"If there is no God it would be necessary to invent one"- Voltaire. Atheists, would you agree with this statement, if not then why?
There are many people who feel like without religion they would become mass murdering rapists. Why would you take away the only thing that is keeping millions of believers sane and docile members of society doing their best to give back to society? Imagine all of the monsters you'd unleash on to the world simply removing the fear of God from the public's perspective. Sure not everyone will react in such a negative way, but the majority will and we may not survive the fallout.Β
Would you really want this to happen? It would be like trying to run the country with an entire branch of government missing. Would you agree that losing one's faith can potentially be as mentally damaging as becoming indoctrinated? Just as in some other cases, I'm sure it can be very therapeutic to convert or leave a religion. These transition periods are never easy and yet they are so common. What helpful tips would you give to someone going through such times? Honestly I can't confirm nor deny the existence of God. I just don't think he can be relied on. Which is why I'd rather ask random strangers on the internet questions like this.
2021-03-17T04:01:13Z
@r.wolfpaw: Necessity is the mother of invention.
Cowboy2021-03-17T15:29:22Z
god is in your mind - no need to invent one. But with less aware humans, if there is no religion, it would be necessary to invent one
Gods were "invented" as a way for ancient people to explain things they did not understand. like the Vikings thought Thunder was just Thor hitting **** with his hammer, In Greece they believed that it was zues throwing lightning,... storms on the sea were caused by Poseidon, ... vikings believe that a solar eclipse was a Giant wolf eating the sun goddess so when one happened they would would bang their weapons on their shields and shout..... for those people "inventing" a god was necessary... but for today, the fact that people still believe in deities makes absolutely no sense.Β
Ah, that is the Voltaire who predicted that 50 years from his death (1778), people would have abandoned the Bible, and that Christianity would have virtually disappeared. Well, 50 years on from his death, the Geneva Bible Society was printing thousands of copies of the Bible from the very house that once used to belong to Voltaire. And 242 years on, Christianity is still growing world-wide (despite decline in certain quarters and thousands of Christians being killed by persecutors in other quarters.) I don't think Voltaire's comments are entirely reliable.
That one you quote has some truth to it, but your comments on it are contrary to what the Bible explains about basic human nature. I won't go into that as I'm not here to lecture you. Suffice to say that even the most outwardly-appearing God-fearing person has the propensity to turn into a monster, as history has shown. As this wise person said, "Fallen man is not naturally godly; he is naturally religious." (John McArthur)
Religiosity is a great evil, and I say that as a Christian. The problem with many atheists is that they equate religiosity as a great evil without seeing beyond what is usually a grotesque facade to the God of Love and Righteousness, who is due reverential awe (fear, if you like).
I don't care. I have never met an Atheist who is violent or one who is a mass murderer. Science has shown that there is compassion for others in the lesser species, and people, long before religion, were assisting others.
I do hope that you do not mind this pagan raven answering. Voltaire lived in an era when, if the global majority of humans suspected that God was not real, there would be chaos and mass panic. I would like to think your species has evolved the tiniest bit since then, but there are still entire sections of the population that would go mad if they knew the truth. Thus, the fiction of an all-powerful father figure is necessary to lull them into a false sense of security, so that they will not be dangerous.