Necessary requirement for believing in God

[greenberg]

What would be the necessary requirement for believing in God?


Most of the requirements for believing in God that are listed in this thread seem to be only sufficient requirements.

What about the necessary requirements? Is there such a thing as a necessary requirement for believing in God?

If there is no such requirement, what would this imply about believing in God?

 

[lightgigantic]

I am not sure exactly what you are trying to get at.

For instance if I was to say what is the necessary requirement for believing that china exists one could say "visiting china". IOW if I have visited china and continue to disbelieve in it, it would be irrational.

In the same way the necessary requirement for believing in god is having experience of god.
(other than that, one could have a belief based on inference or authoritative testimony)

The next question that would follow could be "what constitutes a valid experience of god?"

 

[Saquist]

What would be the necessary requirement for believing in God?


Most of the requirements for believing in God that are listed in this thread seem to be only sufficient requirements.

What about the necessary requirements? Is there such a thing as a necessary requirement for believing in God?

If there is no such requirement, what would this imply about believing in God?

You might be intrested to know that are three essential qualities for believing in God accoding to scripture.

Jesus showed that Faith is Primariliy important numerous times during his ministry. However jesus didn't require blind faith. His miracles served to prove hie was chosen by Good. Hebrew 11:1 says that faith is anything but blind. "Faith is the assured expectation of things hoped for the evident demonstration of realities though not yet beheld."

Faith is hope based on seeing is believing. Not only seeing but proving. Jesus' coming fullfilled many prophecies the Isrealites were expecting from scripture laid down hundreds of years ago.

The second requirement is knowledge.
"This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God and the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ."- John 17:3
Because according to John 6:66-69 belief comes first but we must come to know and set and fortify by learning more.

The third is pivotable to approaching the first two. It is Humility.
*Before a crash the heart of a man is lofty, and before glory there is humility. We need the propper mindset to approach and draw ourselves toward God. With out humility all the miracles and knowledge in the world wouldn't help us believe in anything but ourselves. Humility keeps our ego's in check so as not to presume we know more than the Sovereign of the Universe.

 

[(Q)]

What would be the necessary requirement for believing in God?

Simple. A complete suspension of disbelief and lack of education.

 

[Photizo]

What would be the necessary requirement for believing in God?

Love... specifically, Love of the Truth is the necessary requirement for believing in God.

 

[Saquist]

That is true. Love too is essential.
Love for the ranson Jesus Christ paid for us all. Love too, for God for offering his only Begotten son as that sacrific. Sometimes I focus on the facts abit much but love is the number one commandment for Christians.

 

[(Q)]

Love too, for God for offering his only Begotten son as that sacrific.

There was no sacrifice. You can't sacrifice a god, right?

 

[Enterprise-D]

Simple. A complete suspension of disbelief and lack of education.

Actually, only the suspension of disbelief is required. I know many well educated people, logical in every other way, who are unshakeable in their belief in their various gods.

 

[greenberg]

Love... specifically, Love of the Truth is the necessary requirement for believing in God.

Case in question.

There are people who have love of truth, but who have not arrived at believing in God.

I surmise that there must possibly be more necessary requirements than just love of truth.


Earlier, faith, knowledge and humilty have been mentioned.

Re. faith - The way Saquist described it earlier, it seems faith is a kind of given; something which is not under a person's control, but dependent on external factors, ie. God having done something.

Re. knowledge -

"This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God and the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ."- John 17:3

But how is someone - who does not yet believe in God - to know which religion to study? Why Christianity? Why not Hinduism etc.?
In terms of knowledge, there is another requirement hidden in here. What is it?

The third is pivotable to approaching the first two. It is Humility.
*Before a crash the heart of a man is lofty, and before glory there is humility. We need the propper mindset to approach and draw ourselves toward God.
With out humility all the miracles and knowledge in the world wouldn't help us believe in anything but ourselves. Humility keeps our ego's in check so as not to presume we know more than the Sovereign of the Universe.

To be noted that this application of humility makes sense only in conjunction with certain other requirements.
Otherwise, humility is a recipe for disaster - a person humble enough will believe anything.

 

[greenberg]

Actually, only the suspension of disbelief is required.

But can disbelief be suspended by the power of one's will?

Because if it can't, then it seems that God's intervention, mental illness or temporary cognitive incapacity (such as caused by drugs, stress and other duress) are further requirements.
This is important because none of these is under a person's control - and thus, it could be that it is not under a person's control whether they believe in God or not.

(Which would of course mean that the various accusations theists charge against atheists (such "You lie to yourselves") are null and void.)

 

[Enterprise-D]

But can disbelief be suspended by the power of one's will?

Yes. Despite the fact that we say the "weak-willed" are lured by religion, it is by virtue of that same will that they resist the de-programming by outside catalysts. Beliefs are necessarily a function of will, even if external factors are considered, it is a decision by the individual to accept or reject any "foreign" ideas.

Because if it can't, then it seems that God's intervention, mental illness or temporary cognitive incapacity (such as caused by drugs, stress and other duress) are further requirements.
This is important because none of these is under a person's control - and thus, it could be that it is not under a person's control whether they believe in God or not.

(Which would of course mean that the various accusations theists charge against atheists (such "You lie to yourselves") are null and void.)

It's null and void anyways, since atheism is the default state. We are not born with any religious belief whatsoever. Theists are indoctrinated by their parental units.

 

[(Q)]

Actually, only the suspension of disbelief is required. I know many well educated people, logical in every other way, who are unshakeable in their belief in their various gods.

I wouldn't put them into the same categories for 'requirements' considering they were probably indoctrinated by their families and friends.

 

[Enterprise-D]

I wouldn't put them into the same categories for 'requirements' considering they were probably indoctrinated by their families and friends.

Perhaps it might be more accurate to say indoctrination followed by suspension of disbelief is necessary. Since as I remind-posted earlier a lack of belief is the default state. Indoctrination comes next, followed by the seeming lack of ability to doubt...

 

[nova900]

Jesus' coming fullfilled many prophecies the Isrealites were expecting from scripture laid down hundreds of years ago.

.

Ironically, the majority of Jewish people do not believe Jesus fufilled those prophecies.

http://www.simpletoremember.com/vitals/jewsandjesus.htm

 

[greenberg]

Perhaps it might be more accurate to say indoctrination followed by suspension of disbelief is necessary. Since as I remind-posted earlier a lack of belief is the default state. Indoctrination comes next, followed by the seeming lack of ability to doubt...

Indoctrination certainly seems like a good candidate for a necessary requirement.

 

[Why?]

A brain is a necessary requirement. Hard to have a belief without a brain.

 

[Thoreau]

I personally feel that this is an open-ended question which will lead to much opinionated responses.

Some may say you must believe in Jesus or Muhammad to believe in God.

Some may say that you have to do certain things or believe certain things in order to fulfill a belief in a God.

It is all based on an individuals personal perspective of a any given belief system that has been chosen. Thus the responses and views will differ.

 

[greenberg]

But can disbelief be suspended by the power of one's will?

Yes. Despite the fact that we say the "weak-willed" are lured by religion, it is by virtue of that same will that they resist the de-programming by outside catalysts. Beliefs are necessarily a function of will, even if external factors are considered, it is a decision by the individual to accept or reject any "foreign" ideas.

I'm inclined to think it is impossible to suspend disbelief by the power of one's will. I find it more likely that the suspension of disbelief is due to stress, other forms of duress, memory biases, cognitive biases and the bias blind spot - all of them moot areas of human cognition that could hardly be considered deliberate and conscious.

Anyway, my point is that it seems that a person cannot meaningfully be held accountable for whether they believe in God or not.

 

[greenberg]

It is all based on an individuals personal perspective of a any given belief system that has been chosen. Thus the responses and views will differ.

That's part of the problem. If there were a one and only true God (like various religions claim there is), it should be possible to name the necessary requirements for believing in this God - a finite number of necessary requirements.

If there is a one and only true God, then why are these requirements so elusive to list, or so general that all religions fit in?

I really don't see any more options but these two:
There either
- are no necessary requirements for believing in God and belief in God is an open-ended matter,
- or all theisms are about the same God.

 

[Thoreau]

That's part of the problem. If there were a one and only true God (like various religions claim there is), it should be possible to name the necessary requirements for believing in this God - a finite number of necessary requirements.

If there is a one and only true God, then why are these requirements so elusive to list, or so general that all religions fit in?

I really don't see any more options but these two:
There either
- are no necessary requirements for believing in God and belief in God is an open-ended matter,
- or all theisms are about the same God.

Great response!

The world may never know.

If infact God does exist, this question may only be answered by God through a direct communication, which thus far in the history of man-kind, has not happened, atleast not to my knowledge.