How do you See God?

[Godsgifttomankind]

This thread is specifically brought forth to examine peoples understanding of God and the image that people have presented to the world.

It is of great interest to me what people understand, why they believe this or why they have a problem?

[MVP]

Men create gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form but with regard to their mode of life.
Aristotle

[proffett]

I can best describe it with poetry.

I take pause from my Journey
The sky calls my name and lo I respond
the ground holds my feet steady and unwaiveringly
I stand firm
The night sky captivates and my soul is moved
I smile as the breeze hits my cheek
I hear the world fade away and I look inward
Light, and comfort, great Joy from within!
I rejoice! My spirit sings to the heavens and the depths of hell
I come back to reality hearing the rustle of the leaves in the trees
I see my children, my friends and loved ones
Tears roll down my face, in them I see god
I see the goodness and the misunderstood perfection of creation
The cycles of death and rebirth touch me
With a smile and a gesture, I touch others
I am god and they are god.
With in and without, God is, was and forever will be
I know it is not to be described or understood,
it simply is
I take comfort in the Light I have, and extend the spark to others.
I know, someday all will be illuminated.
Smiling I continue down my path..

[Cartesiantheater]

A wheel within a wheel?



lol just kidding ;)

[Cyranothe2nd]

I agree with MVP's sentiment: gods are invented by men.

[Goldmoon]

But without God, you wouldn't exist. Oh man I wish people could understand.

[Freddy]

I agree with MVP's sentiment: gods are invented by men.

I agree too.

[Goldmoon]

I agree with MVP's sentiment: gods are invented by men.

I disagree, you haven't looked deep enough. Its not like how you would think it is. No fantasy.

[proffett]

But without God, you wouldn't exist. Oh man I wish people could understand.

Yet, without humanity nor would God exist. The Divine Source of all creation would exist, and as much as it is a part of us, we are a part of it. It is the All and the Nothing, the Creator and Destroyer. It has no name and no emotion, it is indifferent to our petty problems. We lowly humans cannot conceive of it's great splendor, yet we try. We give it a name and a personality, we kill for it and die for it. But the joke, the irony is that it asks nothing of us but to exist and experience. Through honoring life, all life, we honor The Divine and yet, it remains constant, cold and uncaring. It is not some anthropomorphic man in the sky, it is a Great Force that gives life and can just as effectively take life. Not out of emotion, but out of a Cosmic Cycle we have yet to truly comprehend. Revere the cycles, rejoice in the splendor and honor what is, was and always will be.

[Cyranothe2nd]

I disagree, you haven't looked deep enough. Its not like how you would think it is. No fantasy.

Gold Moon,

You are assuming things about me without any knowledge. I was raised a Christian and was a Bible-believing, born again xian until the age of 21, when I left it. I know the theology and I know the Bible, probably better than most xians. I just don't find it convincing anymore.

As for how I would be here if not for God, I think Darwin's theory explains human evolution pretty well, actually. Or do you mean to go back farther than that, like to the origins of the Universe?

[Mystery]

I believe there is a Higher Power. I also believe man over the years has twisted and distorted the view of the Higher Power to manipulate, control, instill fear, etc. I believe our limited knowledge in these human bodies keeps us from fully comprehending. We are with a beginning, middle and end; God is not. I think all to often we get caught up on what little understanding our brains really have. I believe it does not matter how, why, etc. because those are only human words. Beyond the life is something way beyond what we are limited to here. God to me is a loving parent so to speak. Just as people have children to love and raise, God creates us. I believe we encompass these bodies for a time period as a growing point for our souls. I also believe some souls come back to help newer souls along. I have spend many hours trying to figure out why to all of this, and decided it does not matter. That is where my faith comes in.

[raphnix]

Though we're not in the position really to judge, but I think He's too wise to consider creating skeptics for His entertainment.

[rdhdangel]

god resides in the heart, when god created man in his image he did not mean physically in his image, i believe he meant the image of his personality and heart.
when genisis talks about the garden of eden they use alot of metaphores and kinda like a story, well i think that the garden of eden is a spiritual paradise of the heart, not a actual place but a state of mind of being one with god. i dont believe that man created god. god created us.
if god is love and god resides in the heart, can it be seen physically? no. love can only be seen with the heart and felt with faith. so then while we are on this earth god can only be seen and felt through faith and understood through faith, and that is the test of faith for humans, humans have a hard time in believing something they can not see. when we pass away i believe that then we can see clearly and see jesus and god. because we have left our physical bodies and see with spirit.

i know the bible said that angels and messangers come to do gods will or that people sometimes say they seen god, i consider that a miracle, its faith that creates the miracle.

[UVsaturated]

God is all, not just powerful, wise, and knowing. A God that does not know the polar opposites of these attributes is not worthy to rule because there would be no basis of understanding how to become a righteous king.

[rdhdangel]

God is all, not just powerful, wise, and knowing. A God that does not know the polar opposites of these attributes is not worthy to rule because there would be no basis of understanding how to become a righteous king.

yes, that is why in the story of the garden of eden there was a tree of knowledge of good and bad.
it was a metaphore for just that reason u pointed out. god does know of the bad things. why we have freewill to chose between right and wrong. living as a human with faith is a struggle for that very reason, its a constant battle with in yourself. we as human did recieve bad attributes as well, that was the reasoning for the serpent. and thus sin was born, the knowledge of bad. i believe god did choose the good and chose to love and forgive to create peace and in the world. hes just waiting for us to do the same.

[MVP]

rdhdangel, just as you said "a metaphore".

[rdhdangel]

i do think the story was used as a metaphore, but i think that is what the metaphore was supposed to imply. i think the person who wrote that particular part did use a metaphore to explain it to the people of the time.

god certainly does exist even though some people may strongly disagree, but u know how a story has a message......like the moral of the story is(lesson) then on with events that took place after that.

how else would they have explained the begining of time back then? science?
it was the question most asked through out time...is why are we here. why are things the way they are.



most the time when reading the bible u have to read between the line and find the true meaning. u have to believe to and truely look to find faith and feel god.

[Skygirl]

The cherokee word for god is actually a verb. God is the act of creation in all living things.

[Godsgifttomankind]

Hello Skygirl and thank-you for for your etymology,

The cherokee word for god is actually a verb. God is the act of creation in all living things.

This is a very common theme for when we look at the words in other languages we find the same thing is true.

In Hebrew the word Jehovah means `Causes to Become`.

The English word God means to gather or take up together.

I am sure that when we study the other words for God that we would find similar understandings.

Thank-you again for sharing, you honor us with your gift.

[Skygirl]

Hello Skygirl and thank-you for for your etymology,


This is a very common theme for when we look at the words in other languages we find the same thing is true.

In Hebrew the word Jehovah means `Causes to Become`.

The English word God means to gather or take up together.

I am sure that when we study the other words for God that we would find similar understandings.

Thank-you again for sharing, you honor us with your gift.

The literal translation is apportion - : to divide and share out according to a plan ; especially : to make a proportionate division or distribution of

It's a shame, people argue about god, but when it comes right down to it, the meaning is the same in most cultures/belief systems. You can even include science (yes I realize I am opening up a whole can of worms here). Science geeks, correct me if I am wrong, but don't all living things come from a single ancestral genotype?

[EvanWash]

I think it goes a little like this;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namast%C3%A9


Most notably;

"I salute the God within you."

~ew

[Singularity]

But without God, you wouldn't exist. Oh man I wish people could understand.

You're sure about that? You speak as though a theoretical model of the universe wherein there is a central figure of power at the center is correct. Can't you imagine a different theoretical model where there are explanations other than intelligence behind creation? If you contend that there are things about the universe that we don't know at this time, I'd be happy to agree with you. What caused the big bang? Is the universe all there is, or are there other realities outside of the universe we can perceive? Did anything come before and will anything come after? All valid questions. The problem is that the traditional answer that there's some divinity behind it all suggests comprehension of the incomprehensible, wishful thinking, or a human-centric universe.

Honestly, in the grand scheme of things, I think humans are about as important as bacteria or other single celled organisms. We're a race of intelligent animals on that had to come up with the concept of God in order to keep ourselves from going insane.

But consider this. If you were to find out for certain that there was no god, no afterlife, and this is all there is, this life all you will ever know, and this life all you will ever accomplish, would you lead your life differently? What would you do different if you weren't constrained by superstition? If you'd rather be living your life in some way other than the way you are, why are you letting an unprovable concept hold you back? If you are living your life the way your otherwise would, why do you need a supernatural creator to approve of your lifestyle?

[Goldmoon]

I find it funny that so many people voted: "The delusion of weak men."

I have only seen the strong come to God. Its the weak who just don't care, and would rather close their minds, living only for the personally comfortable desires of this world.

But consider this. If you were to find out for certain that there was no god, no afterlife, and this is all there is, this life all you will ever know, and this life all you will ever accomplish, would you lead your life differently? What would you do different if you weren't constrained by superstition? If you'd rather be living your life in some way other than the way you are, why are you letting an unprovable concept hold you back? If you are living your life the way your otherwise would, why do you need a supernatural creator to approve of your lifestyle?

No need to focus so much on the afterlife right now, it is the Lord of the Living, not the dead. And its not a matter of whether the Lord approves, its a matter of whether you approve.

I wouldn't change anything, because I didn't grow up like this, nor was "taught anything" it was made clear to me only recently. I don't just blindly follow anything, I see that the ways of the Lord are good in my own eyes too. And instead of just working "for" God, I work "with" God. I have found that the ways of the Lord are my own, and the way of nature, I have allied with the Lord and his kingdom, because I have always searched for what would be the true, good, and wise way. Finally found it.

[MaximumPain]

I voted "I Do not Know what to Make of it All" because I don't. The whole battle is so confusing with so many people trying to meet earthly agendas that I don't know who to trust anymore.

I do believe in the possibility of an all powerful universe creating entity that I would call God. Its the Earthly religions that put me off they all want to put God in terms that us mere mortals can understand so they end up stuffing this being into a box. But a God that could create an entire universe in all its incredible vastness is so beyond our scale that we cannot hope to ever understand the true scope of it all.

[Goldmoon]

Pefectly said, Max. We don't yet fully understand dimensions. Things could perhaps exist on another level than this physical plane, and just as we view microbes as small, our universe could even be small on a different scale.

Its like I once said, in the nature of things, size doesn't matter.