"Pascal's Wager" doesn't really work with anything but some extreme religious cults, that believe God punishes people hard for not BELIEVING in "Him", and for not "being good", that is, following "the law" perfectly, not because it's good, but because God told you to do it. If one believes in a loving God like I do, a just God, who punishes and rewards you according to how you have lived your life, and not according to which words you choose when expressing yourself - again, like I do - then there is nothing won or lost whether you believe or not. If God is NOT loving and just, but arbitrary, chauvinist and in love with himself, I'd rather "burn in hell" than spend one second in "heaven" filled with those of my siblings, who spent their lives brownnosing this god with favorites.
Now, why would one believe in good, kind and loving God? If believing in God doesn't give you any benefits, why bother believing in God? If people who don't believe gets the same consequences, if they are not punished and I rewarded for the simple act of believing, why would I believe?
I believe because I cannot not believe. I believe because I believe, not because I am trying to earn myself bonus points, or get myself some advantages others don't have. I have experienced atheism. There was a week in my life, when there was no God. All the prayers, rituals and gratitude meant nothing. They were just words. One cannot be forced or persuaded to believe, if one doesn't believe, nor forced not to believe if one believes. Belief is not a choice. This is why I cannot assign divine punishment to the majority of my kin, the human kin, just because they believe differently, or don't believe at all.
If God really created us all, if we all are really God's "children", then God will love us all, as we all are exactly what She made us be, and belief is a gift from God, and it would be deeply unfair to "punish" people She didn't bestow the gift of belief... that would mean She has chosen the "good kids" already as She made us. That would mean that it doesn't matter what ever we believe - or want to believe, or act as if we believed, as "Pascal's Wager" suggests, and it doesn't matter that we try to live according to the rules we believe God set upon us. I refuse to believe in God like that.
Some people know so little about other religions but their own, that they are quick to think that only their own God is the one, one should believe in. There are rules by which to live in all religions, and divine reward/punishment system, even if it might not be "heaven-hell" philosophy. My God will make me experience exactly what I have caused others to experience, just like everyone else. This is why I should try to live my life so that I cause nice things, things I want to experience myself, to others. It is sort of "Golden Rule", except that it's really just a common sense logic. I reap what I sow. A smile breeds smiles and kindness is rewarded with kindness. I believe in causes and consequences. Humans cannot give you perfect justice, because we don't live in a vacuum - I might reap what someone else sows in this life, in the communication with other human beings, but at least I can trust God being perfect justice, and me being rewarded for the good I do.
Even if I didn't believe in this, I believe that in the long run everything will balance out everything else. I WILL reap what I sow, even if it might take several years or a whole lifetime. In my mind the consequences in this lifetime are not at all insignificant. They are very clearly reason enough to have moral guidelines to the life. After all, most humans are living in the moment, and will not get a habit with no immediate reward, reward in THIS life. After all, no-one knows what will happen after death. It IS possible that there is nothing after death.
I am a monotheist. I believe there is only one God, only one Highest Power, and nothing that comes even close. I believe in angels, spirits, fairies and other beings.
I believe in the God of Jews, because I believe there IS only One God, but I am not Jewish, because I don't believe the rules given to the Jews have anything to do with anyone else. That's between the Jews and God.
I don't believe Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God. I don't believe ANYONE is, has been or will be "Son of God" more than that we all are "God's Children", in that God created us all.
I don't believe any human being is more worth spiritually than another. I don't believe in incarnation of God. I don't believe God can take upon Herself a "human form" or breed with Her creation.
I don't believe people will be elevated into divine or godlike existence after their death.
I believe we are all 100% equal human beings. I believe we have been created human, and we will stay human. You can take an old teacup and make it into a pin cushion, but the teacup will still be porceline - and a teacup. You can break the teacup and create a mosaic table top of it, but the pieces will still be porceline - and pieces of a teacup.
This is why I don't believe in what is said in the Greek Scriptures. I believe the Greek Scriptures (aka New Testament) is a collection of writings of people with an agenda. I believe many of them use one specific fictional writing as a base, and this explains the similarities. (Think of all the Arthur stories circulating around. There are similar discrepancies and conflicts in those too.) I believe all the witness encounters of Jesus existence (like Josephus) are mere hearsays, repeated stories, and just as true as stories of King Arthur. Meaning, there's always a tiny possibility that I'm wrong, but I would be very surprised if I was :-D
Frankly, it's easier for me to think that the Greek Scriptures are fictional than to think that a Jewish man living some 2000 years ago said to his friends: "this is my blood, drink it", and his friends (all Jewish men) drank... (Believing that there was a Jewish megalomaniac man believing to be God - not a problem. Believing that he was God? No, nay, never!)
Now, as I don't "believe" in Holy Scriptures, what do I think God "wants us to do"? What is this "what we do" that is important? I believe God put inside the people "the knowledge of good and bad". We call it "the conscience".
Today's layout has stamps from The Enchanted Gallery. I love her work :-)
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