You do you! I won't mock people for believing there's a god. Hell, I'm an atheist & pretty firmly seated in my views. But even though I don't believe in a god, I don't discount one either. I just don't believe in any of the gods that have been presented to me, thus far. I mock religions for the heinous shit they make their followers do. I mock believers, when they try to force life stifling or bigoted beliefs & policies onto others.

If you believe in a god, even if it's a specific god labeled, "Christ". It's all good. The problem comes, when those beliefs infringe on the right of other people, living their lives as they see fit. No hate here

Why would you trust your brain while it's malfunctioning? You used something comforting to calm yourself, what does that have to do with Jesus existing? Actually, how do you know that's what helped and it's not that you came down from your high? What does the strength of your belief have to do with it being true? Why would you choose to believe in a higher power? I don't choose to believe in the sun, it's there I can check and I can confirm it with other people and instruments. Why do you need to believe in a supernatural higher power?

Originally posted by Chiken_Sammich:

You do you! I won't mock people for believing there's a god. Hell, I'm an atheist & pretty firmly seated in my views. But even though I don't believe in a god, I don't discount one either. I just don't believe in any of the gods that have been presented to me, thus far. I mock religions for the heinous shit they make their followers do. I mock believers, when they try to force life stifling or bigoted beliefs & policies onto others.

If you believe in a god, even if it's a specific god labeled, "Christ". It's all good. The problem comes, when those beliefs infringe on the right of other people, living their lives as they see fit. No hate here

I can respect that take

Originally posted by lordcheetah:

Why would you trust your brain while it's malfunctioning? You used something comforting to calm yourself, what does that have to do with Jesus existing? Actually, how do you know that's what helped and it's not that you came down from your high? What does the strength of your belief have to do with it being true? Why would you choose to believe in a higher power? I don't choose to believe in the sun, it's there I can check and I can confirm it with other people and instruments. Why do you need to believe in a supernatural higher power?

I never claimed I know anything man. I said I had a crazy experience that changed my perspective. I spent a lot of time reflecting on it. Maybe it was just a crazy drug experience.. but have you ever heard that old saying trust your gut/instinct? For me that's what it boils down to.


That's all I got. I guess you're just gonna have to think I'm dumb.

Originally posted by MTV:

I used too be pretty convinced that everything just existed for no reason for a long time.

Sure thing. Would be weird to think reason were outside language. Reason is a human construct just like any of the 3.500+ gods on the god market is. Outside language there is no gods. The same goes with reason. One USE reason hence a one is needed. And so is language.

Originally posted by MTV:

…but I believe Christ existed…

I know he didn’t. But a guy named ישוע (Yeshua) did and he did walk on water in the winter but that’s about it. I do also walk on water every winter with my skates. But that’s about it. One out of hundreds of questions could be; why any god waited 250.000 years to reveal himself in a spot no one could see - or in one of the universes that is doomed to perish when it collides with the nearest galaxy. Or creates faulty humans and then punish them for his own mistakes. I could go on with literally hundreds of examples that illustrate that a bare minimum of reason leads one way; Humans created gods in order to cope with bad conditions.

Originally posted by MTV:

Ever since that experience I decided I'm an antagonistic theist.”

Spot on. It is a decision or teaching that needs to take place to believe in any of the thousands of gods.

Originally posted by MTV:

I know some of you are just gonna mock me and say I'm a retard that fried his brain on drugs

Your knowledge is biased and very faulty. Why would anyone mock you and say you are a retard just because you used a drug that twisted your reason? Guess your knowledge - or is it your reason - might be impaired?

Originally posted by MTV:

I just wanted to share my experience and see if anyone else had a experiences like this?

Some people experience similar variant of reality when they drop their drugs or alcohol abuse. I call it the substitute effect. You remove an important “action” (drugs, alcohol etc.) and replace it with something else that comfort you to fill out the emptiness.

Originally posted by MTV:

I don't expect you guys to take this subjective story as evidence…

Don’t worry. I doubt anyone would confuse your anecdotical experience with anything resembling evidence. Evidence is almost the opposite or your personal experience under the influence of a drug. Out of the ca. 100 billion people that walked this planet we know of zero examples of miracles to give one example.

Originally posted by MTV:

but I also choose to believe in a higher power.

Kind of confirm my point; Religion is a choice/belief as opposed to science.

Originally posted by MTV:

have you ever heard that old saying trust your gut/instinct?

Really? My bet would be yes – almost all have heard of that saying. Yet it is flawed like most of the other anecdotical experiences people have. Imagine there is about 8 billion other guts/instincts and they all have different anecdotical experiences to some or any degree? Should be a hint.

Originally posted by MTV:

I guess you're just gonna have to think I'm dumb.

Being religious or having “found god” doesn’t say much of one’s intelligence. The power of human beliefs is endless. Here is Sigmund Freud’s take;
“It could be ventured to understand obsessive compulsive neurosis as the pathological counterpart of religious development, to define neurosis as an individual religiosity; to define religion as a universal obsessive compulsive neurosis.” - Sigmund Freud

I am the opposite.
I am 56 and grew up in a Baptist Church.
Went into the Army as a medic and went to the Chaplin's services there.
After I got out I was a 20 year old so I didn't hit church every Sunday, just on the holidays and so on.
Got married to a woman who Ran the Children's Ministry at her church.
I assisted her for 20 years in that position. I ran the Rhema Rangers (Boyscouts) and also much of the entertainment for kids ranging from 1st grade to 12th.
Even played on Stage in the Church Band for 8 of those years near the end.

I have been to Catholic, Lutheran and Non-denominational churches over my years prior to meeting my wife @ 22.

I have NEVER experienced anything spiritual or enlightening.
I tried and tried, I wanted too.
But I realized I needed to work on me more than praying to some unknown outside source that would do it for me.

After we adopted our 4 black children (We are white) in a church of over 500+ members.
I saw people who called us friends and trusted us with their children turn on us all due to Racism.
We tried 3 other churches after leaving the church my wife has been going to since she was a child.
Racism is so ingrained in American Religion that it is a part of it now at it's core.
We can say not all Christians are like that, but none of the ones who aren't, are speaking up.

I have to admit after the Hate that was directed at us over the years before we left the church, I have no desire to look for another one or even a God.

Wife and I left religion 12 years ago, and we have been better for it.

Religion puts Anxiety and pressure on individuals and they try to control their congregation through that.

Good luck in what you do, but take a look at the church you attend.
Be critical of what they do, or say or direct of you as a member to do.
Because People are People, and People are mostly out for their own interest.
Even Church Officials.

"Good luck in what you do, but take a look at the church you attend." To be fair, MTV didn't say they actually attended a church. Just said it's their personal belief that christ existed.

I might just being pointless & nitpicky, but someone can believe & not really go through the motions.

Originally posted by EgoAcid:

I am the opposite.
I am 56 and grew up in a Baptist Church.
Went into the Army as a medic and went to the Chaplin's services there.
After I got out I was a 20 year old so I didn't hit church every Sunday, just on the holidays and so on.
Got married to a woman who Ran the Children's Ministry at her church.
I assisted her for 20 years in that position. I ran the Rhema Rangers (Boyscouts) and also much of the entertainment for kids ranging from 1st grade to 12th.
Even played on Stage in the Church Band for 8 of those years near the end.

I have been to Catholic, Lutheran and Non-denominational churches over my years prior to meeting my wife @ 22.

I have NEVER experienced anything spiritual or enlightening.
I tried and tried, I wanted too.
But I realized I needed to work on me more than praying to some unknown outside source that would do it for me.

After we adopted our 4 black children (We are white) in a church of over 500+ members.
I saw people who called us friends and trusted us with their children turn on us all due to Racism.
We tried 3 other churches after leaving the church my wife has been going to since she was a child.
Racism is so ingrained in American Religion that it is a part of it now at it's core.
We can say not all Christians are like that, but none of the ones who aren't, are speaking up.

I have to admit after the Hate that was directed at us over the years before we left the church, I have no desire to look for another one or even a God.

Wife and I left religion 12 years ago, and we have been better for it.

Religion puts Anxiety and pressure on individuals and they try to control their congregation through that.

Good luck in what you do, but take a look at the church you attend.
Be critical of what they do, or say or direct of you as a member to do.
Because People are People, and People are mostly out for their own interest.
Even Church Officials.

thanks for sharing your story with us EgoAcid

Originally posted by Chiken_Sammich:

"Good luck in what you do, but take a look at the church you attend." To be fair, MTV didn't say they actually attended a church. Just said it's their personal belief that christ existed.

I might just being pointless & nitpicky, but someone can believe & not really go through the motions.

I don't attend church. I think churches are silly. Why would the creator of the universe care about a silly man made structure here on earth? That's how I look at it. Anyone can pick up a bible and read it. All a pastor does is read the bible in front of a audience and give his take on what it means.

I think it's more important to live a good life then attend church. You can attend church every sunday and be a garbage human being to others.

Originally posted by MTV:

I never claimed I know anything man. I said I had a crazy experience that changed my perspective. I spent a lot of time reflecting on it. Maybe it was just a crazy drug experience.. but have you ever heard that old saying trust your gut/instinct? For me that's what it boils down to.

Have you ever had your gut instinct be wrong? Are there bad times to rely on your instinct?