Jan Ardena said:
KennyJC,
If you know this, then you know God.
That's the thing, I don't. I do however know of many man-made Gods.
Knowledge, period, is A way to know God. It is understood that God is simultaneosly one and different with nature, nature is an aspect of God. Modern science is in the business of understanding nature, but to state that modern science is the only way, is no different than saying christianity or islam is the only way.
Knowledge is a way to know things, and if that knowledge leads to finding a God, then fair enough. What is not fair, and blatantly ludicrous, is claiming knowledge through an ancient book which you claim to be written by God or even dictated by God. There is simply no way of knowing anything through religion. If you follow the bible to it's letter, then it is ok to keep slaves, and beat slaves... so long as you don't bash their eyes out or until they fall unconcious. It is also OK to beat children with a stick if they speak back to you.
If God is real, you cannot help but know God, as God is ultimately the cause of everything we percieve. There is nothing wrong with religion, in the same way there is nothing wrong with science, it is only peoples interpretation which leads to misunderstanding.
'Knowing' God would be false if our universe wasn't created by God. Same way as a belief in santa is for those who are not yet able to perceive logic. There is also nothing wrong with funamentalists perceptions of scriptures and 'holy' books. Any suicide bomber will be able to find in black and white, justification by God to carry out his or her act.
That is an assumption based on your worldview, there are many people who would have a different opinion.
A pretty logical assumption since matter and forces of the universe are all that we know of... I would have thought. If I have missed something here please inform me.
Can you back this statement with a solid argument in your favour?
In the short time we have had science and technology we have discovered the universe to be expanding from an origional infinitely small point. How galaxies are formed, how life started on Earth, how Humans evolved from the basic starting point of life, how gravity works... I could go on and on, but we have made such progress in such short time, even if the surface has only been scratched. Since religion has been around much longer it has achieved little beyond conflict.
How could you understand God, from this point of view?
Well assuming this hypothetical God exists and created the universe, we understand this is what it did. If you think you can know God anymore than this especially based around organised religion, you are wrong.
Matter is classed as one of Gods energies and is eternal. There is no scripture which claims that God created matter. The claim is that from His material energy he created the phenomenal world.
Actually he created humans instantaneously from dust and breath, according to the bible.