"I just have faith"=BS

[Darryl_P]

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When somebody says "I just have faith," are they full of BS? Yes.

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I'm really having trouble getting my head around this and so I'd appreciate an elaboration.

In my mind, when we say someone is BS-ing it means they are saying something that isn't true. Also, we usually believe it's intentional, otherwise we'd use less strong language like "that's not true" for example.

But even if it's not intentional, as you suggest might be the case, where is the BS?

Why could you not substitute what I said above, ie:

"A) I believe in God, not because I have proof, but because the totality of my experiences suggests to me that He exists, and

B) I am not explaining it all to you because that would take too long. Explaining only bits and pieces wouldn't give a proper picture and, therefore, isn't worth it."

???

Or do you infer from some peoples' style that they're mean-spirited and just assume they mean something else? If so, what do you assume? An elaboration similar to my A and B above would go a long way in helping me to understand. Thanks.

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Empirical data will tell you God is perfect ... Along with perfection, He is unchanging

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We need some kind of award for posts like these. Congrats, you are this week's winner of the SMP [something implying ignorance, stupidity, or a combination thereof) Award!

And I'm sorry if I'm again viewed as an a$$ for this post. But crap like this deserves to be called out. And serious debate with those who rely on outlandish, unsupportable statements has shown to be futile.

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From my knowledge of philosophy, science, and basically every single experience of my life says that the Christian Bible is true.

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That is beautiful.

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Empirical data will tell you God is perfect ... Along with perfection, He is unchanging

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We need some kind of award for posts like these. Congrats, you are this week's winner of the SMP [something implying ignorance, stupidity, or a combination thereof) Award!

And I'm sorry if I'm again viewed as an a$$ for this post. But crap like this deserves to be called out. And serious debate with those who rely on outlandish, unsupportable statements has shown to be futile.

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I'm sorry if you disagree, but there is no need to insult me. A simple reading of Plato's theory of knowledge will support those statements. If you want someone more contemporary, try Norman Malcolm. Have you read any epistemology?
Do you have any philosophical background? If so, please tell me why it's wrong.

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I have seen christianity come out relatively unscathed (in regards to core beliefs)

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ignoring minor stuff like flat earths and geocentric universes, I still find that giving up on genesis seems a tad scathy. Let's see, what's left, well, I guess the unfalsifiable claims have remained unfalsified, that's a blessing.

luckyme

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A simple understanding of scripture could solve this minor problem. You must realize that Genesis is written in narrative. Whenever a book is written in narrative, it is strongly meant for it's spiritual aspects.
Christianity makes scientific statements with what is correct at the time. At the time of the Bible being written, they believed the earth was flat/geocentric.
Could you imagine if it was written the world was round? The people would not have taken the scripture seriously, because the world is so "obviously" flat.

The Bible is used as a spiritual tool. And it is very rich in wisdom. It shouldn't be used as a geology textbook.

I'm not sure I know what you mean by "unfalsifiable claims". Could you please be more specific?

[imported_luckyme]

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I'm not sure I know what you mean by "unfalsifiable claims". Could you please be more specific?

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Perhaps the quickest way would be for you to list the "core beliefs of christianity that have come out unscathed" and then I'll likely just be able to say .. "see above for examples of unfalsifiable claims". your move.

oh, you seem not to be aware that your view on the truth of the biblical statements on nature is not in sync with over 50% of american xtrians.
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At the time of the Bible being written, they believed the earth was flat/geocentric.

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"they"?? xtrians believe the bible to be the word of god not 'they', narative, metaphorical or whatever and most don't take kindly to suggestions they were deliberately lied to ( heck, they can do that to themselves, cheesh).

luckyme

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I'm not sure I know what you mean by "unfalsifiable claims". Could you please be more specific?

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Perhaps the quickest way would be for you to list the "core beliefs of christianity that have come out unscathed" and then I'll likely just be able to say .. "see above for examples of unfalsifiable claims". your move.

oh, you seem not to be aware that your view on the truth of the biblical statements on nature is not in sync with over 50% of american xtrians.
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At the time of the Bible being written, they believed the earth was flat/geocentric.

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"they"?? xtrians believe the bible to be the word of god not 'they', narative, metaphorical or whatever and most don't take kindly to suggestions they were deliberately lied to ( heck, they can do that to themselves, cheesh).

luckyme

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A few core beliefs off the top of my head.
We believe in one God, Who has and always will exist. He created the universe. We also believe that He sent Himself on earth as His son to fulfill the new covenant. (You could just read the Apostle's creed, which is a prayer statings Catholic beliefs)


I was raised, and still am a Catholic. Much of what I was taught is different from some fundamentalist christian denominations. I'm arguing the Catholic perspective, which may not agree with what you believe christians believe. What I have read/studied goes back to the CCC (official word of Catholic Church). When doing a reading of the Bible, you must take into account who wrote it, to whom it was written, when it was written, and what style the author used. (Actual people wrote the text, but they are traditionally believed to have been inspired by God. They would write in their own language, their own style, their own idioms, but it would be God's message).
The first five books of the Bible are traditionally thought to have been written by Moses. Most of Genesis is written in narrative. (I.E. Adam and Eve, Noah's Ark, etc.) That book has much spiritual wisdom, it shows various covenants God makes with the people, but is not meant to be taken as historical fact. (Some books are written with a historical frame of mind, and are actually quite accurate) (Sorry if this does not coincide with some fundamentalist christian beliefs, but it is what is taught to catholics. Check the CCC if you do not believe me)
There are unfortunately some uneducated Christians who argue ignorantly, and give half truths and such. It seems if I ever have a discrepency, I can always go to the source (the CCC) and I learn the true answer. I am trying to give an accurate representation of the CCC in regards to the Bible.

[imported_luckyme]

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A few core beliefs off the top of my head.
We believe in one God, Who has and always will exist. He created the universe. We also believe that He sent Himself on earth as His son to fulfill the new covenant. (You could just read the Apostle's creed, which is a prayer statings Catholic beliefs)

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For examples of "unfalsifiable claims" see above.

As predicted, your claim that the core beliefs are unscathed could only mean the ones that require proving a negative. Beliefs (core or otherwise)that were testable have be scathed beyond recognition. Some of them seemed mighty core at the time to the people that suffered greatly for disputing them. But, what the hey, I'm glad we resolved it so easily,

luckyme,
if I thought I was wrong, I'd change my mind

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Beliefs (core or otherwise)that were testable have be scathed beyond recognition. Some of them seemed mighty core at the time to the people that suffered greatly for disputing them.

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Could you please give an example, as I do not believe I am familiar with the references you make. I'm still not quite sure with what you mean when you say "state core beliefs." Could you give an example of a core belief?
Thanks

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For examples of "unfalsifiable claims" see above.


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With regards to your argument of unfalsifiable claims:
If you were to argue this for things such as God existing, then clearly christianity must be an elaborate hoax to deceive people.
How can you believe that people such as Christopher Columbus existed? You've never met him, or met anyone who has met him. His stories, and his effects on the world are known, but those could have been created. It may be an elaborate hoax to deceive.
How do you draw the line on what you believe with regards to unfalsifiable claims?