showing icons of his darkest hour.

Should Jesus come to earth today he would be shocked and horrified to see his icon in every Christian church being a cross depicting his final hours.

Jesus did many wonderful things during his life here on earth but we don’t idolize that part of his life. No. We idolize his death. Why?

Jesus spent his life helping educate people, helping the poor and downtrodden. He healed the sick, especially those without insurance. He fed the poor. He spent his life helping those struggling to survive.

Why don’t we make an icon that depicts something more representative of his life? Because it’s not what matters most to us. What matters most to us is what we can get out of it. We iconize the cross because it’s what’s in it for us. We got cleansed for our sins. We have a chip in the big game, now. How selfish!

If Jesus came to earth today he would be as hateful of most of the Christian churches as he was in The Book of Revelation. The churches don’t try to follow his teachings or his hopes. They don’t even support a national health plan that would help the sick. All the things Jesus tried to do like help the poor, are the political things almost every Christian church opposes. He would be so very disappointed.

And that makes me sad for all of us who have lost track of what Jesus thought was important in his life. We go to church and pretend to be good Christians, we give lip service, and all the while we’re too selfish and greedy to help  the sick and the poor. Helping means more than giving money. It means living the dream of Jesus. Oh, my, he would hate these churches as much as he did those before, and for much the same reasons. Sad!

So, tell me. When is the last time your church taught you about how Jesus died for your sins and when was the last time your church reminded you how important it is to feed the poor and heal the sick? If your church is anything like the many I’ve been to in the past ten years, every sermon is about being saved by Jesus’ death (the selfish sermons) and none have been about voting for the party that wants to clothe the poor and heal the sick.

What would Jesus think of your church? Sad!

 Loading ...

Email Silliness
by
Paul Johnson

Got a funny one in my email today and just had to share with you. The message:

AGREE  OR DELETE

If You Choose To Delete You Are Part Of The Problem

Me? I’m Passing It On.
It seems to get worse daily.

This is by a daughter of a murdered couple in   Raytown ,   MO , who had a Bible and Bookstore on   63rd street ….

Just one more example:

When I had to testify at the murder trial of my parents a week ago, I
was asked to raise my right hand. The bailiff started out “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?”

I stood there and waited but she said nothing. She said “Do you?”

I was so stunned I blurted out “What happened to “so help me God’?”

She came back with “Do you?” I replied yes, but I was perplexed.

Then the judge said .. “You can say that if you want to.”

I stopped, raised my right hand, and finished with “So help me God!”

I told my son and daughter that when it came time for them to testify, they should do the same.

It’s no wonder we have so many problems in this country. If I’d had my wits about me I’d have told them that taking God out of the courtroom is only going to result in more criminals and murderers.

I don’t know what can be done about it, but it’s time for us to step up and DO something.

NBC this morning had a poll on this question.. They had the highest number of responses that they have ever had for one of their polls, and the percentage was the same as this:

86% to keep the words, 14% against. That is a pretty ‘commanding’ public response.

I was asked to send this on if I agreed or delete if I didn’t.

Now it is your turn.. It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God.

Therefore, I have a very hard time understanding why there is such a mess about having “In God We Trust” on our money and having God in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Why is the world catering to this 14%?

If you agree, pass this on, if not, simply delete…..

In God We Trust

A quick trip to snopes.com and we see that this email message has been started and restarted and restarted since 2004. If the sender had a shred of respect for his credibility, he really should verify things before forwarding them off to everyone under the sun. The questionable source of this should be enough to stop anyone with any self respect from forwarding, but alas, someone sent it to someone who sent it to me.

Obviously this fictitious author never took or failed in her civics and American History courses, either one which would have educated her about why we have and should maintain a separation of church and state.

Ms. Anonymous, have you even looked at countries where there is no separation of church and state and can you find even one that you would like to live in? How about looking at the obvious examples of church run governments, the Muslims. It is obvious, even for a closed minded fanatic, that the governments always end up exploiting religion to control the people. America’s creators were determined to ensure that there was a clear separation for just that reason. Read your history, sister.

Another example is Israel. Again, is that the kind of country you think America should be? God, I hope not. If it is, go there and leave us to a country that respects the wishes of our forefathers and respects the separation of church and state.

But, of course, there is no real Ms. Anonymous, it’s just a scam written up by someone with an agenda and sent out over and over for the past five years and people are still naive enough to continue to forward it.

Think! And do a little Snopes research before forwarding things that may make you look naive or worse. And, when you get tired of the stupidity and lies, it’s never too late to write the sender and point them to this post or just ask them politely to have a little self respect and to show you some while they’re at it.

Queers are Destroying Mankind
by
Paul Jonhson

The Pope says Queers are destroying Mankind. He’s Sick! Just plain SICK!

Isn’t it time for another Jesus to rise up and shine some light on the folly and poisons coming from the orthodoxy?

No better way to show your love for you fellow man than by spewing this hatred, and no better time than Christmas to show the sickness known as organized religion.

Benedict, you should be ashamed and you should be removed, but the entire organization is so corrupt that it will not clean out the posions.

Merry Christmas!