What qualifies a GOD?

[Jonga]

How do you know that something is a GOD?

What is necessary for a GOD to have?


I will start with some simple and common qualities of a GOD:

1.) It should be a being
2.) It should be supernatural
3.) It is anthromorphic (like human)

would you agree with the first few proposed qualities?

[rickym]

that would be a personal god.

deists who believe in an impersonal god don't believe in a god with human qualities.

but i guess christians would agree with your definition of god.

[rickym]

i think for christians you should also state omnipotent, omniscient, omniprescent. if those qualities are not included, then 'god' could easily be a powerful alien, something which even richard dawkins is open to the possibility of.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-pFTkUoVBI

[Jonga]

rickym, thanks for responding

so taking your point, i guess #3 will be crossed out

an impersonal god can still be:
1). a being
2.) supernatural

correct?

[vienjames82]

Respect of free will. Every time skeptics ask why did God allow this, why did God let evil men do their evil deeds, the reply would be it's because God love us and he gave us free will. That's it free will. Something zealots don't respect now a days that they declare holy war,behead infidels, lobby,and threaten people with ex communication pag di mo sila sinunod.

Kung walang respect of free will, then para lang tayong gianwa para maging puppet

[Jonga]

I would add that attribute "Respect of free will" but how would it apply to a deistic god like rickym suggests?

should we find out if whether a deistic god is really a god?

[tonton]

rickym, thanks for responding

so taking your point, i guess #3 will be crossed out

an impersonal god can still be:
1). a being
2.) supernatural

correct?

Put it back! According to christians, humans were made in the image and likeness of God.

[Jonga]

that's for christians

what i am after here is a generic definition of a god.

a definition that will apply to every known god.

[Adamantium]

How do you know that something is a GOD?

One knows that some thing (or some one) is (a) God when He satisfies all the qualifications, nature, and description of (a) God.

What is necessary for a GOD to have?

For me, (a) God to be (a) God, He must:

1. exist eternally
2. be a being and a person or personage
3. be perfect and entire
4. have gender
5. have intelligence
6. have will
7. and have omnipotence.

I will start with some simple and common qualities of a GOD:

1.) It should be a being

In the affirmative.

God must be a being, meaning, He must be a person or a personage, and not merely a metaphysical force or a cosmic power or a universal sentience.

As such, being a being and not merely an impersonal force, God can not actually be referred to by the pronoun "It", but must always be referred to the personal pronoun of "He".

As to why "He" and not "She", as I indicated above, one of the requisites of Godhood is also gender, so that God also has gender, and for me that gender is male.

2.) It should be supernatural

In the affirmative.

God must be super natural, meaning, He must be above and beyond His creation, and not be similar nor one with it, the "natural" here being His creation. As such, God must work and operate not with in the ambit of the dimensions of His creation, but must be super, over, and above it, living in and doing His acts through and in another dimension of existence different from the natural dimension of things.

3.) It is anthromorphic (like human)

In the negative.

God is and must not necessarily be anthropomorphic. We can only say that safely if we acknowledge in the first place that man (= anthropos) is in the first place created in His image and likeness, and not the other way around.

The tenor of this requisite by Jonga is that man made God in his image and likeness, which is not true, the truth being the other way around, that is, that God made us in His image and likeness.

would you agree with the first few proposed qualities?

Thus so above.

[Fenix]

I find it strange to believe humans are created in the likeness of the god. We all have our body parts in place because we need them in order to live on planet earth. Why would an all-powerful god residing in the unknown be in need of a mouth, 2 eyes, ears, hands, rectum, etc, etc???

A god for me would be:
- Something that is void of human emotions: Why would a god have love, pity, etc?
- Something that is beyond any creature's comprehension. No one can claim even a bit of knowledge about this god. Then again I'm contradicting myself

[Adamantium]

^^ This is a fallacious question and reasoning, for the simple reason that it assumes that God has the same needs as us, thus need to relieve and the need of an digestive system, &c.

But then, as I said, God is super natural, meaning, you can not limit His existence into our existential dimensions here on earth and on this Universe.

God being thus illimitable as such, the question falls on its false premiss and assumption.

[sophion]

an unimaginably intelligent & powerful being that manipulates the universe.

[tonton]

2:255. GOD is He besides Whom there is no god, the Everliving, the Self-subsisting by Whom all subsist; slumber does not overtake Him nor sleep; whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth is His; who is he that can intercede with Him but by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them, and they cannot comprehend anything out of His knowledge except what He pleases, His knowledge extends over the heavens and the earth, and the preservation of them both tires Him not, and He is the Most High, the Great.

[Adamantium]

^^ What a trying hard copy cat of the Holy Bible.

A commingling of truth and falsity.

The hall mark of Satan: mingling truth with falsehood.

That is the Quran, the Satanic verses.

[rickym]

rickym, thanks for responding

so taking your point, i guess #3 will be crossed out

an impersonal god can still be:
1). a being
2.) supernatural

correct?

yup, i guess so

[rickym]

Respect of free will. Every time skeptics ask why did God allow this, why did God let evil men do their evil deeds, the reply would be it's because God love us and he gave us free will. That's it free will. Something zealots don't respect now a days that they declare holy war,behead infidels, lobby,and threaten people with ex communication pag di mo sila sinunod.

Kung walang respect of free will, then para lang tayong gianwa para maging puppet

i think a god with no respect of free will might be considered a 'malevolent god' as opposed to a 'benevolent god'

I would add that attribute "Respect of free will" but how would it apply to a deistic god like rickym suggests?

should we find out if whether a deistic god is really a god?

i think deists would consider it god, but when you think of it, that god could be considered a work of nature and called 'god' for lack of a better term. a deists god, doesn't seem to do anything which shows that it has free will. it just creates and that's it. i don't think it makes decisions.

[rickym]

4. have gender

why, is that even in the bible?

so you consider taoism godless due to it's yin and yang?

[Dunedain]

1.) It should be a being

1. exist eternally

Physically? If so, it'll be a pain to be the "god". Imagine all the fanatics, followers, pilgrims, etc. seeking out the place where "god" lives, and probably even kill "god" and assume the title.

[tonton]

^^ What a trying hard copy cat of the Holy Bible.

A commingling of truth and falsity.

The hall mark of Satan: mingling truth with falsehood.

That is the Quran, the Satanic verses.

You are funny, man. The quran is way better than the bible. Not comparable at all. The biblical god is weak and makes mistakes. Mere iron chariots can hamper him. Its authors can't even agree with each other. The bible is one mesh of contradiction. Cover up after cover up. A veritable web of lies.

[sophion]

The quran is way better than the bible.

A religious book is only as good as the kind of ideas people get from it.

I like the way you obtain ideas from the Quran, but not most other muslims.