Introduction

This thread is concerned with showing the explicit difference between Religion and God . There's the belief that the existence of God has always been in religion with many believing that questioning religious beliefs means you are impugning God's existence . Well , I'm here to show you how false this is . There's God without religion and there's religion without God . Let's ride

God without Religion

One can still believe in God whilst having no religious beliefs or adhering to any religious dogma . If you feel that you don't understand religious doctrines or beliefs , there's deism and panentheism for you . These two philosophical doctrines are expounded below :

Deism

Deism is a theological/philosophical position which posits that God created the universe and does not intervene in the universe . The deists say that logic , reason , science and observation of the natural world are sufficient to determine the existence of a single creator of the universe . They , as well as the theists , believe that Nature , Science and Reason are cogent proof of the existence of God . The deists are no lowbrows , they are intellectuals who rejected religion and religious authority.

The constructional elements of deist thought included:
*God exists and created the universe.
*God gave humans the ability to reason.

But some deists believe in the existence of Personal God - one that you can have a personal relationship with God - while some believe in an Impersonal God. Some deists believe that God can interact with humans but that does not mean he intervenes in the affairs of men . They believe that religion is not needed to maintain a relationship with God .

Types of deism include : Panendeism , Process Deism , Spiritual Deism , Scientific Deism , Christian Deism .

Christian Deism
In Christian Deism , the divinity of Christ is rejected and his moral teachings are accepted . To a deist , Christ may have had a transpersonal relationship with God .

Deism and Religious Skepticism
Deism came into prominence in Europe during the Age of Enlightenment . Intellectuals challenged the rich powerful Catholic Church who secretly circulated pamphlets that undercut traditional dogma. The established Church was discredited, leading priests and bishops were forced into exile or executed, its churches and seminaries closed, its beliefs and rituals held up to ridicule. The French Revolution inspired skeptics across Europe to put the irreligious ideas of the Enlightenment into practice .

As a believer in God , anytime an atheist brings up arguments on the Age of Enlightenment , tell them the deists who believed in God were involved massively in the promulgation of Irreligion .

The deists are irreligious and here are critical elements of deist thought :

*Rejection of religions that are based on books that claim to contain the revealed word of God.
*Rejection of religious dogma and demagogy.
*Skepticism of reports of miracles, prophecies and religious "mysteries".

The deists don't believe in prayer or creation stories in various religions . They repudiate prophecies , miracles or anything that suggests that God intervenes in the affairs of humans .

So dear believers in God , not everyone who attacks your religious beliefs is an atheist .

And of course , there are famous deists - Albert Einstein , Abraham Lincoln , Benjamin Franklin , Mark Twain , George Washington , Plato , Aristotle , Socrates , Leonardo da Vinci ,Thomas Paine , Thomas Edison , Thomas Jefferson , Napoleon Bonaparte and so many others .

Panentheism

Panentheism is the belief that the divine interpenetrates every part of the universe and also extends beyond time and space. The Panentheist believes that God is the soul of the universe . According to Panentheism , God and the universe coexist as One and the universe is simply the material manifestation of God but the incorporeal separate conscious entity is greater than its material manifestation - God is everything in the universe, but God also is greater than the universe.

Events and changes in the universe affect and change God. As the universe grows and learns, God also increases in knowledge and being. That means to a panentheist , God is not omniscient or immutable .

That means in Panentheism , there's the possibility of the coexistence of an eternal universe and an eternal God.

** Some panentheists are involved in Religion and some are irreligious .

European Christians are pulling away from Organized Religion

Christians are now pulling away from Organized Religion - this can be seen in European countries like Sweden , France , Netherlands , Norway , Britain . In Norway , over 25 000 Christians in September opted to leave the Church of Norway though close to 4 million chose to stay after a new online system made it easier to leave . While in France , the French Christians are not involved in Organized religion and so are seen as irreligious . In Sweden , less than 4% of the Church of Sweden membership attends public worship during an average week; about 2% are regular attendee . These people have now chosen to see Christianity as a personal relationship with Christ , as a life style .

Religion without God ... (Religious Atheism / Non-theistic religion )

One can be very religious and still be enmeshed in religious dogma whilst being an atheist . Find out such is possible below :

Atheism and Religion
Atheism is the rejection of deification of an entity not the rejection of religion . There are so many religions which are non -theistic - which do not involve the worship of gods or deities . This means one can be an atheist and have religious beliefs - religious atheism . Here are some religions whose adherents have no belief in God or gods .

La Veyan Satanism : LaVeyan Satanism is an atheistic religion founded in 1966 by the American occultist and author Anton Szandor LaVey. Scholars of religion have classified it as a new religious movement and a form of Western esotericism. It is one of several different movements that describe themselves as forms of Satanism. The religion's doctrines are codified in LaVey's book, The Satanic Bible.

The religion is materialist, rejecting the existence of supernatural beings, body-soul dualism, and life after death. Practitioners do not believe that Satan literally exists and do not worship him. Instead, Satan is viewed as a positive archetype representing pride, carnality, and enlightenment

LaVeyan Satanism involves the practice of magic, which encompasses two distinct forms; greater and lesser magic.



Raelism : Raelism is an atheistic religion and it teaches that life on Earth was scientifically created by a species of extraterrestrials, which they call the Elohim. The Raelians believe that the Elohim appeared human when having personal contacts with the descendants of the humans that they made. They purposefully misinformed early humanity that they were angels, cherubim, or gods. They believe that messengers, or prophets, of the Elohim include Buddha, Jesus, and others who informed humans of each era .


Buddhism
Buddhism is not about either believing or not believing in God or gods. Rather, the historical Buddha taught that believing in gods was not useful for those seeking to realize enlightenment. In other words, God is unnecessary in Buddhism.

Jainism
Jainism rejects the idea of a creator deity responsible for the manifestation, creation, or maintenance of this universe. According to Jain doctrine, the universe and its constituents (soul, matter, space, time, and principles of motion) have always existed. Jainism is an ancient religion in India .

Confucianism
Confucianism is considered a religion by scholars . Its a religion based on the teachings on Confucius - a Chinese teacher, editor, politician, and philosopher who existed 500 years before Christ . Its a common religion in China . Confucianism deals primarily with moral conduct and ethical living , the doctrines of Confucianism center upon:

1. Ancestor worship : veneration of the deceased ancestors whose spirits are believed to control the fortunes of the descendants.
2. Filial piety : devotion and obedience to and reverence of the elders of the family by the younger members.


Wicca : Wicca which is also called Pagan Witchcraft was developed in England in the 20th century . Wiccans are involved in ritual practice of magic , and the worship of gods and goddess but an atheist can still be a Wiccan whilst rejecting the worship of these deities . That means atheists can still get involved in witchcraft and magic since atheism is just the disbelief in the existence of deities .

Unitarian Universalism : UU is a liberal religion which helps anyone - theists , agnostics , and atheists - in their shared search for spiritual growth.

Atheism and Superstition
Superstitious beliefs contradict natural science and there are certain aspects linked to religion, like omens, witchcraft, and prophecies. So yes , atheists can be superstitious . In Buddhism , atheists can have superstitious beliefs like reincarnation - endless cycles of rebirths . In Confucianism , atheists worship ancestral spirits with the belief that they can control the fortunes of the descendants . The Confucians can also carry out rituals and prayers to these ancestral spirits .

Atheism and Witchcraft
Atheists in Wicca can still be fully involved in Witchcraft . They also believe in magic which is seen as a manipulative force exercised through the practice of witchcraft or sorcery. Wiccans define magic as was "the science and art of causing change to occur in conformity with will", or as the the science of the control of the secret forces of nature". Many Wiccans believe magic to be a law of nature, as yet misunderstood or disregarded by contemporary science .

Atheism and Intelligent Design
Raelns in Raelism who are atheists reject evolution and are vociferous proponents of Intelligent Design - they believe humans are creations of aliens . They also believe in an eternal universe - one with no creator . But of course we know that Raelism's arguments are fallacious - the Homunculus Fallacy - because it can't state how life ultimately began . It only progresses into infinite regress .

Atheism and Religious Skepticism

Religious skepticism is a type of skepticism relating to religion. Religious skeptics question religious authority and are not necessarily anti-
religious but are those skeptical of a specific or all religious beliefs and/or practice . So its all about having doubts about religious beliefs .
And please , religious skepticism does not question the existence of God . Religious skepticism is not the same as atheism or agnosticism . This means that religious skeptics who are atheists can also question religious beliefs in non theistic religions like Buddhism , Jainism , Confucianism etc .

And so, what's my point?

The precis of this yarn is to expose everyone to different religions and propositions which show the distinction between God and Religion . Are you questioning different religious beliefs right now ? Are you impugning certain verses of the scripture , you can peruse this thread for answers and discussion . I want to let you know that your skepticism does not imply that you longer believe in God . If anyone gives you pejorative labels because of your religious beliefs , direct them to this page .

Have a great Sunday !

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Please I need your reactions , positive reactions

Thank you

Are you sure Napoleon was a deist? I seem to recall reading somewhere that he was actually an atheist because he only believed in himself.

How sad, craving for attention. To what end?

Mark Twain was a diest
Oohmagawd
Ebuka has done it again
The straw is strong in this one

What is your obsession with deism? Does it give credence to theist to you or something.

KingEbukasBlog:




https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_deists

ooh so I guess I was wrong
*shrug*
I knew napoleon to be a diest but not mark twain

Nice thread for contemplation

Well Diests are cool too na
So I really don't see your point

KingEbukasBlog:
Cool ....

KingEbukasBlog:
Chukwu no nso ...

KingEbukasBlog:
Jesus is God

KingEbukasBlog:
This is so cool

KingEbukasBlog:
Yep . This is a mega thread .

KingEbukasBlog:
Nice

Lol nawa oo

johnydon22:


Lol nawa oo

lol .. I dey book space . I'm doing the research right now and making modifications . You may refresh the page

Well this is a nice thread.

The first of yours that I actually like. . .its good to inform Nairalanders who are unexposed and let them make a choice for themselves after being introduced to the different systems. A lot of people in Nigeria are ignorant to other belief/unbelief systems apart from the 'big two'- Christianity and Islam, and its good that you're taking time to write something like this aimed at educating/informing people. Things like this should make the fp.

A fresh breath of air from the Atheist vs Christian threads littering this section which usually descend into pseudo-intellectualism and pages upon pages of flowery sounding rubbish.

Good job.

**I'd like to see where you classify the new age beliefs such as Eckankar, The Grail Message, etc under.

Kingebukasblog I see religious scepticism in your future

AnonyNymous:
Well this is a nice thread.

The first of yours that I actually like. . .its good to inform Nairalanders who are unexposed and let them make a choice for themselves after being introduced to the different systems. A lot of people in Nigeria are ignorant to other belief/unbelief systems apart from the 'big two'- Christianity and Islam, and its good that you're taking time to write something like this aimed at educating/informing people. Things like this should make the fp.

A fresh breath of air from the Atheist vs Christian threads littering this section which usually descend into pseudo-intellectualism and pages upon pages of flowery sounding rubbish.

Good job.

**I'd like to see where you classify the new age beliefs such as Eckankar, The Grail Message, etc under.

I don tire already .

The aim is just to show that one can reject religion and still believe in God and that one can reject God and be in Religion .

Eckankar and the rest believe in God whilst having religious beliefs so I'm not focused on those .

I was sick and tired of atheists attacking religious beliefs with the view that it questions God's existence . And labeling my fellow Christians with disparaging names because of religion .

I asked an atheist on Akedegreat 's thread that made FP why he chose atheism , he said because the big bang and evolution disprove the bible . How sad . . When there's deism , when there's panentheism . Though there are so many people who see creation story as ambiguous and there are lots of allegorical views .

Anyway , let everyone now know that there are so many people who believe in God and reject religion .

jonbellion:
Kingebukasblog I see religious scepticism in your future

I'm a staunch Christian bro .

jonbellion:
Well Diests are cool too na
So I really don't see your point

I think my point is obvious . Refresh this page

KingEbukasBlog:


I'm a staunch Christian bro .

We were once staunch xtians 2 bro

urahara:


We were once staunch xtians 2 bro

I think you should pay attention to Deism or Panentheism .

johnydon22:


Lol nawa oo

KingEbukasBlog will soon run mad, am not kidding .

dalaman:


KingEbukasBlog will soon run mad, am not kidding .

Back to sender !



I was just booking space that's all .

KingEbukasBlog:


I'm a staunch Christian bro .

A staunch christian that does not go to church?

Thanks for the clear summarised points. Educating stuff.

First post by kingebukasblog that makes sense

JackBizzle:
First post by kingebukasblog that makes sense

it is likely to be the last

jonbellion:
it is likely to be the last

I am not sure. I think the ridicule that he has been receiving for his silly threads of past have changed him for the better.

Also, he even finally acknowledged that confuscianists and Buddhists can be atheists in this thread, after I bashed it into him in another thread.



Maybe there is a God afterall. KingEbuka is seeing the light. Anything is possible