LidiyaDawn Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Okay so "ghosts" could mean a lot of different things… ghosts, spirits, hauntings, etc…I was aiming for a short title. I guess it might seem like a strange question to ask (then again, I've seen some pretty off the wall things asked around here :p ) but I was thinking about it earlier because dh was watching one of those paranormal investigation type shows - this one was a guy who locates objects that tie a spirit to a specific place, or something like that. Do you believe in ghosts (or other ghosty type things)? Have any paranormal experiences that you want to share? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth in MN Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 No. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skadi Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 No, and I would suggest The Believing Brain to anyone who does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Absolutely not. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheri Warren Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes, and I have compelling reasons to do so. The stuff on those paranormal shows-no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest submarines Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 I had an experience that I can't explain, and even though I can't say I believe in ghosts, I don't dismiss the possibility entirely. It wasn't a typical ghost experience, but just something quite odd, that no one could explain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Do you believe in ghosts (or other ghosty type things)? Have any paranormal experiences that you want to share? Yes I do. And Yes I have had experiences. back when I was 16 my friends and I loved to play with Ouija boards. What I did not know back then is that you should never ever use one by yourself. So I did. That night at 3 am I woke up to the sound of glass breaking. This would have been back in 1993, they sold those mirrors with the "gold" frames and teh white picture on them. I had one up on my wall. My bed was about 2 feet from the wall the mirror hung on. When I turned on my light at 3 am, What I found was my mirror laying broken on the ground. It was obvious it did not just fall though. The gold frame was leaning up against teh bed. The mirror was broken but "together" like a jigsaw puzzle face UP. There is no way it just fell off the wall and landed that way. Following that incident I would constantly hear my name being called but no one there. Hear what sounded like an injured animals in the vent in my room. Hear footsteps upstairs when no one else was home (my room was in the basement). Things would be moved, nothing major, just little things like a glass, or the keys, a pictur frame etc. just shifted out of place, or moved away from where they were. We never actually saw the things move, just found them out of place all the time. I dealt with the noises for years, both in that home and in the first couple places I lived. I thought I was going crazy and even went to my dr and a therapist convinced I was losing it. They both said I was fine, no reason for those things other than an over active imagination. One day they just stopped. It was after I got pg with my oldest and was living with my now ex. By that point I had been dealing with this for 5 years. I didn't know until later in the marriage that his best friend's wife had done a blessing on the house one day when they were over visiting while I was at work. I believe that blessing is what drove out whatever was there. There has been other paranormal experiences over the years but that was the most profound for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Well, do you have to "believe" something if you just know its true because of your experiences? To me, belief is something you take on trust, or faith. When you have experienced something, its just what is, as long as you don't deny your own experience. I don't "believe" in the paranormal, I just know what I know because it's my experience. That doesn't mean I believe everything others call paranormal- there are plenty of crazies out there. I also know that everyone is psychic, and that humans have the capacity for telepathy, but if you don't believe it, or are not at least open to the idea, chances are you will dismiss anything in your experience that contradicts your beliefs. I don't find "beliefs" useful, either way- they are a sort of dead end. I find having an open mind that doesnt need to draw conclusions either way, that is curious yet discriminating, to be far more useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 No, I don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trailofsparks Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 No personal experiences. Have talked with people who have seen things move, lights turn off and on inexplicably, etc. I have no problem believing these things have occured. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Not ghosts in the sense you are talking about- I think when people die they move on. But I strongly believe in spirits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes. I'm choosing not to believe in bad ones though. Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Not the way you're talking about. The scriptures are very clear about the state of the dead. Of course, there are those created to be spirit creatures. Some do God's will. Some have teamed up with the Great Deceiver. I believe the latter have the ability to further mislead people from God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 Well, do you have to "believe" something if you just know its true because of your experiences? To me, belief is something you take on trust, or faith. When you have experienced something, its just what is, as long as you don't deny your own experience. I don't "believe" in the paranormal, I just know what I know because it's my experience. That doesn't mean I believe everything others call paranormal- there are plenty of crazies out there. I also know that everyone is psychic, and that humans have the capacity for telepathy, but if you don't believe it, or are not at least open to the idea, chances are you will dismiss anything in your experience that contradicts your beliefs. I don't find "beliefs" useful, either way- they are a sort of dead end. I find having an open mind that doesnt need to draw conclusions either way, that is curious yet discriminating, to be far more useful. Interesting… I phrased it in the most common way, but you've made a very good with that (and the rest of your post). I don't know specifically about telepathy myself (though I'm open to the idea) but I definitely think that humans have the capacity for a heck of a lot more than we realize & acknowledge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 Not ghosts in the sense you are talking about- I think when people die they move on. But I strongly believe in spirits. Not the way you're talking about. The scriptures are very clear about the state of the dead. Of course, there are those created to be spirit creatures. Some do God's will. Some have teamed up with the Great Deceiver. I believe the latter have the ability to further mislead people from God. theretohere - are you talking about the same sort of thing that Pamela is, or something different? Pamela - when you say "spirit creatures" .. are you referring to the biblical idea of angels and/or demons/devils? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes. I'm choosing not to believe in bad ones though. Rosie I've tried that with people but they just keep popping up. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 This. Growing up in Africa one really can't not believe that there is something out there. One experiences some very powerful things that can't be explained by anything other than the supernatural. Dawn Not ghosts in the sense you are talking about- I think when people die they move on. But I strongly believe in spirits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thescrappyhomeschooler Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes, and I have compelling reasons to do so. The stuff on those paranormal shows-no. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Home'scool Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes, I absolutely do, for a lot of reasons. But I have a funny story to share that turned out to be a ghost hoax .... A few months after my step-father passed away, my mother had a psychic come to our house to do a reading for about 6 of us. She was AMAZING and said things that were spot on. One thing she told my mother was that a favorite item of my step-father's, his coffee cup, would be moved and that she could take that as a sign from him. A few weeks later my brother and I were woken to the sound of my mother yelling at us to "come down to the kitchen, quick!" When we got there she showed us that ALL THE COFFEE CUPS WERE GONE. There wasn't one coffee cup left in the whole house. We all oohhed and aaaahhhed over that for a few days. Then, about a week later, we were woken again to my mother yelling to, again, "come down to the kitchen, quick!" The coffee cups were back! All of them. We were floored. Finally, about a month later, my brother confessed. He had been waking up everyday, getting ready for work, and taking a coffee cup with him in his car to drink during his commute. But, being the lazy-single-guy that he is, when he was done he just put it in the back seat of his car. He didn't realize that he had done this probably 15 times in a row (!) until my mother called attention to the fact that all the coffee cups were gone. Now he realized he had 15 dirty coffee cups clinking around in his back seat and didn't want to fess up. So, he waited a bit and then one night snuck them all back in. I guess he thought blaming it on the great beyond was a good plan? p.s. this happened about 25 years ago. My brother is still single. Anyone wanna guess why? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Okay so "ghosts" could mean a lot of different things… ghosts, spirits, hauntings, etc…I was aiming for a short title. I guess it might seem like a strange question to ask (then again, I've seen some pretty off the wall things asked around here :p ) but I was thinking about it earlier because dh was watching one of those paranormal investigation type shows - this one was a guy who locates objects that tie a spirit to a specific place, or something like that. Do you believe in ghosts (or other ghosty type things)? Have any paranormal experiences that you want to share? No, on a personal level. But, I know too many intelligent, reasonable people who really believe they've had experiences with the paranormal to totally discount it. So I guess I'm a ghost agnostic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2cents Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes. We've had some very odd experiences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 nope Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mytwomonkeys Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 nope Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeekingSimplicity Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yes, and I have compelling reasons to do so. The stuff on those paranormal shows-no. :iagree: This exactly. I've been through too much not to believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasmama Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 No, I do not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nono Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 p.s. this happened about 25 years ago. My brother is still single. Anyone wanna guess why? :D He could never get a date to fit in his car? ;) As to the original question, sure. Why not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 3, 2011 Author Share Posted September 3, 2011 Are any of you who have said yes (or anyone else who sees this who says yes) atheists? The reason I ask - dd14 asked me if a person is "can be an atheist" if they believe (apologies to Peela! That was her word though) in ghosts… Perhaps it would depend on a person's definition of atheism? I said that I think that basically applies just to deity (atheism) so yes, there are prolly atheists who [believe/experience/etc] ghosts….but I could be wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Can ghosts follow you into the bathroom while you go? Can they see you pick your nose? How many can watch at one time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parker Martin Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 No. I don't believe in ghosts. Neither did I believe in ghosts back when I was an atheist. In my experience, the non-ghost-believing-in atheists generally laugh at the expense of the ghost-believing-in atheists. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annandatje Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Atheism is the lack of belief in gods or goddesses. The definition does not extend to other imaginary (or not) beings although it is intuitively logical that atheists would be less likely than other groups to be convinced of existence of ghosts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whereneverever Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 theretohere - are you talking about the same sort of thing that Pamela is, or something different? Pamela - when you say "spirit creatures" .. are you referring to the biblical idea of angels and/or demons/devils? Perhaps similar, but I can't speak for someone else. I don't believe that the spirits of the dead are among us, but I believe in non-corporeal beings- some good, some evil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 3, 2011 Author Share Posted September 3, 2011 Can ghosts follow you into the bathroom while you go? Can they see you pick your nose? How many can watch at one time? Depends how many bars of ghost-away soap you've got in there. Yes, and so can old Mrs. Campbell when she's out trimming her rose bush. CLOSE UR CURTAINS. There aren't any numerical limits for translucent beings. They just peek through each other. :w00t: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquinas Academy Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Not ghosts in the sense you are talking about- I think when people die they move on. But I strongly believe in spirits. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 3, 2011 Author Share Posted September 3, 2011 Atheism is the lack of belief in gods or goddesses. The definition does not extend to other imaginary (or not) beings although it is intuitively logical that atheists would be less likely than other groups to be convinced of existence of ghosts. Yeah that makes sense. I know where her question came from…she's considering herself as maybe being an atheist but at the same time she does think there are indeed ghosts and/or other types of things like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skadi Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 The reason I ask - dd14 asked me if a person is "can be an atheist" if they believe (apologies to Peela! That was her word though) in ghosts… Atheists are skeptical of supernatural claims. Technically speaking, deities are as much supernatural as ghosts or fairies (using the definition of supernatural as something outside of nature, i.e. has not been scientifically observed). In other words, because scientists have been trying to find evidence for ghosts for a really long time without success, I would be extremely confused to find an atheist who said they believed in ghosts. What that atheist would be saying is, "I am taking this belief on faith." Why would they then believe in ghosts and not gods? Or unicorns? For anyone who might say, "Well, the atheist might say that he saw a ghost and has to believe what he sees," well...that's not really logical. I would hope they could understand that we do not base reality on what our brains think they see or feel but on what can be observed and tested outside of our little brains. The fact that there are so many studies out there that help explain how and when and why we believe we see ghosts is evidence enough to at least make a ghost-believer into a ghost-agnostic if they familiarized themselves with the data, IMHO. A secondary point would be, why do souls exist? Why would an atheist believe they exist if there is no evidence for them? What evolutionary imperative would be there for ghosts? To try to divorce the concept of ghosts from the concept of a soul and hence some sort of deity doesn't make sense to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Now I'm curious which paranormal show you were watching. Ghosts--no. Demons--yes. Personal experiences--yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 (edited) I believe there are still paranormal phenomenon out there that are not yet explained by science. But I believe all paranormal/supernatural phenomenon - up to and including God - are ultimately explainable by science. Caveat being that human beings may not be capable of conceiving everything that could, theoretically (given infinite intellectual capacity) be explained by science. And I don't think that these things can *always* be explained by psychology (i.e. "The Believing Brain") or by ordinary mechanics. A lot of it is (perhaps most), but I don't think all of it is. I do suspect human beings and animals occasionally perceive stuff that bubbles up from the generally unseen facets of reality. Edited September 3, 2011 by zenjenn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funschooler5 Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Atheists are skeptical of supernatural claims. Technically speaking, deities are as much supernatural as ghosts or fairies (using the definition of supernatural as something outside of nature, i.e. has not been scientifically observed). In other words, because scientists have been trying to find evidence for ghosts for a really long time without success, I would be extremely confused to find an atheist who said they believed in ghosts. What that atheist would be saying is, "I am taking this belief on faith." Why would they then believe in ghosts and not gods? Or unicorns? Not all atheists are scientific materialists, though. If someone is, then a belief in ghosts wouldn't fit. But, if they aren't, then I can see how they could believe there was no higher power but also believe that ghosts can exist. I've known a few atheists who believed in ghosts due to personal experiences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudyJudyJudy Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 No, I don't believe in ghosts, spirits, or anything of that nature. I grew up in a house that was supposedly haunted, yet I never had any experiences myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 3, 2011 Author Share Posted September 3, 2011 Atheists are skeptical of supernatural claims. Technically speaking, deities are as much supernatural as ghosts or fairies (using the definition of supernatural as something outside of nature, i.e. has not been scientifically observed). In other words, because scientists have been trying to find evidence for ghosts for a really long time without success, I would be extremely confused to find an atheist who said they believed in ghosts. What that atheist would be saying is, "I am taking this belief on faith." Why would they then believe in ghosts and not gods? Or unicorns? For anyone who might say, "Well, the atheist might say that he saw a ghost and has to believe what he sees," well...that's not really logical. I would hope they could understand that we do not base reality on what our brains think they see or feel but on what can be observed and tested outside of our little brains. The fact that there are so many studies out there that help explain how and when and why we believe we see ghosts is evidence enough to at least make a ghost-believer into a ghost-agnostic if they familiarized themselves with the data, IMHO. A secondary point would be, why do souls exist? Why would an atheist believe they exist if there is no evidence for them? What evolutionary imperative would be there for ghosts? To try to divorce the concept of ghosts from the concept of a soul and hence some sort of deity doesn't make sense to me. Well - she's only 14. ;) This atheist thing is new… but it came up in relation to the ghosts, so I thought I'd ask.. and I do understand what you're saying. I think she's able to balance the two because she doesn't really break it all down like that.. I don't think she's considered the ghosts/souls connection… I DO think that she'd quite happily believe in unicorns if she had even the slightest inkling that they *might* be real. :p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyinTN Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 yes and no...how's that for an answer. ;) When we lived in Barstow, CA we rented a home there. Our ds was only 2 1/2 years old. He would see things and become hysterical for no reason. Very weird stuff happened at that house. It was as if you could feel someone watching you. The hair on my neck would stickout sometimes for no reason. I detested that house. That was the longest 6 months of our lives. When we moved to post at Fort Bliss our son never had another episode again. Our girls still talk about that house and how it made them feel. Scary! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 3, 2011 Author Share Posted September 3, 2011 Our ds was only 2 1/2 years old. He would see things and become hysterical for no reason. I've heard that kids might be more.. sensitive? …to these things because they don't yet have the skepticism that comes with growing up…or something like that anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted September 3, 2011 Author Share Posted September 3, 2011 Now I'm curious which paranormal show you were watching. Haunted Collector - that's the wikipedia entry..the actual site doesn't want to load up for me right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Really? Who told you it was haunted? Did you hear stories? Did anyone else experience anything. When we have been looking for houses in the past I have had two times particularly when I just sensed something a bit ominous in the house. Even though I actually really liked one of the houses, there was no way I was moving in after having that eery feeling. Dawn No, I don't believe in ghosts, spirits, or anything of that nature. I grew up in a house that was supposedly haunted, yet I never had any experiences myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Yes I believe in "spirits." I don't know what they are, but believe they may be as others have described them. Yes, I have had some experiences. Yes, I have seen them go when a house is blessed.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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