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This week: Pascal's Wager Edited by: Kit  
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Can you choose to have faith, even if you don't truly believe? Can living a certain belief lead to actual belief?
This week's Spiritual Newsletter is all about Pascal's Wager.
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I recently read up on Pascal's Wager. For those who aren't familiar with it, it goes something like this:
Either there is a God, or there isn't. Either there is an afterlife that can be accessed through faith in God, or there isn't. If you decide to believe in God, and follow the practices of your faith, two things can happen – if there isn't a God nor any afterlife, you may have missed out on some fun during your life for nothing. On the other hand, if there is a God, you may well end up with eternall bliss. If you decide not to believe in God, and there isn't a God, you've had your fun in life and end up the same as everyone else. If there is a God, though, and you rejected him, you miss out on eternal happiness. So, according to 17th century philosopher Blaise Pascal, the best bet is to believe in God, because the potential reward is worth it.
Pascal's Wager may appear very cold and calculating, but it's not that far removed from the daily reality of some people. They may not have approached the issue in the exact same manner as I described above, but they are aiming for some final reward for their faith and practices, and fear what would happen if they were to abandon their religion.
There are even some people out there who feel smug about their expected entrance to a lovely afterlife. Those people tell others that they are going to hell for not having faith, or for doing whatever they are doing. The implication is that the other is going to suffer whilst they, the good believer, are safe and secure from such a fate.
The fact is, of course, that none of us can know what is going to happen. Even the greatest minds have been unable to prove the existence of a God or an afterlife, so all we really have is faith and, perhaps, a weighing up of potential outcomes.
The problem with Pascal's Wager, though, is that it would be difficult, maybe even impossible, to simply decide to believe in something. Pascal reckoned that through living the life of a believer, and through being surrounded by other believers, eventually a person would end up believing. I don't know if it would work that way. What if one's logic and reason told them that there is no such thing as a God... could they really change their minds through practice and rituals? And would any God be satisfied by a person's choice made in such a manner? Should faith not contain more than calculation and speculation? Should it not involve love?
It is true that our thoughts and beliefs are shaped throughout our lives, and they are changeable to a certain extent. I've changed my mind on some issues through reasoned debate, and have managed to change the views of others. On some fundamental issues I haven't budged, though, and I still believe plenty of the same things I did when I was younger. I wouldn't expect others to budge on fundamental issues, either.
The belief in the existence of a God appears to me to be something rather fundamental. I believe in God's existence and whilst I'd be the first to admit that I'm rather fuzzy and uncertain about the particulars of my faith, my belief appears to be a part of me. I've had many long, interesting debates with atheists and I can understand their reasoning, but I couldn't just stop believing, even if I wanted to. Likewise, if someone were to tell me that if I believed in a giant invisible basket full of chocolate floating in the sky I'd eventually be rewarded with all the chocolate I could ever wish for, I couldn't just decide to believe, because as much as I love chocolate, it seems illogical to me to think such a giant invisible sky basket exists.
So what do you think, dear readers? Can faith be a choice? Will acting as though you believe eventually lead to actual belief? And would leading such a life based on speculation be worth it?
I personally don't think it would be worth it. A person would be lying to themselves, and living a lie can't be a pleasant path. Belief should be real, and felt, rather than something you force yourself into, because there may be a reward at the end.
kittiara
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The Spiritual Newsletter team welcomes any and all questions, suggestions, thoughts and feedback, so please don't hesitate to write in!
alysia - Could you post a prayer request for the birth of my newborn son Ezekiel Ryan? He was born fri. morning at 7:54am weighing 7 lbs 8 oz and 20 inches long, but it was not the birth I expected it to be. It has been a very long weekend and week, as he was born with a heart defect. It's called Transposition of the Greater arteries. You can look it up as it is difficult to explain. He will be having open heart surgery on Thursday morning beginning around 7:00 or 8:00. They may have also found another heart defect but we won't know until morning. Any and all prayers are needed! We sincerely appreciate it. I will keep you guys updated, and pray that my husband and I get some rest. It seems that rest is hard to come by this week. Our lives will never be the same whether he lives or dies, but I know that God is in control.
I am posting this prayer request here, so that hopefully many readers will pray for your son. I hope that everything has gone well, and will keep you and your family in my own prayers  .
~~~
Imagine21  - I agree with you. Animals have souls. I agree with you completely!!!
Thanks! I hope, well feel, that we are correct!
~~~
Christine Cassello - I fully agree with you. Just because science has not been able to explain things does not mean they are not true. Every day we learn more than we knew before, or would admit to, with scientific experiments and archeological expeditions. How many of them have proven places in the Bible were real! Just because we speak different languages does not mean animals and plants have no souls, it just means we don't understand them. I am of the belief that all living creatures think, experience emotions and communicate, which is the soul. I also could never believe that part of us ceases to exist in some form. If there is no heaven then I would have to believe in reincarnation.
Very well put, I fully agree with you!
I have spoken before with people who, through their work, have been present at the deaths of many other people, and they mentioned that it definitely seems as though something has left the body after someone has passed away... that it feels like there is something missing. They reckon that that something is the soul, and I think that that might indeed be the case.
~~~
Zeke  - Regarding the possibility that animals and plants might have souls, we have to keep in mind that man was the only being created in God's image.
That may be true, but that doesn't necessarily mean that animals and plants weren't given souls as well.
~~~
Quick-Quill  - We are ALL fearfully and wonderfully made.
I don't know about fearfully, but I agree with the wonderfully!
~~~
ChrisDaltro-Chasing Moonbeams - Thank you for featuring my story, Iridessa Silvermist, in your WDC Newsletter - Spiritual! I was so pleased!
Christina Daltro
You are very welcome!
~~~
Joy  - Great NL. Kit.
Some sufis believe everything in creation has a soul or is part of a collective soul. Although I am not 100% sure about anything, I tend to believe with them, if the concept of soul is for real.
Thank you, Joy! Aye, I am not 100 percent certain either, but I do believe that everything in creation has a soul!
~~~
Write-fully Loti  - This is such a cool debate! Of course, I can see the difference in the soul and the body is very distinct. The soul, or I call it a spirit, is not the body, but it can reside in one. Just like I can be in a car but I am not the car. So, saying that, I think the spirit/soul can be in anything it likes. So you get animals with souls and plants as well. I think life itself is caused by the spirit which animates the body or any living thing. Just my thoughts on the subject.
Thank you, Loti! What a great post. I think you sum up my thoughts very well .
~~~
Wishing you a week filled with inspiration,
The Spiritual Newsletter Team
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Spiritual: December 04, 2013 Issue [#6034]
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