Poemranker [Replying] Thu May 02 23:28:14 PDT 2024

Replying to a comment on:

The Servant and The Messenger (Other) by ALChemy

Beloved though you are to me and coveted by man. I stray not from my path for you. For I am under higher authority and by way of itâs command can serve one master but never two. Unless my master is the one who sent the words that you should speak. Then I shall be compelled to ask for proof. Only then shall I leave the road Iâm on and this new path shall I seek. Whether itâs end be near or aloof. Unsheathe the sword of truth before my eyes. So that I may see that god has changed his mind or I shall live the same life I have lead. For I will take only the road to paradise and not even the mightiest of angelkind can persuade me with words that god has not said.

Niphredil

16-Oct-05/9:08 AM

I'd like to comment, if I may.

You are talkng about an abstract concept know as 'faith', where someone who believes in God has 'faith', and someone who is an atheist does not.
I'd like to extend that concept and change it a little. What I believe is inherent within human beings is not the capacity for faith but the prayer for deliverance - or hope.

Any human being has prayed for help at least once in his life; for example, you walk around the corner and see that your house is on fire and your family is inside. The first thing that whips through your mind is, 'Please, let them be all right'...
Most events in life can't be controlled. Hoping for something to turn out okay is essentially the same as a prayer to God, Luck, or the laws of physics; and this is, in my opinion, a trait common to all living beings, on different levels.
I'd like to argue that this, in fact, should replace the concept of 'faith' that you are disputing. Change it to 'prayer for deliverance'.
Do animals 'hope', or 'pray for deliverance'? Why shouldn't they, in the sense that I described? In fact, the entire concept of 'God' is, basically, just an extension of this tenet based on the fact that humans have superior, more developed brains; allowing them to develop this *extremely* basic idea along with the development of their brains over time, or evolution, if you will.

So in my opinion, what I would say is:
The hope of being delivered from trouble is a universal trait and common, on one level or another, to all sentient beings. Humans, having superior brains, have developed from this a concept of 'God', 'religion' and 'faith' as an outlet and a reason for hope - we will always hope for the best, because God is with us. However, since most phenomena can be explained perfectly well by physics, faith is no longer a necessity in modern life, and has been spurned by atheists; however, every human (faithless or not) continues to hope.

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