Darwin Unhinged: The Bugs in Evolution

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(2019-01-27, 06:52 PM)Sciborg_S_Patel Wrote: Yeah I don't personally have much stake in this, as I said before any God worth worshiping isn't going to be found by, as Feser says, playing "Where's Waldo?" with mutations.

Not wanting to take the discussion in another direction but it seems to me that a true God would prefer agnosticism or even atheism to worship. At least those two provide questioning and scope to learn (therefore evolve) rather than some stagnant blind faith and acceptance. Of course, this is all anthropomorphic speculating because we are probably not equipped to know the mind of a "true God".
I do not make any clear distinction between mind and God. God is what mind becomes when it has passed beyond the scale of our comprehension.
Freeman Dyson
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(2019-01-27, 07:00 PM)Kamarling Wrote: Not wanting to take the discussion in another direction but it seems to me that a true God would prefer agnosticism or even atheism to worship. At least those two provide questioning and scope to learn (therefore evolve) rather than some stagnant blind faith and acceptance. Of course, this is all anthropomorphic speculating because we are probably not equipped to know the mind of a "true God".

If we can't understand God's mind even less of a reason to worship it?
'Historically, we may regard materialism as a system of dogma set up to combat orthodox dogma...Accordingly we find that, as ancient orthodoxies disintegrate, materialism more and more gives way to scepticism.'

- Bertrand Russell


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(2019-01-27, 09:56 PM)Sciborg_S_Patel Wrote: If we can't understand God's mind even less of a reason to worship it?

We know god’s mind through scripture though. He’s neurotic and insecure (which is why you capitalised the G.  Big Grin    )
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(2019-01-27, 10:27 PM)malf Wrote: We know god’s mind through scripture though. He’s neurotic and insecure (which is why you capitalised the G.  Big Grin    )

Heh, I was thinking it's easier to distinguish God as in either the First Being or Ground of Being from deities that would be spirits with power over some domain (Luck, Storms, etc).

Not sure anyone here even uses "God" as referring to a being described in religious scripture?
'Historically, we may regard materialism as a system of dogma set up to combat orthodox dogma...Accordingly we find that, as ancient orthodoxies disintegrate, materialism more and more gives way to scepticism.'

- Bertrand Russell


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(2019-01-27, 11:55 PM)Sciborg_S_Patel Wrote: Not sure anyone here even uses "God" as referring to a being described in religious scripture?

Apart from the atheists. Go figure.
I do not make any clear distinction between mind and God. God is what mind becomes when it has passed beyond the scale of our comprehension.
Freeman Dyson
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(2019-01-27, 11:55 PM)Sciborg_S_Patel Wrote: Heh, I was thinking it's easier to distinguish God as in either the First Being or Ground of Being from deities that would be spirits with power over some domain (Luck, Storms, etc).

How is that easier, and for whom?

Quote:Not sure anyone here even uses "God" as referring to a being described in religious scripture?

Despite the shared arguments Wink
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(2019-01-28, 04:01 AM)malf Wrote: How is that easier, and for whom?

Easier b/c it's in line with the global use of the term -> People using the word God (with capital G) are talking about an entity that at the least ordered the primordial chaos to make the universe, though people disagree about the existence of this being's current status.

When people talk about gods like Athena or Thoth, using the lower case "g", they see them as entities in plural with dominion over different domains (Knowledge, War, Death, etc).

Quote:Despite the shared arguments Wink

Sure, but skeptics often share many of the same arguments as the nihilists who say materialism means human existence is completely worthless. (Of course the nihilist are correct [about materialism], unless there's something serious in "compatibilitism"...but I believe that's the kind of torturous semantic gaming you dislike about philosophy?)

Heck many proponents and skeptics share baseline assumptions, for example physics says something relevant about our experienced reality is assumed by both sides - the difference being how much about reality is captured.
'Historically, we may regard materialism as a system of dogma set up to combat orthodox dogma...Accordingly we find that, as ancient orthodoxies disintegrate, materialism more and more gives way to scepticism.'

- Bertrand Russell


(This post was last modified: 2019-01-28, 06:10 AM by Sciborg_S_Patel.)
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(2019-01-28, 05:25 AM)Sciborg_S_Patel Wrote: Sure, but skeptics often share many of the same arguments as the nihilists who say materialism means human existence is completely worthless. (Of course the nihilist are correct ...

Had to read this twice before I realised that you weren't saying that nihilists - and materialists - are correct but that you are saying that nihilists are correct in their interpretation of materialism. Phew!
I do not make any clear distinction between mind and God. God is what mind becomes when it has passed beyond the scale of our comprehension.
Freeman Dyson
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(2019-01-28, 05:57 AM)Kamarling Wrote: Had to read this twice before I realised that you weren't saying that nihilists - and materialists - are correct but that you are saying that nihilists are correct in their interpretation of materialism. Phew!

good point, made an edit - sorry for the confusion!
'Historically, we may regard materialism as a system of dogma set up to combat orthodox dogma...Accordingly we find that, as ancient orthodoxies disintegrate, materialism more and more gives way to scepticism.'

- Bertrand Russell


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