im an atheist and i like the idea of being an athiest but its kinda hard

by Lotus65 43 Replies latest jw friends

  • donny
    donny
    i feel like its alot easier to remain agnostic and in a state of neutrallity rather than to actively choose a position

    I agree with this statement. Although I believe the evidence heavily supports most of the atheist positions, I have difficulty in stating positively that there is no spririt realm. I highly doubt it, but it's something you cannot prove or disprove. As an agnostic, I do believe that if there is life in some other dimension, then it's in that dimension only and has no interaction with ours at all.

    I know that some say they have been "touched" by God or his spirit, but I think all of it can be explained logically if one really thinks about it. For me to believe these folks, I would have to believe that God just randomly chooses whom he "touches" regardless of what they believe or how they live their lives.

  • trevor
    trevor

    One of the reason that people with faith adopt a label such as Christian, Muslim, Jew and so on, is that a reward is offered to them for wearing the label, collect-able at death. Also there is comfort to be had by believing a benign god is guiding them in their present lives.

    Atheists do not believe in a reward or a punishment. I have never seen the need for non believers to adopt a label of any kind. Once we settle upon a lable to wear it becomes necessary to defend that label from becoming tarnished. It also becomes necessary to to close our mind a little in order stay on the 'straight and narrow.'

    People who decide to publicly declare themselves as strict Atheists take on all the disadvantages of having a set faith and none of the advantages. To me you either have a faith of you are free. Why should free men wear labels?

  • KungFu
    KungFu

    Hey,

    We'll use some rational thinking to help you out with the irrational thinking that's going on in your mind. So you wonder, what if you're wrong? What's the WORST that will happen if you're wrong? What's the WORST you'll suffer?...............I want you to think about this before you read on. Answer in your mind what's the worst scenario........What's the absolute WORST? We want to find out specifically what your greatest fear is. As long as it stays ambiguous in your mind, you'll be wondering just what it is that's scaring you.

    I don't personally believe in a god. But if there was a god and he's the way everyone describes him, and he gave you a brain to reason with and he's everywhere and knows everything, and can read your thoughts, then he knows you have legitimate reasons for doubting certain things. He knows that you're a sincere person and that you've got good reason to question things. And he's supposed to be loving, so he can empathize with you and knows the pain you've dealt with. So I seriously doubt that if you're a half-way decent person, that god would be doing a service to the world to either wipe you out or fry you forever . So your worst case scenario probably doesn't even match up with the idea that god is loving....one of the many masses of contradictions that exist in religion. On the other hand, what a relief if there's actually no god! If there's no god, it's like a huge burden lifted from you. That means there's no tool-bag watching your every move and judging it. And if there is a god and he's loving, he's probably very understanding and wise. I mean, if he's intelligent enough to make the planets and he knows EVERYTHING, he's probably not some juvenile a$$wipe that just is sooooo hungry for people to tell him how great he is. That would be like me owning an ant farm and burning the ants because they're not telling me how great I am every minute because I'm insecure and weak-minded.

    Trust me, the god of the bible is a fiction. Very much so. If there is a creative being, he's probably way different than the way they make him out to be. How's THIS for logic? "Ummmmmm, son, you know, Fred that lives across town? Well, he's done some bad things. He killed a man. Now, I want to forgive him for doing it, but the only way I can forgive him, is to kill YOU. I know you're a good person. You're probably the most generous and caring person in the world, but the ONLY way I can forgive Fred is to let these gang members over here torture you to death. But I LOVE you!". See, I say if you're going to choose to believe in a god, then at least hold him up to the same behavior and reasoning standards that you hold yourself and other people to. At the very LEAST...but actually his standards should be much higher. See the stupidity? You have nothing to be afraid of except your own imagination.

    And also, like I said, what a breath of fresh air if there's actually no such thing as a god! At the very least, we know that the god people believe in is imaginary. "No one can see god and live!" How convenient. There's absolutely zero proof! "You just have to believe!". Ahhh...so once again, no evidence. God is imaginary. As imaginary as the Greek and Roman gods. If there's no sensory evidence......nothing seen or sensed, other than as a concept, then you're strictly in the realm of belief and belief, my friend, isn't fact. Belief is dependent on the imagination. That's how the mind works. You've never seen a "god" but your mind can form a mental image or likeness of a big guy on a throne with light
    surrounding him. Belief is dependent on imagination. Facts, on the other hand, are not. The only thing we know for sure is that the world exists. Even ideas like the big bang are theory. And no one REALLY has ever stopped to ask this one simple question. Did the universe have a beginning? This question isn't really all that important for being a happy person. People put waaaaaay too much importance on the origins of life. But the belief in a god or in a big bang assumes or presupposes that the universe did, in fact, have a beginning, and no one really knows if it did. It could have just always been here. We've assumed that because everything we know of in our finite, puny little human existence has a beginning that the same applies to the universe. The truth is, WE DON'T KNOW. And not knowing is okay. It's really not that big a deal! Do you know exactly how your computer works or your tv or radio? Could you build one from scratch? Do you understand the workings of the body? Our understanding of the world is VERY limited, even with science as it is today.
    Imagine being an ancient Greek or an ancient Israelite. You don't have microscopes. You're a farmer your entire life. Suddenly a disease swoops in and kills a bunch of people! What the f??? GOD must have cursed us! What did we do wrong? Well we did complain the other day about the weather and being hungry. THAT must be what ticked god off! Let's repent and burn a live goat!!! We know god loves goats!! Especially burnt ones!!! Jesus f-ing Christ!!!!!!

    But yeah, if you're going to choose a belief, atheism is a pretty good choice in my book. And if you're going to make something your "religion", why not make science your religion? Even if some of the theories turn out not to be true, at least they tell you from the start it's a theory. And the theories of science are usually more sane and reasonable than some of the crazy stuff religions have come up with. There's just so much more sanity and clarity. And people aren't killing other people over whether they like Darwin or Sir Isaac Newton better. So, if you really like rational thinking, and I think you do, I hope this post has given you some relief and clarity. Trust me. I cursed every god and demon I could think of. Jehovah, Jesus, Buddha, Bahaulah, Satan, Krishna, Vishnu, Zeus, Hermes, Ares.......and many more....just to get over my irrational fear back in the day, and 6 years later I'm still healthy. No one struck me dead. If you want to overcome your fear, try saying "Jehovah is my b_tch". You won't be struck by lightning. hahahaha.........Take it easy pal. Oh, and no need to try to be a good person and save the world and all that crap. Just relax and enjoy yourself. You're alright the way you are.
    Just take it easy. Enjoy your life as much as possible. Let the evangelists worry about "saving the world" and all that non-sense.......Take care!

  • Gopher
    Gopher

    KungFu,

    Thanks for your contribution. To get more people to read your post, please use paragraphs -- and perhaps reduce the amount of content.

    I will tell you atheism is not a "belief" but rather the lack of belief in a god. An atheist may be "secular humanist" and "evolutionist" but those things are not the same as atheism, but in addition to their non-belief.

  • Gopher
    Gopher

    Donny said --

    I believe the evidence heavily supports most of the atheist positions, I have difficulty in stating positively that there is no spririt realm. I highly doubt it, but it's something you cannot prove or disprove.

    As an atheist, one does not have to "positively state" there is no spirit realm. Rather, the atheist has considered the evidence (pro and con) and assesses that there isn't enough evidence in his/her mind to convince them of the existence of one or more deities. However, one remains open-minded in case the unexpected happens and a god definitely reveals itself/himself beyond reasonable doubt. At that point belief in God would be a "fact" rather than requiring belief.

    As you said nobody living on planet earth can prove or disprove beyond reasonable doubt the existence of a god or gods (or other mythical beings such as Santa Claus and pink unicorns), so in practicality everyone is "agnostic" or without knowledge. However, some who are agnostic (i.e. human) choose to believe, and others choose not to believe based on what they understand. Anyone who falls into the second group is by definition atheist (perhaps yourself too). I've described "weak atheism", as opposed to "strong atheism" - whose adherents are more militant and definite that the existence of a deity is not even possible. Among atheists, the vast majority are in the "weak" category.

  • Carmel
    Carmel

    Fanatical farcical religion has recruited more agnostic and athiests than all the humanist propaganda ever conceived. You need to follow your heart and mind and be open to new paradigms as any good scientist would advise. Clearly the majority of what is offered up on the plate of religion turns the stomach and makes the head hurt. You might be surprised to find that amongst all the fertilizer is a green plant or two worth examining. Remaining an agnostic is not a bad position to take. Why jump one way or the other when you have so much time and life to experiance. be well carmel

  • Free
    Free

    I claim Agnostic to people but inside I just can't help but think like an Atheist. The fear of " Maybe I'm wrong " thinking seems to have left me and the freedom of accepting in my own mind that there is nothing out there has been quite a revelation. Fear has made 95% of the worlds population claim they believe in a higher power, In most cases that higher power will destroy you or put you in a bad place if you don't listen to them. Fear= control Control= living for someone else. Me, I'll take my chances and live for ME

  • FlyingHighNow
    FlyingHighNow

    Stop worrying and just live a good life according to the ethics all human beings have, if they listen to their consciences. God is love and he loves all of his creatures. He certainly understands that some do not believe in him and doesn't hold it against them. We suffer consequences of choices we make and we learn from them everyday. What death stops us from learning, we can learn on the other side. So shake the fear in the back of your mind of the choice you've made. I believe there is a loving Great Spirit or God and he understands your unbelief and he still loves you anyway.

  • FlyingHighNow
    FlyingHighNow

    Either that, or check into Universalism: people of many different faiths embrace Universalism, including Chrisitans. The recent church shooting in Knoxville happened because the shooter hated the Universal teachings of the Unitarian Church. But there are Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Native Americans and many others who embrace a universal god who loves all creatures and knows that in the end, all of them will be reconciled back into his love.

    Christianity

    Main article: Christian Universalism

    In Christianity, Universalism refers to the belief that all humans can be saved through Jesus Christ and eventually come to a harmony in God's kingdom. A related doctrine, apokatastasis, is the belief that all mortal beings will be reconciled to God, including Satan and his fallen angels. Universalism was a fairly commonly held view among theologians in early Christianity: In the first five or six centuries of Christianity there were six known theological schools, of which four (Alexandria, Antioch, Cesarea, and Edessa or Nisibis) were Universalist, one (Ephesus) accepted conditional immortality, and one (Carthage or Rome) taught the endless punishment of the lost. [2] . The two major theologians opposing it were Tertullian and Augustine. [citation needed] In later centuries, Universalism has become very much a minority position in the major branches of Christianity, though it has a long history of prominent adherents.

  • dinah
    dinah

    Flyin', that reminds me of a very interesting conversation I had with a Cherokee last summer. We were talking about the Great Spirit. He said everything ties in together. How we treat our home (earth) and how we treat each other. The Great Spirit hates mean people---to put it in simple terms. If you doubt Him because of your circumstances, he understands. There are no rules to worship Him. His ways are old, but his message to me was still treat people right and don't hurt anyone on purpose.

    He also said he knew I had Cherokee blood in me, by the way my hair was turning gray and my cheekbones. He was right, my great grandmother was 1/2.

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