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Thread: Questions to Abrahamics

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    Questions to Abrahamics

    This video was made by the folks over at Council of ex-Muslims.

    It asks a series of questions about Allah but is equally applicable to all Abrahamic conceptions of God.

    Some of the questions asked may be relevant to the Hindu conception of divinity as well.

    I personally feel Hinduism answers all these questions in a manner Abrahamic religions cannot. The Problem of Evil is a difficult challenge nonetheless.

  2. #2

    Re: Questions to Abrahamics

    Quote Originally Posted by wundermonk View Post
    This video was made by the folks over at Council of ex-Muslims.

    It asks a series of questions about Allah but is equally applicable to all Abrahamic conceptions of God.

    Some of the questions asked may be relevant to the Hindu conception of divinity as well.

    I personally feel Hinduism answers all these questions in a manner Abrahamic religions cannot. The Problem of Evil is a difficult challenge nonetheless.
    The thing that I have noticed in watching so many of these "challenges" over the years, is that the respondents can always come back with some clever rationalization for their views. For me, on an epistemological level, all these things ultimately amount to what sort of view to God you presuppose, and which seems most cogent to you. Hindus will always find a way to salvage their deities (as I do mine - and believe myself justified in doing so) while Abrahamics will continually be able to salvage theirs.

    So, there really is no point in sitting on the fence. There is no "objective" traction you will manage to pull it seems to me. You can try, but it will take you a lifetime, to little effect.

    I've chosen theistic Vedanta, a position I have felt inclined to more than any other since time immemorial. And I am in the process of shunning all Western ideas which I find are no longer applicable to me progressing either spiritually or intellectually, as I find these ideas, if not defunct, then no longer of interest to me.
    How can I put this in a sentence? Try next time.

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    Re: Questions to Abrahamics

    Quote Originally Posted by Kismet View Post
    the respondents can always come back with some clever rationalization for their views.
    Exactly ! Though discussion with OCC (the converted Islamic girl) became a little unbearable for her which was a failure on our part (as she was our guest and not making any offensive comments), it was highly surprising for me that she chose to adopt Islam. That shows how much false propaganda can brainwash people ! When you have a religion thrust upon you by your parents ... it is one thing ... but when you have the courage to convert and choose ... then why not the best available in the world ? But that is the reality. Islam have been getting hundreds of thousands converts every year when you study their religion and scriptures in great depth ... you find that most of it is anything but spirituality. Even among all the Abrahimic religions, it is the most militant (barbaric), living still in the bygone era and tries to control even very-very personal activities of a person in the name of religion. When the world is moving towards more and more equality for everyone, they are still stuck to Sha'ria. Though other Abrahimic religions do have texts against the people outside that religion ... but it is the Muslims who even today kill a person and believe that they are on God's side. When a girl who is raped brutally goes and it becomes public, it is she who is most likely to be flogged in the open unless she has four unbiased witnesses !

    I fail to conceive how a person when given an option to choose, chooses this religion ! This is the power of the sugar-coated propaganda !

    OM
    "Om Namo Bhagvate Vaasudevaye"

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    Re: Questions to Abrahamics

    Hello devoteeji:

    Islam, in general, has a well-structured Dawah [conversion] program that reaches out to people everywhere. All the unpalateable Islamic concepts are not touched up by such programs. The problem for non-Muslims is that Islam is a complete way of life. Legal, matrimonial, social, political and everything else is mentioned in the Quran/Hadiths and these are not favourable to non-Muslims. Every question in an Islamic land tends to be asked first of the mosque. Only then are questions asked of secular institutions like universities, etc.

    Xity and Hinduism are more liberal.

    Perhaps we should be more patient with Islam and Muslims. They are 700 years younger than Xity. Probably 700 years down the line they will not be as militant as they are today.

    Despite all this, the video in the OP poses a set of philosophical/metaphysical questions. Is anyone interested in discussing those?

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    Re: Questions to Abrahamics

    Quote Originally Posted by Kismet View Post
    I've chosen theistic Vedanta, a position I have felt inclined to more than any other since time immemorial.
    I am inclined to theistic realist Vedanta as well. I find it a bit difficult to come to grips with pure monistic/idealistic systems.

  6. #6

    Re: Questions to Abrahamics

    Quote Originally Posted by wundermonk View Post
    Despite all this, the video in the OP poses a set of philosophical/metaphysical questions. Is anyone interested in discussing those?
    Which one? Any single one, would be a lot to unpack.
    How can I put this in a sentence? Try next time.

  7. #7

    Re: Questions to Abrahamics

    The use of the word "Abrahamic" is disingenuous here (would it not be disingenuous to post a video about Buddha, and claim it applies to Hinduism as "dharmic"?) But I can play along and answer the questions...

    1) God did not create us for worshiping him. We actually believe that removing yourself from the world too much (i.e. "worshiping" constantly) is a bad thing. The most holy thing is to take action in the world- we're here to live, not to worship.

    2) Hell? That's simple- we don't believe in it. That solves a lot of problems. No one burns forever just because they didn't accept *blank*.

    3) Why does God test us? Back to number one; we have to live and learn for ourselves. It's not because God wants to learn something, it's because we do.

    4) Why threaten us? He doesn't, this one is silly. I never read about God sending lightning bolts down if you don't believe in him.

    5) God creates destruction so we can worship him? I don't think so. It's a natural part of life, and our reaction to it should be helping people*, not blaming them for being bad or sitting in a room praying for things to be different.

    *http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humanit...ke_and_tsunami

    6) Reason is a good thing. I think you should be able to reject things that are unreasonable without being punished. But, some times there are multiple things that are equally reasonable if you think about it, so you should also be open to that.

    7) Adam and Eve is not a story about creation, but civilization. We didn't talk about life before Adam, but we also didn't say there wasn't, either. Evolution is not only accepted today, but was also brought up by the old rabbis of Babylon by claiming things like, "Coral is the connecting link between inanimate matter and plants. The aquatic sponge, which has senses and feeling, is the connecting link between plants and animals. The kof is the connecting link between animals and human beings."

    8) Why did God send the prophets to one place in the world at a time when the world was superstitious? He answered it with his question! We strongly reject anything superstitious. God can speak to anyone who has developed the concentration to listen, but if you're a person who focuses on superstitions instead, you're never listening.

    9) So now we get to Jesus... a sensitive issue for billions of people. I can at least say why *we* don't worship him. The concept of "virgin" birth is from a mistranslation of the Hebrew into Greek. (There are a lot of problems with the Greek translations that are bigger than you think; and Greek is the basis for the English). It comes from someone named Isaiah, who lived about 700 years before Jesus and wrote, "Hinneh ha-almah harah ve-yeldeth ben ve-karath shem-o immanuel" which means "Behold, a maiden conceived and bore a son, and called his name Immanuel". The Greeks translated almah meaning "maiden" into "virgin" (which is bethulah), and changed the tense from past (conceived) to future (shall conceive).

    There is also a misunderstanding of the word "Messiah" as in if it meant something similar to a god. We called several people the word "Messiah", including Cyrus the Great of Persia, which is just a title of great honor.

    10) And finally, questions. Of course we're supposed to ask questions! No where is the rejected, but always is it appreciated.

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