Originally Posted by George

To answer the question bluntly... yes and no
Again Grant,
I have to disagree with most of what you said. You're looking at it from the perspective of someone who needs a supreme deity to give them purpose. You see it as a sad meaningless existance without a deity because you don't know how to live without that. Emotions are not meaningless. True in scientific terms they are just chemical reactions but in our social environment they mean a great deal. Try telling a greaving mother of her dead child emotions are meaningless. I've seen and felt emotions cause actual physical pain. But then what is pain? It's just eletrical messages sent to your brain and the way your brain interprets them. But is pain meaningless?

I don't understand how anything has any purpose without some sort of order. Emotions keep us busy but theres no meaning to their existance. The only reason they exist is because somewhere along the geneology, one of our ancestors had a kid with a little mutation. Yes, we have a sense of urgency to attend to them. The sense of urgency doesn't mean they have purpose. Again, its just a mutation. Try telling a greiving mother her emotions mean nothing. Well I don't try to tell her that. In short, I don't understand how we have a purpose if we're equivelant to pre-biotic soup. How is it not a contradiction to believe there's no reason for our existance, yet times and situations have appointed purpose. I'm not saying they don't necessarily. I just don't undersatnd how. Can you explain for me?

Not needing to know that there is some deity watching over all 6 billion of us listening to every one of our prayers but wondering why ours isn't answered is liberating. Not depressing. It gives you a sense of control over your life. I know what you're getting at though. You're talking about when times get tough and you can't turn to God. Hard to imagine what you'd do if you couldn't turn to God isn't it?

But that's because that's the way you were taught. That's what you are used to. It's like waking up from the matrix and finding out that there is no spoon. Congratulations... you are now truly responsible for your actions. Now what are you going to do with that newfound responsibility?

Wow. I'm actually not used to asking for God's guidance. I've been worrying about what He asks of us for about a month now. Christianity doesn't say not to take responsibility for your actions. The fact that the God of the Bible provides for us doesn't mean you don't take responsability. I'm curious as to what broght you to the conclusoin that Christians aren't responsible for their actions.

Change is tough. But once you start looking at it not as a problem, but as an opportunity to fix the problem you'll be better off. Each person has his or her own journey though. Some people just aren't cut out to be agnostic just like some aren't cut out to go to Harvard. If you're not emotionally capable of living with the possibility that you may not have a supernatural babysitter to help you through life then I am the last one to fault anyone who holds on to that belief.

You've got me backwards, man. However, I perfectly agree with what you said- "Change is tough. But once you start looking at it not as a problem, but as an opportunity to fix the problem you'll be better off." In my experiences, it is a lot better after you get over the consequences of change, you're better off.