And if so, which of the many brands is the true one?
Do the three Abrahamic religions make the same doctrinal claims or do they differ sufficiently to be contradictory?
Is Scientology a separate theism? Should we consider it as true? Or is Mormonism the true theism?
And how is one to know which of the competing denomination is the truth?
Can one be forgiven for not believing in any of them until such a time as their claims can be verified? That is, is it rational to not believe in any of the available theism-s?
Are deists a separate theism or do their claims suffer from the weaknesses of the other theism-s?
Random thoughts 
The difference between the deity of the deists and the deity of the theists is that the former deity created a watch, wound it up, put it on a shelf and is letting it unwind, whereas the deity of the latter can’t stop tinkering with the damned watch.
As far as I’m aware no deity has made any claims, although followers of the various deities have made unfounded claims on their behalf. I’ll refrain from speculation and wait until one of the deities provides me with direct evidence that he/she/they/it has a real concern for humanity and the world we inhabit.
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@ Barry
Should we Watch this space?
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Oops, my reply didn’t thread correctly. See my comment below
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Sorry Arkenaten, it’s taken me 6 hours to recognise the pun. I’m an Aspie, and 6 hours without any prompt is fast for me 😊
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I think your response was satisfactory, that is, there is no need to wait for a deity
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I agree with your second paragraph fully.
The first paragraph need a small edit to be in line with the second one: the deists claim their god set the dice rolling but don’t give any evidence. The theists claim their god even knows when we sneeze
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I’m not expecting any deity to provide direct evidence anytime soon, so I don’t recommend holding your breath in anticipation.
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The true, and only, God is Allah. We know that because the Koran says, “This book is not to be doubted.” Mic drop! We have a winner, ladies and gentlemen, and it is Islam! All other religions are WRONG.
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nope, nope nope, the holy bibbly says *it’s* the only right one!
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One of them must necessarily be wrong
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The null hypothesis is my rule. Look for where they all agree, then assume that is the correct answer. Since they all claim ALL OTHER religions are false, that must mean all of them are false. 🙂
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This makes the work quite easy
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This solves the matter completely & totally
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It might say that it’s not to be doubted, but does it actually state that everything in it is factually true? See the subtle difference?
On the other hand, the Holy book I’m in the process of writing reminds the reader at the start of every chapter that everything it contains is absolutely true even if it appears to be contradictory. It also states that if passages appear contradictory, the reader is at fault because they’ve thought too much. They are admonished to believe absolutely and accept everything contained within its covers must never be questioned,
So on the basis that its claims go further than either the Bible or Koran, my Holy Work takes precedence. There’s even a statement to that effect – that it supercedes every other holy work ever written or likely to be written anytime in the future. Finally it states that if anyone, or any works published or unpublished that in any way contradicts any part of my Holy Work, then that person or work is wrong in his/her/its entirety even if in part he/she/it would have otherwise been in agreement with part of my Holy Work, and if you find that contradictory then you’re a sinner and you must wipe your mind of any such idea and say “Hail Barry” 1000 times every day until you do.
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You may well be on to something here! I mean, if you write a book like you say, people would have to be fools NOT to believe in it. 🙂
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Precisely. But I’ve hit a snag. As the Inspired Author, of an Inspired Work, I only write when I’m inspired. As the only source of inspiration permitted is my Holy Work (and I know that’s true because I was inspired to write that instruction), I must read my Holy Work. The problem is that by doing so I find contradictions. As you know, that’s a sin, and as I overlooked providing an exception for myself, I must perform the required Hail Barry’s. However my Holy Work also states that praising oneself as one praises the author of my Holy Work is a sin, the penance for which is to say “Hail Barry” a hundred times. So the more times I say Hail Barry, the more times I sin and the more times I must say Hail Barry. So clearly I’m a sinner, but my Holy Work says that it’s author is without sin. This seems to be a contradiction which we know isn’t possible because my Holy Work says so. So I must say 1000 Hail Barry’s a day until I stop seeing contradictions. My Holy Work clearly states that anyone who continues sinning knowingly is separated from the source of the inspiration that is contained within my Holy Work. I’m inspired to write some clauses to make exceptions for myself but as I’m in sin I can not be inspired. That also appears to be a contadidiction which we know can’t exist which means I must be a sinner which means that I didn’t write my Inspired Work as its author is without sin, which means any changes I make are not by the true author which means they are forgeries which is not podsible as my Inspired Work is true in its entirety.
I tell you, this writing a Holy Work is enough to do one’s head in which isn’t possible because the author of my Holy Work is entirely sane, and I know this because my Holy Work says so. I think I’m seeing another contradiction that isn’t there.
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Can I just say this is just EPIC Barry.
I think the only solution is for you to regress to the pre-stone age nature of the human mind (Bicameralism) so the contradictions, which may be from within your own mind, can properly be assigned to the “god” which is the left hemisphere talking to the right hemisphere.
Or something. I am easily confused this morning!
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Theism is confusing all the time, not just mornings
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As one who has numerous and very serious doubts about any believer’s claims of supremacy and/or truth, I honestly admit to not having a particular insight into what each denomination or belief validates or rejects. Until such proof prevails, I believe strongly in the old adage: “Ignorance is bliss!” Naked hugs!
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I was around 9 years old when I realized that no adult could answer the questions I had. “You have to just take it on faith”, I was told. Well, a pragmatic mind takes nothing on faith … we believe in that which we can see, that which has reasonable and logical explanations. Religious doctrine, for me, has a number of problems: it contradicts itself, many of the stories are obviously made up, not at all possible, it promotes bigotry and hatred of those who don’t all believe the same, and people sculpt their religion to suit their own desires and convenience. Just my take, but I’ve seen too much horror promoted on the basis of religion to be a “believer”.
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When you are short on facts, you can persuade your audience to rely on faith. And if persuasion fails, violence goes along way in helping people with believing things they would have otherwise considered foolish
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This is very true … we’ve seen it many times throughout history.
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