So, now for the question: If trusting our senses is a valid basis for evidence, then is there truth in the spiritual experiences felt under the effects of entheogens, and if so, does that mean nonphysical entities 'exist'?
For those unfamiliar with entheogens, many of Terrance McKenna's speeches are on Youtube. Also, I found the movie "DMT: The Spirit Molecule", which focuses on Dr. Rick Strassman's studies, extremely intriguing.
@Evid3nc3 By the way, your videos are phenomenal. Well done!
... these substances (as well as a few others) claim to have had spiritual experiences and even had contact with intelligent entities. DMT in particular seems to elicit this response and neuroscientists have discovered it's existence in the human brain. In addition, small amounts of DMT are thought to be released while we sleep and this could be why we dream. It's even suspected that DMT is released in the brain before death and this could be the cause of near-death experiences. (contd)
I've always considered myself an agnostic athiest (despite being forced by my Catholic mother to attend church and Sunday school until I was about 10), however in the past few months I've been toying with other ideas of consciousness and intelligence from what I've read about entheogens (such as LSD, psilocybin and DMT). I have always WISHED there was something more than this physical universe but have never came across sufficient evidence or a valid argument, however many users of... (contd)
My one criticism thus far is you never name "the professor." For a man who made such an impact on your life, I am curious to know his identity. He seems like a kind, understanding, gentle soul, filled with wisdom and compassion... enough that he actively attempted to dissuade you from losing your beliefs so young, as he seemed to feel your happiness and peace of mind was more important to him than him convincing you.
@Kooshmeister3 It could be possible that he didn't want to put his name up on the internet so people can't look for him and flood him with emails, or whatever. Or he was just being nice and leaving his name out of it because some people don't like to have their names publicly on the internet.
It is impossible to say what is actually true, for example the "books" you read about science or facts or the speeches heard from "professors", how are they different from the "Bible" or listening to the teachings of the "Church". They are still of hearsay and from my objective standpoint hold no more credibility than the other. The search for "truth" is just as mundane as the search for "god"......
LOL don't make me laugh, please. Evolution doesn't just happen from 'nothing', and is obvious it happens AFTER that something has been created first. And you don't want to accept, it's God that created everything first. Why is it that atheists are so firm to believe otherwise? Just accept there is a God!
@ItsSoMe2011 have you ever seen anything created from nothing? There is no theory of evolution from nothing, we both agree on that; why do you think creation from nothing is more reasonable? When confronted with questions on the ultimate nature of reality it is reasonable to answer "I don't know." People who can't be trusted to say "I don't know," can't be trusted, period.
I was going to read the book you mentioned, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, but then I remembered all the times that seagull's ate my food, and since seagull's are birds, remembered all the times that birds pooped on me and since I know that I am not a bird, and thus not a seagull, that then it really doesn't matter now does it?
I started to cry because I've felt the same things, especially what you said about Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I've just started to read the same books as you, now books by Richard Dawkins. Just week ago... I'm a former fundamentalist christian, now I have started to see the world as philosophical and atheistic point of view. Clearly, but still as a christian. Thank you for reading tips but especially... THANK YOU FOR THIS AND ALL OF YOUR VIDEOS!
@TKluvme It will take a lot of time and patience to recover from the conditioning and indoctrination you've suffered from, we wish you luck and a brighter future.
I find it interesting how he shows that we could have had physical, and then shrunk into another big bang, but we know that the universe is not a sphere (as once thought) and is actually flat or slightly curved. So the idea that the universe is expanding, and will contract was shown to be wrong, the universe is never going to shrink, so the idea of multiple big bangs are out.
I find it funny, maybe ironic, that he goes into AI, where he will "create" the AI, which he hopes will one day be self aware, and through swarm AI can have a sort of self aware, but then he rejects the idea of a creator for himself. So he is okay with the thought of creating something, but rejects that he could have been created. Just ironic, nothing more.
FYI, they changed all the players (as you can see), so you might need to put linked annotations higher, because the player bar hides them. Basically, I can't click the next link at the bottom of the video at the end. Just so you know. I can get to the next video though, but that's not the point.
Are you willfully out of touch with the reality the orbital earth vehicle is carrying you along with 6 billion other passengers a million 500,000 miles daily all the days of your life and that the Sun is orbiting around the Milky Way at 600,000 mph and you want me to believe this is happening without these immediate cosmic bodies in our part of the Universe being designed? Where there is an extraordinarily supremely intelligently designed Universe there must be a Designer.
The more books one reads, the more one gets confused. Or depressed, this music combined with your vioce makes me concerned about you! Please do not commit suicide, there's more to life than looking for other people's truths in other people's books.
@Anonymous247n He's not going to commit suicide, you're being ridiculous. Or did you not see that this video was uploaded a year ago, and he's still making videos, and posting blogs?
The fact that your trying to make someone afraid of knowledge only shows that you're afraid you might actually be wrong.
You have read many of the books I have, but I haven't read all you have, and surely never had a professor like yours! I have thought I was a pantheist at times.
Of your quantum mechanics part, the first one doesn't really seem fallacious.. It's like you prefer to say the cup is half-empty instead of half-full (or the other way around).
I love your videos. I always shared your concepts. I stopped referring to my panentheistic god as "God" because it could be confusing for some... I've also used its blurriness as a way to approach believers who just shun atheists.
Cool music. It fits very well. It's from The Fountain, right?
In some respects you're the opposite of Pat Condell, who says we don't insult and ridicule religion nearly enough. Haha!
The idea that the universe has a consciousness, and that everything in it is an extension of that consciousness is a very pretty one. It reminds me of Carl Sagan talking about 'star stuff' and that 'we are all a way for the universe to know itself.' These are, of course, beautiful thoughts but they really don't amount to anything other than that. What do we gain by thinking of the universe in this way? How is humanity helped through this thought?
@razieldumas that thought process, that everything is an extension of the one, is Taoism and has been around for many years. This is nothing revolutionary.
I am the inverse of you -- I ditched religion but kept God. The way I see things, we are triune beings -- physical, soul (mind and heart), and spirit. Out of these three who will grow and get fatter the choice is up to you. I choose my heart and spirit --and only God can take care of my heart and spirit.
@wooki53 you should ask yourself if you have anything to back up your specific concept of soul and spirit. You should ask yourself how much of this may be just your wishful thinking and serves only to fulfil some personal emotional need.
I observed a lot of people who claim they left religion behind only to construct their own religion on even more baseless claims. If you tell someone else about it and he believes it you just started another religion.
Thanks for the video. I'm learning some philosophical stances from your videos. I'm an atheist, but I'm learning new terms and stances from your videos and questioning my own stance.
thank you so much for the effort you put into your videos. it is much appreciated. i'm learning so much. and I really do want to read the books you discussed here.
Anyone else catch that the first premise was flawed. The Idea that Intelligence is only meaningful as a social process between multiple entities that, without some very very loose definitions of terms, the claim is patently absurd.
Any intelligence is infinitely more useful than no intelligence. A bird who figures out how to fly more efficiently in the wind uses less energy and therefore requires less food to survive. Just for one example and since we were on seagulls it seemed to fit.
"God is Love." (1 John 4:8,16) However, No One can Save You Unless You Really Want To Be Saved! ! Read: "Three Days of Darkness" or "Three Days of Darkness, Chastisement and Deliverance..." in the Google.com, Yahoo.com, Bing.com, Etc... for more and be prepared to go to Heaven before foo late! Le Nghia, "unworthy servant..." (Luke 17,10) a Capuchin franciscan
It is possible that the Universe has always existed; the idea of the big bang makes no sense to me because if these particles (matter) existed 15million years ago in a stable state and then imploded and then exploded what was inside or outside of them to cause this reaction. Some scientists believe in the Big Bang theory because they say you can see galaxies moving away from one another and this is part evidence of a massive explosion. I'm an agnostic... I think the Universe has always existed
Matter didn’t exist in the initial stages; it was formed from the cooling of energy; it wasn’t in a stable state; nor did it implode/explode. It's no wonder it doesn't make sense to you, you seem to have been misinformed.
Also, the expansion of the universe isn’t the only evidence for BBT, it isn’t even the most compelling. For example, the cosmic microwave background radiation allows us to quite literally see the early stages of the universe.
@lutestrowbaka that sounds like a good idea. can you send me an email so i can have a track of you and write back maybe when the first part is done and you can tell me what you think?
However for issues that is highly private such as family and friends. I have choosen crefully which people to associate with. People who will give me the freedom to be who I am even as I entrust them with my views.
Some people related to me by blood do is not included in _my_ family cause their behavior seek only to dominate and further themselves instead of having a mutual and understanding relationship.
The question to abandone ones flock is a hard one. People are communcal in nature. Loneliness will bring a person to despair and ultimately committ suicide.
As a person with believes contrary to many other people I have decided to keep my private and communal lifes separate. For instance, I do not care about the private life of my mates in the football club. Nor do I dicuss mine with them cause my private life is not relavant in order to enjoy football.
i went to church recently , and it was all adults talking about how adam and eve had a child in the garden, and how the whole human race came from them, and they were just completley absent of any critical thinking about it, i started to feel sorry for them, and I started to almost laugh inside, but really i just feel sorry for them that they are willing to believe in anything in order to get to heaven. The heaven is the primary thing that keeps people in the religions.
@inademv if you like this, watch "What the bleep do we know, Down the rabbit holde: Quantumn edition" It has very much the same feel. Not about religion but quantumn mechanics and "spirituality"
I feel like a seagull when I go to work. I am in the military. I am military police. It's tough for a Christian. You will find barely any pure christians in that career I need not to worry. I am friends who try to live pure. I don't label myself as a christian do to the negative label the world sees it as. I think of myself as a follower of christ. yet alot of ways I don't blend in with the flock, but I believe that has to do with a generational age gap.
I'm very curious to know, before this journey of truth, when you were Christian, was your branch of Christianity, LDS? I've watched several of the videos and noticed a few very popular Mormon associated pieces of art, or drawings of Jesus. I would assume if this had been the case, you would've said so, but a few things have lead me to believe that you may have been Mormon.
It never ceases to amaze me how many of us who study deeply in philosophy and artificial intelligence end up considering the concept that 'the universe' is the intelligence and we dwell within it... complete bullshit, admittedly, but we all seem to stumble across it either on our own, or come into contact with it through our studies.
@symsee I had always considered ideas that sound similar to what he describes as panpsychism and pantheism. I've spent a lot of time thinking about it but I never new they were Ideas that were popular or even existed outside my own head until I seen this video .. I was pretty stoke when I heard Him discuss it in this video lol then your comment left me in utter disappointment ... BUT I guess I should be great full it sounds like you saved me the tedious steps that precede disregarding the idea
@midgety1 I think a lot of us have had that same "oh crap, other people have thought of this already" moment, which is kind of cool... the tedious steps leading up to disregarding the idea are half the fun! :-)
@symsee *sigh* yeah I couldn't help myself anyway ... 15 seconds after I posted that comment I started reading about it and searching for videos on it hahah
Big Bang is a discarded theory. The belief that an argument can resolve the existence of God is naive. A word salad spoken with your mouth.......... is just that
@ytmoog what is proven so far is that it seems that all matter orriginated from one region atleast. Having taken multiple exposures into "dark space" using the hubble telescope, they have been able to plot the previous trajectories of ancient stars. (the further you look in space, the farther back i time you see.
@kimbo99 you say the big bang "theory" has been discarded? funny, i believed that it was almost confirmed to be true or atleast relevant. just like the affirmation of black holes.
Technically speaking it is impossible to have a non-theistic God, for theism is simply the belief in at least one God. But all the same i understand what you mean.
I wish you didn't simply state that some of the arguments in the book, "Hidden Face of God" were false...it seems very contradictory to the spirit of your approach so far.
Thanks to you, evid3nc3, I ordered "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" some time ago and read it several times by now. It occupies a prominent spot in my head and on my shelf.
"My only confidant in this largely Christian landscape was a man who lived hundreds of miles away."
That reminds me of when I met someone online who became a good friend of mine. I was always frustrated that I couldn't be with that friend in person. I'll just have to accept reality the way that it is.
Hi Evid3nc3, Im living life like that seagull. Ive been pushed out of the church and people whom I loved has now ignored me. I am like you, a person who goes through considerable amount of research to weigh up all the arguments. I did feel an empty pain when I left, but its slowly mended itself. I had always known I was different from other Christian, but listening to your video reminds me of what I went through.
In my opinion, staring at a blank wall for an hour or so is more conducive to philosophical enlightenment than reading a copy of Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I wasted eight dollars on that worthless piece of trash that could have been spent on something much more enlightening, such as, for example, a Captain Underpants book.
This is how biological consciousness works, perhaps even "universal":
Melody, harmony and counterpoint are the three required elements.
Melody is the passage of time, Harmony the congruence of 2 or more numbers or patterns and Counterpoint the synthesis of the two former.
Of all these Harmony is the most confounding. How is it possible that more than one thing occurs simultaneously and that we can perceive this? The inference is that we are aware (even god like)...of all events across space.
@TheeHeretical Don't take this the wrong way but what the heck are you talking about?
Our perception of the world around us is tragically small and flawed, our memories vague and fleeting. Consciousness is a nice thing but isn't the super-impossibly-fantastic thing many people make it out to be.
That you are "no longer a Christian" doesn't make you an "Atheist".
You go from being a humble Christian to zealous "believer" in "truth", the assumption; that 'truth" is somehow the fundamental underpinning of the universe, the truth you now know better then all believersX2010.
Christians openly admitted over 1600 years ago to their disdain for truth and their preference for paradox; the Holy Trinity. Luther ran with it, Einstein validated it. Want truth? Join the choir; learn to sing in tune.
you're kidding right? That's it? wow was that boring, monotonous and redundant. All I learned is that you decided to put your faith in creation instead of creator. I've seen and heard much better arguments from people w/ BScs degrees(pun intended)
Jesus is either a liar, lunatic or Lord? We make the choice, God makes the change. I will pray for you 'evidence' but I don't know. Without faith man cannot please God. You seem to be one who needs proof, negating any hope for faith. I still believe!
@Surfer92557 First off, no, that's not it, this is obviously a part of a series.
Second, CS Lewis' Lord/liar/lunatic trichotomy fails to take into account the possibility that Jesus was a legend. If the Bible is not a reliably true work (which we have plenty of reason to believe it is not, and very little to believe it is), then we have no reason to believe that Jesus was, in fact, Lord.
@drgodsauce Considering the source, faith deranged 20 somethings.There is overwhelming evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ, both in secular and biblical history. Perhaps the greatest evidence that Jesus did exist is the fact that literally thousands of Christians in the first century A.D., including the twelve apostles, were willing to give their lives as martyrs for Jesus Christ. People will die for what they believe to be true, but no one will die for what they know to be a lie.WAKEUP
I stumbled across your video series recently. Your journey was moving, and I can really relate to many of your experiences. I enjoyed your series very much, thank you for sharing it.
Dude I'm an atheist and I was raised non-religious by atheist parents, and I was curious looking around for videos with an in-depth personal perspective of what it might be like to become an atheist if you were previously religious....it seems I have struck a vein of gold with your channel. Just amazing. It's like being inside your head, it's crazy you deserve an award.
keep up the good work Evid3nc3, these videos are fantastic and I really appreciate your honesty. As someone who has never been a serious theist and has identified as an atheist probably since I was old enough to have an informed opinion at all, I find it very enlightening to watch your journey as it has allowed me to have more compassion for those who have not broken out of their mindless slavery yet.
I always found the writings of people like Ingersoll to be much more passionate, honest and truthful than many of the Christian apologists books and of viewpoints I read. Eventually, I began to see the bible as exactly what it was; a book of manipulations and madness with atrocities scattered throughout it as if it was ok as long as there was the mention of love, etc. mixed in with the inhumanities.
I highly recommend the book "Jonathan Livingston Seagul" to anyone. It is a beautiful book to read and very moving regardless of your theology or lack thereof.
You should seriously consider seeking professional care for your violent, extremist tendencies, or better still, ask Mother Nature why you were strapped with inferior DNA!?!
@Korona41 Oh come on, if you fail to fucked up with your God, don't tell me that I even have and inferior DNA. This is your problem, believing something without evidences. Is it your God who answer your pray and tell i have an inferior DNA, tell him, He's a prick!
Your God fails, He's a cunt( no one could prove his gender). And He's a prick too.
Send his best army to me if he has one. Fucking deluded bum.
"I can't believe I wasted 8 min. & 46 sec. on an infomercial to sell a Dawkin's book!"
That is an absurd overgeneralization. Dawkins' book appears for a grand total of 5 seconds in the video. I shouldn't have to explain this to you but the video is primarily about the development of my ideas about God and my new relationship with the church. It is a personal story and claiming it is an infomercial for anything is a disingenuous and deceptive way of promoting your own ID propaganda.
@Evid3nc3 "That is an absurd overgeneralization."
Well 5 sec. is all that is needed to push that book to the gullible!
And I shouldn't have to explain this video's absurd over generalizations & selective interpretations, that qualify for & promote neo-Darwinian propaganda & an infomercial!
"Well 5 sec. is all that is needed to push that book to the gullible!"
You have a flair for the dramatic. If merely referencing a book in philosophical conversation is not permissible to you, I seriously question your intellectual honesty.
"I shouldn't have to explain this video's absurd over generalizations & selective interpretations"
Unless you are more specific, this can be dismissed as bluffing.
"If my negative comments about your video means you see me as dishonest, than I seriously question your perceptions!"
I didn't say anything about making negative comments. I said that if you think someone shouldn't even reference a certain book because it will "dupe" people, then you are being intellectually dishonest. You are saying the opinions in the book shouldn't even be represented. It is censoring the opinions of people who disagree with you so that people only hear your side.
I'm talking about when you said that even 5 seconds was too much exposure. If 5 seconds amounts to an "infomercial" (one-sided propaganda) then how much can you discuss a book without it being an infomercial? None at all? Thus, you appear to think it shouldn't be discussed at all. Thus, censorship.
@Evid3nc3 Nope, I didn't say, nor can it be reasonably or logically insinuated that I meant 5 sec. was too much exposure & therefore you should be censored! I did say & mean that 5 sec. 'was all that was needed' for this to be considered as an infomercial (therefore the gullible would figuratively 'buy' your pitch.)
On the contrary, it seems more like you're trying to "censor" me with faulty reasoning!
If I were trying to censor you, your comments would be deleted and you would be blocked. That is, indeed, the policy that many religious channels and few atheist channels have on YouTube.
In any case, do you consider your own plug for Stephen Meyer's book an "infomercial"? If you are indeed equitable and consider your own plug to be an "infomercial", then I fail to see how the term is useful. If not, then I think your use of it is hypocritical.
There are numerous good reasons to delete or block atheist discourse with Christians, as one of your own posters demonstrated earlier.
Yes, I did give Stephen Meyer's book "Signature In The Cell" a "plug" (or 2), but that is not an infomercial. Just Google the meaning of the words, if in doubt!
Calling me an "hypocrite'' for not equating a "plug" with an 'infomercial' is another one of your 'leaps over logic". My plug merely gives an opposing point of view to yours!
"My plug merely gives an opposing point of view to yours!"
Which is exactly why they are either both infomercials or neither infomercials. As I've said, I think your use of the term "infomercial" to describe any reference to a book is absurd.
Further, considering that my reference to Dawkins book occupied a whopping 1% of the total time of the video and your reference occupied almost your entire comment, calling mine an infomercial is hypocritical at best and projecting at worst.
I read your comments & then 'I THANK GOD!'....that you & your idols don't interpret reality for me!
I called your video an infomercial because as you lead viewers along, you claim everything you & all Christians knew & believed has ultimately all been answered in the Dawkins' book!
Do you reallize you have called me deceptive, disingenous, dishonest, a hypocrite & a censorer for negatively commenting on your video? You need a reality check, cause you are running on empty!
"as you lead viewers along, you claim everything you & all Christians knew & believed has ultimately all been answered in the Dawkins' book"
I know that many Christians believe that we worship Dawkins like you worship Christ but atheists just don't think like that. We don't worship anyone and we don't think everything can be answered by any one person.
If you look at the structure of the video, it does not end on the Dawkins book or even focus on it. It is just one (5s) reference.
@KSH2006 Is is bigotry to stand up for your Christian views? Maybe you label it that because you don't happen to agree with it. He is entitled to his opinion, which I happen to agree with, I suppose that makes someone who happens to agtree with His wiews a bigot also. coming from an athiest, I'll gladly wear that Label.
I don't think you understand. Korona is not being bigoted for standing up for Christian beliefs. Korona is being bigoted because of his/her prejudgement that I think Richard Dawkins "has all the answers" merely because I referenced Dawkins once in the video.
Despite any explanations I give to the contrary, Korona refuses to believe that the video is not about Richard Dawkins. Korona had prejudgements before commenting and refuses to sway from them. That is bigoted.
@Evid3nc3 Chris....You are always going to get the negative side of these arguments ...you mean well and are as RESPECTFUL as they come. But because of your position(ex-christian)... you'll be despised and not given half the RESPECT that you give. I see the same things you do in Korona. she/he prejudges, this is OBVIOUS. awakenedenlightenmnt is a GOOD INTELLIGENT PERSON...but OBVIOUSLY will not weigh both sides of the argument. Your efforts are ADMIRABLE. but appear to be in vain... STAY STRONG
I'm afraid that all you are seeing is your own prejudice. You will see that I am right yourself soon because the next 17 videos have nothing to do with Richard Dawkins but plenty to do with defending the value of strict atheism.
While I greatly respect the man, he's not the pinnacle of the series and never will be. He's just another one of us doing his part like every one else I mention from Baruch de Spinoza to Robert Ingersoll to John Shelby Spong.
@Evid3nc3 Dawkins, Spinoza, Ingersoll, Spong while they may seem intelligent to an Athiest, to a Christian, thier "reasoned logic" lacks Heart and Feeling... Knowledge alone, however fulfilling, is insufficient to know everything. Jesus Christ has already taught me more about Life and Love than I could learn from a book written by these people. I would rather be called Prejudece for not "understanding" an Athiest's perspective than a Christian one.
Again, that is not what I mean when I said "prejudice". I was talking about the claim that my video was about Richard Dawkins and nothing else.
Despite what you have been taught by the church, you will not be persecuted here for "not understanding" or "standing up for your Christian beliefs". They tell you that "you will be persecuted" to put you on the defensive and prevent you from honestly considering viewpoints that disagree with the church.
"thier "reasoned logic" lacks Heart and Feeling... [that I find in the teachings of Jesus]"
I used to believe this too before I actually started reading books by people like Ingersoll and Spong. I used to think that Jesus was uniquely insightful and heartfelt. It was an illusion that took me a long time to see through, even after becoming an atheist. But the reality is, the heart and passion of people like Ingersoll shine just as brightly.
@Evid3nc3 if we did not honestly consider viewpoints that disagree with the church sometimes It would not be much of a church now, would it? We do not go to our SB Churches to be coddled or sheltered. We go to have our Faith and Conviction Challenged and sometimes, even tested within ourselves so as to strengthen our devotion and commitment to Jesus Christ. As I said before Knowledge alone, no matter how fulfilling, is insufficient to know everything. to trust in Man/Knowledge over God is folly.
But think about that claim for a moment. You actually aren't depending directly on God, either. Who was the Bible written by? People. Who told you about God? People. Whose mind are you trusting in when you think you are being guided by God? Yourself, a person. Who is at the church? Other people.
You are depending on people as much as I am. You don't have direct access to God. You have to trust that the people who are telling you he is real, including yourself, are right.
"We go to have our Faith and Conviction Challenged and sometimes, even tested within ourselves"
At your church, do you routinely and fully explore questions like "Is the Bible really inerrant?" and "Does God exist?", introducing and fully exploring the opinions of Bible scholars and atheists?
If not, then that is not what I mean by "honestly considering" viewpoints that disagree with the church. To do that, you have to accept the possibility that they are true.
@Evid3nc3 at the SB church, we are encouraged to think for ourselves, without fear of persecution. as for those questions you suggest we ask ourselves about the authenticity of the Bible and God...We are past those questions,,way...waayyy past them. ..,,, .. .What we have here I am afraid is a case of You having DISSOCIATED Jesus Christ from the Church, a classic case of "not seeing the Forest for the Trees". CONSCIOUSLY ask yourself, WHY are these people here?, for someome REAL in thier lives.
@awakenedenlightenmnt You say you are past those questions? Would you mind telling us what pursuaded you that the bible is correct and/or god is real, so that we can get past those questions too?
'why are these people in the church?' - because they believe Jesus is real, not because he actually is.
@kevinscales Would you mind too terribly if I answered them at your channel page? or I could send you a letter perhaps? In a nutshell--> You have to Believe in order to see--> then you will See and Believe all the more. Evidence told you himself, He was Baptized not just with water, but with the Holy Ghost..(got a Bible?-->read Acts.19: vs 1-7) This is NOT something you just "deny" and spend the rest of your life trying to explain away. IT HAPPENED, FOR REAL. it's not illusion or "Assumption".
@awakenedenlightenmnt You can answer in more detail on my page if you like. I don't deny that there is something very real going on in the mind when people have religious experiences, I just don't see any reason to believe that these experiences say anything about the world beyond the workings of the brain. "You have to Believe in order to see" - what is the difference between believeing and seeing?
If I truely believe I can see it, then I will see it - is kind of obvious to me already.
@Evid3nc3 I don't have direct access to God you say?? are you soo "past feeling" that you don't even recognize the simple act of Faith that is--Prayer? I don't have to "trust" anybody to know I am right.. GOD is real, it is NOT a matter of me having to "trust" anybody..I found that out for myself long ago. Just because you "let go" of Jesus Christ does NOT mean He is not there anymore for everybody else. I have depended on God more than anybody else in my life. He's got a great track record too.
@awakenedenlightenmnt It's fine saying 'god is real' but could you explain to the rest of us why you, or why we should believe that? What is it that god has done for you? How do you know it was god?
I must say, the aesthetics in these videos are astounding.
AkatsukiPR0 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian 4
"Nontheistc Gods" is an oxymoron - nontheism is, quite literally, non-god-ism. I think you mean non-dogmatic theism?
HKOverlord117 1 month ago
@HKOverlord117 It sounds like he's describing what I would call deism.
elbruces 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
@elbruces I typed my comment not halfway into the video, so...
HKOverlord117 1 month ago
I love your use of The Fountain soundtrack.
qtzlctl2012 1 month ago
@qtzlctl2012 Ah, that's where it's from!
I knew the piece, but couldn't remember where it was from.
Thanks ;)
SenLinFu 1 week ago
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So, now for the question: If trusting our senses is a valid basis for evidence, then is there truth in the spiritual experiences felt under the effects of entheogens, and if so, does that mean nonphysical entities 'exist'?
For those unfamiliar with entheogens, many of Terrance McKenna's speeches are on Youtube. Also, I found the movie "DMT: The Spirit Molecule", which focuses on Dr. Rick Strassman's studies, extremely intriguing.
@Evid3nc3 By the way, your videos are phenomenal. Well done!
1nsultTo1njury 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
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1nsultTo1njury 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
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1nsultTo1njury 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
... these substances (as well as a few others) claim to have had spiritual experiences and even had contact with intelligent entities. DMT in particular seems to elicit this response and neuroscientists have discovered it's existence in the human brain. In addition, small amounts of DMT are thought to be released while we sleep and this could be why we dream. It's even suspected that DMT is released in the brain before death and this could be the cause of near-death experiences. (contd)
1nsultTo1njury 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
I've always considered myself an agnostic athiest (despite being forced by my Catholic mother to attend church and Sunday school until I was about 10), however in the past few months I've been toying with other ideas of consciousness and intelligence from what I've read about entheogens (such as LSD, psilocybin and DMT). I have always WISHED there was something more than this physical universe but have never came across sufficient evidence or a valid argument, however many users of... (contd)
1nsultTo1njury 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
My one criticism thus far is you never name "the professor." For a man who made such an impact on your life, I am curious to know his identity. He seems like a kind, understanding, gentle soul, filled with wisdom and compassion... enough that he actively attempted to dissuade you from losing your beliefs so young, as he seemed to feel your happiness and peace of mind was more important to him than him convincing you.
Kooshmeister3 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
@Kooshmeister3 Maybe he does not wan't the name out in the public. Richard Darkwins is getting death threats everyday.
Allankj 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
@Kooshmeister3 It could be possible that he didn't want to put his name up on the internet so people can't look for him and flood him with emails, or whatever. Or he was just being nice and leaving his name out of it because some people don't like to have their names publicly on the internet.
GarrettLD50 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
I know this is small and insignificant..... but I love how you color coded everyone and you turned from blue to orange lol.
VikTalks 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian 2
who needs god when you have the beatles?
taffysaur 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
It is impossible to say what is actually true, for example the "books" you read about science or facts or the speeches heard from "professors", how are they different from the "Bible" or listening to the teachings of the "Church". They are still of hearsay and from my objective standpoint hold no more credibility than the other. The search for "truth" is just as mundane as the search for "god"......
MonstahMishMash 1 month ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
just finished reading jonathan livingston seagull. It is, in fact, hard to see at first, but what an incredible story.
ShadowEast 2 months ago
I WANT THIS AS A DVD!!
BrandomShadow 2 months ago 3
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LOL don't make me laugh, please. Evolution doesn't just happen from 'nothing', and is obvious it happens AFTER that something has been created first. And you don't want to accept, it's God that created everything first. Why is it that atheists are so firm to believe otherwise? Just accept there is a God!
ItsSoMe2011 2 months ago
@ItsSoMe2011 have you ever seen anything created from nothing? There is no theory of evolution from nothing, we both agree on that; why do you think creation from nothing is more reasonable? When confronted with questions on the ultimate nature of reality it is reasonable to answer "I don't know." People who can't be trusted to say "I don't know," can't be trusted, period.
felixthehuman 1 week ago
Clint Mansell FTW!!
iziahtopete1992 3 months ago
I was going to read the book you mentioned, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, but then I remembered all the times that seagull's ate my food, and since seagull's are birds, remembered all the times that birds pooped on me and since I know that I am not a bird, and thus not a seagull, that then it really doesn't matter now does it?
909pleasantville 4 months ago in playlist More videos from Evid3nc3
I'm just a thought in some pervert's mind.
inflorire 5 months ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
I started to cry because I've felt the same things, especially what you said about Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I've just started to read the same books as you, now books by Richard Dawkins. Just week ago... I'm a former fundamentalist christian, now I have started to see the world as philosophical and atheistic point of view. Clearly, but still as a christian. Thank you for reading tips but especially... THANK YOU FOR THIS AND ALL OF YOUR VIDEOS!
TKluvme 5 months ago 21
@TKluvme It will take a lot of time and patience to recover from the conditioning and indoctrination you've suffered from, we wish you luck and a brighter future.
SoCalAries 2 weeks ago
Amazon should be giving you a sponsorship. Maybe a t shirt with the darwin fish but instead of darwin it would say Amazon. Just a thought.
mightydragon2000 5 months ago
Whats the music playing when you talk about the seagull book? Was it written for this video, or is it an actual published piece of music?
StaticVent 5 months ago
I love your vocabulary
MyEmmaLeeRose 6 months ago
I find it interesting how he shows that we could have had physical, and then shrunk into another big bang, but we know that the universe is not a sphere (as once thought) and is actually flat or slightly curved. So the idea that the universe is expanding, and will contract was shown to be wrong, the universe is never going to shrink, so the idea of multiple big bangs are out.
bluefootedpig 6 months ago
I find it funny, maybe ironic, that he goes into AI, where he will "create" the AI, which he hopes will one day be self aware, and through swarm AI can have a sort of self aware, but then he rejects the idea of a creator for himself. So he is okay with the thought of creating something, but rejects that he could have been created. Just ironic, nothing more.
bluefootedpig 6 months ago
cool story bro...
kashme1in 7 months ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
What about DMT and Psilocybin and Salvia and the extraordinary experiences they invoke?
Are those experiences meaningless aka worthless aka just a simulacrum?
What if those experiences have a direct affect on art and science in the "real" world?
This is some of the problems I have with Religion and well as Government controlled by Atheist elitists.
They both make laws and enforce those laws with the use of violent force which violate liberty.
batfly 7 months ago
I hate seagulls.
Cubelarooso 7 months ago 12
@Cubelarooso me to
gooders1002 1 month ago
FYI, they changed all the players (as you can see), so you might need to put linked annotations higher, because the player bar hides them. Basically, I can't click the next link at the bottom of the video at the end. Just so you know. I can get to the next video though, but that's not the point.
CraniumOnEmpty 7 months ago
zzzzzzzzzzz
atheistrocker100 7 months ago
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dei.sm must be taking a break, a?
mtbers 7 months ago
I like the music from The Fountain, very nice
SuccubusMagician 7 months ago
Best videos ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Gaining knowledge is hard work but the benefits are worth it. Nothing great was gained without hard work.
benaberry 7 months ago
@benaberry I agree. My deconversion was painful to the point of tears, yet it's the best thing I've ever done.
TheBiAtheist 7 months ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian 2
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Are you willfully out of touch with the reality the orbital earth vehicle is carrying you along with 6 billion other passengers a million 500,000 miles daily all the days of your life and that the Sun is orbiting around the Milky Way at 600,000 mph and you want me to believe this is happening without these immediate cosmic bodies in our part of the Universe being designed? Where there is an extraordinarily supremely intelligently designed Universe there must be a Designer.
MegaSage007 8 months ago
The more books one reads, the more one gets confused. Or depressed, this music combined with your vioce makes me concerned about you! Please do not commit suicide, there's more to life than looking for other people's truths in other people's books.
Anonymous247n 8 months ago
@Anonymous247n He's not going to commit suicide, you're being ridiculous. Or did you not see that this video was uploaded a year ago, and he's still making videos, and posting blogs?
The fact that your trying to make someone afraid of knowledge only shows that you're afraid you might actually be wrong.
TheBiAtheist 7 months ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
@TheBiAtheist I know i know, it's just that i haven't seen a more depressing video in a long time :P ...music, and voice tone wise :)
Anonymous247n 7 months ago
@Anonymous247n I thought it was beautiful, both the music and his soothing voice.
TheBiAtheist 7 months ago
@TheBiAtheist It was beautiful - depressing though :P
Anonymous247n 7 months ago
3:41 sounds like spiritual glib.
grindmetalhead 8 months ago
You have read many of the books I have, but I haven't read all you have, and surely never had a professor like yours! I have thought I was a pantheist at times.
TuboEspectador 8 months ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
lolatheists
punksush1 9 months ago in playlist Why I am no longer a Christian
Of your quantum mechanics part, the first one doesn't really seem fallacious.. It's like you prefer to say the cup is half-empty instead of half-full (or the other way around).
Antilli 9 months ago
Haven't made it to the next video, but I'm hoping he comes upon the big purple book. That was the nail in the coffin for me...
miketwo345 9 months ago
@miketwo345 big purple book?
bluefootedpig 6 months ago
The Universe came from nothing, The symmetry of physics, that are the source of everything are exactly the symmetry of empty space.
alive4ever1 10 months ago
I love your videos. I always shared your concepts. I stopped referring to my panentheistic god as "God" because it could be confusing for some... I've also used its blurriness as a way to approach believers who just shun atheists.
Cool music. It fits very well. It's from The Fountain, right?
In some respects you're the opposite of Pat Condell, who says we don't insult and ridicule religion nearly enough. Haha!
Cheers. Keep up the good work.
lardhat 11 months ago
The idea that the universe has a consciousness, and that everything in it is an extension of that consciousness is a very pretty one. It reminds me of Carl Sagan talking about 'star stuff' and that 'we are all a way for the universe to know itself.' These are, of course, beautiful thoughts but they really don't amount to anything other than that. What do we gain by thinking of the universe in this way? How is humanity helped through this thought?
razieldumas 11 months ago
@razieldumas that thought process, that everything is an extension of the one, is Taoism and has been around for many years. This is nothing revolutionary.
bluefootedpig 6 months ago
dammit...schroeder is MY last name...not pleased...
GermAmp55 11 months ago
words are complicated...
maybe I am more agnostic/theist/pantheist? haha
chrisdryer 11 months ago
I am the inverse of you -- I ditched religion but kept God. The way I see things, we are triune beings -- physical, soul (mind and heart), and spirit. Out of these three who will grow and get fatter the choice is up to you. I choose my heart and spirit --and only God can take care of my heart and spirit.
wooki53 11 months ago
@wooki53 you should ask yourself if you have anything to back up your specific concept of soul and spirit. You should ask yourself how much of this may be just your wishful thinking and serves only to fulfil some personal emotional need.
I observed a lot of people who claim they left religion behind only to construct their own religion on even more baseless claims. If you tell someone else about it and he believes it you just started another religion.
illuminator83 9 months ago
Thanks for the video. I'm learning some philosophical stances from your videos. I'm an atheist, but I'm learning new terms and stances from your videos and questioning my own stance.
srikargottipati 11 months ago
@Evid3nc3 I hope you understand that the predetermined laws could easily be consciousness & that all of this is hypotheses.
sonicsoundwaveus 11 months ago
thank you so much for the effort you put into your videos. it is much appreciated. i'm learning so much. and I really do want to read the books you discussed here.
CeaselesslyCurious 1 year ago
Well, dead matter can't think, therefore God is.
cmpresents 1 year ago
Atheism in the name of God ==> Demolition Before Reconstruction.
pcraig92656 1 year ago
ATHEISM IN THE NAME OF GOD ==> DEMOLITION BEFORE RECONSTRUCTION/
pcraig92656 1 year ago
this video very well expresses my family's current position....still "in the church" but we are clearly separate.
spiderfingers86 1 year ago
Anyone else catch that the first premise was flawed. The Idea that Intelligence is only meaningful as a social process between multiple entities that, without some very very loose definitions of terms, the claim is patently absurd.
Any intelligence is infinitely more useful than no intelligence. A bird who figures out how to fly more efficiently in the wind uses less energy and therefore requires less food to survive. Just for one example and since we were on seagulls it seemed to fit.
Berelore 1 year ago
your voice is so peaceful to listen to
darris321 1 year ago
someone give that man a cookie
managarm1349 1 year ago
"God is Love."
le399 1 year ago
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"God is Love." (1 John 4:8,16) However, No One can Save You Unless You Really Want To Be Saved! ! Read: "Three Days of Darkness" or "Three Days of Darkness, Chastisement and Deliverance..." in the Google.com, Yahoo.com, Bing.com, Etc... for more and be prepared to go to Heaven before foo late! Le Nghia, "unworthy servant..." (Luke 17,10) a Capuchin franciscan
le399 1 year ago
I like Clint Mansell's music.
YurNotSpecial 1 year ago
It is possible that the Universe has always existed; the idea of the big bang makes no sense to me because if these particles (matter) existed 15million years ago in a stable state and then imploded and then exploded what was inside or outside of them to cause this reaction. Some scientists believe in the Big Bang theory because they say you can see galaxies moving away from one another and this is part evidence of a massive explosion. I'm an agnostic... I think the Universe has always existed
Marchaedian 1 year ago
@Marchaedian
Matter didn’t exist in the initial stages; it was formed from the cooling of energy; it wasn’t in a stable state; nor did it implode/explode. It's no wonder it doesn't make sense to you, you seem to have been misinformed.
Also, the expansion of the universe isn’t the only evidence for BBT, it isn’t even the most compelling. For example, the cosmic microwave background radiation allows us to quite literally see the early stages of the universe.
deviroth 1 year ago
time did not exist before the so-called big bang, because time is an abstraction created by man to measure events.
Marchaedian 1 year ago
@lutestrowbaka that sounds like a good idea. can you send me an email so i can have a track of you and write back maybe when the first part is done and you can tell me what you think?
Heliosvector 1 year ago
This serious is like your evolution....love it!!!
heikkala2797 1 year ago
However for issues that is highly private such as family and friends. I have choosen crefully which people to associate with. People who will give me the freedom to be who I am even as I entrust them with my views.
Some people related to me by blood do is not included in _my_ family cause their behavior seek only to dominate and further themselves instead of having a mutual and understanding relationship.
lordmetroid 1 year ago
The question to abandone ones flock is a hard one. People are communcal in nature. Loneliness will bring a person to despair and ultimately committ suicide.
As a person with believes contrary to many other people I have decided to keep my private and communal lifes separate. For instance, I do not care about the private life of my mates in the football club. Nor do I dicuss mine with them cause my private life is not relavant in order to enjoy football.
lordmetroid 1 year ago
i went to church recently , and it was all adults talking about how adam and eve had a child in the garden, and how the whole human race came from them, and they were just completley absent of any critical thinking about it, i started to feel sorry for them, and I started to almost laugh inside, but really i just feel sorry for them that they are willing to believe in anything in order to get to heaven. The heaven is the primary thing that keeps people in the religions.
EternalGreen2012 1 year ago
I just read Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I'm actually going to start History of God soon. And I do plan to read the others.
manicania 1 year ago
This whole series has a very "Alice in Wonderland/down the rabbit hole" feel to it.
inademv 1 year ago
@inademv if you like this, watch "What the bleep do we know, Down the rabbit holde: Quantumn edition" It has very much the same feel. Not about religion but quantumn mechanics and "spirituality"
Heliosvector 1 year ago
I agree with you on the Quantum Mechanics section and the gradual evolution part.
doublewhat 1 year ago
I feel like a seagull when I go to work. I am in the military. I am military police. It's tough for a Christian. You will find barely any pure christians in that career I need not to worry. I am friends who try to live pure. I don't label myself as a christian do to the negative label the world sees it as. I think of myself as a follower of christ. yet alot of ways I don't blend in with the flock, but I believe that has to do with a generational age gap.
doublewhat 1 year ago
Spectacular series, can't wait for upcoming episodes!
volaci0us 1 year ago
I'm very curious to know, before this journey of truth, when you were Christian, was your branch of Christianity, LDS? I've watched several of the videos and noticed a few very popular Mormon associated pieces of art, or drawings of Jesus. I would assume if this had been the case, you would've said so, but a few things have lead me to believe that you may have been Mormon.
cboley0002 1 year ago
wow you´re an instant abo dude...very very cool vids
managarm1349 1 year ago
It never ceases to amaze me how many of us who study deeply in philosophy and artificial intelligence end up considering the concept that 'the universe' is the intelligence and we dwell within it... complete bullshit, admittedly, but we all seem to stumble across it either on our own, or come into contact with it through our studies.
...and each of us has to leave it behind.
symsee 1 year ago 42
@symsee I had always considered ideas that sound similar to what he describes as panpsychism and pantheism. I've spent a lot of time thinking about it but I never new they were Ideas that were popular or even existed outside my own head until I seen this video .. I was pretty stoke when I heard Him discuss it in this video lol then your comment left me in utter disappointment ... BUT I guess I should be great full it sounds like you saved me the tedious steps that precede disregarding the idea
midgety1 1 year ago
@midgety1 I think a lot of us have had that same "oh crap, other people have thought of this already" moment, which is kind of cool... the tedious steps leading up to disregarding the idea are half the fun! :-)
symsee 1 year ago
@symsee *sigh* yeah I couldn't help myself anyway ... 15 seconds after I posted that comment I started reading about it and searching for videos on it hahah
midgety1 1 year ago
@symsee i never did leave it behind, but it's a belief, not science-- and as such it has no business being taught in schools!
cruciphile 8 months ago
These videos are great. Thanks so much for sharing the steps that you took on your journey with us.
accent77 1 year ago
This is a well made video.
bluedisc 1 year ago
@lutestrowbaka @Evid3nc3 yo me ofrezco a hacerlo, si a Evid3nc3 le gusta la idea.
I volunteer to translate the videos into Spanish, if Evid3nc3 likes the idea.
cthulhex 1 year ago
Big Bang is a discarded theory. The belief that an argument can resolve the existence of God is naive. A word salad spoken with your mouth.......... is just that
kimbo99 1 year ago
@kimbo99
"Big Bang is a discarded theory."
Discarded by who? It certainly isn't discarded by physicists or cosmologists.
They are still investigating, examining, testing and expanding the theory.
It may well be discarded by creationists, but why should their opinion matter?
ytmoog 1 year ago 3
@ytmoog what is proven so far is that it seems that all matter orriginated from one region atleast. Having taken multiple exposures into "dark space" using the hubble telescope, they have been able to plot the previous trajectories of ancient stars. (the further you look in space, the farther back i time you see.
Heliosvector 1 year ago
@kimbo99 you say the big bang "theory" has been discarded? funny, i believed that it was almost confirmed to be true or atleast relevant. just like the affirmation of black holes.
Heliosvector 1 year ago
Technically speaking it is impossible to have a non-theistic God, for theism is simply the belief in at least one God. But all the same i understand what you mean.
Ye4hBuddy 1 year ago 2
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I wish you didn't simply state that some of the arguments in the book, "Hidden Face of God" were false...it seems very contradictory to the spirit of your approach so far.
illogicQ 1 year ago
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illogicQ 1 year ago
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I wish you didn't simply state that some of the statements in the book "The Hidden Face of God" later proved to be false....
illogicQ 1 year ago
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illogicQ 1 year ago
Thanks to you, evid3nc3, I ordered "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" some time ago and read it several times by now. It occupies a prominent spot in my head and on my shelf.
GreyLabyrinthine 1 year ago
it is very simple the information we consider as truth will stand untill we change our mind.
kupkake1985 1 year ago
GOD ISNT A OLD WHITE MAN WITH A LONG WHITE BEARD WHO WEARS A ROBE. THE UNIVERSE TIME AND SPACE IS GOD NOT SOME OLD WHITE MAN.
doox420 1 year ago
"My only confidant in this largely Christian landscape was a man who lived hundreds of miles away."
That reminds me of when I met someone online who became a good friend of mine. I was always frustrated that I couldn't be with that friend in person. I'll just have to accept reality the way that it is.
PeterRabbitTV 1 year ago
Hi Evid3nc3, Im living life like that seagull. Ive been pushed out of the church and people whom I loved has now ignored me. I am like you, a person who goes through considerable amount of research to weigh up all the arguments. I did feel an empty pain when I left, but its slowly mended itself. I had always known I was different from other Christian, but listening to your video reminds me of what I went through.
angellicvoices 1 year ago
In my opinion, staring at a blank wall for an hour or so is more conducive to philosophical enlightenment than reading a copy of Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I wasted eight dollars on that worthless piece of trash that could have been spent on something much more enlightening, such as, for example, a Captain Underpants book.
TheAmazingImbecile 1 year ago
2:47
my only confedon (not sure of it's spelling).
what is a confedon?
blazearmoru 1 year ago
@blazearmoru Confidant: someone you confide in.
Confide: share private or sensitive information with.
Antifides 1 year ago
@Antifides thanks !! :D
blazearmoru 1 year ago
This is how biological consciousness works, perhaps even "universal":
Melody, harmony and counterpoint are the three required elements.
Melody is the passage of time, Harmony the congruence of 2 or more numbers or patterns and Counterpoint the synthesis of the two former.
Of all these Harmony is the most confounding. How is it possible that more than one thing occurs simultaneously and that we can perceive this? The inference is that we are aware (even god like)...of all events across space.
TheeHeretical 1 year ago
@TheeHeretical Don't take this the wrong way but what the heck are you talking about?
Our perception of the world around us is tragically small and flawed, our memories vague and fleeting. Consciousness is a nice thing but isn't the super-impossibly-fantastic thing many people make it out to be.
DSBrekus 1 year ago
That you are "no longer a Christian" doesn't make you an "Atheist".
You go from being a humble Christian to zealous "believer" in "truth", the assumption; that 'truth" is somehow the fundamental underpinning of the universe, the truth you now know better then all believersX2010.
Christians openly admitted over 1600 years ago to their disdain for truth and their preference for paradox; the Holy Trinity. Luther ran with it, Einstein validated it. Want truth? Join the choir; learn to sing in tune.
TheeHeritical 1 year ago
you're kidding right? That's it? wow was that boring, monotonous and redundant. All I learned is that you decided to put your faith in creation instead of creator. I've seen and heard much better arguments from people w/ BScs degrees(pun intended)
Jesus is either a liar, lunatic or Lord? We make the choice, God makes the change. I will pray for you 'evidence' but I don't know. Without faith man cannot please God. You seem to be one who needs proof, negating any hope for faith. I still believe!
Surfer92557 1 year ago
@Surfer92557 First off, no, that's not it, this is obviously a part of a series.
Second, CS Lewis' Lord/liar/lunatic trichotomy fails to take into account the possibility that Jesus was a legend. If the Bible is not a reliably true work (which we have plenty of reason to believe it is not, and very little to believe it is), then we have no reason to believe that Jesus was, in fact, Lord.
drgodsauce 1 year ago
@drgodsauce Considering the source, faith deranged 20 somethings.There is overwhelming evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ, both in secular and biblical history. Perhaps the greatest evidence that Jesus did exist is the fact that literally thousands of Christians in the first century A.D., including the twelve apostles, were willing to give their lives as martyrs for Jesus Christ. People will die for what they believe to be true, but no one will die for what they know to be a lie.WAKEUP
Surfer92557 1 year ago
I stumbled across your video series recently. Your journey was moving, and I can really relate to many of your experiences. I enjoyed your series very much, thank you for sharing it.
ScourgeDCP 1 year ago
Dude I'm an atheist and I was raised non-religious by atheist parents, and I was curious looking around for videos with an in-depth personal perspective of what it might be like to become an atheist if you were previously religious....it seems I have struck a vein of gold with your channel. Just amazing. It's like being inside your head, it's crazy you deserve an award.
Neanderthalcouzin 1 year ago
keep up the good work Evid3nc3, these videos are fantastic and I really appreciate your honesty. As someone who has never been a serious theist and has identified as an atheist probably since I was old enough to have an informed opinion at all, I find it very enlightening to watch your journey as it has allowed me to have more compassion for those who have not broken out of their mindless slavery yet.
Thank you
Puckford 1 year ago
why no more videos? I want more...
Anarchist711 1 year ago
I always found the writings of people like Ingersoll to be much more passionate, honest and truthful than many of the Christian apologists books and of viewpoints I read. Eventually, I began to see the bible as exactly what it was; a book of manipulations and madness with atrocities scattered throughout it as if it was ok as long as there was the mention of love, etc. mixed in with the inhumanities.
rastarigate 1 year ago 5
I highly recommend the book "Jonathan Livingston Seagul" to anyone. It is a beautiful book to read and very moving regardless of your theology or lack thereof.
FortisConscius 1 year ago
I can't believe I wasted 8 min. & 46 sec. on an infomercial to sell a Dawkin's book!
For a much better book, check out Stephen C. Meyer's "Signature In the Cell"!
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41 If you fail to prove your God, don't tell your brain is not good enough to grasp any idea he's talking about.
Fucking delusion, pray to your God to delete his videos and tell me if He can.
Pray to your fucking God to kill me now, and he'll fail like an arsehole.
stevaq 1 year ago 2
@stevaq
You should seriously consider seeking professional care for your violent, extremist tendencies, or better still, ask Mother Nature why you were strapped with inferior DNA!?!
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41 Oh come on, if you fail to fucked up with your God, don't tell me that I even have and inferior DNA. This is your problem, believing something without evidences. Is it your God who answer your pray and tell i have an inferior DNA, tell him, He's a prick!
Your God fails, He's a cunt( no one could prove his gender). And He's a prick too.
Send his best army to me if he has one. Fucking deluded bum.
stevaq 1 year ago
@Korona41
"I can't believe I wasted 8 min. & 46 sec. on an infomercial to sell a Dawkin's book!"
That is an absurd overgeneralization. Dawkins' book appears for a grand total of 5 seconds in the video. I shouldn't have to explain this to you but the video is primarily about the development of my ideas about God and my new relationship with the church. It is a personal story and claiming it is an infomercial for anything is a disingenuous and deceptive way of promoting your own ID propaganda.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 "That is an absurd overgeneralization."
Well 5 sec. is all that is needed to push that book to the gullible!
And I shouldn't have to explain this video's absurd over generalizations & selective interpretations, that qualify for & promote neo-Darwinian propaganda & an infomercial!
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41
"Well 5 sec. is all that is needed to push that book to the gullible!"
You have a flair for the dramatic. If merely referencing a book in philosophical conversation is not permissible to you, I seriously question your intellectual honesty.
"I shouldn't have to explain this video's absurd over generalizations & selective interpretations"
Unless you are more specific, this can be dismissed as bluffing.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 If merely referencing a book -is not permissible to you-I seriously question your intellectual honesty.
If my negative comments about your video means you see me as dishonest, than I seriously question your perceptions!
Unless you are more specific, this can be dismissed as bluffing.
You dismiss all you want, your limited, simplistic understanding & interpretations of GOD & Christians is absurd!
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41
"If my negative comments about your video means you see me as dishonest, than I seriously question your perceptions!"
I didn't say anything about making negative comments. I said that if you think someone shouldn't even reference a certain book because it will "dupe" people, then you are being intellectually dishonest. You are saying the opinions in the book shouldn't even be represented. It is censoring the opinions of people who disagree with you so that people only hear your side.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3
Thats a pretty big leap you took over logic in claiming censorship!
I didn't say or even insinuate that you shouldn't reference that book! What I did say is 'your video was an infomercial for that book! '
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41
I'm talking about when you said that even 5 seconds was too much exposure. If 5 seconds amounts to an "infomercial" (one-sided propaganda) then how much can you discuss a book without it being an infomercial? None at all? Thus, you appear to think it shouldn't be discussed at all. Thus, censorship.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 Nope, I didn't say, nor can it be reasonably or logically insinuated that I meant 5 sec. was too much exposure & therefore you should be censored! I did say & mean that 5 sec. 'was all that was needed' for this to be considered as an infomercial (therefore the gullible would figuratively 'buy' your pitch.)
On the contrary, it seems more like you're trying to "censor" me with faulty reasoning!
Korona41
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41
If I were trying to censor you, your comments would be deleted and you would be blocked. That is, indeed, the policy that many religious channels and few atheist channels have on YouTube.
In any case, do you consider your own plug for Stephen Meyer's book an "infomercial"? If you are indeed equitable and consider your own plug to be an "infomercial", then I fail to see how the term is useful. If not, then I think your use of it is hypocritical.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3
There are numerous good reasons to delete or block atheist discourse with Christians, as one of your own posters demonstrated earlier.
Yes, I did give Stephen Meyer's book "Signature In The Cell" a "plug" (or 2), but that is not an infomercial. Just Google the meaning of the words, if in doubt!
Calling me an "hypocrite'' for not equating a "plug" with an 'infomercial' is another one of your 'leaps over logic". My plug merely gives an opposing point of view to yours!
Korona41
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41
"My plug merely gives an opposing point of view to yours!"
Which is exactly why they are either both infomercials or neither infomercials. As I've said, I think your use of the term "infomercial" to describe any reference to a book is absurd.
Further, considering that my reference to Dawkins book occupied a whopping 1% of the total time of the video and your reference occupied almost your entire comment, calling mine an infomercial is hypocritical at best and projecting at worst.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3
I read your comments & then 'I THANK GOD!'....that you & your idols don't interpret reality for me!
I called your video an infomercial because as you lead viewers along, you claim everything you & all Christians knew & believed has ultimately all been answered in the Dawkins' book!
Do you reallize you have called me deceptive, disingenous, dishonest, a hypocrite & a censorer for negatively commenting on your video? You need a reality check, cause you are running on empty!
Korona41
Korona41 1 year ago
@Korona41
"as you lead viewers along, you claim everything you & all Christians knew & believed has ultimately all been answered in the Dawkins' book"
I know that many Christians believe that we worship Dawkins like you worship Christ but atheists just don't think like that. We don't worship anyone and we don't think everything can be answered by any one person.
If you look at the structure of the video, it does not end on the Dawkins book or even focus on it. It is just one (5s) reference.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago 4
@Evid3nc3
Does Korona41 have to be this ignorant? I do not like bigots...
KSH2006 1 year ago
@KSH2006 Is is bigotry to stand up for your Christian views? Maybe you label it that because you don't happen to agree with it. He is entitled to his opinion, which I happen to agree with, I suppose that makes someone who happens to agtree with His wiews a bigot also. coming from an athiest, I'll gladly wear that Label.
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt
I don't think you understand. Korona is not being bigoted for standing up for Christian beliefs. Korona is being bigoted because of his/her prejudgement that I think Richard Dawkins "has all the answers" merely because I referenced Dawkins once in the video.
Despite any explanations I give to the contrary, Korona refuses to believe that the video is not about Richard Dawkins. Korona had prejudgements before commenting and refuses to sway from them. That is bigoted.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago 2
@Evid3nc3
You took the words right out of my mouth. Well said.
KSH2006 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 Chris....You are always going to get the negative side of these arguments ...you mean well and are as RESPECTFUL as they come. But because of your position(ex-christian)... you'll be despised and not given half the RESPECT that you give. I see the same things you do in Korona. she/he prejudges, this is OBVIOUS. awakenedenlightenmnt is a GOOD INTELLIGENT PERSON...but OBVIOUSLY will not weigh both sides of the argument. Your efforts are ADMIRABLE. but appear to be in vain... STAY STRONG
TheBoopski 1 year ago 10
@Evid3nc3 Me and Korona see through your arguments. I stand by what I said earlier. call it what you will.
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt
I'm afraid that all you are seeing is your own prejudice. You will see that I am right yourself soon because the next 17 videos have nothing to do with Richard Dawkins but plenty to do with defending the value of strict atheism.
While I greatly respect the man, he's not the pinnacle of the series and never will be. He's just another one of us doing his part like every one else I mention from Baruch de Spinoza to Robert Ingersoll to John Shelby Spong.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 Dawkins, Spinoza, Ingersoll, Spong while they may seem intelligent to an Athiest, to a Christian, thier "reasoned logic" lacks Heart and Feeling... Knowledge alone, however fulfilling, is insufficient to know everything. Jesus Christ has already taught me more about Life and Love than I could learn from a book written by these people. I would rather be called Prejudece for not "understanding" an Athiest's perspective than a Christian one.
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt
Again, that is not what I mean when I said "prejudice". I was talking about the claim that my video was about Richard Dawkins and nothing else.
Despite what you have been taught by the church, you will not be persecuted here for "not understanding" or "standing up for your Christian beliefs". They tell you that "you will be persecuted" to put you on the defensive and prevent you from honestly considering viewpoints that disagree with the church.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt
"thier "reasoned logic" lacks Heart and Feeling... [that I find in the teachings of Jesus]"
I used to believe this too before I actually started reading books by people like Ingersoll and Spong. I used to think that Jesus was uniquely insightful and heartfelt. It was an illusion that took me a long time to see through, even after becoming an atheist. But the reality is, the heart and passion of people like Ingersoll shine just as brightly.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 if we did not honestly consider viewpoints that disagree with the church sometimes It would not be much of a church now, would it? We do not go to our SB Churches to be coddled or sheltered. We go to have our Faith and Conviction Challenged and sometimes, even tested within ourselves so as to strengthen our devotion and commitment to Jesus Christ. As I said before Knowledge alone, no matter how fulfilling, is insufficient to know everything. to trust in Man/Knowledge over God is folly.
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt
But think about that claim for a moment. You actually aren't depending directly on God, either. Who was the Bible written by? People. Who told you about God? People. Whose mind are you trusting in when you think you are being guided by God? Yourself, a person. Who is at the church? Other people.
You are depending on people as much as I am. You don't have direct access to God. You have to trust that the people who are telling you he is real, including yourself, are right.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt
"We go to have our Faith and Conviction Challenged and sometimes, even tested within ourselves"
At your church, do you routinely and fully explore questions like "Is the Bible really inerrant?" and "Does God exist?", introducing and fully exploring the opinions of Bible scholars and atheists?
If not, then that is not what I mean by "honestly considering" viewpoints that disagree with the church. To do that, you have to accept the possibility that they are true.
Evid3nc3 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 at the SB church, we are encouraged to think for ourselves, without fear of persecution. as for those questions you suggest we ask ourselves about the authenticity of the Bible and God...We are past those questions,,way...waayyy past them. ..,,, .. .What we have here I am afraid is a case of You having DISSOCIATED Jesus Christ from the Church, a classic case of "not seeing the Forest for the Trees". CONSCIOUSLY ask yourself, WHY are these people here?, for someome REAL in thier lives.
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt You say you are past those questions? Would you mind telling us what pursuaded you that the bible is correct and/or god is real, so that we can get past those questions too?
'why are these people in the church?' - because they believe Jesus is real, not because he actually is.
kevinscales 1 year ago
@kevinscales Would you mind too terribly if I answered them at your channel page? or I could send you a letter perhaps? In a nutshell--> You have to Believe in order to see--> then you will See and Believe all the more. Evidence told you himself, He was Baptized not just with water, but with the Holy Ghost..(got a Bible?-->read Acts.19: vs 1-7) This is NOT something you just "deny" and spend the rest of your life trying to explain away. IT HAPPENED, FOR REAL. it's not illusion or "Assumption".
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt You can answer in more detail on my page if you like. I don't deny that there is something very real going on in the mind when people have religious experiences, I just don't see any reason to believe that these experiences say anything about the world beyond the workings of the brain. "You have to Believe in order to see" - what is the difference between believeing and seeing?
If I truely believe I can see it, then I will see it - is kind of obvious to me already.
kevinscales 1 year ago
@Evid3nc3 I don't have direct access to God you say?? are you soo "past feeling" that you don't even recognize the simple act of Faith that is--Prayer? I don't have to "trust" anybody to know I am right.. GOD is real, it is NOT a matter of me having to "trust" anybody..I found that out for myself long ago. Just because you "let go" of Jesus Christ does NOT mean He is not there anymore for everybody else. I have depended on God more than anybody else in my life. He's got a great track record too.
awakenedenlightenmnt 1 year ago
@awakenedenlightenmnt It's fine saying 'god is real' but could you explain to the rest of us why you, or why we should believe that? What is it that god has done for you? How do you know it was god?