Should we submit to God?

[alice in chains]

Atheists and non-religious people see themselves as the masters of their own lives and destinys. But even if we do master it it is never sustained; it has to be maintained so are we just bullshitting ourselves into thinking we are the masters when clearly life is filled with so many struggles that we as humans have to complicate our lives with alcohol, cigarettes, sex, and other drugs in order to keep our sanity?

It seems possible to submit to God without even agreeing or worshipping him. Maybe relentless acknowledgement is enough.

 

[Tim]

I don't see how god even plays into it...

I don't believe in god nor do I believe that I am the master of my destiny. There is no destiny for me, every day comes with choices that I must navigate through that change my destination in life. But there is no set finish line, it's moved every time I make a choice... Hell, for that matter my finish line might change because of someone else choice.

 

[Vengenz]

How could an atheist possibly submit to some kind of divine entity when the atheist doesn't believe in such existence? Seems illogical to me.

I agree with what Tim said; life revolves around the choices we make every day. I don't think I'm the master of my destiny - hell I don't even believe in the term "destiny". I do decide what I do on a daily basis, whether it's lighting a cig or binge drinking.

 

[alice in chains]

Nor do I believe in a Biblical God in the same way as most conventional theists. Perhaps no destiny, but what you would call 'choices'.

 

[alice in chains]

How could an atheist possibly submit to some kind of divine entity when the atheist doesn't believe in such existence? Seems illogical to me.

I agree with what Tim said; life revolves around the choices we make every day. I don't think I'm the master of my destiny - hell I don't even believe in the term "destiny". I do decide what I do on a daily basis, whether it's lighting a cig or binge drinking.

A misconception is that any Godhead alone is considered 'divine'. What the fuck would we need a relation with the possibility of God if he was indeed "supernatural". God is a misconception of the natural world.

 

[Peter Parka]

Atheists and non-religious people see themselves as the masters of their own lives and destinys. But even if we do master it it is never sustained; it has to be maintained so are we just bullshitting ourselves into thinking we are the masters when clearly life is filled with so many struggles that we as humans have to complicate our lives with alcohol, cigarettes, sex, and other drugs in order to keep our sanity?

It seems possible to submit to God without even agreeing or worshipping him. Maybe relentless acknowledgement is enough.

Sounds like a cop out and excuse for when things go wrong to me.

 

[MoonOwl]

I don't submit to my husband. Why would I submit to 'God'?

 

[Niamh]

I don't submit to my husband. Why would I submit to 'God'?

:24:

But yeah, I agree with Tims post

 

[Minor Axis]

It seems possible to submit to God without even agreeing or worshipping him. Maybe relentless acknowledgement is enough.

Acknowledgement of what exactly?

 

[tutter]

I'm non religious, and I don't keep my sanity by doing drugs, having sex, etc.
I can say that I am Christian, well at least my family is and that is what religion I would be if I was a religious person .

 

[BornReady]

I can say that I am Christian, well at least my family is and that is what religion I would be if I was a religious person

That reminds me of something that happened to Christopher Hitchens. He was traveling in Ireland and was stopped at a road block. The soldiers wanted to know if he was Catholic or Protestant. He replied that he was an atheist. So they asked him if he was a Catholic atheist or a Protestant atheist.

 

[Joe the meek]

Atheists and non-religious people see themselves as the masters of their own lives and destinys. But even if we do master it it is never sustained; it has to be maintained so are we just bullshitting ourselves into thinking we are the masters when clearly life is filled with so many struggles that we as humans have to complicate our lives with alcohol, cigarettes, sex, and other drugs in order to keep our sanity?

It seems possible to submit to God without even agreeing or worshipping him. Maybe relentless acknowledgement is enough.

Just come back from an AA meeting:24:

I don't think one has to submit to something they may not know nothing about, but rather the acceptance of the fact that we really don't control our own destiny/lives.

Yes, if you don't show up to work on time on a regular basis, chances are you are going to get terminated. If you don't study or work hard/smart, chances are you aren't going to achieve things in life. If you decide to throw yourself off a 50' bridge and put your faith in some God to save you, good chance you're going to die. If you tell your boss to **** off, chances are you're going to get terminated. The fact is, we all control our lives to SOME extent. However, as humans, I think it's impossible to see the "big picture" and how small ripples in our lives can have continuing effects upon our own lives and others.

I personally don't consider myself lucky, but blessed in the fact that due to certain circumstances that I could never of seen at the time, that my life has been changed for what I consider the better. That said, I still had to take action on my own behalf to take advantage of it.