Queen of Swords

I have good news for you : there are a lot of mysteries in the world. Scientific discoveries don't just answer questions, they raise new questions that people might not have asked before. That's why I prefer science to the stance of "goddidit, end of story".

And I'm curious, by the way : where do you draw the line at this position of "a subject needs to be a mystery/be unfalsified for me to find it interesting"? I really enjoyed the show The Outer Limits ("For the next hour we will control all that you see and hear. You are about to experience the awe and mystery that reaches from the deepest inner mind to... The Outer Limits"). However, I know it's just a TV show. That knowledge does not detract from my enjoyment of it. Likewise, why should knowing that something doesn't actually exist prevent you from enjoying it?

jaded_revenge

Helo, do you really need some sort of fantasy world reasoning to make you happy. Would you prefer that when you turned on the taps, that the water coming out is spirit tears, and was being stored in your pipes by some magical wizard spell...?

For me, I like the magic of undestanding what is occuring, and not making up magical childlike forces to explain them.

Joan of Bark

For me, the universe became more wondrous and interesting once I STOPPED believing in God. Omnipotence is boring.

J-D

It can be amazing to watch a good conjurer perform, but you don't have to believe that conjurers have real magical powers in order to be impressed. And think about professional conjurers watching another conjurer perform: if they can figure out how the trick is done, do you think that would spoil it for them? I don't.

igfm_spanky

Imagine a Bible that grows when you read it, and no matter how much detail is added it never loses its consistency. That's what reality is, and God isn't in it. It's like a map you can magnify as much as you like and still find more detail. You can move back to get a better look and still never see the whole thing.
Consider how a child really ends up with a present at Christmas. Have you thought it through fully yet? The parents bought a gift, using money which was designed purely for trade. How does the economy work? Where does it come from? Where was this gift assembled, and how? Is it made from plastic? What is the story of the oil that plastic was made from? How is the product distributed to the shops - perhaps by truck? How does a truck's engine work? Do you care? I don't think that you find Santa more interesting than all of that, do you? What about God, then?
If God made the gift, how did he do it? What is he and where did he come from? Do you know anything about him? How? If God is so mysterious, does that mean he was made by a god? Are the Greek gods real? Would the world be more awe-inspiring if they were? Is A Christmas Carol based on a true story? If so, should it be taken literally? It has a decent message in it, so maybe its true.
If you had the patience to read that, thanks, and I hope you can now see why I have to be an atheist.

atonal chaotic

Science is all about mysteries and wonder. Magic destroys the wonder by inventing a complete "explaination" whole cloth.

I'm about to write a not-nice thing.

To turn your posts in this thread around, this whole time you've been saying you can't appreciate the wonder of the world for itself. You can't see beauty unless there's some mystical glim-glam unnecessarily written onto it. The problem lies with you.

EssEff

Same here. Living in Skydaddy's dollhouse isn't as wondrous to me as living in a world filled with beautiful things that could have been otherwise if not for chance. If the only cheese sammich that looks wondrous to you is the one with a pattern resembling a religious figure, you miss the beauty of all the other cheese sammiches in your life.

reddhedd

atonal chaotic,

Succinct, and not unkind, IMO.:thumbs:

Redd

Gawen

Oh...*laffin*...I work in a Municipal Water Dept. I've GOT to remember this...

Gawen

Yes. I've heard of the God of the Gaps. But never the Reality of the Gaps...*noddin*