Hi, Doctor Tuba, welcome to WWGHA. I suspect you're going to be a "drive-by", but I'll respond anyway, as I need the practice.
I'm not here to debate.
Then I suggest you read the rules before posting further. Preaching is not permitted here, and if you make claims, you will be expected to make an attempt to back them up.
There are a lot of Christians who believe in God.
Really? I thought all Christians were atheists.
There are also a good number who have seen what they believe in.
No doubt there are, but, contrary to how the old saying goes, "seeing is not believing", or at least it shouldn't be. The human mind is not nearly so accurate in its perception of the world as most people think it is. It is surprisingly easy to see things that don't exist -- and I'm not just talking about drugs, either.
There's no refuting that kind of proof.
Actually, there is, but it requires being willing to examine things objectively.
If you're staring at someone in the face.....it's pretty hard to disprove that the person is there.
Have you ever heard of pareidolia? If not, I'd recommend you read up on it a bit. It's but one of the many ways that one can be seeing a face that isn't really there.
Human reason/philosophy is pointless, when it comes to understanding things that we really have no business debating about.
What would some such things be?
I strongly suggest to really reconsider your strong opinions about things of which you have no understanding.
Like what? If you want to tell me, for example, that I have no business holding strong opinions about molecular biology, I'll readily agree because my understanding of that field is quite limited. If you demand my silence on certain other matters, however, you will receive an objection. (A hint for you, if you're talking about what I think you're talking about: I majored in philosophy, and I finished with an A-minus average. And even at that, I wouldn't even say that I'm the best-informed WWGHA regular on the subject, either.)
You aren't going to always have tangible facts. But there are ways to get them.
Indeed there are. Unfortunately, you don't seem to realize them.
Your heart has to be open, otherwise, all that you will have to rely on are useless musings of the mind. That won't help you...take it or leave it.
Can you name any other objective truths that were discovered and universally agreed on by people "having open hearts" and refusing to use their intellect? For example, was Neptune discovered by monks praying and having its existence revealed to them in a dream, or was it discovered by people examining the behavior of Uranus, realizing that another planet must be causing anomalies in that behavior, and pointing their telescopes at the part of the sky where that other planet said the mathematics said the planet would probably be found?
There's a very good reason why we have to go looking for truth. Truth is a treasure to be found.
That doesn't even make any sense.
Figuratively speaking, eyes have two states....closed and open.
No, actually, there are quite a few more than that: nearsighted, farsighted, astigmatic, cataractic...
That's all that I can say. I am a very cerebral person.
The first sentence seems to contradict the second one. (And by the way, truly cerebral people don't say that they are.)
However, there's no going back to trusting my education, after my eyes were opened.
"I've already made up my mind! Don't confuse the issue with facts!"
All that I can tell you, is that the Bible is not lying about what it says.
Which part is it telling the truth about? That snakes and donkeys can talk? That bats are birds? That rabbits chew the cud? That insects have four legs? Those are the easy ones.
There are others that aren't instantly recognizable as lies, but can be determined to be so after minimal research: that there was a flood that covered the entire planet, that it was ridden out by a family in a 450-foot long boat, that half a million people (conservatively estimated) wandered around the Sinai desert for forty years.
There are also lies of different natures as well. A number of the books in the new testament, for example, are known to be forgeries (1 Peter and 2 Peter being the most obvious examples).
There are other things, too, that can't be called "lies", exactly, but which should nonetheless horrify you. Check Deuteronomy for the various "remedies" that are prescribed for sexual assault, for example. In our society, fines and/or imprisonment are generally agreed to be the proper response. Requiring the victim to marry her rapist? Not so much -- but it's what Yahweh commands.
It up to you, and your heart to go find what I already know to be truth.
No, if you want me to believe it, it is up to you to convince me.
If you truly give God a chance, and open your heart to Him, you'll see that I'm very much telling the truth.
Listen, friend: most of the atheists here are former believers. (I happen to be an exception, but that's a separate discussion.) And they weren't casual believers, either, they were very serious about it. When they felt their faith slipping, they were tremendously distraught. Many of them prayed and prayed and prayed, explicitly telling Yahweh that they felt their faith fading and imploring him to give them strength, to give them some kind of a sign, so that they wouldn't stop believing in him. Yahweh utterly ignored them, with the result that they ended up going thru months and even years of emotional anguish in coming to disbelief.
It is extraordinarily presumptuous of you to stroll in here on your very first post and assume that no one here has ever "given Yahweh a chance". We all have. More than once.
Let me tell you, the spiritual realm is initially an extremely frightening experience.
Please define "the spiritual realm". Do not use weasel words.
If you're not open, all that you'll ever know is your intellect, and this dying world.
Reality exists whether I want it to or not. There's no such thing as things that exist, or phenomena that happen, only if I "open my heart to them". If I step on a tack, it will hurt my foot, even if I didn't know the tack was there. Why should Yahweh be any different?
Ask God, if you are upset that things aren't designed the way that you want them to be.
And on Easter morning, should I also ask the Easter Bunny why I didn't get any candy?
