Why This Belief?

I've read a lot of posts where people describe their belief and how they've had such a moving experience. I understand that people have had a strong experience with Christianity and Jesus, but that doesn't mean you can logically feel that it is right or true.Many people of other religions have had equally powerful experiences and connections with their holy books, priests, or Gods... if you believe the bible literally or if you truly believe that Jesus was the son of God, then you are in direct contradiction with other religions who have an equal claim on "truth" as you do.Given that, how do you go on believing what you do? Faith? How can one version of faith be better than another??This message has been edited by AdminPhat, 06-01-2005 08:36 AM

I understand your point, and I am certainly not set out to look negatively upon religion. I don't really know how to speak in terms of relative or absolute "truth". To me information is reliable if it can be deduced logically and is supported by evidence that is tangible. If evidence is not availabe now, it can be systematically pursued. In the case of religion, no experiment or repeatable observation can lead to the conclusion that Jesus is the son of God. One may conclude that God exists based on philosophical argument but then you must concede that there are also equally believable philosophical arguments against his existence.
In the case of competing religions. Jesus proclaims He is the son of God... Ra is known the be the sun God, God of all Gods... Zeus is the king of the Gods... the Quran says that Jesus was a prophet, but not the son of God. To me believing any is like making an arbitrary choice.

First I have to say I really appreciate your response. It seems to me you have put a lot of thought into your decisions of faith. At the heart of things I think I agree with a lot of what you say, but as a scientist, and a novice philosopher, I often steer myself away from spiritual things. On the concept of man's ability to reason... I think this is near the core of any discussion on God. We think and feel and make complex decisions, and modern science still has no good explaination as to how the brain makes this possible. But knowing what I know about neuroscience and artificial intelligence, I'm confident that one day intelligent machines can be created. If this is so, then every aspect of intelligence and consciousness can be explored and tampered with in a laboratory. Facing those realities, and seeing experimental results explaining how my neurons grow, interact, and network to create my mind... I just can't comprehend my believing in having a soul anymore. Granted, this is hypothetical, but it is within the reach of science (some claim we will be there in 20-50 years although I'd put it on the latter end of that scale). For me, the ability of the human mind to explain the natural world trumps everything.
Also, on the notion of why people may act appropriately or with "morals" in the absence of God, try reading Kant's Metaphysics of Morals... I'm not experienced enough to give you a complete rundown, but he outlines practical reasons why morality necessary and explains itself without religion.In fact, considering the vastness of the universe. The quadrillions of galaxies, stars, planets, and the proposed existence of multiple universes coexisting allow for an almost infinite space from which life can spontaneously arise. Given such an infinite incubator, the fact that such complex and intelligent life can arise somewhere is not really so surprising.... over such a space and over an untold timeframe, one might even say it's a certainty. To me, it's not life that is devine and unexplainable, it is that infinite space, time, matter, eternity.
Thanks again for your discussion.