Sending myself crazy!

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Originally posted by Darwood:
[b] You have a point in saying that your surroundings do have part of what people believe in...[/QUOTE]

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Thank you.

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but its not like you dont have a choice. The fact that the only churches around here are christian probably is a part of the reason why i chose to be christian, but i could have chosen to not be religious at all.

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AH HA! Don't you see the "choice" you have presented here?

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To you, your choices as you have stated them, were to be Christian or to not be religious at all! That is some pretty strong community and cultural pressure to be Christian right there.

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i chose to first start going to a christian churche because thats whats around but i didnt have to believe in it and i could have stopped and looked up other religions by using libraries or the internet.

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You didn't, though, did you? Tell me, did occur to you at all to do ANY research into other religions, particularly those which are very different from the Judeo-Christian tradition, such as Hinduism or Buddhism? If not, why do you think that is?

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[QUOTE]It was a choice to have this religion and it is a choice to stay in this religion and its a choice to have whatever beliefs you have. Everyone has thier beliefs because thats what they chose to believe in.
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OK, here's a little test of your claim that you can perform right now.Stop believing in God and Jesus for the next 30 minutes.If it is just a choice, then this should be no problem for you.

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Originally posted by no2creation:

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Originally posted by Darwood:
Everyone has thier beliefs because thats what they chose to believe in.

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So tell me, can you choose your emotions then? Also, how come I can't choose to believe like you? I mean, I have tried to believe. I have attended church, read the bible, went to bible study groups. And for some reason my mind will not allow me to believe in it. IT JUST DOESN'T REGISTER. Do you choose not to believe in Santa Claus? If so, what were the events leading up to this decision. And if it were a decision can you choose to believe in Santa Claus again. I mean, if its a choice/decision you should be able to choose to believe in him.

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Faith, Love, Belief, they are all NOT by choice. The choices that you make are: Should I meet this person today? Should I read this today? Does this interest me? Do I want to learn more? You can choose and make a decision on each of these questions, and the information you gain from each of these experiences will influence what you believe in.

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Do you get it yet? Or are you still having some trouble understanding this simple concept?

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I actually think that faith IS a choice, but belief isn't.I have faith that my husband will not cheat on me, and he has faith that I won't cheat on him. We make the choice to trust each other, based upon evidence, of course.

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Originally posted by schrafinator:
I actually think that faith IS a choice, but belief isn't.

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I have faith that my husband will not cheat on me, and he has faith that I won't cheat on him. We make the choice to trust each other, based upon evidence, of course.

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I didn't use the word Faith in the same manner as you have above. You have used the word Faith in different context; see below.faith Pronunciation Key (fth)
n.
1.Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing.
2.Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. See Synonyms at belief. See Synonyms at trust.
3.Loyalty to a person or thing; allegiance: keeping faith with one's supporters.
4.often Faith Christianity. The theological virtue defined as secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God's will.
5.The body of dogma of a religion: the Muslim faith.
6.A set of principles or beliefs.I should have made it clearer in my original post. Faith, Love, and Belief in God is what I was trying to get at.

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[This message has been edited by no2creation, 03-30-2002]