

The Iron Triangle: God, Suffering, and Death - DanielBMarkham
http://www.whattofix.com/blog/archives/2010/05/the-iron-triang.php

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drKarl
I agree with the fact that concept of deities were probably originated because
of fear and ignorance of their proponents and evolved to a more abstract
concept.

Science gives a solid (based on facts) answer to many events which were
misteries back in the ancient world, but with every bit of knowledge we
acquire through the means of science, we hold a deeper view of what we still
don't know.

"Some people become atheists because they can't understand how a God would
allow so much suffering in the world."

That is a very debatable subject, since I reckon many people (including
myself) are atheist simply because there is not a solid reason not to be. The
aforementioned sentence assumes a typical abrahamic deity (judeo-christian-
islamic), that is, a omnipotent, omniscient, all-loving deity, which is in
itself, with all three characteristics, a contradiction, but in history there
have been and are many gods which are not all-loving. This sentence assumes
that the natural state is being a theist (that is, a god-believer) and that
some people become atheists. Well, I claim that the natural state is being an
atheist, and family, society, education, makes theists.

Death is the end of life, and any further meaning anyone might add, is
completely arbitrary.

Suffering exists in the world, and it is strongly correlated with chemical
substances in our brain and organisms.

~~~
DanielBMarkham
Yes, why to be an atheist is debatable, and I wasn't trying to get into
reasons to be an atheist, simply observe that some atheists cite this as a
reason for losing their faith.

In fact, I have no desire to discuss religion at all. I was trying to make the
observation that I believe there are 3 over-reaching concepts that play
together in various ways in various cultures -- and such interplay is not just
a human construct.

 _Death is the end of life, and any further meaning anyone might add, is
completely arbitrary._

Yes, death exists. We all choose what meaning to assign it. I may decide to
become a doctor to prevent it. I may decide to give my life in a war. I may
choose to creatively explain what happens after it. The point is that it is a
concept that is part of intelligent existence.

Suffering a result of chemicals in the brain? Perhaps as perceived by the
person. From an external viewpoint, however, suffering seems to be part of
watching things live. I'm not sure what the chemical makeup of an antelope's
brain is the minute the cheetah catches it, but it can't be very happy. The
process looks like suffering to the external viewer.

The larger point is that metaphysical concepts can allow us to reason about
other life forms in the universe. If that's a true statement, then I think
that's pretty cool.

------
demallien
Yup, you lost my on the first word. "God" does _not_ mean the unknown. "The
unknown" means the unknown, "God" means a supernatural being that
created/manipulates the universe. Redefining the meaning of words a long way
from their common use does not aid any discussion of philosophy.

I for one didn't get any further in you exposition - this error was just too
glaring to give me any desire to see what else you were talking about...

