Atheists Explain Yourself

[Atreyu]

It seems to me that there is a lot of theists out there that have a very negative image of atheists. Some of the more extreme views are that we are paedophiles, we eat babies or that we are in league with the devil (which is kinda stupid because if we don't believe in any gods then we cant believe in the devil)

So i think we should give the atheists a chance to "try" to explain to those theists out there that we are actually nice, moral, benign people.

Now i can only speak for myself in this so here goes:

I don't believe in any gods not just the yours, so please don't take it personally. I have never seen any gods or any proof of them. I don't deny the existence of gods as i have yet to see anything to deny.

If a god popped up and said hello to me then i would have to believe in him or her because to do so would be ignorant.

Furthermore i am a nice person. I don't cheat, i don't steal, i donate both time and money to charities, i'm am currently studying to become a counsellor and i plan on devoting the rest of my life to helping people.

I believe much like theists that there is something greater than us out there, there is evidence of this. However i don't believe that it resides in some kind of sentient being.

So that's my story, i invite other atheists to post their views on their atheism. I also invite theists to ask us questions about our beliefs (but please don't ask questions the "why do you deny the existence of god" questions as this is rude in an atheism section)

-Q

I once stumbled into a conversation at work about religion and the topic of discussion was what religion you are. When I was asked and responded that I was an athiest the people (all christains) literally gasped. They were in shock. One woman would no longer even speak to me and told me strait to my face that I was the devils advocate. I have always been considered a moral human being and well liked amongst my peers, but some christains are actually afraid of us.

Personally now that I live by the guidelines of Satanism (an atheist who likes to have more fun) I find the shock value quite entertaining.

 

[OmarKhayyam]

Perhaps you should take a look into their scriptures. then you would easily see why atheists are considered bad.

One reason why i do not use the term at all for myself.

There is the female comedian who once spoke about their parents reaction when they found out she had left Christianity.
Something like:
"An atheist? Well not believing in God is one thing but ......being an ATHEIST, how could you do that?"

And Kathy's point was it isn't a joke. Both the story and the point she is making are quite real. For the religious among us not believing in THEIR god is a bad thing. But is at least only an honest mistake. One that can be corrected with the proper prayer and reflection and encouragement.

But deny ALL gods, to deny the supernatural, to deny we are immortal souls - THAT is inexcusable. That reduces man to an ANIMAL. It reduces life to an animal existence. It robs humanity of EVERY noble feature, every moral aspiration, every artistic quality. If we have no immortality then we really are just naked apes.

And you are telling THEM they are just animals. No more worthy of respect than an ant or a virus.

Doesn't sit very well.

 

[Nepenthe]

If a god popped up and said hello to me then i would have to believe in him or her because to do so would be ignorant.

Madhuri and Alceste already approached this one but it's interesting to me. I suppose my being convinced of a god's existence would depend on what kind of encounter I had with the god(s). A sense of the luminous, some kind of transcendental experience that convinced me of a "presence" might point me in the right direction but I don't think that'd be enough. A voice, a physical appearance in the absence of other witnesses and/or documented evidence- that would have me questioning my brain chemistry more than acknowledging a deity. Even something like paleontologists discovering a Triassic fossil inscribed with the Lord's prayer or Pyramid Texts with a detailed description of the Krebs Cycle would be amazing, but would just as likely point to e.t.s or time travel as it would any gods. I suppose the short answer would be any kind of convincing evidence would depend on what kind of deities were being proposed, and I have yet to see a coherent description of a god or gods so it's hard to even guess at what would be convincing.

 

[Alceste]

Madhuri and Alceste already approached this one but it's interesting to me. I suppose my being convinced of a god's existence would depend on what kind of encounter I had with the god(s). A sense of the luminous, some kind of transcendental experience that convinced me of a "presence" might point me in the right direction but I don't think that'd be enough. A voice, a physical appearance in the absence of other witnesses and/or documented evidence- that would have me questioning my brain chemistry more than acknowledging a deity. Even something like paleontologists discovering a Triassic fossil inscribed with the Lord's prayer or Pyramid Texts with a detailed description of the Krebs Cycle would be amazing, but would just as likely point to e.t.s or time travel as it would any gods. I suppose the short answer would be any kind of convincing evidence would depend on what kind of deities were being proposed, and I have yet to see a coherent description of a god or gods so it's hard to even guess at what would be convincing.

Yeh - it sounds like your mind works the way mine does. I consider all the possible causes of any phenomenon and lean toward the most likely explanation. When things defy explanation - like some of my experiences of what would ordinarily be called "psychic" insights - I'm happy to simply leave them unexplained. For now. At least until physicists really get going on the (apparently) non-linear nature of time and space, and neurologists sort out the (apparently) fuzzy boundary between subjective and collective thought.

 

[Amill]

I think I'm an alright guy. I get a long with pretty much everyone I meet, never have issues with people, usually only **** people off when I take jokes or sarcasm too far. I'm 22 and the kind of guy that is nearly always willing to go out and do something with friends. I'm fairly shy with people I don't know but I'm pretty open and fun with friends and people I feel comfortable with. I do a lot of stupid and funny things when I get drunk so I'm usually the guy everyone likes to hang around for entertainment. I get bored extremely easily and spend most of my day thinking about the weekend or about the Universe. I've been addicted to space stuff since I was a kid and I originally went to college to be an aerospace engineer. I got my butt whooped in some classes and was falling behind so I transferred back home and I am currently working towards a paramedic degree. May eventually do nursing because I've enjoyed the time I've spent in ERs.

The biggest and first turnoff of religion for me was the idea that only one was correct and no one else got to share in the pleasure of afterlife. I especially hated, and still do, the idea that people go to hell because they have the wrong idea about the Cosmos. I always hoped as a kid that reincarnation is true, and still do for the most part. I think this life is the real deal, so we should try to enjoy ourselves. There's no point in going through all this **** unhappy if everything might just fade to black at the end. I think the Universe is beyond anything we can even imagine, and that it is completely unfair to punish someone when they have done nothing wrong(my opinion of course). I feel forever unsatisfied with the fact that the existence of the Universe makes no sense. Why is there something instead of nothing? Like philosophers used to say. It kind of drives me nuts, but I think everyone should find their own truths, and treat everyone else with respect and as equals if they deserve it. Everybody love everybody.

I don't believe a god is intervening at all in our lives because it doesn't make any sense to me. Thousands of kids die everyday of starvation but god is spending time to put food on my plate? yea right. In fact, I hope that there isn't a god watching out because I find it unfair that he would help some and not others. Why would he help us fat americans with our depressions and sicknesses when far more people are suffering elsewhere and receiving no help? Just doesn't make sense to me... doctors don't pray when someone goes into cardiac arrest.

Oh and driving over squirrels or turtles ruins my day.

 

[ManTimeForgot]

Madhuri and Alceste already approached this one but it's interesting to me. I suppose my being convinced of a god's existence would depend on what kind of encounter I had with the god(s). A sense of the luminous, some kind of transcendental experience that convinced me of a "presence" might point me in the right direction but I don't think that'd be enough. A voice, a physical appearance in the absence of other witnesses and/or documented evidence- that would have me questioning my brain chemistry more than acknowledging a deity. Even something like paleontologists discovering a Triassic fossil inscribed with the Lord's prayer or Pyramid Texts with a detailed description of the Krebs Cycle would be amazing, but would just as likely point to e.t.s or time travel as it would any gods. I suppose the short answer would be any kind of convincing evidence would depend on what kind of deities were being proposed, and I have yet to see a coherent description of a god or gods so it's hard to even guess at what would be convincing.

And that's just it. There is nothing which could possibly substantiate the existence of a "god" because any "god" that is Real is actually just an advanced ET. *shrug*

The million dollar question is what could possibly serve as evidence of "God" of some sort, but as you point out there isn't exactly consensus on what such a being actually is. And without a definition it isn't really possible to evidence it.

If "Ultimate Reality" (the most advanced thing that can be) was all one was referring to, then I have been convinced through debate on these boards that referring to such a thing as "God" is a bit of a misnomer. "God" carries with it religious characteristics which serve to "guide" one's thoughts towards inapplicable concepts or human desires. Essentially "God" is my "God" is better than all your "gods" because they are just "demons," not something which can be used to explain cosmology nor explain existence.

MTF

 

[Irish]

Yes, I am an atheist and a few years ago I would have hidden that from my public life. Now I freely admit who I am.

I am an atheist simply because I am not a theist. I have not seen any valid evidence to support the notion of a god, any god whether it be the Abrahamic gods or any god with any personal definition applied.

In public and in private it is a mix of feelings toward me being an atheist. The religious individuals that I have spoken to at my university are not hateful or have any fear or anger of atheists. Allow there is a mistrust. Across the various internet forums I participate in there are mixed reactions in posts and emails. Some are death threats, physical threats, messages of pity, "I'll pray for you", [insert religious argument here] messages, or messages simply stating that I am an immoral and evil ******* deserving of the fire of hell.

However, most messages are ones of mistrust and a questioning insight but no threat of violence or anger.

 

[Magic Man]

First of all i want to emphasize that i am not an "atheist".
I abhor that term.

Its an absolute no go for me.

Why? Because of the negative connotations other have assigned to it?

 

[cablescavenger]

Something I used to find really annoying when debating with atheists was that even in the hypothetical situation that God presented himself to one of these atheists they would still refuse to believe that it is God unless they were able to stick him in a lab and do tests on him (which is rediculous). Otherwise you know, they are probably just having a psychotic episode and imagining him. Personal observation/experience is not valid enough. It seems a bit silly to me because then no matter if God exists or not, these guys will refuse to believe it!

Of course, these people I refer to were a specific bunch on a different web site.

Hi Madhuri,

I am sure you do think it ridiculous because you have faith in God, and you are not applying any probability to your reasoning.

For example my wife works in mental health and has had many people claim to be God, have had a child with God, or seen God, but I don't recall her ever telling me about the hordes of Christians picketing outside the hospital demanding to speak with their God.

So taking another example, let us suppose someone claimed to be your God, but was arrested under the mental health act, and you read about it in your local newspaper, and there was a picture of them being dragged off by two police officers, so you could see they were real, does that then make it true for you?

I am sure it wouldn't be too difficult to track someone down who would not only tell you they were your God, but they would be convinced of it, and be pretty annoyed if you called that in to question.

In other words lapsed mental health is extremely common, and yet God extremely rare, by the law of probability, if you see a God, the probability of it being real are certainly less than 1 in several trillion, so it makes sense to check with others.

 

[Viker]

A) It's not that I believe there is no god. It is that I lack any belief whatsoever in any god(-s). Believing there is no god would require some formula or itinerary I am not capable or willing to produce. So there it is, I simply lack any faith or belief.

B) I do not believe the universe was "created". It appears eternal as in there is no starting point and no end point. There seems to have always been some form of matter and space, what ever their proportion or constitution. There could have been a point where the universe came into it's present state. That's not an actual starting point and does not mean there was a God behind it all.

C) About morality. I believe there is a sense of right and wrong. Whatever violates the self is wrong ( i.e. rape, murder, theft, fraud, etc. ) and not only violates a self but the many other selves around. What ever elevates and aids the self is good and does good for others as well. One should be held responsible for their actions and be willing to do so for them selves. We are all connected little selves, we need each other and desire interaction among each other. There should be some moral standard.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Hi Madhuri,

I am sure you do think it ridiculous because you have faith in God, and you are not applying any probability to your reasoning.

For example my wife works in mental health and has had many people claim to be God, have had a child with God, or seen God, but I don't recall her ever telling me about the hordes of Christians picketing outside the hospital demanding to speak with their God.

So taking another example, let us suppose someone claimed to be your God, but was arrested under the mental health act, and you read about it in your local newspaper, and there was a picture of them being dragged off by two police officers, so you could see they were real, does that then make it true for you?

I am sure it wouldn't be too difficult to track someone down who would not only tell you they were your God, but they would be convinced of it, and be pretty annoyed if you called that in to question.

In other words lapsed mental health is extremely common, and yet God extremely rare, by the law of probability, if you see a God, the probability of it being real are certainly less than 1 in several trillion, so it makes sense to check with others.

True.

 

[Caladan]

So that's my story, i invite other atheists to post their views on their atheism. I also invite theists to ask us questions about our beliefs (but please don't ask questions the "why do you deny the existence of god" questions as this is rude in an atheism section)

-Q

Myself and the people I grew up with are atheist by default. we grew up in a secular environment.
just as some people grew up in an environment where they attend church on Sunday, we grew up in an environment in which our cultural or spiritual dimensions were filled by other activities.
just as some people find it natural that they are Christian, and that their life is characterised by Christian symbolism and dogma, it was natural for us to have god out of the picture.
to sum it up, atheism for me is a natural default, it is not a unique choice and doesn't necessarily conjure a social statement.

 

[Alceste]

Myself and the people I grew up with are atheist by default. we grew up in a secular environment.
just as some people grew up in an environment where they attend church on Sunday, we grew up in an environment in which our cultural or spiritual dimensions were filled by other activities.
just as some people find it natural that they are Christian, and that their life is characterised by Christian symbolism and dogma, it was natural for us to have god out of the picture.
to sum it up, atheism for me is a natural default, it is not a unique choice and doesn't necessarily conjure a social statement.

I went to church growing up, but it never even occurred to me to take any of the stories I heard there as factual claims. I can't recall ever believing in the Christian god. For a while after I left the conservative town I grew up in I tried to believe in some other god - like a pantheistic or pagan one, but that didn't take either. So I suppose I just don't have the right constitution for this kind of belief. I am skeptical of everything - I consider even my most strongly held beliefs well-supported speculations, and often change them in response to credible or convincing new information.