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Why atheists and agnostics come to this forum?

Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)
 

Altfish

Veteran Member
Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)
Because religion has so much influence in this world of ours. In politics, education, ethics, etc - we non-believers need to understand religions and fight for equal rights and no special treatment for religions.
 

Shadow Wolf

Certified People sTabber
Probably best to ask each one. Myself, before becoming agnostic (or whatever, im not sure because many try to include me with atheists but that isnt the case), I was a neo-Pagan before, which was my religious beliefs when I joined. Years later, I stuck around after I became agnostic. Maybe it was habit, or that this is the first and only forum I've been on, but I'm still here.
 

Laika

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)

When I first came to the forum, I was very deeply involved in Communist ideology and I wanted to see how my ideas could survive in online debate against a range of opposing views, whether they be political, philosophical or religious. There was also the deeper reason that I had sympathies with State Atheism and the forcible elimination of religious beliefs but I wanted to be sure that I was right by spending time around religious people and trying to understand them better. In a sense, I was a "seeker" but probably not of the kind of truth most people had in mind. :D

In being here on religious forums, I have had to concede I was effectively wrong on both counts as my beliefs weren't as solid as I believed they were and there was no reason I could find to justify supporting the persecution of religious beliefs or believers simply for not adhering to an atheistic-materialist worldview. (Putting a name, a face or a story to a belief system by meeting people on here can really make a huge difference). Based on the amount of time I spent researching Marxism and Communism, I still think strongly along these lines even if I no longer accept their validity in all cases.

I don't believe in god, but I do believe in people. So, to the extent that spirituality and religious can be experienced by anyone as a set of profound process of emotional depth and reflection, I do take an interest in them and whether I can attain a certain level of knowledge and insight other religious may have to offer. There is much to learn to put it mildly and, for all it's short-comings, this is still the best place to try. :)
 

viole

Ontological Naturalist
Premium Member
Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)

Love and respect to my theistic brothers and sisters, believing in Jesus, Yahweh, Allah, Zeus, Thor, the great Juju at the bottom of the sea, or whatever, but I expect that you make a better work in inferring the right conclusion from the given premises.

it is like asking a democrat debating a republican on an open republican forum, if she does not, deep inside, want to be a republican. And vice versa.

do you think your conclusion follows from the premises?


Ciao

- viole
 
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Heyo

Veteran Member
Maybe they are just interested in the psychological state of "believing" because it is absolutely alien to them?
At least that is my motivation. Belief, superstition, magical thinking, call it what you want, is just so weird and at the same time so human that it is worth investigating. And I am even more intrigued by the reactions to the presentation of facts and reasons that are simply denyed.
 

Nakosis

Non-Binary Physicalist
Premium Member
Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)

Became an atheist after coming to these forums. Before that I suppose I was a seeker. Looked into a lot of different religious beliefs for something that made sense. I was open to a lot of different ideas about God. I ended up realizing the experience of God was anecdotal and everyone had their own personal ideal/concept of God.

To me a personal God didn't make a lot of sense because then God becomes what you imagine God to be. Didn't think man should have that kind of control over an actual God. So taking stock of what I could actual prove about God outside of anecdotal experience I realize there really wasn't a lot that could be claimed about God, so I stop claiming knowledge about God. No concept, no belief about a God = atheist.

So I stick around now for the personalities, entertainment, insight about the world, including religion, from minds other than my own. RF is kind of a think tank with people from many different POV. Allows me to step outside of the normal echo chamber.
 

Nakosis

Non-Binary Physicalist
Premium Member
Maybe they are just interested in the psychological state of "believing" because it is absolutely alien to them?
At least that is my motivation. Belief, superstition, magical thinking, call it what you want, is just so weird and at the same time so human that it is worth investigating. And I am even more intrigued by the reactions to the presentation of facts and reasons that are simply denyed.

That's interesting as well. How people con themselves into belief based on so little actual reliable information.

I suppose I've seen over and over again how unreliable anecdotal experience can be. Other folks still have their faith in it.
 

A Vestigial Mote

Well-Known Member
Why they come to religious forums?

I have always been an atheist - never truly or sincerely believed and saw absolutely no reason to. I'm here to examine the arguments and information that theists have, and see if any of it withstands scrutiny. That would really be something, wouldn't it? But alas, none of it ever does, which is why, in addition to being a skeptic, I have become somewhat cynical when it comes to religion and religious claims as well. I am sort of still waiting, but I am not willing to hold my breath, if you get my meaning.

I feel I am also here to try and keep theists on their toes. Continually get them to re-assess the evidence they bring forth, and always giving them my honest (perhaps too honest at times, I admit) reasons for not accepting or questioning their lines of thought. I feel that we all need to make sure each other's claims and ideas are worth any attention or consideration they might receive in the world at large. How else are we to grow as individuals, or as groups?
 
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9-10ths_Penguin

1/10 Subway Stalinist
Premium Member
Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)
I listen to a podcast about revolutions through history for similar reasons.

It doesn't mean I want to live through a revolution or join a religion. It's because knowing about religions and revolutions is important for understanding history and the world today.
 

exchemist

Veteran Member
Respect and love to my atheist and agnostic brothers and sisters. Why they come to religious forums?
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)
It's an interesting question, I grant you.

I rather doubt it is because they have an unacknowledged religious impulse. However from the discussions I have seen on the forum I think most of the non-believers here do think about what world view they have, which is something many people probably don't spend much time really considering.

And then there are those that are here to debunk the more egregiously silly outgrowths of some forms of religion (creationism, "intelligent design" and so forth). I admit I take part in some of those, too. :D
 

A Vestigial Mote

Well-Known Member
Isn't it that they are searching for spirituality, religion and God. Maybe,deep inside, they want to believe, or maybe deep inside, they do believe:)
As far as this attempt to "out" atheists/agnostics goes, I can assure with me, this is not the case. I simply want to know the truth - whatever that ends up being. And I have stated time and time again that, were any of the theists to be correct about the state of "spiritual affairs," or any of them to be correct about the attributes of God, and prove all the stories... well... I would certainly believe if there were concrete evidence to be had, but there is absolutely no way I would actually worship the God that anyone has portrayed. Not a chance. So do I want to believe? Only if it is true. Do I want to "worship?" Hell no.
 
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