In the words of Pascal, "... Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is... If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing." In simpler terms, this means that people who do not believe in God should because if God is real and you do believe, you will gain eternal happiness and safety. But if this God you believed in turns out not to exist, you don't lose anything because you never thought he existed in the first place. Johnny Gunther, I believe, did experience Pascal's Gambit.
Though Johnny was not a religious person his entire life, I think he did believe in God. I don't think he believed as God being a person, but rather as, " 'God is what's good in [him],' " as he discovered when he was 6. Though the fact that he thought that there was "too much religion [in school]" may make him seem a bit atheist, I believe that he was agnostic. Because in school, they most likely taught him that God was a person and that you must follow the rules he set forth to be 'saved'. Johnny, I think, doubted God as an almighty being, but he believed that as long as he was good to all, that God existed as the goodness within him. "There was absolutely no trace in him of malice... he... had been given... goodness, gentleness, and warmth of spirit..," his father wrote of him. " 'He was always a person and my friend,' " a schoolmate noted about Johnny. From the age of 6, when he decided that he knew what God was, he believed this his whole life and followed through with being the greatest friend and son.
Pascal's Gambit suggests that believing in God is a simple wager. This 'wager' of Johnny's has paid off either way. If there is no God, he loses nothing, and gains the hearts of those he touched and did good for during his lifetime. If there is a God, he gains safety and eternal happiness along with the hearts of those he touched. Hopefully for Johnny, I hope there is a God because he deserves eternal happiness. There aren't too many people "who [think]... [continues]
Though Johnny was not a religious person his entire life, I think he did believe in God. I don't think he believed as God being a person, but rather as, " 'God is what's good in [him],' " as he discovered when he was 6. Though the fact that he thought that there was "too much religion [in school]" may make him seem a bit atheist, I believe that he was agnostic. Because in school, they most likely taught him that God was a person and that you must follow the rules he set forth to be 'saved'. Johnny, I think, doubted God as an almighty being, but he believed that as long as he was good to all, that God existed as the goodness within him. "There was absolutely no trace in him of malice... he... had been given... goodness, gentleness, and warmth of spirit..," his father wrote of him. " 'He was always a person and my friend,' " a schoolmate noted about Johnny. From the age of 6, when he decided that he knew what God was, he believed this his whole life and followed through with being the greatest friend and son.
Pascal's Gambit suggests that believing in God is a simple wager. This 'wager' of Johnny's has paid off either way. If there is no God, he loses nothing, and gains the hearts of those he touched and did good for during his lifetime. If there is a God, he gains safety and eternal happiness along with the hearts of those he touched. Hopefully for Johnny, I hope there is a God because he deserves eternal happiness. There aren't too many people "who [think]... [continues]
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