Why aren't you an Atheist?

by Bloody Hotdogs! 697 Replies latest jw friends

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  OUTLAW

  Only if you take a pedantic approach to semantics....Cofty

  A formal uninspireing study of the meanings of language..

  Funny I liked it..LOL!!..

  I find the evidence for god to be paltry. I think there are many very compelling reasons to conclude no god exits.

  No faith involved....Cofty

  A compelling reason to conclude god does not exist..Is not proof..

  You "Trust/Believe" god does not exist..With no evidence..

  That "Trust" requires "Faith"..

  You have Faith..God does not exist..

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  From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Faith

  Depending on the religion, faith is belief in a god or gods or in the doctrines or teachings of the religion. Informal usage of faith can be quite broad, including trust or belief without proof, [1] and "faith" is often used as a substitute for "hope", "trust" or "belief". Some [who?] critics of faith have argued that faith is opposed to reason. In contrast, some [who?] advocates of faith argue that the proper domain of faith concerns questions which cannot be settled by evidence. This is exemplified by attitudes about the future, which (by definition) has not yet occurred.

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  ................................ ... OUTLAW
• 

  Satanus

  Christalone said:

  '

  Atheist should be the default position, ie, the starting point of all young people.

  Communists said the same thing. Worked real well.'

  Try to understand what i said, first. Then we can talk.

  S
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  Satanus

  Maybe...

  S
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  Christ Alone

  Looks like you haven't looked into communism and the effects that staunch atheism had on kids. And for your OWN little logical fallacy, it looks like you don't understand Al-Queada. It isn't a belief in God that causes those negative effects, but HOW God is viewed. But communism HAS been studied, and atheism itself created many of those negative effects. Belief in God is not a single issue like atheism is. Atheism is just a disbelief in God. Belief in God goes many ways, and if that belief is tainted by the view (that many have here) that he is angry, evil, and cruel, that contriutes to extremist religions (like Al-Queada, Westboro Baptists, etc...) that cause those negative effects.

  Do some research on atheism's effects on communism and that entire culture. It's not a fallacy to say that atheism didn't contribute anything to increased morals, love, and respect.

  If anything that I've seen on JWN, atheism tends to lead others into a feel of superiority and insult of others that believe in God by the constant condemnation of believers as "delusional". Atheism in communist cultures does the same. Facts are facts, and that is not a fallacy.
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  King Solomon

  I know there so much evidence to suggest there is no God

  And what evidence would that be?

  Well, although it's not MY claim, YHWH loses any rights to claim to be the Intelligent Designer by not being aware of basic facts of human anatomy that WERE ancient "scientific" beliefs at the time the Bible was written (based on Egyptian and Babylonian knowledge), but are now known to be in error. Would a TRUE designer of a watch NOT KNOW what the role of a mainspring is, or what the hands of a watch do?

  ALL the references in the Bible to God reading (and weighing) the hearts of man or the toughts in the hearts are LITERAL BELIEFS, based on ancient incorrect beliefs of the Egyptians (who were considered the experts of medicine in 1,000 BC, based on their advanced work with mummies, etc). The influence of wrong beliefs found in the Bible are unmistakeable.

  For example, the mummification process reflects Egyptians ignorance of the true role of the brain and/or heart:

  http://www.angelfire.com/wi/egypt/mummy2.html

  Step 3: Removal of Brain

  ---

  The first part of the body to be removed was the brain. Egyptians did not know the purpose of the brain, so they thought it was a waste of space. To extract the brain, a hook was inserted through the nose. The embalmers pulled out as much as they could, then put it in water to dissolve. Some people think the water was then thrown out, but others think it was taken with the mummy to the burial chamber.

  Weighing of the Heart
  The most important task to achieve immortality was not actually seen by anyone. This task was called "The Weighing of the Heart." Egyptians believed that the most powerful part of a person was his heart. The heart was never removed from the body, because it was considered to be the center of a person's being. In this ceremony, the gods of the underworld judged the mummy's heart, or how well he behaved during his natural life. Maat, the goddess of truth, brought out her scale; on one side was the mummy's heart, and on the other was the Feather of Truth. Anubis, the god of the underworld, made the final judgement, and Thoth, the scribe god, recorded it all. If the heart balanced the feather, the soul of the mummy was granted immortality. If the heart was heavier than the feather (if the sins outweighed the virtues), the soul was doomed to a horrible fate. The heart was thrown to a monster called Ammit, or Devourer of the Dead.
• 

  james_woods

  I call myself agnostic - and leave it at that.

  I really have a problem with the "activist - evangelical" branch of Atheism - always harping about such little stuff as "In God we Trust" on money or in the courthouse, demanding that crosses never be displayed on public land, anti-Christmas demonstrations at public schools, etc.

  Pretty childish behavior for people who claim to be more "enlightened" than the religionists.
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  Christ Alone

  Try to understand what i said, first. Then we can talk.

  I'm just saying that atheism ISN'T the default. There have been studies that have shown that kids that were not specifically taught a belief in God, still had a belief in God naturally. We naturally believe in God, and that is why atheism never has and never will be the default position. I wasn't arguing your other points. Just that kids believe in the supernatural even when their parents don't. Atheism is learned. Yes, kids learn about God and believe what their parents teach them. But why do kids still believe in God even when their parents DON'T teach them.
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  Christ Alone

  YHWH loses any rights to claim to be the Intelligent Designer by not being aware of basic facts of human anatomy that WERE ancient "scientific" beliefs at the time the Bible was written (based on Egyptian and Babylonian knowledge), but are now known to be in error.

  BUZZ!!!! Wrong! We were talking about a PROOF that there is no God. Even intelligent atheists don't believe that there is PROOF that there is no God. They just say that there is no proof that there IS, God. Who was talking about the Judeo/Christian God here?

  What a scientist (as you claim) you are! Failed on the first easy question. You get an "F", smart guy. King Solomon, I really doubt your doctorate.
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  King Solomon

  If anything that I've seen on JWN, atheism tends to lead others into a feel of superiority and insult of others that believe in God by the constant condemnation of believers as "delusional". Atheism in communist cultures does the same. Facts are facts, and that is not a fallacy.

  Uh, do you say us atheists feel superior to you? Isn't that what you WANT, as a humble follower of Christ? I mean, if we spit on you and kicked you, that would be doing exactly what Jesus says is required to experience suffering in his name, right?

  Methinks you WANT others to claim to be better than you, since then YOU can feel inferior (which oddly enough, makes you SUPERIOR to us).

  What paradoxical nonsense Jesus logic is, LOL! He who is first is last, the greatest is the least, etc.
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  NewChapter

  There have been studies that have shown that kids that were not specifically taught a belief in God, still had a belief in God naturally. We naturally believe in God, and that is why atheism never has and never will be the default position.

  This is so completely untrue, it is stunning. The first time I learned about a god was when I was 4. I remember it. There was no real religion talk in my life, so it was all new to me. I had no inkling of any such concept before a neighbor came over and drilled it into my head. God is the father. Jesus is the son. I remember that moment to this day. It was like Santa Claus to me---he's out there, I just can't see him.

  Children are not born believing, and if they are in a household that never mentions it either way, they may come up with some mythical person, as they do imaginary friends, but that will be a product of their imagination. They are probably more likely NOT to come up with a god idea if it has never been suggested to them.

  Why don't you elevate your argument a bit? The communism link is very weak. Scandanavian nations widen out this silly little story.