How do you distinguish between the belief in God and the occult?

Quote from achilles28:

You're aware of less than 1% of what's knowable, but claim God doesn't exist. Don't you see the irony?


Quote from bigarrow:

Atheist is simply evidence based thinking, show us god, Christ, holy ghost (whatever the hell that is) leprechauns, angels, aliens, bigfoot, a civilization living in the earths center or Elvis and then we'll talk, OK.
 
Quote from bigarrow:

Quote from bigarrow:

Atheist is simply evidence based thinking, show us god, Christ, holy ghost (whatever the hell that is) leprechauns, angels, aliens, bigfoot, a civilization living in the earths center or Elvis and then we'll talk, OK.
'

Mr. Sagan again:
You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep seated need to believe. [Dr. Arroway in Carl Sagan's Contact (New York: Pocket Books, 1985]

Why bother to try? Nothing can be gained by trying to change someone's belief system, IMO. And, I hope the believers will leave the non believers alone. I believe in many things, but try not to change others beliefs. Except may for simple politics or economics, but not religion.


c
 
It used to be so great a hundred years ago when God made everything and man wasn't cousin to the chimps. Poor God, now he has been relegated to being an ancient lab chemist mixing up some lipids and amino-acids for the first bacteria. After that he had nothing else to do but wait for his bacteria to become fish to become rats to become monkeys to become men so they could finally worship him for making them in his image.

I'm gonna feel real sorry for him when his bacteria/humans create life in the lab and finally un-mask him as being a do-nothing slacker. He will then have to move to before the big bang and I heard that's a tough neighborhood.
 
Quote from bigarrow:

Quote from bigarrow:

Atheist is simply evidence based thinking, show us god, Christ, holy ghost (whatever the hell that is) leprechauns, angels, aliens, bigfoot, a civilization living in the earths center or Elvis and then we'll talk, OK.

Ok. With an earnest heart, pray to Jesus, 'if you're real, prove yourself to me'. Then wait. Let us know when you prayed that prayer.
 
Quote from cgroupman:

'

Mr. Sagan again:
You can't convince a believer of anything; for their belief is not based on evidence, it's based on a deep seated need to believe. [Dr. Arroway in Carl Sagan's Contact (New York: Pocket Books, 1985]

Why bother to try? Nothing can be gained by trying to change someone's belief system, IMO. And, I hope the believers will leave the non believers alone. I believe in many things, but try not to change others beliefs. Except may for simple politics or economics, but not religion.


c

Why bother? Because BigArrow keeps demanding proof. If you want to be left alone, sure, we'll leave you alone. Nobody is pushing religion on anybody in this thread.
 
Quote from futurecurrents:

It used to be so great a hundred years ago when God made everything and man wasn't cousin to the chimps. Poor God, now he has been relegated to being an ancient lab chemist mixing up some lipids and amino-acids for the first bacteria. After that he had nothing else to do but wait for his bacteria to become fish to become rats to become monkeys to become men so they could finally worship him for making them in his image.

I'm gonna feel real sorry for him when his bacteria/humans create life in the lab and finally un-mask him as being a do-nothing slacker. He will then have to move to before the big bang and I heard that's a tough neighborhood.

Wishful thinking. You didn't take biology past the 6th grade, apparently...
 
Quote from Free Thinker:

you could but only through ignorance. there is this little thing called evidence i have on my side. the atheist takes a position based on the best available evidence whereas the believer takes a position in spite of the best available evidence.
Or don't you see that?

Evidence? You have no evidence. What you have is a *lack* of evidence. That doesn't prove God. Nor does it prove God doesn't exist. A negative cannot be proven. That's logic 101. The best you can *hope* to be is agnostic. IOW, "I don't know".
 
Quote from jficquette:

Atheism is a religion

Exactly. Atheists claim absolute knowledge of the unknown. Which by it's very definition, is faith. They're kidding themselves.
 
Quote from achilles28:

Exactly. Atheists claim absolute knowledge of the unknown. Which by it's very definition, is faith. They're kidding themselves.

If you realize faith is absolute knowledge of the unknown then why do you defend your faith so vigorously?
 
Quote from NeoRio1:

If they are kidding themselves because of their faith does that mean you're kidding yourself because of your own faith?

No, because I've had a personal experience with Christ. When you experience the supernatural, you know it's real. Your original post is better. It's a valid and logical question. It comes down to experience. The supernatural really exists. Christ is really real. When people ask Him into their lives and repent, He - God - reveals Himself to them in a supernatural way. The other side to that, is the occult. That is supernatural, too. And can also prove the existence of the spiritual realm. However, it's straight up evil and dangerous.
 
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