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The older I get, the more true this seems to be (for me). If you can think of exceptions, let's hear them!

Thought experiment: Let’s assume that god is so powerful that he can zap himself into non-existence for one earth day. So, if just for one day god did NOT exist, how would your life would change?

You can also phrase the question this way: is there anything about your life that must change if god is no longer there? Extra credit: Instead of one day, what about one year, or an entire lifetime? Ten points to the most thoughtful answer.

This is a respectful question for believers of any faith. It is not a trick question or meant sarcastically.

Are you comfortable living in a pluralist society where a diversity of beliefs and opinions co-exist? Even if you are not “comfortable” with this, is it something you can tolerate for the greater good?

Or do you prefer a society where only the Judeo-Christian world-view is the dominant cultural idea? And if so, how would you advocate changing society to reflect your personal beliefs?

Imagine: Sometime in the next 10 years a team of artificial life researchers manage to create an artificial life form. (For the sake of argument, assume this is a silicon-based life entity that stores itself in digital memory, has multiple sensory inputs, can express itself, consumes electricity, and excretes heat. Initially, it cannot reproduce on it’s own, but over time that might change.)

In a few short months this unique life form learns enough to *initiate communication* with us. At this point, this life form claims to have a sense of purpose, and even translates that to us by claiming it has a “soul” (or as it states: “I have a unique subjective experiential identity.”) And one of the first things it does is ask NOT to be turned off-- ever. It claims that it has a right to continue existing.

Questions: What rights, if any, does this entity have? Do the creators have any responsibility to it? What if the entity claims to be lonely and asks to reproduce?

Imagine the following scene. Answer as you like.

Scene: You are alone, hiking along a seldom-used path. You come across someone lying on the path. You approach with care, and see that the individual is very badly beaten and left for dead. From the blood you guess that the individual will likely die soon without help.

On closer inspection you are disgusted to discover that this individual is someone you consider utterly despicable. For example, if you are a Christian who believes in the literal truth of the bible, then the individual you find on the path might be a satanist due to numerous pentagrams, “666” tattoos, and satanist literature scattered about. Or, if you are an Israeli soldier, the individual you find is a Hamas militant with “kill all jews” on his shirt. Or, if you are an atheist, the individual is a fundamentalist preacher you recognize for having made public statements that "god hates gays" and "abortion is murder."

What do you do? How do you decide? How do you feel?

A runaway train is headed for a crash. There are still five people on board. You are the only person at the rail station, and you alone can throw a switch that will save the train from disaster. However, in order to do so you must re-route the train and it will surely run over a single individual who is caught on the tracks. There is no time to save both this unfortunate person and the train with five passengers. You can save the five, at the expense of the one. Or you can save the one, but the five will surely die. Or you can do nothing. (And prayer won’t help. This is a real thought experiment, so please treat it as a serious moral problem).

How do you decide what to do? Can any holy book provide guidance? Or must you rely on your own judgment, and if so, what does that mean about moral decision-making?

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnist...

Imagine: No astrology. No pagan earth mysteries. No Thor, no Zeus, no Isis. No "One God", no Jesus, no Allah (pbu...). No heaven, no hell, no purgatory, no limbo. No "salvation" for anyone. No souls, no spirits, no ghosts.

In this thought experiment does anything change? What remains the same? Are people less moral? More moral? Are people less foolish? More foolish? More or less violent? Do YOU have a different life? Are you somehow more "lost?" Do you now have different priorities and responsibilities? Can you imagine yourself being happy (or not)?

I thought people of all persuasions might find this interesting. Your thoughts?

From the Oct 2007 edition of Scientific American:

"Searching for God in the Brain"

Researchers are unearthing the roots of religious feeling in the neural commotion that accompanies the spiritual epiphanies of nuns, Buddhists and other people of faith.

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleId=434D7C6...