Tobin wrote:SteelHead wrote:According to Tobin, god is a member of the Q continuum.
According to scientific understanding our universe is about 14 billion years old. It is highly likely our planet is not the only habitable planet that has ever existed in the universe (nor the first). It is also reasonable to believe that life has evolved on other planets besides ours. I would like to see any reasonable counter argument to my assertions. I'm guessing you have none so you have to refer to pop culture because you have no other possible response.
Tobin, the problem is that one can agree with all of your premises and still not agree with your conclusion. For example: I know that there are ancient beings of unfathomable power and intelligence, beings that could be classified as "gods," that do indeed possess the capability of appearing to someone in their apartment in the middle of the night, stunning that person with their radiance.
The issue is not whether or not such beings exist. The issue is whether or not those beings are in any way equivalent to God. In Christian theology, God only takes one physical form: that of Jesus Christ. I realize that Mormonism is different. But leaving that point aside for a moment, the issue here is primarily epistemological, to wit: how can you, Tobin, distinguish between the phenomenal apparition of "an ancient being of unfathomable power and intelligence," and the phenomenal apparition of the One True God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? If such a being told you that s/he was the One True God, how could you tell (could you tell?) if s/he were lying? Perhaps most importantly, what is the relationship between such a being and the One True God?
Again, I don't doubt your premises, and I don't doubt the reality of your experience. What I'm trying to draw attention to is the fact that the existence and the phenomenal appearance of such beings is in no way the same thing as the existence (far less the phenomenal appearance) of the Christian God.