Trouble with the world and especially Oz is people have lost their way. When I was little we wore our Sunday best and with bibles in hand were marched off to church. It was purgatory sitting on those hard benches listening to the old vicar drone on and on and on.  Had many a good nap in that church. I liked confession time most of all, that's when I sledged everyone including the vicar, knowing full well whatever I said he could not repeat. As soon as I could I gave this hallowed place a miss, went to India and practised meditation, couldn't handle the yoga bit much to the disgust of my swami. Nowadays, I attend church once a year. No I am not religious.

Being religious usually means gong to church each Sunday and perusing the Bible at every opportunity IMO. Since I do neither of these things on a regular basis, I guess I am not that religious.

What is more important to me is my spiritual view on life. For me personally, I believe God exists...there is no doubt in my mind... but that belief does not come from reading a historical set  of books like the New and Old Testaments and following it all to a T. It comes from a "knowing" within... how that knowing got there, I do not have a clue... but it is there.

I worship Nature and everything that Nature provides...I believe...comes from God. Oh...and by the way.. I do not believe God is anything like what the churches have depicted. Guess I'll have to wait and see when my time comes.

I believe G-d is Nature with a capital 'N'.

we would be marched off to Sunday school, which I remember little about, but would return home to saveloys and tomato sauce for lunch in front of the tv watching World Championship Wrestling. And of that, I do remember.

Yes we are, and it will make for a better world.  Most religions seem to be centred around hate and entitlement, with a shot of self serving hypocracy mixed in. 

Most of us can instinctively judge good from bad, we are taught it,  if we are lucky, by mentors as we grow up.  Why do we need thousands of pages of instructions to teach us what is instinctive to most of us?  I am content to use the laws of the land as my instruction manual as to how I should structure my interaction with my fellow humans.

Spiritualism over religion of any kind for me. 

Whilst christianity has dropped, Hinduism is one of the fastest-growing religions in Australia, according to the latest census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

It’s grown by more than 55 per cent in the last five years and is followed by 2.7 per cent of Australia’s total population.

According to the ABS, more than 2.5 million people — roughly 10 per cent of the population in 2021 — now report an affiliation with a minority religion.

That’s an increase of 3.5 per cent over the last 25 years. 

Religion brings comfort to millions and millions die because of it.

No Gods/gods (singular or plural) exist.

Believing in things that don't exist can't advance our species.

Remember, religions historically have worshiped thousands of invented gods (gods like Zeus, Brahma, the man god some call Jesus, Yahweh, Allah, the many many historical trinity god things, Artemis, Hermes, even some sects of Buddhism worship gods, Hestia .......... etc etc etc etc,  the list is near ENDLESS).

We are a VERY primitive species, and remain so to this day.

"Almost" every religion that has existed has insisted that "their" god/gods have presented themselves here on Earth directly to human beings. So, here's the challenge to "believers" ........ I ask any atheist reading this to walk up to any believer in any god and ask "you say your god is all powerful, so ask it to present itself in front of me right now". Guess what? NOT ONE OF THE BELIEVERS will be able to get their god thing/things to present itself directly in front of you ..... they will FAIL BADLY 100% of the time (even if you ask 100 million true believers). Then guess what? 90% of 'em will give you the "cop out" reply of "but, but, but, but look around you, can't you see the trees, the ocean, the mountains, the sky, the moon? Well, that proves my god/gods exist, after all who do you think made all that ..... magic magicians?

Yep, belief in gods/god shows how primitive we remain as a species. Over our entire existence throughout the past 150,000 or so years right up to current times we kill each other in wars, invade and murder in order to dominate and rule, rape, assault, are territorial just like birds/fish/insects etc etc, argue, hate ........ and don't forget religions and beliefs in gods/god have been responsible for terrible atrocities throughout the pages of history ....and the modern era "excuse" is always "but, but, but they were not 'real' Muslims", "but, but, but they were not 'real' Hindus", "but, but, but they were not 'real' Christians etc etc etc etc.

Believers love to defend their many religions, defend their many gods or god, defend their religion's "actual" history ...... religious defence and religious propagation (thus more POWER) is more important to them than historical truth and historical fact.

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Nailed it?? Clearly an abject assumption. No one can prove either way that God exists or not. Futile exercise…it all rests with faith.

Religion itself has very little to do with a belief in a Creator. Jesus had no religion, God has no religion. Religions are man-made and therefore riddled with flaws.

Sophie, he nailed it. Your belief that he didn't is clearly an abject assumption. Your reply is riddled with abject assumptions. The only part of your reply that's not an abject assumption is your final sentence. That's all ok, because in a free country you Sophie are entitled to have faith in all the abject assumptions you invent. Have a nice day darling.

Yes Sophie darling, I simply love pointing out your abject assumptions in the language you use. Thanks for giving me the opportunity.

For example, in your first post in this topic you stated that you think a god exists and immediately backed that up with  "there is no doubt in my mind": Abject assumptions.

 You also stated in that post "I do not have a clue". Gotcha!

Sophie, people believing, and having no doubt, that flying 3 headed dragons exist, that a god of some sort exists, that Planet Earth will cease to exist in 2 weeks time, that supernatural demons exist and that Nazis are wonderful heroes does not mean that these things are fact.

All religions should pay taxes like any other money making company.