How's this for an analogy of a god/ no god. The absence of heat is cold. You can not measure cold, but only heat. Same goes for light and darkness. You can only measure the light and not the darkness. And please, I'm not saying that a godhead is light. Interesting? So if there's nothing there at all, it can't be measured because it doesn't exist.

If you were Zen, you'd be contemplating a one ended stick.

---

Account frozen...

> > No Tom, I'm not smarter than you, I'm just older than you.
> >
> Sometimes that helps.
>

Tell ya what Tom, I'm flattered by your good opinion of me. I'll review the last dozen or so relevant posts and weigh in with an opinion. Right now I'm half way into my second martini. Not a good time to try to write a coherent well thought out post. Tomorrow.

Peace, and may the blessing of whatever gods may or may not be flow over you like a gentle ocean wave.

---

Dave Nelson

"Ah Love! could you and I with Him conspire
To grasp this sorry Scheme of Things entire,
Would not we shatter it to bits--and then
Re-mold it nearer to the Heart's Desire!"

---

Dave Nelson

> How's this for an analogy of a god/ no god. The absence of heat is cold. You
> can not measure cold, but only heat. Same goes for light and darkness. You
> can only measure the light and not the darkness. And please, I'm not saying
> that a godhead is light. Interesting? So if there's nothing there at all, it
> can't be measured because it doesn't exist.
>
> If you were Zen, you'd be contemplating a one ended stick.
>

Well, yeah, but you can still define "cold" so that others know what you're talking about. You just did it: "absence of heat is cold". Anyway, I assume H. Richard is reluctant to define it because he thinks it is an admission. It is not. I don't believe in the Devil, but I can define what a Devil is.

---

> Right now I'm
> half way into my second martini. Not a good time to try to write a coherent
> well thought out post. Tomorrow.
>
> Peace, and may the blessing of whatever gods may or may not be flow over you
> like a gentle ocean wave.

Enjoy.

My wife's favorite drink these days: the Martini. I swear, her blood-pressure actually drops after one Martini! It's the damndest thing!

---

> > How's this for an analogy of a god/ no god. The absence of heat is cold.
> You
> > can not measure cold, but only heat. Same goes for light and darkness.
> You
> > can only measure the light and not the darkness. And please, I'm not
> saying
> > that a godhead is light. Interesting? So if there's nothing there at
> all, it
> > can't be measured because it doesn't exist.
> >
> > If you were Zen, you'd be contemplating a one ended stick.
> >
>
> Well, yeah, but you can still define "cold" so that others know what you're
> talking about. You just did it: "absence of heat is cold". Anyway, I assume
> H. Richard is reluctant to define it because he thinks it is an admission. It
> is not. I don't believe in the Devil, but I can define what a Devil is.
>

Try this over worn question: How many angels can dance on a head of a pin?

And the answer is...

P.S. A nice Rum & Coke sounds good right now.

---

Account frozen...

> > > How's this for an analogy of a god/ no god. The absence of heat is
> cold.
> > You
> > > can not measure cold, but only heat. Same goes for light and
> darkness.
> > You
> > > can only measure the light and not the darkness. And please, I'm
> not
> > saying
> > > that a godhead is light. Interesting? So if there's nothing there
> at
> > all, it
> > > can't be measured because it doesn't exist.
> > >
> > > If you were Zen, you'd be contemplating a one ended stick.
> > >
> >
> > Well, yeah, but you can still define "cold" so that others know what
> you're
> > talking about. You just did it: "absence of heat is cold". Anyway, I
> assume
> > H. Richard is reluctant to define it because he thinks it is an
> admission. It
> > is not. I don't believe in the Devil, but I can define what a Devil is.
> >
>
> Try this over worn question: How many angels can dance on a head of a pin?
>
> And the answer is...
>
> P.S. A nice Rum & Coke sounds good right now.

I'll drink to that, in an emergency I'll drimk anything.


>

---

Dave Nelson

> Try this over worn question: How many angels can dance on a head of a pin?
>
> And the answer is...
>
> P.S. A nice Rum & Coke sounds good right now.
>

If we agree what an angel is, and what a pin is, then we can begin to examine the question. What's so hard here? Am I speaking English? Isn't this a thread about religious beliefs (including the absence of belief)?

How do we discuss these beliefs when we don't have a common definition of a central concept? A concept that we all have referred to, even the atheiests who deny its existance: God.

---

> Does God exist? Only he would know that one
>

Define God.

---

> > > Does God exist? Only he would know that one
> > >
> >
> > Define God.
> >
>
> again ?
>

No, I read your post. My point is we can't ask if God exists if we don't have a common understanding of the concept. You've heard about the three blind men and the elephant . . .

---

> > No, I read your post. My point is we can't ask if God exists if we don't
> have
> > a common understanding of the concept. You've heard about the three
> blind men
> > and the elephant . . .
>
> Yes, but elephants and men are physical. A god is a concept that is only
> imaginary.
>
> As I still have other things to do, I shall re-enter later - physically (as
> permitted by the world wide web), not spiritually.
>

Emotions are not physical, yet they can be defined. A thought is not physical but the concept of thought can be defined.

Whether one believes God is imaginary or not is irrelevant to a definition. If I believe God is a rock, and you say God does not exist, I can put "God" into your hand, but you will just say that's not what I think of as God, and we will go nowhere. Your refusal to define God, and insistance on saying it is not necessary for a religious discussion is puzzling. When you deny the existance of something that you refuse to define, you are saying nothing.

---

Ask 100 people who believe in God to give you a definition and you're going to get 100 answers- some will be similar, many will be diverse.

Faith and belief is purely a subjective experience that defies compartamentalized definition.

How can there be one nice definition everybody agrees on when everyone uses a different criteria (their personal perception)?

If you want a absolute definition of God that is perfect and undisputable then you're going to have to get it from the woowoo man. He'll quote the book...cc

> If you want a absolute definition of God that is perfect and undisputable then
> you're going to have to get it from the woowoo man. He'll quote the book...cc
>

I don't want an absolute definition, I want a working, general definition. I specifically do not want a definition like that worked out in the Nicaean Creed, or any definition that is specific to a religion or belief. Without defining the term, any statement about the term is worthless noise, because it says nothing.

---

> It depends firstly if you define God as an “entity” (life form of some
> description in some form that as I previously described is in a state of
> non-existence from our view of everything)

So you agree that you do have to define it (but no, I don't think God is an entity or life form).

> Or if the term that God used for, is used in a similar context to term
> “nature”
> By the same context do you deny the meaning of the term nature?
> Although the term nature can be more easily described, with a single
> description it would be hard, but because nature is of a “existence state” it
> is easier to comprehend, but would you attempt to disprove it?
>
> Dave

I am not trying to prove that or disprove, simply to define. I keep asking, how can you say anything about it if you and I don't agree what you are talking about?

Look, H. Richard says God doesn't exist. I don't know if I agree or not because he won't say what he means by "God". He may be talking about something that I know exists, or something I know doesn't exist.

---