There are a variety of reasons for why I am an atheist. For the poll, I picked that my largest reason was the lack of evidence in a god.
-I simply see no reason to believe in any sort of consciousness governing the universe. I am agnostic on the matter of the origin of existence, if there even was an origin, and some form of god may exist, but I have no reason to believe such.
-Some theistic claims are able to be demonstrated to be false, or are just inherently nonsensical, or out outrageously immoral.
-All throughout human history, humans have been creating gods in their image. There are pantheons of gods, several conceptions of omnimax creator gods, several attempts to explain how life works, and so forth, and they are a dime a dozen. In my opinion it's usually the method itself that is to blame, because most of these things are not determined through reason but instead through blind claims and eager followers.
-Religious texts that I've read tend to be very uninspiring to me. Some of the most widespread religions in the world, when it comes down to it, state that god once commanded genocide of random towns or called for the stoning of people for silly "crimes" like homosexuality, approaching the alter incorrectly, or picking up sticks on the wrong day. An exception is the Bhagavad Gita which I like very much.
-The problem of pain and evil, as you call it, is another big reason. I prefer to simply call it the problem of suffering, though. In my subjective and rather pessimistic opinion, the universe does not appear to be thought-through or designed. It appears as though I'd imagine it to appear if it existed without a god. Furthermore, the suffering was present long before humanity showed up. This doesn't necessarily mean that a god doesn't exist, but it seems a pretty big strike against the idea unless some sort of reason can be given as to why this is the case.
Well there are many Atheists here plugging away at it, day in and day out! BUT WHY?
Dont true none beleivers steer clear of religion instead of been obsessed by it?
Just curious.
Just how it apeers to me that non beleievers on any religious forums know more about religion than some religious people. So what is it then if not an obsession? not all atheists are trolls or are out to take the micky of religion etc but have a genuine curiosity. Or do Atheist hang out for hope, wanting religion to be true because of something that happened in there life!
When I was an atheist I just wouldnt entertain religion at all but when I started to seek it to try and understand it and to understand myself I was no longer an atheist.
Now I am the Messiah heh heh.
But why are atheists so into Religion? You are fascinated by Religion and thats a good enough reason for me lol
Not believing in any deities does not mean one does not find religion uninteresting. Many spiritual paths don't even include any deities.
Although I'm not a theist, religion interests me because it's basically a collection of all the answers (good and bad) that humanity has come up with to life's biggest questions over the last several thousand years. It's a story of us wrestling with our existence and condition. Understanding how someone feels about their religion often says a lot about them.
There are some religions and religious people that I respect very much. I also incorporate several philosophical and religious principles into my worldview and lifestyle.
My approach to religious discussion is more like an approach to philosophical discussion. I like to determine what people believe and why they believe it regardless of their particular stance.
-Lyn