How did you learn about God?

[Zzyzx]

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How did you (do people) learn about God?

Some likely or proposed ways:

1. Parents, family, friends
2. General society of residence
3. Promotional writing by religious authors
4. Preachers, churches, revivals, church camps
5. Religious schools and theological seminaries / divinity colleges
6. Others?

Ask yourself how THEY learned about gods – and consider that they learned all they 'know' from 1-6 themselves (exactly like you, someone told them). Notice that each of the above requires taking someone's word, believing someone's stories and claims – mostly people you do not know.

Is there any way for you to check the truth and accuracy of those sources – really check – not just 'BELIEVE (so you can go to heaven when you die)'?

Once the god ideas are formulated I one's mind, they can be furthered by:

7. Focusing thoughts upon gods, being devotional, praying, attending frequent reinforcement meetings.
8. Personal mental experiences, dreams, events, 'visions'
9. Direct personal contact from gods (real or imagined)

Notice that 7-9 are all psychological / emotional / mental processes in your own mind – and realize that minds are quite capable of being misled, mistaken, delusional or hallucinatory.


Now, back to the original question, How did you learn about God? AND, can what you 'know' be shown to be anything more than hearsay, folklore, legend, myth?

[AdHoc]

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How did you (do people) learn about God?

Some likely or proposed ways:

1. Parents, family, friends
2. General society of residence
3. Promotional writing by religious authors
4. Preachers, churches, revivals, church camps
5. Religious schools and theological seminaries / divinity colleges
6. Others?

Ask yourself how THEY learned about gods – and consider that they learned all they 'know' from 1-6 themselves (exactly like you, someone told them). Notice that each of the above requires taking someone's word, believing someone's stories and claims – mostly people you do not know.

Is there any way for you to check the truth and accuracy of those sources – really check – not just 'BELIEVE (so you can go to heaven when you die)'?

Once the god ideas are formulated I one's mind, they can be furthered by:

7. Focusing thoughts upon gods, being devotional, praying, attending frequent reinforcement meetings.
8. Personal mental experiences, dreams, events, 'visions'
9. Direct personal contact from gods (real or imagined)

Notice that 7-9 are all psychological / emotional / mental processes in your own mind – and realize that minds are quite capable of being misled, mistaken, delusional or hallucinatory.


Now, back to the original question, How did you learn about God? AND, can what you 'know' be shown to be anything more than hearsay, folklore, legend, myth?

I have probably learned about God through all the modes you've listed above and a few others. Such as, through His Word and through His creation and through the change that He has made through me and others that have been "born again".

You say 7-9 are all "psychological / emotional / mental processes in your own mind" but isn't that the case for every observation and experience? What we see, taste, touch all of reality is experienced in our mind.

You think the colours you see are exactly the same as the colours I see?

I'm not suggesting it's not real I'm just saying looks can be deceiving.

For you and for me.

[Tired of the Nonsense]

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How did you (do people) learn about God?

Some likely or proposed ways:

1. Parents, family, friends
2. General society of residence
3. Promotional writing by religious authors
4. Preachers, churches, revivals, church camps
5. Religious schools and theological seminaries / divinity colleges
6. Others?

Ask yourself how THEY learned about gods – and consider that they learned all they 'know' from 1-6 themselves (exactly like you, someone told them). Notice that each of the above requires taking someone's word, believing someone's stories and claims – mostly people you do not know.

Is there any way for you to check the truth and accuracy of those sources – really check – not just 'BELIEVE (so you can go to heaven when you die)'?

Once the god ideas are formulated I one's mind, they can be furthered by:

7. Focusing thoughts upon gods, being devotional, praying, attending frequent reinforcement meetings.
8. Personal mental experiences, dreams, events, 'visions'
9. Direct personal contact from gods (real or imagined)

Notice that 7-9 are all psychological / emotional / mental processes in your own mind – and realize that minds are quite capable of being misled, mistaken, delusional or hallucinatory.


Now, back to the original question, How did you learn about God? AND, can what you 'know' be shown to be anything more than hearsay, folklore, legend, myth?

I was born into a Christian family. I was instructed on the Bible, God and Jesus from my earliest memories. This is in fact exactly how the overwhelming majority of people around the world form their worldview. People tend to believe what they are taught to believe from their earliest memories.

My upbringing occurred during the 50's. And so all of the factors listed above pertained to me. I lived in a society that was overwhelmingly Christian. Christianity was true because "everyone knew it was true." I went to church, attended Sunday school and vacation bible school. At the end of every Howdy Doody show on TV Buffalo Bob would instruct his audience to be sure to attend the church or temple of their choice on Sunday . In school we were required to re-learn the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954, because the words "Under God," had been inserted by an act of Congress. We prayed in school regularly in the early 50's as well. My third grade teacher was a hard core fundamentalist that spoke of God every other word, and once slapped one of my classmates across the face for pointing out that god spelled backwards was dog. So points 1-5 above represent my instruction on God. The Christian God.

The one thing that never occurred however was any contact with God. When I talked to God, God resolutely acted in exactly the same way that no God at all might be expected to act.

By the time I was 13 I had reached the conclusion that Christian claims were far too silly to be true. I was a little bit ahead of the curve on that, but non belief is currently the fastest growing position among the upcoming young generation. This is more true in the non bible belt states, and among those with a college education as opposed to those without any college education. In other words, belief is largely now divided along lines of educated and uneducated. And the gap is widening.

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[Willum]

I have been indoctrinated from birth about God.
Read many holy books.
Examined the natural world to an admirable degree.

I still can say I have leaned nothing about any God, angels, demons, ghosts or goblins.
In prayer I discover that you can pray to anything and get a similar feeling of satisfaction. You can pray to anything you can take seriously enough...
Wish upon a star, really hope you will win that lottery, God, etc..

[McCulloch]

How did you (do people) learn about God?
[…]
How did you learn about God? AND, can what you 'know' be shown to be anything more than hearsay, folklore, legend, myth?

Thank you for becoming an apologist for the ignostic position. As an ignostic, I claim to know nothing whatsoever about God or the gods. I have learned a whole lot about what different people say about God.