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  1. O

    When did knowledge exist?

    Knowledge for non-omniscient beings is good-for-the-time-being until someone/something come along and prove otherwise. It is work-in-progress, or so it seems to me. Specifically to your example, another person could come along and say Xeno was mistaken about the man that Socrates met.
  2. O

    Is suicide really a grave sin?

    Amber13, how one looks at suicide depends on one's assumptions. If you assume an almighty creator god, then all the issues and contradictions of suicide arise. For those who believe in karma, then addressing the issue of suicide is easier. Our sufferings wil be seen as due to the evil karma...
  3. O

    No big bang...

    Buddhists and Hindus could still hold to their belief in a beginningless and endless cycles of the universe(s).
  4. O

    Prayer

    Rationalization. Seen too many of them, sigh.
  5. O

    Prayer

    Well then, I would be pretty annoyed with God if I was created without purpose but merely as God's art. My happiness and suffering would be purposeless but are merely God's art. There could be those who enjoy being God's art but not me.
  6. O

    Existentialism continued

    Juantoo3, I was arguing from the basis of dependency of phenomena, ie. for there to be a phenomenon, there must be conditions and causes for the phenomenon to arise. From this dependency, the illusion of will is argued. Similarly, for the phenomenon of love. If this is not understood, you...
  7. O

    Prayer

    Otherwise we can attribute purposelessness to creation. I am not denying that. Prayer is not the only thing that makes people feel better. But there is no need for prayer if the function of prayer is to make a request to G!d because G!d by definition would already know even before you pray...
  8. O

    Prayer

    Namaste Wil, Here's my perception then: If G!d is self-sufficient, he has no need to create man. Since man exists, who is he praying to? If G!d is omniscent, he has no need for man to tell him their needs and problems through prayer. What then is the purpose of prayer? If prayer is an...
  9. O

    Existentialism continued

    I guess this means that love for you is either completely random or you have completely no say.
  10. O

    Existentialism continued

    I believe we are discussing will or ability to choose/decide. Your choosing who or what to love is also dependent on various conditions, factors, influences etc. How else would you explain while someone can love a particular person, another may hate that same person and yet another could be...
  11. O

    Existentialism continued

    Within the human condition, one has the illusion of freedom in making choices. That's the point I was trying to make. That's the point that was hinted at in the provided links.
  12. O

    Blurring of human-animal distinction

    I guessed you are among the enlightened Christians. I was a Christian once. I remembered then that there was this emphasis that man is not an animal on the basis that man has a soul while animals do not. I could not get over the feeling that if man has a soul, then animals should have souls...
  13. O

    Prayer

    Prayer is a symptom of something amiss in the concept of an almighty, self-sufficient creator god.
  14. O

    Existentialism continued

    Here's a few interesting links relating to free-will: http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/hi/programmes/analysis/transcripts/28_06_09.txt Neuroscientists can predict your behaviour better than you can | Posted | National Post The New York Times > Log In
  15. O

    Existentialism continued

    Unless you are the Almightly, human choices are always limited or affected by conditions and various factors. Isolate the act of choosing from the conditions and factors impinging on the act of choosing, and the act of choosing has no meaning. Yes, you can and have the ability to choose. But...
  16. O

    Blurring of human-animal distinction

    I think so. The distinction is not likely to be based on science though, but on religion or ego, for want of a better word. I think if you ask Christians, Muslims or Hindus, there are bound to be those who would say that man is not an animal due to their religious beliefs. Among those without...
  17. O

    Blurring of human-animal distinction

    Hormone study finds monkeys in long-term relationship look strangely human (July 12, 2010) "Hormone study finds monkeys in long-term relationship look strangely humanHormone study finds monkeys in long-term relationship look strangely human"
  18. O

    Existentialism continued

    Only an illusion of free will is sufficient. Actual free will, if there is such a thing, is not necessary.
  19. O

    Existentialism continued

    Choices are necessary for those without complete information. God by definition should have complete information. He therefore, unlike limited beings like us, has no need to choose.
  20. O

    Existentialism continued

    I would guess that if everything is not ruled by logical necessity, even if you are God, there will be something that you as God cannot explain.
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