There are no atheists in a foxhole

"There are no atheists in a foxhole"—Old soliders' adage

This discussion was brought about by curiosity as to why in-
dividuals have become atheists seeing that at one time they
professed a belief in God.

The intent is not to argue, debate, or incite to riot. It is primarily
a curiosity question.

From theology to evolution

At times individuals become hard pressed to understand
how an individual who at one time professed Christianity
has now professed a belief in the discipline of evolution.

So, if you did profess a belief in God at one time or
another was it the Watchtower Society in part, that
made you reconsider your position regarding there
being a God or no God?

Please post your commentary so that all can benefit
from this discussion.

Respectfully,

The Wanderer

daystar

In times of extreme stress and when faced with certain or almost certain death, most people will revert to very childish exhortations.

I recall reading that the number one thing people will say just before dying suddenly is "oh $h!1!". One of the others is "oh mommy".

if you did profess a belief in God at one time or
another was it the Watchtower Society in part, that
made you reconsider your position regarding there
being a God or no God?

Certainly.

I am agnostic. It's possible that this is temporary and that I'll either swing back to belief in a higher power, or go atheist. Or maybe I'll just stay agnostic forever.

The God I was raised to believe in, Jehovah, clearly does not exist. I refuse to believe that a being capable of creating the universe would be so incredibly racist, sexist, violent, petty, and insecure as Jehovah is portrayed to be.

With that established, it leaves me with a vacuum. This vacuum has yet to be filled--and perhaps it's not necessary. I'll get back to you in a few years with my decision. :)

lonelysheep

So, if you did profess a belief in God at one time or another was it the Watchtower Society in part, that made you reconsider your position regarding there being a God or no God?

Deep down, I always felt that there was no such thing as a god. I mean from the time I was 4 or 5 years old.

They made me think about it again, though and listen to my gut instinct. So.... that, and the tsunami, which was the actual foot up my azz.

bavman

Sometimes foxholes make atheists....

http://atheism.about.com/b/a/213679.htm

Narkissos

This discussion was brought about by curiosity as to why in-
dividuals have become atheists seeing that at one time they
professed a belief in God.

I wonder why former believers in Peter Pan are not deemed worthy of such "curiosity"...

At times individuals become hard pressed to understand
how an individual who at one time professed Christianity
has now professed a belief in the discipline of evolution.

This antithesis (and the way "evolution" naturally steps in and out of your original question about God) tells much about your background. To many Chrisian believers (especially in Europe) there is no contradiction between belief in God and evolution.

So, if you did profess a belief in God at one time or
another was it the Watchtower Society in part, that
made you reconsider your position regarding there
being a God or no God?

No, not really. What did it to me was considering the genealogy of the idea of "God" in the history of beliefs -- long after I left JWs.

Caedes

Well I was raised a witness so I never really bought into the whole thing anyway. Obviously the suggestion made in the first post is facetious but I think it's interesting that underlying the suggestion is an assumption that atheism is a lesser conviction than theism. There is an an assumption of the superiority of theistic convictions, in much the same vein as 'oh atheists have no morals', and that the atheist will revert to a stronger more basic theistic conviction if their life was at risk.

I would have thought that the posts on this forum alone should convince anyone that atheistic convictions are as strong as any theistic convictions. It's funny though because thinking about this made me wonder about my own thought that I can't understand how anyone who believes in a caring and loving god can watch the results of natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, drought, plague or starvation and not think 'that god, he's a w*nker' Perhaps I'm making an assumption of the superiority of my own convictions there too.

But of course there is a difference in the choices we make to arrive at those two points and perhaps that is where the difference in the two viewpoints lie.

fullofdoubtnow

I had no belief in god when I first met the jws. It was my study with them that persuaded me to give god a second chance, so to speak, but it's quite clear that the type of god they worship, if he does exist, is a cruel, heartless being, not the god of love the bible speaks of.

Since leaving the wts I feel my initial ideas, formed during my teenage years, were after all correct, and I no longer believe in the existence of god or that there is any truth in the bible.

parakeet

wanderer: "At times individuals become hard pressed to understand how an individual who at one time professed Christianity has now professed a belief in the discipline of evolution."

Assumption No. 1 -- That former Christians now profess a "belief" in evolution.

I don't "believe" in evolution as an article of faith. It's a theory that is undergoing constant investigation. I'm fairly sure that evolutionary theory 100 years from now will bear little resemblance to current evolutionary theory. The closest thing to a belief in evolution would be a "working hypothesis."

Assumption No. 2 -- Evolution is a discipline.

Evolution is a theory subject to the discipline of the scientific method. Please be precise when you make assumptions.

Assumption No. 3 -- "Individuals" become hard-pressed to understand ....

By individuals, you mean yourself, wanderer. Don't fob off your own doubts and questions onto anonymous third-person "individuals." Have the courage of your convictions.