Zamiel : If I offended you than I do apologize. I did not mean my comments the way you might have thought.

JigSaw : How are you? When I first read this post I was like "Whoa" lol not because I am offended by the post, but because the initial post seems to be somewhat cluttered with several questions and assumptions. But I would like to attempt to answer your question in a non-biased and non-argumentative fashion. I believe the essential question you are asking is "Government=God?" (thread's title) or in other words "Does Government equal God?" I think it's important to define both terms before asking if they are equal to one another or synonomous. What I have done was looked up the definitions for both terms and the following definitions are provided courtesy of the Merriam-Webster online dictionary website. I decided to go from this website because I know Merriam-Webster have been trusted sources of definitions for many years.

God:

Pronunciation: ˈgäd also ˈgȯd
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German got god
Date: before 12th century

1 capitalized : the supreme or ultimate reality: as a : the Being perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness who is worshipped as creator and ruler of the universe b Christian Science : the incorporeal divine Principle ruling over all as eternal Spirit : infinite Mind

2 : a being or object believed to have more than natural attributes and powers and to require human worship; specifically : one controlling a particular aspect or part of reality

3 : a person or thing of supreme value

4 : a powerful ruler


and...


Government:

Pronunciation: ˈgə-vər(n)-mənt, -və-mənt; ˈgə-bəm-ənt, -vəm-
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Date: 14th century

1 : the act or process of governing; specifically : authoritative direction or control

2 obsolete : moral conduct or behavior : discretion

3 a : the office, authority, or function of governing b obsolete : the term during which a governing official holds office

4 : the continuous exercise of authority over and the performance of functions for a political unit : rule

5 a : the organization, machinery, or agency through which a political unit exercises authority and performs functions and which is usually classified according to the distribution of power within it b : the complex of political institutions, laws, and customs through which the function of governing is carried out

6 : the body of persons that constitutes the governing authority of a political unit or organization: as a : the officials comprising the governing body of a political unit and constituting the organization as an active agency b capitalized : the executive branch of the United States federal government c capitalized : a small group of persons holding simultaneously the principal political executive offices of a nation or other political unit and being responsible for the direction and supervision of public affairs: (1) : such a group in a parliamentary system constituted by the cabinet or by the ministry (2) : administration 4b

7 : political science







Ok... Now that we've taken a look at some of the widely accepted definitions for each term provided by Merriam-Webster, lets get back to the initial question "Does Government equal God?" and my answer and comments.

Although both posses similiar qualities and attributes, we can not conclude they are equal. Water is a clear liquid. Vinegar is a clear liquid. Both are very similar in appearance and composition. However, it can't be concluded they are the same. So my verdict for your thread is "No."

Thank you to all of you who took the time to read my post.

edison131 :

Did you read JigSaw's post? He was not saying that Government is exactly God, so you could use the definitions to compare them... but he was saying that the government is like god in the sense that it filled in the role of god in society...

He was not saying that you could take the definitions of government and god and they would match...

edison131 : Judging it on definitions doesn't work. You have to judge it based on the bible and how government is exactly like god. Government judges in same fashion to god only difference is the bibles version is a metaphor while governments version is real life terms.

I'll put it this way, people rely on god just like they do on government. When someone has a problem in their life some might go to god while others will go to government. People follow gods laws like they do with governments laws. God can forgive just like government can and when the sin is bad enough god sends you to "metaphor" hell while government sends you to real life hell "prison".

As you can see, they are more related then you make it out to be based on just the definitions

septembern : Exactly my point Comparing definitions is like ignoring all of what I wrote in my original post. Toss away the biblical nonsense and the webster dictonary crap and you will see the point of this discussion that they are exactly alike possibly the same entity using a 2 way mirror for ultimate control

@jigsaw
I agree. Also well written.

JigSaw : ok but still? they have similar characteristics. big deal. was that the main point of the thread? of course they would be similar because the supreme law or the original law and first primative forms of government were inspired by biblical God, that is even if you want to use biblical terms because you contradict yourself by telling me you have to base it from the biblical definition of God then you point out to septembern to toss the biblical definition and websters "crap", which both happen to be world renowned sources of information. if i'm confused it's due to such contradictions. so if you toss the definitions then where are you getting the definitions from? your own? then of course they'll be the same from your perspective because you created their definitions. who can debate that? and once again, although they share similar properties, it does not make them the same entity.

JigSaw : You are calling Biblical events "metaphors"... yet, the Bible has been shown to be very reliable. And if some of it is true, then based on the connections between every event in the Bible, the whole thing better be true. I have seen enough evidence to toss out this "metaphor" idea you have, not only of God's existence, but also of the historical truth of the Bible.

bignatealpha : Just because there are historical truths in a book does not mean the whole thing is true. Have you ever walked into a library? There's a whole section called historical fiction. Is everything in those books true? I'm not trying to sound mean or anything so sorry if it sounds like it is.

Zamiel : But the Bible is not a book to be found there. It is written and presented as truth, and therefore if some is true, then I take it all as true. Every story, every passage is so interrelated that it makes no sense to believe otherwise.

bignatealpha : I guess it's just me then. I find it even hard to believe history text books half the time. Too many changes have been made to history for me to accept anything as solid truth. I'm sure there are plenty of different explanations for things in the bible.