Why are you an atheist?

[theirreverentconcubine]

Originally Posted by T-Dawg

For divinity in general, we turn to the real "god," Reality.

This is messing up, right here.

I'm not over here trying to convert you to Set, I'm telling you the truth as I understand it. Humans can be reduced to many dualities, but the one that applies in this situation is the one of pattern. We recognize pattern, we reinforce pattern. Truth has always been a matter of philosophy, but being a duality, how can I speak truth? The answer seems to be - only through dualities - therefore atheism is not enough. Reality merely the most reinforced pattern; real must be the philosopher.

Those who follow a god seem to like idols, so let's give Reality an Idol. How about the Standard Model Lagrangian? From what I know of QM (and listening to others who know QM), that Idol about covers it.

Except for the Higgs, which we take on faith.

[cottage]

Originally Posted by Just_me_Mike

So in a nut shell, everyone of you are of superior intelligence when compared to God (any god)?

Doesn't that answer presuppose the existence of the very thing for which atheists are saying there is no evidence? How can one claim to be superior to a non-existent thing?

[T-Dawg]

Originally Posted by Falvlun

Wait. So wouldn't this mean that you aren't an atheist, since you believe God exists?

I don't believe God exists, but I generally live my life as if I was operating a one man rebellion against him.

It's really not particularly relevant if God exists, given that he is obviously not worthy of worship and if he does exist, almost always works through solely his followers.

I'm not over here trying to convert you to Set, I'm telling you the truth as I understand it. Humans can be reduced to many dualities, but the one that applies in this situation is the one of pattern. We recognize pattern, we reinforce pattern. Truth has always been a matter of philosophy, but being a duality, how can I speak truth? The answer seems to be - only through dualities - therefore atheism is not enough. Reality merely the most reinforced pattern; real must be the philosopher.

Those who follow a god seem to like idols, so let's give Reality an Idol. How about the Standard Model Lagrangian? From what I know of QM (and listening to others who know QM), that Idol about covers it.

I'm not exactly sure what you're arguing here, but I'm not sure where the duality thing is coming from. I always envisioned Reality as having the distinct trait one being single; there is only one reality for all people, and only one correct answer to most questions.

[theirreverentconcubine]

Originally Posted by T-Dawg

I'm not exactly sure what you're arguing here, but I'm not sure where the duality thing is coming from. I always envisioned Reality as having the distinct trait one being single; there is only one reality for all people, and only one correct answer to most questions.

When you stop believing in reality, reality starts to believe in you.

Duality comes from identity; the "I" now/the "I" eternal, eternal in the sense of core ideal. "One reality for all" is patently absurd and easily falsified (it is more diplomatic to say "one reality for all for all time" is patently absurd ); just being away from my people back east, I know my Phoenix reality is not theirs. Memory deceives, the mind has evolved to create simulation of every depth and flavor; science has got a way to go before eliminating these dualities.

[Qymaen]

I plain don't like religion. I study history. I've studied religious history fairly extensively and the intolerance that the religious have shown to their own people and others just disgusts me. The conflicts that arose out of the Reformation alone make me cringe. The Crusades, the French Religious Wars, the suppression of the Hussites, etc. All of it just feeds my disdain for religion.

Then there's the fact that the supposedly benevolent God that Christians believe in would allow such things as the Rape of Nanking, the Sack of Jerusalem, or the Holocaust to even occur. If there was a God, I'd imagine him as apathetic and uncaring, possibly even sadistic.

[cottage]

Originally Posted by Nick Soapdish

If you are an atheist, what is the biggest reason?

For me the biggest reason, by far, is because religious explanations make no sense.

Every possible form of argument is employed to defend what the theists cannot even prove to themselves:

Contradictions are not contradictions and what is impossible can with a special plea become possible. And anything that is wrong only appears to be wrong because the unbeliever has misunderstood the symbolism, allegory, or the subtle theological nuances. The truths of some texts cannot be understood by ordinary folk but can only be interpreted by theologians and scholarly exegesis. And how, it is asked, can it be said of a thing that it doesn't exist when one is unable to prove that it doesn't exist? And yet we know religious texts are true because they are the word of God. Therefore God's existence is demonstrated by the truth of the religious texts. And where would we get our moral code if there were no moral arbiter? In answer to that, believers can't point to the evil and wretchedness that exists in the world and say that as God made evil possible he cannot be a morally good and perfect being because that is to presuppose knowledge of God's ultimate plan. And so on and so forth.

Fudge and yet more fudge. Theists aren't defending God by such apologetic offerings; they are defending what they would like to believe to be true, and they have to defend it because they've committed to it (a human defence mechanism we all share to some extent).

Some religionists attempt to put some credible meat on the bones of their belief-as-faith by appealing to a non-doctrinal, metaphysical hypothesis, such a the concept of an Uncaused Cause or a necessary being upon which contingent being exists. But that is fallacious and only serves to cast even more doubt upon the mystical beliefs because no religious doctrines are logically necessary to such a concept, and they cannot therefore be claimed to inhere within it.

[9Westy9]

Used to be religious (evangelical Christian) but after looking at things more openly decided that there is no good evidence to make me believe

[England my lionheart]

I voted no credible evidence,for me it started at Sunday School when i was a Kid and the logistics of Noahs Ark,the biggest reason though watching all those devout religious people praying for deliverance from poverty,war,famine,persecution and decease and not getting any ,belief in a God/s doesn't appear to come with any benefit plus i'm not into slavery and torture.

[Ignite]

I couldn't find him on facebook

[Bob L]

I became an atheist after much soul-searching and examinations of the facts. I'm 58 years old, and I was brought up in a French-Canadian Catholic family, so the Catholic faith was drilled into me from the get-go. My brain was full of religious memes, or what Dr. Wayne Dyer so aptly calls "viruses". It took many years of work to remove those viruses from my brain, with the result that I am now more free and happier than I have ever been, simply because I am no longer a slave to a myth. My wife, who is heavily Roman Catholic (with a pinch of Evangelical Christianity thrown in for good measure), is convinced that I'm headed straight to hell, but I tell her not to worry, because there is no hell!

One thing that I'm convinced of is that organized religion, especially Christianity, is eventually destined to disappear from the face of the Earth. Information is religion's greatest enemy, and with the advent of the Internet information has never been easier to obtain. As more and more people educate themselves to the truth about gods and religion, more and more will see it for what it is - just a myth. It might take centuries, but in time religion will become irrelevant in this world, and eventually simply fade away.