Without God, life is meaningless

Lol, this life is nothing.

 

That guy you overheard could have been god. Ever think of that? eh eH?

 

With or without God, this life- in and of itself- is nothing. It's the next life that truly matters.

 

we only know for sure that this life exists.

we only know for sure, that this life is here and real.

the afterlife? may just be a silly fantasy.

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no, that never occured to me.

nor will it. Ever.

 

But you are an unbeliever. Naturally, it is a fantasy for you. The believers know it is true.

 

no, the Believer believes its true...without any actual evidence.

learn the difference.

 

There are some interesting definitions for the word "know". See below:
"know
v. knew , known , know·ing, knows

v.tr.1. To perceive directly; grasp in the mind with clarity or certainty.
2. To regard as true beyond doubt: I know she won't fail.

3. To have a practical understanding of, as through experience; be skilled in: knows how to cook.
4. To have fixed in the mind: knows her Latin verbs.

5. To have experience of: "a black stubble that had known no razor" (William Faulkner).
6. a. To perceive as familiar; recognize: I know that face.
b. To be acquainted with: He doesn't know his neighbors.

7. To be able to distinguish; recognize as distinct: knows right from wrong.
8. To discern the character or nature of: knew him for a liar.
9. Archaic To have sexual intercourse with.

v.intr.1. To possess knowledge, understanding, or information.

2. To be cognizant or aware."




Then in relation to 'believe':
"be·lieve
v. be·lieved, be·liev·ing, be·lieves
v.tr.1. To accept as true or real: Do you believe the news stories?

2. To credit with veracity: I believe you.

3. To expect or suppose; think: I believe they will arrive shortly.


v.intr.1. To have firm faith, especially religious faith.

2. To have faith, confidence, or trust: I believe in your ability to solve the problem.

3. To have confidence in the truth or value of something: We believe in free speech.

4. To have an opinion; think: They have already left, I believe."




So you see, to 'believe' is to 'know'.

 

Incorporeal beat me to it.

You don't need to have evidence to know something is true- this is solely the belief of materialists (atheists).

Do you ask your gut for "evidence" when it tells you to do something that it knows is best?

 

Sorry but extraordinary claims reyquire extraordinary evidence

I will not believe in an amazing all powerful supernatural force without a lot of evidence to support it

 

And why should you get to decide what the nature of this evidence ought to be?

 

If he don't get to make that choice, then his whole agenda is blown out of the water. He complains about extraordinary claims yet he demands extraordinary specialized evidence while arbitrarily overlooking evidence that does not meet with or is not in accord with the specialized agenda.

 

The meaning of life is relative to the individual but I think a common theme would be to be happy. I argue that there are many paths to happiness. To think that one would be unhappy if there were no heaven tells me that they have much left to learn in this life. Allowing an indeterminate future to spoil the present is a path to misery.

 

Correction they only believe it to be true...you cant know unless you have proof.

 

This is just the myth brought on by spoiled modern materialism which tries to equate physical or material circumstances with "happiness".

Fact is this actually contradicts science - studies have shown that happiness is primarily tied to one's sense of purpose or meaning in life, not one's physical situation.

This is why lions in the wild are happier than lions in the zoo, even though the lions in the zoo are 'safer' and live in luxury, they have little purpose being stuck in a tiny cage compared to their happier counterparts who live in the wild subjected to physical adversity.

This is also why millionaires commit suicide and why simple hunter-gatherer tribesmen live happy lives despite being isolated from modern civilization. Having been conditioned from birth to dwell in an unnatural, post industrial dystopia of convenience - the average American couldn't imagine himself living an ancient lifestyle simply due to social conditioning - just like Lindsey Lohan would freak out over the thought of having to spend a few weeks in jail without her cell phone.

Hell if anything the average person in that era was probably happier than the average spoiled American who has nothing more to do with his spare time than go hang out at Starbucks and watch videos of cats on Youtube, despite being biologically designed for hunting, exploring, providing, fighting, etc - he's basically a prisoner and doesn't even know it.

 

What the christian talker pointed out (in a naive but honest way) is the human need to believe in a better future. If the future is non-existence it is very hard to feel positive about it. If thats hard for you to understand just change the proximity. Imagine having a major artery severed and death being less than five minutes away, would that five minutes be easy to enjoy?

Mostly we are able to shelf the awareness of our mortality. Instead we focus on near future events. Imagining the future is a big part of what keeps us alive. As long as we believe that the future has some chance of being as good or better than the present life continues to be worth living. How many retired people who were completely dedicated to their work die within a few years? How many lifelong spouses die within a year of their mates death? If we take away major components of a persons life and tell them they are no longer a part of their future, sometimes that person just dies. They lose the ability to imagine and hope.

Living in the present is both impossible and unavoidable. Impossible because we are unable to perceive it (Try to perceive this moment and it is already gone.), unavoidable because it is a constant state. The future and the past make up most all of our awareness.

I doubt there will be an afterlife. But wrestling with the big nothing at the end of the road has lead me to believe that anyone who says its no big deal is deluding themselves.

 

Sadly, there is absolutely no evidence that the next life exists.

 

Yes, actually I do. Particularly when making investment decisions.

 

What type of God? Persnal God or mythical God or impersonal God. There are different gods and and some people believe in mytholgical Gods Homer had invented or fhere are million Hindu Gods and all have and it is hard to pinpoint what types of God suit one. Gods are purposewise and if one wants to be a man of wisdom one has to pray Ganesh since He is an epitome of wisdom. If one wants to amass wealth it is Laxmi, the Goddess of wealth and prosperity. If one wants his or her sex experience more passionate and profound it is to kama, the god of love one has to worship.
That said , I believe in universal consciousness and I often name it God and though it cannot be framed within the parameters of what generally god is held.

God is a drug, an addiction, an imagination, a fancy and the result of fear or when one is tired of questing for the meaning of life and cannot arrive at it it is to God he turns for an answer and God is therefore the ultimate answer. But that the answer is right or wrong is questionble.

 

Speaking of learning the difference....

I think the problem you're pretending you don't have is your requirement for one person's evidence to meet your standard of evidence.

I've seen plenty in my life and the lives of others. Nothing I have any interest in sharing because I couldn't care less if you believe me.

But some of what I consider evidence you and others will surely shout down as "coincidence", etc.
Other stuff I've seen has left doctors admitting they couldn't even come close to explaining.

 

my standard of evidence for the existance of the Biblical God is no different than my standard of evidence for the existance of aliens, Santa Claus, Ghosts, Goblins, Loch Ness Monster, or the Bigfoot.

i need to see actual physical evidence.

no more....no less.

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than you for proving the OP is correct, that many believers do believe that this life is meaningless, worthless...only the possibility of eternal reward in the next life matters

 

Doesn't matter.

Comparing your standards to your standards means nothing to anyone else.

 

my standard of proof, for supporting extraordinary scientific claims, is a common sense approach.

 

In your opinion.

I don't really see your requirement to see "physical" evidence for a "faith-based" existence as "common sense".

Seems pretty ridiculous actually.

 

my opinion is supported by the scientific community.

there are some basic scientifically sound standards of evidence, by which we accept the existence of certain extraordinary things, such as the Loch Ness Monster, Big Foot, Santa Claus, Ghosts, Goblins, and Biblical Gods.

or should we believe ANYTHING just based on "faith"?

 

Only according to your standards of evidence.

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And others don't.

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Their standards of proof are sufficient for them.