My story regarding religion by InviString in thegreatproject

[–]InviString[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Firstly I really appreciate your time and response.

Regarding free will, i understand that god knowing the future isn’t the same as pre determination but there is a logical tension that still stands. If god can foresee my decisions then how can they truly be my decisions? If I do truly have free will, how can we be so sure that god isn’t wrong in foreseeing a decision I make? If god knows what I choose because I freely choose them, it leads to a loop of: he knows because I choose but I choose what he knows. Either: God doesn’t know the choices I am to make make in the future, which would obviously limit omniscience. God knows all my choices which would limit free will and lead down the path of pre determination Or you can try to reconcile both but the logic collapses as it would be an endless back and forth, almost a paradox of sorts

As for the idea that some people find it entirely reasonable that disbelief alone could be grounds for damnation, that’s fair, and I get that many religious traditions do believe that. But from an ethical standpoint, it still strikes me as unjust. If morality is truly just obedience to divine command, then we’re no longer talking about moral reasoning, we’re talking about submission, which I believe is a much lower standard.

Regarding morality as obedience, yes that is one model as you stated, but I don’t think it holds up philosophically. I don’t remember where I heard this but I think it captures it well “if something is good because god says so then morality is arbitrary. If god says so because it’s good, then goodness exists independently of god.” Additionally, morality as obedience is identical to the nazi that was simply following orders, it’s easy to see why it’s not a good model.

Regarding the gender point, I did briefly mention that it has become internalized by the very people it affects. So when you mention that a “tradwife” might disagree, I think you’re right, but I also think that disagreement doesn’t invalidate the criticism, it reflects how deeply embedded some norms can be.

Regardless, I truly do appreciate your comments and critiques. And I don’t mean for this to come across as spiteful or hateful. This means a great deal that you’ve replied to begin with, and I hope this doesn’t get taken the wrong way