Everyone on RF is really an atheist.

[ChristineES]

I don't agree with the OP for one simple reason- Atheists don't believe in any kind of supreme being at all, by any name. If a Christian rejects the Hindu God (or Gods)he or she will still believe in a God.

 

[Beaudreaux]

Atheism is the position that deities do not exist,[1] or the rejection of theism.[2] In the broadest sense, it is the absence of belief in the existence of deities. From Wikipedia

Aethism is the denial of all gods existence. If you believe in only 1 god but not the rest you are a theist not an atheist. If your definition differs then you live in your own reality. :yes:

The O.P. should be read by looking at the title and then actually reading the first sentence.

Everyone on RF is really an atheist. ...with regard to one God or another.
​

Your masterful command of dictionary skillz is laudable, but you miss the point of the thread.

 

[Enoch07]

Everyone on RF is really an atheist. ...with regard to one God or another is an illogical statement. Atheist believe in no deitys at all. So to say everyone on RF is atheist is to say that everyone here believes that there is no god(s) at all. Which is an incorrect statement.

 

[Beaudreaux]

Everyone on RF is really an atheist. ...with regard to one God or another is an illogical statement. Atheist believe in no deitys at all. So to say everyone on RF is atheist is to say that everyone here believes that there is no god(s) at all. Which is an incorrect statement.

The point I am making is that everyone knows how to THINK like an atheist with regard to other gods. You are a Christian. I am an atheist. Yet we both take the same approach to Zeus. We do not believe in him. We probably have VERY similar reasons for doing so. No one is saying you are an atheist in the proper sense. I am proposing that, with regard to other religions, you know how to think like an atheist.

 

[Enoch07]

The point I am making is that everyone knows how to THINK like an atheist with regard to other gods. You are a Christian. I am an atheist. Yet we both take the same approach to Zeus. We do not believe in him. We probably have VERY similar reasons for doing so. No one is saying you are an atheist in the proper sense. I am proposing that, with regard to other religions, you know how to think like an atheist.

Well it depends. I do not believe IN other gods. That does not mean I deny their existence. There is a subtle difference.

 

[JMorris]

Well it depends. I do not believe IN other gods. That does not mean I deny their existence. There is a subtle difference.

so you believe it is possible there are other gods? because if you dont, then there really is no difference

 

[sandandfoam]

I spent a greater portion of my adult life as an atheist than a theist. But I don't accept that we're all atheists regarding some other Gods.
Take Zeus - ancient Greeks believed in him, so I have no difficulty believing in Zeus - I'm just one step removed. I believe in Zeus as their God.
We all create our own reality.

 

[JMorris]

I spent a greater portion of my adult life as an atheist than a theist. But I don't accept that we're all atheists regarding some other Gods.
Take Zeus - ancient Greeks believed in him, so I have no difficulty believing in Zeus - I'm just one step removed. I believe in Zeus as their God.
We all create our own reality.

then we're all gods of our own personal reality?

 

[sandandfoam]

then we're all gods of our own personal reality?

Yes we are

 

[Buttons*]

I don't agree with the OP for one simple reason- Atheists don't believe in any kind of supreme being at all, by any name. If a Christian rejects the Hindu God (or Gods)he or she will still believe in a God.

Pretty much

 

[LuisDantas]

Then everyone on this thread does not understand the definition of atheist. If you believe in a god. Any at all. You are not an atheist at all. You are a theist.

Again, the point is completely unrelated to the dictionary definition of atheist.

Namely, that atheism is often considered strange or undesirable, despite the fact that a sizeable portion of mankind arbitrarily chooses a specific belief among various competing ones.

There is rarely any disputing of the right of Shintoists to doubt Jesus, or of Christians to doubt Amaterasu. So why is it considered weird for people to choose neither?

 

[Beaudreaux]

Well it depends. I do not believe IN other gods. That does not mean I deny their existence. There is a subtle difference.

Do you believe Zeus exists?

 

[Muffled]

...with regard to one God or another. You know EXACTLY what it is like to be an atheist because that is your attitude toward conceptions of God you disagree with. If someone came up to a Christian, or a Jew, or a Muslim in this forum and proposed that Zeus ruled the earth, none of you would have any problem coming up with excellent arguments as to why it makes no sense that Zeus exists. When it comes to Zeus, you think like an atheist.

Do you agree? Disagree?

I don't agree. A difference in theology doesn't necessitate a disbelief in existence. Zeus is found in the Greek Pantheon of gods. The writings fall under the heading of myth because it is unlikely that anyone will be able to determine if they existed as real persons. However there is sufficient evidence to say that they were worshiped which means there was some reality behind them. Zeus and the others do not seem to fall within the animistic beliefs that associate deities with natural phenomena. It appears to me that most ancient writings have information of gods that had supernatural powers and may even have come from races that were not human.

The null hypothesis is difficult to prove because by definition it has no evidence. However I would accept a negative statement by God since He knows all things. The problem is that God has nothing to say about Zeus so any reference will have to be by inference. First of all God said not to have any other gods before Him which infers that there are other gods. Then in Genesis it says the sons of god married the daughters of men. This suggests those who were godlike and those who were not. In essence Adam and Eve fit into the category of sons of god because they had eternal life before sin entered in.

 

[Muffled]

The point I am making is that everyone knows how to THINK like an atheist with regard to other gods. You are a Christian. I am an atheist. Yet we both take the same approach to Zeus. We do not believe in him. We probably have VERY similar reasons for doing so. No one is saying you are an atheist in the proper sense. I am proposing that, with regard to other religions, you know how to think like an atheist.

You make it sound as though atheists don't really think about it at all but simply deny the existence of gods without evidence. Although I tend to think there is a tendency to deny evidence with no real basis for doing so. In this I definitely do not think like an atheist but maybe you could explain how an athiest thinks?

Christians wouldn't believe in Zeus because we have a one true God who has proven himself repeatedly whereas Zeus appears to be dead along with all the other gods. That does not mean he hasn't re-incarnated but without a memory of the past there is not the power of the past.

 

[Beaudreaux]

You make it sound as though atheists don't really think about it at all but simply deny the existence of gods without evidence. Although I tend to think there is a tendency to deny evidence with no real basis for doing so. In this I definitely do not think like an atheist but maybe you could explain how an athiest thinks?

Well, can you explain why you don't believe in Zeus instead of Jesus?

Christians wouldn't believe in Zeus because we have a one true God who has proven himself repeatedly whereas Zeus appears to be dead along with all the other gods. That does not mean he hasn't re-incarnated but without a memory of the past there is not the power of the past.

Zeus is dead?!?! I didn't even know he was sick!

Seriously, why do you say Zeus "appears to be dead"?

 

[themadhair]

Good grief. Folks, it is not as if the OP is performing a massive slight of hand with their use of the word atheist. Is it a red herring being used to avoid addressing the point under discussion here?

Rephrasing the argument to preclude use of the word some people apparently have a problem with:

You don’t hold a belief in Thor, Zeus, Woogady-Boogady, Aimead, Horus, <insert and diety from the myriad of historical faiths here>.

You can make the false argument that because those deities had followers there must be some ‘reality’ to them if you want, but unless I see anybody actively studying and deriving wisdom from their respective scriptures then I’m calling bs – because it indicates what the OP is getting it, namely you lack a belief in all those gods.

The question the OP is asking is, given you lack a belief in all manner of deities, does that not mean you are thinking about those gods in the same way total non-believer thinks of your specific god(s)?

And now for the obligatory contentious example:

The two biggest faith groups on this site appear to be muslims and christians.

Some muslims are absolutely incredulous as to why atheists do not accept Muhammad as a prophet sent by Allah.

Some christians are absolutely incredulous as to why atheists do not accept Jesus as the son of Yahweh.

The claim:
Christians regard Allah in a similar way Muslims regard Yahweh – and the same way that atheists regard both.

 

[blackout]

Well since I believe the ALL OF EXISTENCE is gOd...
then by my definition,
everyone on RF is a theist.
(because they believe in the existence of MY gOd)

So there.

(unless of course there is anyone here who does not believe the UniVerse/MultiVerse exists....):areyoucra

Everyone on RF is really a theist.

What? No Response?

I demand a Response! :149:

 

[blackout]

I also believe that I mySelf exist as goddess. :flirt:

You KNOW you believe it too.

Well... at any rate... you believe I exist.

Now bow and grovel at my feet. :bow:

 

[LuisDantas]

Not everyone in RF sees fit to consider existence a God of some kind.

 

[Seven]

What? No Response?

I demand a Response! :149:

:ignore: