I'm curious as to your thoughts on whether it really matters or not whether there is in actuality a separated entity such as that as God or that humankind just creates an idea such as a God for the purpose of uniting all of humankind under an umbrella to try to achieve peace and a way of living with out conflict.
If the idea produced good and no bad to society then just the idea would be beneficial. If it produces bad then it should be abandoned unless there really is an all powerful supernatural being dictating that bad.
It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.
André Gide, Autumn Leaves
Personally I'd be pretty pissed if God was malevolent
God exists in the essence of your conscience.God is who reminds us right from wrong. My kids are my higher power. Any time I consider relapsing into drunkenness, drugs, smoking I just remember who is my inspiration. Organized religion on the other hand is used for control purposes and greed. There are some 40,000 Christian denominations and they cannot all be right. Each is based on a different interpretation of the Bible. Fortunately I don't need anyone else to explain the complexities of "thou" and "love thy neighbor"
I guess it depends.
Throughout history there have been as many examples of people doing very bad things and justifying it through an external divine figure, as there have people doing very good things.
"It's God's will that this group of people be destroyed because they are an abomination in the eyes of our creator".
"God teaches us to be merciful, tolerant, and show love to those around us."
It's a dichotemy that has spanned the length of civilisation.
I don't think the issue is so much whether there is an objective, tangible force of celestial divinity, as it is what people do with that. As far as I'm concerned, it matters if people use such a thing to justify their actions. And take away that personal responsibility for the things they do, be that good or ill.
It's very easy to attribute ones actions to something which can't, or won't, answer for itself. It takes away the need to be accountable for the things we do. And I think that's a very dangerous thing. Even if those actions aren't malicious.
I guess what I'm saying is that I think it matters if people use a God figure as a scapegoat.
Whether it actually matters... I guess eventually we're all going to find out. :)
Are not these two statements valid: Cogito ergo sum for any conscious being to say this as for any distinct entity such as God to say this.