A Question for Those Who Converted to Atheism (page 2)

crownboy

Frankly being an athiest, I am not afraid to die at all. I came to the conclusion that if we know animals don't go to heaven or hell, why should we think we are so superior that something awaits us. We're all just walking compost. Not a happy thought, but far easier for me to grasp.

Well, I wouldn't quite put it in those words, but a similiar thought .

Actually, once I realized that due to a lack of any real evidence for an afterlife that I couldn't continue to convince myself of it, I never really was scared about it or anything. A lot of folks who become non-theist say that this was a hard concept for them to get rid of, or many theist wonder how an atheist can live not believing in an afterlife. However, in actuality, it was harder for me to admit to myself that the JW religion was BS than to drop the afterlife concept. Not looking foward to an afterlife only makes this life that much more important, so while I'm sure I probably won't be 100% thrilled when the Grim Reaper knocks at my door, knowing that I lived my life as good as I could, perhaps enriching the lives of others along the way will still be a very rewarding thing. Besides, if you are dead you cannot possibly know that you are in that state.

RAYZORBLADE

Hi Piph, I like the way that you presented this question.

Mind you, this has been discussed before, but perhaps not asked with such openness.

For me, like some of what some folks have stated, the bible, when I really started to read it and re-read it and look at it carefully, some things simply did not add up to me.

The entire Adam & Eve story.

If god is perfect, created two perfect beings that became imperfect as a result of Satan's taunts.

Bwah!

So if he (god) could create something, so-called perfect that became imperfect made me realize, maybe god is imperfect too?

Thus, who is god, and did we, as humans create him? and the story that goes along with it.

Just my 2 Canadian cents.

logansrun

Yeah, ditto to a lot of the thoughts already expressed. Really, I'm amazed at how little a non-belief in god(s) mean on a day to day basis.

Bradley

Piph

How do you convert someone to nothing? Would you not lose your belief in God instead?

Yeah, I didn't word that perfectly. But I figured people would get the general idea of what I was asking.

Thanks for the link, Hamas. I'm checking it out. And thanks for the welcome.

I really appreciate all of you sharing your experiences...I'm relating to a lot of what you're saying, of course.

In my past I have had moments where I felt a closeness to God, like he was right there comforting me, but it was always a very fleeting feeling. I haven't felt it in a long time. I used to take that as an indication that I didn't have any Holy Spirit in my life, but I don't believe that sort of shit anymore. I know that being a good person is enough for me so of course it would be enough for God. So obviously I'm feeling skeptical of everything and I decided to 'experiment' by not saying prayers for a while and seeing what would happen. So far nothing bad... lol I'm not sure what to believe, and I'm not in a rush to adopt any ol' belief system, but it's really interesting reading about how all of you feel and think.

We were posting at the same time, but thanks for your comments Rayzorblade, Crownboy and Loganrun. I figured it had probably been discussed before, but for some reason I seem to understand answers better when I'm the one who asks the question... Dunno why!

rem

So obviously I'm feeling skeptical of everything and I decided to 'experiment' by not saying prayers for a while and seeing what would happen. So far nothing bad...

Haha - that's exactly what I did too! I stopped praying to see if I would stop being blessed or something. Nothing changed, so I figured praying was just a form of talking to myself.

rem

JT

IT IS interesting that the process of "becoming an athiest" is really the result of continuing in the process that lead to most leaving the jw-

while in the jw we were taught to accept any explanation of a matter regardless of how goofy it was- well once we started to "Question" and not accept answers it naturally leads to the next level-

being a former jw the statement "Don't Question the Society" rings loud in ones ear- well is it not true that "Beleivers" also say something very simialarly- as my grandmother says:

"Baby, don't QUESTION the "LARD" ---not Lord, but "LARD"----- so coming from a reference point of being a jw --where one was forbidden to question under penlty of death-

one see the same exact thing/argument being presented by believers "Don't question god cause he will kill you, destroy you, put you in hell, etc"

so now armed with that knowledge that NOTHING IS BEYOND BEING QUESTIONED one proceeds on-

in fact almost to the man/woman that i have spoken to either personally or via email or just thru their post have stated that they TRIED VERY HARD TO BELEIVE IN GOD in fact they wanted to prove to themselves that they should beleive in a god , yet each time they came up short on :

evidence, logic, common sense, or getting a satisfying answer-

having been a jw and told to "Wait on Jah"- when told by beleivers that they would just have to wait till the LARD revealed it, they knew that they were getting smoke blown in their face all over again

same smoke , different pipe--

so in order to counter, most believers are very quick to try and explain why a person doesn't believe in god by say much of what the watchtower used to say basically about folks who wanted to go to college

we all recall that the wt impued bad motives for those who wanted to go to college

pride, riches , glory, honor, prestige, not willing to do hard manual labor, etc- when in fact most folks wanted to go to college so they could just get a decent job that paid a decent wage

well we see something similar with believers in their attempt to explain why folks dont beleive in god- they say the reason is:

1 the person wants wild and hot sex with everyone

2, don't want to be accountable

3, they want to live the swinging life style

4 they want to smoke dope, reefer, smack, crack, acid, etc- smile

when in fact most of the folks i know who don't beleive in god, pretty much live their normal lives

for me examining other beleif systems non-christian i began to quickly see they were all pretty much the same basic concept

WE GOT THE INSIDE TRACK TO GOD OVER HERE AND IF YOU DON'T LISTEN TO US OUR GOD WILL KILL YOU

AND THAT is pretty much what most beleif systems teach especially the major ones

so to me i see --same product different - different wrapping paper

1

donkey

Atheism is NOT: the belief there is no god but atheism IS the lack of belief in a god.

Once people understand that then you suddenly find many who call themselves agnostics in the atheist camp.

Jack

donkey

William Penwell

I have read a number of books since leaving the JW. The one I am reading now is about Jesus being a pagan God or not. I am on the chapter about the writing of the new testament. It has being an eye-opener as to how they were written and rewritten. Most were written centuries after the fact and were cut and pasted from numerous sources. I can't say honestly I believe in a god or not but I have trouble believing in the Christian concept of God.

Will

ESTEE

Piph...welcome to the forum!!! Fascintating thread!!! Very thought-provoking!!! See!... I post more than just fluff!!!

If there is a god-being who was supposed to be loving…and the elders are representations of this said god-being….then I want no part of said god-being.

RunningMan wrote:

I always thought that those experiences at assemblies where someone was praying for guidance when the doorbell rang...were pretty pathetic.

Every religion has their experiences ….someone in distress gets “saved” ….I figure these people are vulnerable and susceptible to any kindness shown to them from a stranger. It has nothing to do with some external god-being directing things. After all, if something external force was directing things…why would they direct people into trouble in the first place?

As my deprogramming continued, the answer presented itself. The destruction of my JW beliefs did not leave a hole in my life or my thoughts. It was like losing a baby tooth. The old belief did not fall out and leave a void. It was pushed out by a new one growing in behind it.

Runningman…this is a wonderful illustration, a great comparison!!! One I completely relate to!!! So true…a process of growth and progress!!! Interestingly….growth and progress leads away from an external god-being.

Elsewhere wrote:

I left the JWs because I could not stand faking my faith anymore

yup….mee too ...JW-isms just didn't work for me. I wanted to direct my own life!

crownboy wrote:

I am not afraid to die at all.

Fact of the matter is…I was afraid of death when I WAS a jw….now I’m an ex…I’ve shed my fears around death. I feel quite comfortable with my present mortality.

William Penwell wrote:

I have trouble believing in the Christian concept of God.

Yeah, me too. Seems religions use the Jesus thingy to convince people that they “need” religion to survive. A form of co-dependency…Argh!!!

ESTEE

A Question for Those Who Converted to Atheism

Share this