What If God Were One Of Us?
 

Tomorrow you will wake up and You will be God.

What kind of God would you be? What would you have as priorities on your God agenda? What would your commandments be? What would you consider a sin? What would you do with people when they die? What would you do with the people who had done very bad things?

Bookmarking for later!

Without really giving it too much thought, and without considering if there might be other gods too, my first thought off-the-cuff is, why would I need any people at all? I could fill a world with animals and birds and fish and be just fine. I never really believed in hell, but I do understand the concept of the Christian hell, I just don't really see a point in it.

I'm an atheist so I believe that heavan is upon earth and godhead resides in all. there is nothing supernatural.

what would I do if I rules the universe? make universal laws to govern everything so I could fuck off and not bother.

also, there would be no sin. As someone who lives outside of time and human judgement, there is no such thing. judgement is for mortals. they can sort that out for themselves. I'm surfing around in a supernova.

I don't believe in god either. You can be enlightened, but that's just a human potential that's not often realized.

If I really had god-like powers, I'd blow this pop stand and go see what's out there. Visit the other galaxies and the other planets where there is life.

If I intervened here at all, it would be to do something humane to constrain overpopulation on the planet. No plague. But perhaps something that made fewer -- many fewer -- humans fertile. Whatever social upheaval that caused -- a la The Handmaid's Tale -- would be up to humans to figure out. I'd then restore the forests and the oceans with a blink of my eye and be gone on my extended vacation.

In terms of social engineering, it's up to us to figure out how to live together. If it were somehow to come from the outside, it would not mean much. Our species will live or die. I would prefer we not destroy the large mammals and all the great forests while we're figuring out which it will be.

We can't destroy life on the planet. An asteroid could. But we don't have that power. We could make Earth a nasty place for a long time though. I hope we don't.

I don't have a lot of faith in humanity, and I do wish that the Earth could be returned to a pre-human ecological state, but ultimately it's up to us to make it work. Or not. We are doing horrible things to animals and to each other. To the planet. But the planet will survive for a few billion more years -- with life of some kind. We have to figure out whether our species will become extinct and take a lot of others with us.

I don't believe we are God, but I believe all of us are a facet of a Universal "power" or spirit, that many people call God. I believe God is within us, not up in the sky or out there somewhere, running the show.

So, in that belief, I don't believe in a God agenda, like President of the Universe. If I had some kind of power to set the commandments of the world (putting aside the likely existence of other worlds), I think it would only be "Be good to one another". All the commandments stem from that one.

I don't believe in the idea of sin, because whoever comes to power (even "God") gets to decide what the sins are going to be. I can't picture coming up with a list of sins so heinous that they cover every culture in every place and time. What we consider repugnant was or is considered very normal somewhere.

I don't believe in the "traditional" heaven or hell, so that's hard to answer, too. I believe something happens to our spirits after death, but what that is, I have no idea. Maybe we stay here, close to people we loved (or haunting the places that either we loved or that hurt us).

I think it would be impossible to get everybody to agree on a list of "very bad things", similar to the sins list. How bad do you have to be to go way over the line into non-redemption? I can't picture drawing that line as "God".

Non Believer of god
 

If I was God, I'd bring back the McRib all year round not just for its limited time...

Interesting questions...
 

My answer came to mind as soon as I read the question.
I am a Christian and I believe very strongly in God. With that said, I could never fathom someone else being God, let alone myself. But if God said to me, "Tony, you're God for a day. What will you change or do?"
My answer would be simple. Nothing. There is a reason and a season for all that God does and I would never presume to be capable to question that. He is my higher power. In the end, He is who I will answer to. No one else. I have complete faith in His judgement and what He has created.
Not meaning to sound like I'm preaching here. Just answering from my own perspective based on my faith and spirituality.

My questions
 

to all the believers in God.

Where was that God before the tsunami?

Where was that God before your daughter was abducted, raped and killed?

Where was that God before your home was destroyed by an F4 tornado?

Where was your God before you lost your job 2 years before pension was suppose to set in?

Realizing many need to believe in something to get themselves through the day, it really makes my mind numb when so many folks AFTER tragedies decide it's a great time to thank their God.:confused:

I have no answers for this. Tragic? Absolutely. But again, it's not for me to question God. Only to have faith. I thank my God everyday, regardless. I also pray to Him everyday, regardless.

With that, I believe this thread has the potential to turn bad. I've always believed there are 3 subjects you can never truly discuss: religion, politics and sports. They all are based on our own perspective, opinions and beliefs. I believe everyone is entitled to believe as they feel. It is what it is. Nothing can be proven. Hence, the potential for arguing is huge..
Religious beliefs after all are what most wars are made of..

Im not sure theres a God, I like to keep an open mind - I wouldn't want to be God, he/she gets blamed for everything - yet the believers - when disaster strikes really come to Gods aid and say things like "he works in mysterious ways" or "its Gods will" - when children starve or people are being tortured to death. Its unpalletable to most people, esp. in the west to even consider that what happens to us is a result of karma and that theres actually no such thing as an innocent child - we are all born according to where we left off in a previous life - I think if God does exist and he created the universe - he probably said "here you are - you got the basics - get on with and lets see how you do" - the free will thing - we are blaming man for global warming - I don't suppose chopping down rain forests etc helps much but then pollution didn't cause the ice age! God is also said to be our judge - and I also wouldn't want to do that - I feel we can only judge ourselves in a moral and spiritual way and we know whats right or wrong - its inbuilt in our conscience as spiritual beings.
So - if I were appointed as God (it wouldn't be of my own choosing) I wouldn't produce commandments, I would ask people to think before they act - how would I feel if someone said/did that to me and as no one would want to be hurt, murdered, tortured, starved, beaten, raped etc etc etc, then they wouldn't do it to others - its simple, we'd all then be perfect and there wouldn't be any need to believe in a God.........if only

lol, I so don't want that job!
 

Great thread, tough subject matter! It's so subjective, really; but here is how I personally feel [without getting too pedantic] about it right now. Subject to change at any moment, of course, because I'm a Gemini and we have been known to do that from time to time, lol.


If I were God, I would be duty-bound to preserve free-will above all other principles; because without it, no good will follow.

Unfortunately, this means a lot of awful, wretched things will befall many innocent parties. I hate that; but I truly feel that lasting change can only begin on an individual level and that everyone must, therefore, be given governance over all of their own actions. [The revolution starts within, so to speak].

Conversely, it is important to note that this also renders everyone entirely responsible for any and all harm they cause and I, as God-for-a-day, would have to see to it that commensurate consequences were meted out. I think there are ways of accomplishing that without resorting to "eye-for-an-eye" tactics, which I find equally abhorrent.

On the other hand, if I were to wake up one fine morning as mere mortal, but Supreme Dictator; The Honorable and Amazing Huge-Smile, Benevolent Ruler of All Countries and Peoples, heads would roll! :shocking:

[And if the thought of me in charge of all of that doesn't get all the world immediately praying; well then, all hope for humanity is truly lost, lol]. :tease:

HOLY SHIT THIS!!!!