Printable View
That letter thread from the whackjob we got today made me think about this and you know, in all honesty id like to think there was something 'higher' out there but im really not sold on the whole definition of God that we're marketed to by many of the religious people among us.
So what about the rest of you, do you think there is a higher being who watches down upon us all?
Regards,
Lee
Yes but not in the way most organized religions do.
oh i was going to write a long winded reply but gave up.
So yes, and I dont believe He gives punishments out either. More like he can intervene to prevent whatever natural occurence is to happen etc
I think that life is based on karma - what goes around comes around. And if it doesn't get you in this life, it gets you in the next one.
religion like anything else in the wrong hands, especially when people are involved, can turn into something bad. and people love power
I believe in something, but I was never a church-goer beyond Sunday school when I was 4 years old, and I certainly don't believe in God's "values" as interpreted by the bible belt.
I believe in Heaven, but not Hell. That's a flat-out scare trap, IMO. I think we all came from, and will go back to, the same place.
No true believer wouldQuote:
Originally Posted by jIgG
Oh, and yes I do.
I believe that we all come from something, call it The Source, God, whatever, and we all return to that something. I think we're here to learn something and that's all.
Michael
Yep. I do and no, not like the nut jobs do either.
I do believe in good but not in religion, I think religion is a man made thing and it's often (if not always) cause for war and sufering.
Just my opinion:angel:
This seems to be a popular topic this week ...
I was washed in the waters of salvation when I was 14. I remain a believer in Jesus' true teachings, LOVE. I may not live my life as other Christians, but I do I live with kindness in my heart, and try every day to do something for someone else.
To them I am an Abomination.
Time and my death will tell.
Not at all.
Lee
i remember a time when every athiest I knew seemed to be suicidal and/or were on anti-depressants
Although I think that religion is an invalueable resource and the power of religious belief has helped people accomplish amazing things, plus I have a degree in Religion Studies, a subject I'm still interested in and read about, I personally am an atheist.
not suicidal or on pills, either :bunny:
I couldn't agree moreQuote:
Originally Posted by jIgG
I am a man of spirituality, not religion.
After all.. religion is defined as:
-a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
-the practice of religious beliefs; ritual observance of faith.
I don't really have any sort of ritualized practices, or rote observances that I adhere to. I prefer to think of me simply living my life as the ultimate appreciation of having it. It -is- my life after all, whether it was given to me or not. I am the one that takes ultimate responsibility for it... not evangelists and proselytizers.
$0.02
nope i dont.
i think we are bags of chemical reactions and when those chemical reactions stop we turn into simple slabs of meat the same as that cow you ate for lunch at macdonalds. when its game of over thats it, nothing after.
no i do not
I believe in God everytime I get into trouble :)
You're joking right?!Quote:
Originally Posted by SPACE GLIDER
First of all, most atheists don't publicly announce their (lack of) beliefs. I find it very odd that you would know more than a few atheists to make such a broad generalization.
I am an atheist... I am not spiritual in the least bit. I don't believe in any higher power whatsoever. AND I do not suffer from depression, do not have a drug or alcohol addiction (except for tobacco), am a law abiding citizen, consider myself a very moral person, donate to non-religious charities, etc.
For other atheists or skeptics, required reading is a new book by Christopher Hitchens "God is not Great". I highly recommend it and it will make you feel like your not totally alone in your lack of belief.
i know plenty of happy, well-balanced aetheists. i'm more of an agnostic, myself - and i try to keep an open mind.
I've recently slid into fundamentalist agnosticism. I just really really don't know, and short of a blatant act of god, I'm not going to know. I had to go more hardcore in response to all the hardcore evangelical Christians. It doesn't hurt that agnosticism is the one true right religion. Sure someone else might be right, but I don't know, and I'll be right about that. Most other religions are winner take all.
*LOLOLOL*
"fundamentalist agnosticism"
omg, i love it! er... are agnostics allowed to say omg? :huh:
Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesXR
i think someone can be exist on heavens but actually i'm not believing in god.
Funny, that.Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesXR
My House mate is a Agnostic Nihilist... he nearly jumped for joy when he was exploring the area around our house and came upon a "First Apostic Church"...
He glimpsed it from the corner of his eye and thought it read " First Agnostic Church"
Funny thing is.. It problly really -would- have been the first one. Oh well. :angel:
Agnostics don't have to worry about what they say. Atheists do because they often have some beef with god. I'd prefer that their were some benevolent creator of the universe and a place to go when we die. All that makes life so much more magical, but I can't quite seem to get excited about religion, especially all the needy asking god for things. I tried bible study for a while. Group prayer kind of pisses me off. It's all "Seriously people, I wasn't going to cure your mother's heart when just you were asking, I don't care how many people you get to join you. I'm not bailing out everyone who overindulges in bacon."
Also, the concept that god is this huge egomaniacal entity that really needs people to congregate and sing about how great he is, that also irritates me.
Worst is the idea that god will repay you ten times what you send to certain evangelists. If they packaged and sold all of those bad debts we'd have a serious economic crisis.
Too many people look at god as a chump who will give them things or some hugely vain entity that must be appeased with vast volumes of praise. On the other side is the one where he's vengeful and vindictive, casting people into the eternal flames because they didn't trust some corrupt religious official. None of these portrayals is the least bit flattering.
Then you've got Jesus who was all about love and forgiveness. I can get behind that kind of god, but I can't really see a point in all the worship, foofah, and hoodininny that goes along with the religion. So I try to make the world a better place by my actions and trust that if there is a god that he is neither a chump nor a jerk. Basically, I can't see me acting any differently with religion than I do now.
It certainly doesn't help that according to George W Bush, we should be bombing a lot of churches, as many are full of people who hate our freedoms and want to take them away.
arsh. :argue:
This is illogical from an atheist's perspective. I don't have a beef with god... he just doesn't exist. ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesXR
That is totally offensive! - Or it is not: when you refer to your time at Narcotics Anonymous.Quote:
Originally Posted by SPACE GLIDER
But a remark like this is to be expected from a religious bigot. Why don't you just become a priest and work with little children ...
(just being offensive back here, as a happy atheist)
My quote: "thank god I am an atheist"
I won't state it as a broad generalization, but I sometimes get the feeling that atheism goes from non-belief to the active belief that there is no god. This is the top listing on dictionary.com: "the doctrine or belief that there is no God"Quote:
Originally Posted by Xstr8guy
So basically atheism involves taking a leap of faith. If you're strictly scientific about it, you can't prove something doesn't exist if you have no evidence one way or another. Anyone who points to the problems with the world as the reason for their disbelief in god, is most likely an "angry at god" theist. I just feel that atheism takes extra energy and conviction over agnosticism, and that there has to be some reason to invest that kind of conviction.
Two interesting things that I might add:
First, the story of how the Religion columnist at the LA Times lost his faith.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la...la-home-center
Second, for he hardcore atheists, or anyone else who enjoys controversy, this t-shirt design:
http://catandgirl.com/store/pfft_big.gif
As a last note: Religion is a fascinating topic.
Thanks for that. It was an interesting read.
I feel that agnosticism is kind of a cop-out. "I don't believe in god but I'll keep the door open just in case I'm wrong." ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesXR
Maybe I lack some part of my brain that most humans have. I simply don't believe in anything supernatural. The real world is fascinating enough without believing in ghosts, afterlife, magic, god, etc.
I was raised in a vaguely christian/catholic family. When I was a small child, we went to church most Sundays. But religion was NEVER discussed at home. We had no religious icons on display. We did have a single bible that sat on an end table in an unused corner of the living room. Either my parents just didn't have strong beliefs or they wanted us children to make up our own minds... I've never asked. To this day, none of us 5 children have strong religious beliefs. I can honestly say that I've never had a discussion about god/religion with any family member... except for one sister that was born-again for about 3 months many years back. She finally came to her senses and I've never heard her mention Jesus ever again. Lol.
You know, I'm VERY lucky that my parents weren't super religious. Greg Riedle was a good friend of mine in elementary school. We went to the same catholic church. He was an altar boy and was molested by our priest and then went on to molest a little girl years later... a sad story.
Woah Xstr8guy, there is some truth to your copout theory. A dude has to have backup plans, but it's not so much as backup plan as a lack of commitment to the "there is no god" thing. I have no capacity for faith. I my wild experimental college years I tried bible study for almost a year. In the end it felt awkward and disrespectful to be there because I just wasn't feeling it. Then I realized that I wouldn't live my life any differently if I believed in a religion. Where in the commandments is "Though shalt gather together weekly, sing smarmy songs, and chant together."?
So yeah, I realized that I didn't need religion and I had zero capacity for faith anyway. So, perhaps there is no god, or perhaps god doesn't want me to join his religion and prefers that I stay a free agent. I'll subscribe to multiple conflicting world views at the same time. I refuse to shut out any possibilities. I just don't have the choice to believe. I'm just hoping the religions where god is evil are wrong, like Catholicism. Loving god who burns all those non-believers including protestants for all eternity. Either mercy isn't a value and torturing people is, or I'm morally superior to that concept of god. Point being, as an agnostic I've considered heavily the chance that I might be wrong. Then again I've considered what it would be like to operate an upscale gourmet pickle store, among umpteen million other stupid things. So, grain of truth there Xstr8guy, but not wholy accurate. Also, I like to consider myself open to all ideas.
Actually it's pretty intense considering the afterlife when some parties are bringing eternal suffering to the table. That is really vicious. This is one heavy topic. If just anybody threatened to burn you, or anyone you loved for just an hour, you'd likely hit that person in the face.