What do we need a deity for? (Introduction)

by xeno6696 , Sonoran Desert, Tuesday, August 09, 2011, 17:34 (4834 days ago) @ dhw

As an addendum I must add that I do not consider "mythology" to mean the more modern parlance of "false" as is typically used as a dismissal. -By "mythology" I mean that personal set of symbols that we as humans each construct to represent our lives. I don't mean to suggest that science is "just a story like anything else," either. But that there is a deeply subjective part of man that I feel is actually the strongest part of man's character that works to integrate the pieces that IT finds the most compelling. Sometimes what IT wants aren't necessarily those things considered rational or reasonable by other people, and err on the side of the individual over groups in nearly every instance. Too often I see naturalism and materialism used in such a way as to assert a superiority or dominance unwarranted: Science is the most reliable method to learning about our world, but by all means not the primary nor even the first tool scientists use when engaging in the process: Science is a man-made tool, and it's always important to remember this when talking about it. -Do we have a material reason to believe in a soul or in disembodied consciousness? No. But people have had experiences that raise enough doubt in my mind as to the validity of the assumption of naturalism (vs. methodological naturalism). This means that for me, the world is shrouded ever more in veils of gray, (or grey for our British friend ) to which dogmatic claims to final truths begin to unravel.

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\"Why is it, Master, that ascetics fight with ascetics?\"

\"It is, brahmin, because of attachment to views, adherence to views, fixation on views, addiction to views, obsession with views, holding firmly to views that ascetics fight with ascetics.\"