Skepticism - healthy or not?

[QED]

Skepticism is a useful tool that we all employ from time to time. If anyone tells me something that sounds important I always like to know that I can verify it somehow if I wish to. The more important the issue, the stronger my urge to know that I can check-up on its validity.

However, when it comes to Christianity, it would seem that the opposite is true. The more important the message, the less concerned most people seem to be with their inability to establish its veracity. They appear to be content with letting the enormity of the message compensate for their inability to check on its truth. I would argue that this sort of suspension of regular skepticism is not good for Christianity as a whole.

Unfortunately the subject is so sensitive and people have such emotional ties to it that I fear the way to honest and open research is utterly blocked despite the fact that there is a plentiful supply of interesting research material available. Like countless others, I would like to know the real story behind Christianity but I fear that I never will because of the huge amount of inertia in the subject.

I find this frustrating and disappointing. But after 2000 years of heavy investment it appears that Christians have painted themselves into a corner and are unable to move from it despite the phenomenal wealth of written material and forensic-style investigation techniques available. This leads me to three questions:

1) Is skepticism an unreasonable approach to Christianity?
2) Would a less rigid approach to the subject make Christianity more generally acceptable?
3) Is there a concerted effort going on to establish the real story behind Christianity?

[Cathar1950]

1) Is skepticism an unreasonable approach to Christianity?
I Don't think it is unreasonable but I am a sceptic even a trusting(faith or faithfulness)sceptic. I trust God I don't seem to have a choice. What ever is Is. I do what I can and figure God has to explain the rest. Does not the judge of all the earth have to do right? If not maybe it isn't worth worshiping. I would wonder why God would need or want worshiping.
I enjoyed the stuff about your child and know the experience. But when your kid grows up he will aquire more knowledge of you and more about the world.
No parent wants to say when there child is grown up "at least I am not as messed up as my kids".
There seems to be so many Gods and views of God and it doesn't sound like the believers know. I watch watched John Edwards on TV talking to the dead well feeling them, while talking to living people.
It didn't take long to see how he did it or what he was doing. Kind of like looking behind the curtain at a magic show. I could see what the people where doing in a psychological sense. Often we are talking about different kinds of knowledge.
Some one's experience or knowledge may only be known to them.
But sometimes they give them meds.

AlAyeti wrote:

I paint what I see.

Yes you do and you see a lot of naughty behavior of all those non-believers mostly Atheist, Agnostics, evolutionist, liberals, democrats, gays,
and non-bible believers. I am sure I left out a few naughty sexual deviants.

How many religions in their "revealed writings" even mention the wrong doings and basic low nature of the heros of their sacred teaxts?

All of them! A lot of them were going around making virgins conceive and having half-god children.

[QED]

Given the track record of my "knowledge", it would be irrational for me to ignore it.

So tell me, do you ever stop yourself from doing something by saying to yourself "what if everyone did this?". This is a very valid consideration in contemplating many deeds. Without this consideration we end up with a cacophony of reactions going off in all directions such as Bro Dave's favorite Urantia Book for one example. But there can be more to this than harmless (?) fantasy and the personal readily becomes the collective.

[Cephus]

[Here's something to consider: how do you know that God is God? How do you know that what you experience as God isn't really the 'devil' of another pantheon, sent to lead you astray from the one true god? How could you logically tell the difference?

I have no harder a time with that than you.

Ah, that's why you completely ignored answering the above. Gotcha.

[Cathar1950]

Cephus wrote:

Here's something to consider: how do you know that God is God? How do you know that what you experience as God isn't really the 'devil' of another pantheon, sent to lead you astray from the one true god? How could you logically tell the difference?

I sometimes wonder. I can see the gnostics view good God/bad God.
I was watching stargate the other night, and they ran into these people
who worshiped these beings that were just like the enlighted ascended ones. Only these guys call the enlightened ones evil because they wouldn't share knowledge with every one, something about free will. So these new guys want to have a holy war and kill everyone that will not accept their knowledge. SG1 thought they all sounded like their grandmothers. The new beings looked like fire the others looked like light.
Who was right? It sounds like the religion we deal with all the time. You can't tell who is the good guys. Kind of like Eniki and his brother who is the good guy? But they(SG1) were wondering is there some one above them. The real God like Anu. I just thought it was interesting and almost fit the conversation. I favour the free will guys, not the ones who want to impose their will. My view is that God does right because it is right, not because he said so. That is if God does anything. Maybe God is just pure sympathy and shares all our joys, sorrows and memories.
QED wrote:

So tell me, do you ever stop yourself from doing something by saying to yourself "what if everyone did this?". This is a very valid consideration in contemplating many deeds.

All the time buddy, all the time. I am usually more concerned when every one or the majority is doing it. But I am paranoid and skeptical.

[israeltour]

[Here's something to consider: how do you know that God is God? How do you know that what you experience as God isn't really the 'devil' of another pantheon, sent to lead you astray from the one true god? How could you logically tell the difference?

I have no harder a time with that than you.

Ah, that's why you completely ignored answering the above. Gotcha.

I was afraid you might be getting dizzy, but if you insist: The answer is that I know by faith.

[israeltour]

Given the track record of my "knowledge", it would be irrational for me to ignore it.

So tell me, do you ever stop yourself from doing something by saying to yourself "what if everyone did this?". This is a very valid consideration in contemplating many deeds. Without this consideration we end up with a cacophony of reactions going off in all directions such as Bro Dave's favorite Urantia Book for one example. But there can be more to this than harmless (?) fantasy and the personal readily becomes the collective.

It's definitely a consideration. For example, I got engaged after knowing my wife for only 4 months. I asked myself what would happen if everyone did that, and I concluded that the divorce rate would probably go up even higher than it is. But, I had prayed specifically to God about who my wife might be, and was floored when I met her... I thought I'd made her up, but there she was. So, I pleaded with God not tease me like this if she wasn't the one... I gave him a specific concern, and that night she addressed that concern without knowing I even had it or prayed about it... I went through about 3 rounds of this, and every time my concern was addressed. I finally relented. We got engaged, and haven't looked back. We now have a beautiful family (#2 is due next month) and it was the best thing I even did.

One can never be cavalier in their faith. They cannot simply pick what they want and just assume it's best. It doesn't work that way. A lot of discretion is required, and I test God all the time to make sure it's really Him speaking, to make sure I'm going where He wants me. Frankly, God is rarely as clear as He was about this one thing, the most important decision of my life... but when He's clear, I listen, and it's always for the best.

I can't just ignore stuff like this. It's the kind of testimony that I wish was enough to convince skeptics of God's existance. I will understand if you're not convinced. Really. I discard others' "experiences" for example, so I actually expect mine to be discarded, too. But, my own experience is the one experience I cannot discard.

[Cathar1950]

Divorce 50/50 chance. God's answer 50/50.
Just be glade and don't blame it on God.
If things go good it is always easy to say it is from God.
The OT said He/She does both.
You might have a lot to do with it and she may have even more.
Kids are cool.

[QED]

One can never be cavalier in their faith. They cannot simply pick what they want and just assume it's best. It doesn't work that way. A lot of discretion is required, and I test God all the time to make sure it's really Him speaking, to make sure I'm going where He wants me. Frankly, God is rarely as clear as He was about this one thing, the most important decision of my life... but when He's clear, I listen, and it's always for the best.

Here you tell me that you're aware of the danger of arbitrary faith and so you claim that you run controlled experiments to verify the validity of the revelations. How do you go about this?

[Cathar1950]

I have always admired the Anabaptist with their emphesis on faithfulness and decipleship rather then faith as in beliving. Even if I think they are a little to biblical. I see no justification for just beliving. No book with directions droped from the sky. It is a history of a struggle or struggles writen by the winners. That is the ones that survived. At least good works has dignity. Even an Atheist can do that. (lol) Many belivers don't and seem to take an easy way out. Like "I am powerless" , "everything I do is rags", "If I can't keep the whole law all the time, I can't keep any of it".
It sounds like a copout not faith. Paul was a deaply troubled man and struck a nerve in a deeply troubled society. He also had the mystery religions going for him. Constaintine moved things along.
The OT seems to have a lot of self blame. I still think humans with all their flaws are the best thing God has going. At least on this planet.
Skepticism is not only healthy it is nessary.

[Cephus]

I was afraid you might be getting dizzy, but if you insist: The answer is that I know by faith.

In other words, you picked one at random that appealed to you and now you demand that it, and only it, is true.