The 'God' who is supposed to be everywhere shows up nowhere.

Cowardly, silent absentee gods are not worthy gods. — Gnostic Christian Bishop

Before anyone can make these claims, they must prove the existence of these gods.

Otherwise they are giving credence to the believers' ideas they are trying to demolish.

Hard to quote Gnostics when they believe in many odd things.

As an atheist I know that some deists believe that what they call 'God' does 'show himself'.
Other deists (like you) base their own idiosyncractic rationale on attacking more conventional believers.

Why don't you just admit that without convention to kick against you would have nothing to say ?
The atheist merely smiles at this game and brings to mind the adage 'garbage in..garbage out' !

I suggest it is that is your fear of the collapse of your house of cards which drives you !

Some thinkers need a house of cards to blow down so they can continue to fool themselves that they really are indeed thinking.

Which raises the point that all of us are guilty of blowing down houses of cards at times when we mischaracterize or misunderstand others’ arguments and ideas. But how do we know we are doing this unless we engage in the arena of ideas?

You make some sense. However my objections to this poster (who frequents other forums with the same 'questions') is nothing to do with the negligible 'contents' ( ..anybody can read up on Gnosticism..) but on the grounds that he merely engages in challenging conventional 'believers' in order to reinforce his own belief system. In other words, he contributes nothing.

You make some sense. However my objections to this poster (who frequents other forums with the same 'questions') is nothing to do with the negligible 'contents' ( ..anybody can read up on Gnosticism..) but on the grounds that he merely engages in challenging conventional 'believers' in order to reinforce his own belief system. In other words, he contributes nothing. — fresco

I tend to agree concerning this poster. Not only is he engaged in an exercise that produces no fruit, but also he is annoying and insufferable.

Is god a coward? Why does god fear to show himself? — Gnostic Christian Bishop

That's a possible interpretation. The latter question assumes that if there is a God, then the reason God is not experienced by those God is not experienced by is that God is afraid. How do you know this must be the case?

God cannot even speak or reproduce without a human female and is definitely not an all-powerful being. — Gnostic Christian Bishop

Presumably you mean Mary and Jesus,here. So this is about Christianity. How do you know that is the only way God can do it? God did that, in the NT. Did I miss the part where it says that is the only way? Perhaps the idea was to go through the experience of being a human, which includes, then, the womb and the birth and, well, the mother. I don't know. How do you know the Bible means God could only do it that way?

To be relevant to theist, god must be real. The only way to date that that reality can be confirmed is contact at the consciousness level, yet those who claim that never offer anything worth listening to. — Gnostic Christian Bishop

They offer a set of practices, ones that often lead to experiences that practitioners consider to be of God. Some Christians would argue that to be successful takes great time and effort. Some even spend a lot of time in retreat, in silence, in regular prayer and service and contemplation. This seems effective to many of those people. Have you tried that?

Billions now seek that mental touch daily; yet all go wanting. All while those who lie about god, all the preachers who preach of a supernatural god, get the cash from their sheeple. — Gnostic Christian Bishop

They all lie? How do you know that? That seems extremely unlikely to me. I think many preachers are sincere, even if I do not share their beliefs. Here you say they all are lying. How do you know that? There are also preachers who do not take money from the people they preach to.

Why do we create or even acknowledge such cowardly absentee and inferior demiurge gods?

Cowardly, silent absentee gods are not worthy gods. They are useless to us. — Gnostic Christian Bishop

It seems like people find use in their experiences and appreciate them. Not all, but many.

The 'God' who is supposed to be everywhere shows up nowhere. — PoeticUniverse

Nicely said.

I have noted that, yes.

Regards
DL

Before anyone can make these claims, they must prove the existence of these gods.

Otherwise they are giving credence to the believers' ideas they are trying to demolish. — Sir2u

Not when one is just analyzing a myth.

Regards
DL

Hard to quote Gnostics when they believe in many odd things. — Riley

I appreciate that given all the lies that the inquisitors put out there to justify their many inquisitions.

Best to ask a modern Gnostic Christians what his beliefs are because Gnostic Christianity is a perpetual seeking religion that has evolved along with man's moral thinking.

For instance, we see the worth of modern secular law as compared to the barbaric laws that Christians and Muslims would enact if given the power.

What odd thing did you have in mind.
If it lacks logic and reason or is supernatural, it is likely a lie. We hold no supernatural beliefs.

Regards
DL

I suggest it is that is your fear — fresco

I suggest you read this if you are going to reply to me or you will like my next reply even less.

Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.
Eleanor Roosevelt

Regards
DL

But how do we know we are doing this unless we engage in the arena of ideas? — Noah Te Stroete

Perfect.

Regards
DL

but on the grounds that he merely engages in challenging conventional 'believers' in order to reinforce his own belief system. In other words, he contributes nothing. — fresco

That is not what I do you lying piece of human garbage.

For evil to grow, all good people need do is nothing.

I do as much as I can against the evil mainstream religions on that front and only bring Gnostic Christianity in on occasion.

If you think you should live by the Golden Rule, change the labels in this quote to women, minorities, gays or children being brainwashed by religions and it shows what we should be thinking and doing for each other.

"First they came for the Jews, but I did nothing because I'm not a Jew. Then they came for the socialists, but I did nothing because I'm not a socialist. Then they came for the Catholics, but I did nothing because I'm not a Catholic. Finally, they came for me, but by then there was no one left to help me." – Pastor Father Niemoller (1946)”

Regards
DL

It's all hypothetical anyway, so why even care? It's not like there's any reason to genuinely believe that there's a God to begin with.

Thankyou on two counts...
1. For confirming your own smallmindedness by anthropomorphising 'God' by assigning the human trait of cowardice.
2. For underscoring the maxim that 'abuse is the language of the inarticulate'.

I conclude that your faith in your own mythology must be pretty shaky to risk being so easily demolished by a mere atheist like me ! :naughty:

How do you know this must be the case? — Coben

Fear is a component or analogous to insecurity. Have you read the Ten Commandments.
Did you note the insecurity/fear?

How do you know the Bible means God could only do it that way? — Coben

If god could reproduce true or some other way, I cannot see him, as a member of one species, using bestiality to reproduce. Especially given that the last time the sons of god used the earth as a brothel, god got quite upset and used genocide against his own grandchildren.

The Christian myth does get too stupid for words sometimes eh?

They offer a set of practices, ones that often lead to experiences that practitioners consider to be of God. — Coben

Sure. Such are common, but what they are finding is not a genocidal and infanticidal god. No one in their right mind would seek such a prick of a god.
I think I just said something about Christians and Muslims here.

Have you tried that? — Coben

Yes, and was rewarded with my apotheosis.

They all lie? How do you know that? That seems extremely unlikely to me. — Coben

If so, how is the supernatural realm accessed?

You might have forgotten that The Abrahamic god has historically been said from the start to be unknowable, unfathomable and works in mysterious ways.

That is what preachers begin with, then tell us all the know of the unknowable and fathom of the unfathomable. What could their words be but lies?

It seems like people find use in their experiences and appreciate them. — Coben

Indeed. as shown with inquisitions and jihads.

Regards
DL

Is god a coward? Why does god fear to show himself? — Gnostic Christian Bishop

All actions are physical, and god is non-physical. So he can't do anything. Which means he can't show himself.

It's all hypothetical anyway, so why even care? It's not like there's any reason to genuinely believe that there's a God to begin with. — S

I agree that belief in such would be stupid.

I hope you can agree that it is our duty to others to try to kill all such beliefs in those who use them for evil reasons.

I gave fresco the following above. Here again if you missed it.

If you think you should live by the Golden Rule, change the labels in this quote to women, minorities, gays or children being brainwashed by religions and it shows what we should be thinking and doing for each other.

"First they came for the Jews, but I did nothing because I'm not a Jew. Then they came for the socialists, but I did nothing because I'm not a socialist. Then they came for the Catholics, but I did nothing because I'm not a Catholic. Finally, they came for me, but by then there was no one left to help me." – Pastor Father Niemoller (1946)”

Regards
DL

I conclude that your faith in your own mythology must be pretty shaky to risk being so easily demolished by a mere atheist like me ! :naughty: — fresco

Only children, those with over inflated egos and ass holes take a win they have not earned or would gloat over it.

Regards
DL

All action is physical, and god is not physical. So he can't do anything. Which means he can't show himself. — Purple Pond

Then if he is not all powerful the way god is described, why call such an inferior creature god?

You also just denied gods ability to reproduce, as Mary, a woman he coveted, is also a part of the physical.

Regards
DL

'Apotheosis' ........as in the declaration by Caligula of his deification to his Uncle Claudius ?
...and you think this is a viable subject for a philosophy forum ? :wink:

Yeah, that's a problem. If god is all powerful, he can do anything. But how can a non-physical god do physical things?

'Apotheosis' ........as in the declaration by Caligula of his deification to his Uncle Claudius ?
...and you think this is a viable subject for a philosophy forum ? :wink: — fresco

I had no particular historic event in mind and did not think philosophy restricted itself to only certain topics.

Apotheosis is analogue to finding Jung and Freud's Father Complex in me, having experienced it, and it would surprise me if philosophy ran from discussing that.

Regards
DL

Yeah, that's a problem. If god is all powerful, he can do anything. But how can a non-physical god do physical things? — Purple Pond

Seems he can't, but if Christians want to believe it then they would say yes to the question ---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnbfuAcCqpY

Regards
DL

And then they came for the Gnostic Christian Bishops! But then they realised that there was only one, and they decided just to leave him be, in his mother's basement, frantically typing up yet more of the same old hyperbolic antichristian rhetoric on his PC.

Is god a coward? Why does god fear to show himself?

Our gods do not speak to us. Ever wonder why not? — Gnostic Christian Bishop

If he did, nobody wouldn't have to have any faith as the issue simply wouldn't be about faith and religion anymore.

And anyway, what the hell would he say to us?

And then they came for the Gnostic Christian Bishops! But then they realised that there was only one, and they decided just to left him be, in his mother's basement, frantically typing up yet more of the same old hyperbolic antichristian rhetoric on his PC. — S

Is Gnostic Christian Bishop a coward? Why does he fear to get out of his mother's apartment? (Just a joke, no offense Bishop.)

antichristian — S

You love their genocidal son murdering god and how Christianity is homophobic and misogynous and do a lot of harm. OK. I get it you immoral piece of human garbage.

Regards
DL