| 2/17/2008 11:49:09 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
healthologist
Page, AZ
age: 61
|
I plan to moderate this post with active listening as I am not qualified to post to it and will not except to get clarification.
You are all qualified, so please help out and educate me.
Les
|
| 2/18/2008 6:29:12 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
tigertommy1982
Burlington, VT
age: 26
|
Atheists believe that there is no God, as any of the popular religions of today understand Him. That does not necessarily mean that they believe there is no God at all (although some of them do in fact believe that)... they simply believe that the Bible, Koran, Old Testament, and various mythologies of the world do not and cannot possibly understand God's facets. As such, they do not acknowledge any of the world's religions as being the "right" way to view such a matter.
Hope that clears some things up.
--Tiger
|
| 2/19/2008 10:42:50 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
krupa1
Abilene, TX
age: 40
|
My way or the highway.
|
| 2/20/2008 3:37:45 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
footloose_bored
Tienen
Belgium
age: 59
|
Am I an atheist just because I don't believe in something I can't see or touch.
The fact that more people die in the name of one religion or another seems to get overlooked by most religious people
What I do believe in is the freedom of choice without some bigot telling me I'm evil
because of my choices , and hey , I don't go knocking on Mormons or Jehovah's witnesses doors telling them what to believe in.
I do however try to explain all the different religions to my seven year old daughter and the reasons for what I believe and don't believe. She then has the right to make her own choices and whatever she wants to believe is ok by me. I do not believe that as a parent I have the right to push my kid one way or the other and I sure wish a lot of other people felt the same way
OK I'm done
|
| 2/22/2008 7:08:47 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
rickytazz
Batesville, AR
age: 39
|
I am 100% atheist, and why do I believe what I believe? No ghosts, goblins, hereto thereto ever-afters, punishments, atonements, blah, blah, blah. Frankly speaking, it takes far more education (or brainwashing) to come to a belief in godly theories than an alternative. Ole Spock had a good philosophy as far as I'm concerned -- Logic. Everything about an almighty creator zapping a bevy of doting ants defies logic. Granted, there are many, many terrific concepts and priciples amid the varied religion, and in large, following them can indeed fascilitate a lifestyle that promotes health and prosperity, an acceptable pysociologicl plateau, and that; in my opinion is the origin of religion, not god. I have specific ideas, I guess you could call them beliefs, about where we (humans) came from and why, but they are irrelevent. I don't care to make this venue my personal soapbox. Neither am I pompous enough to believe that my ideas, no matter how "logical" they seem to me, are THE WAY IT IS. But don't get me wrong. I'm a true athiest, and I feel a certain amount of satisfaction in crushing the eyes of ignorance, yet at the same time I am well aware of my own limited insight. In conclusion I say, it is not about "what I believe" that makes me an athiest. It is what I don't believe. Anybody can go to church or Sunday school and end up believing in some incarnation of god -- it's a chosing of what to believe -- but what better a mind that is capable of going to school everyday via the plathorm of information at our disposal, the information of raw data and a knowledge that reaches far beyond bibical or religious teachings.
|
| 2/22/2008 6:28:35 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
9thstwonder
North Beach, MD
age: 50
|
"Beliefs" are for those of a religious nature, as I understand it, that which one would call an atheist, agnositc or skeptic, chooses to "understand", as opposed to "believe" in something. When one "believes" in something there is room for doubt, when one "understands" something the doubt is removed.
|
| 2/23/2008 12:13:43 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
dbsuma
Lakewood, OH
age: 40
|
I certainly don't believe in a Christian god anymore.
I do think that there is more out there than meets the eye but not likely to be found in fairy tales.
Basically that religion is a lie and if you get to a certain age in life and have never questioned the idea that you were born into, then you are pretty f**king useless stupid a** person.
"A life unexamined is one not work living"
"Question everything"
but Christians and members of most religions just believe what they are told to believe and never even bother even thinking about it, let alone questioning the validity of it.
I think this elusive "God" Person is NOT a big giant guy who sits in the clouds, in the emerald city, behind pearly gates, with streets made of gold, in a huge palace, on a high throne, who looks a little bit like Zeus or Santa Claus, with a big long flowing gray beard to sits around all day judging people's actions and throws thunderbolts at them for masturbating too much.
Not that I don't believe that there is a lot more to this universe than we are able to see and understand, but whatever those things are it is not that.
Religion and Christianity tends to be overly simplistic, as if almost cartoonist that can only hope to appeal to very stupid people. Besides the fact that it is completely useless to help an individual with any practical matters of their lives.
Christianity tells you to be good, say your prayers and brush after each meal and when you die you will go to a big happy place in the sky but other than that it is completely useless other than to make people less worried about their eventual deaths.
I tend to find that most atheists were once in some religion and not too many people are born atheists. That atheism is the next level in human intellectual growth.
Children believe in Santa and the Easter Bunny and God and whatever their parents tell them to believe in, but at some point you have to start to make up your mind for yourself.
Granted once people realize that they have been lied to their entire lives they are more than likely to be a little pissed off about it.
But then you get over it and go on to whatever is next.
To not accept what you are told but to find real answers for yourself.
Where that leads you might greatly vary from person to person.
Some might become Christians again, knowing full well that it is complete bullshit but having some religion, no matter how false could ultimately be the best for the over all social good.
Others might remain in the pissed off stage and become Satanists or develop some other dark world view.
While yet others will remain atheists their entire lives.
But hopefully many of these people will find some answers, whatever they might be and ascend to something else.
So I guess my answer would be that atheisms would be a pathway to higher understanding of reality and existence.
A stepping stone, a bridge, a waiting lobby for disillusioned idealists of all denominations.
Atheism does not offer any answers or truth other than the real truth is unknown.
While yes, wild speculation is abound, there is not atheist bible, no dogma, ceremonies or churches. Nobody passing around a collection plate or glaring down their nose at you for not putting enough in.
I'd say that Atheism is the "none of the above" box of spiritualism.
Not that atheists believe in nothing, because I think that is called Nihilism, but atheists admit that we don't know and that are pretty sure that accepted tradition religions are completely and totally wrong, in full or in part.
Oh OK, I'll just look it up just to be on the safe side.
Atheism
Atheism, as a philosophical view, is the position that either affirms the nonexistence of gods or rejects theism. When defined more broadly, atheism is the absence of belief in deities, alternatively called nontheism. Atheists either do not include belief in a personal god, or actively teach Atheism.
[Edited 2/23/2008 12:18:04 AM]
|
| 2/25/2008 5:21:43 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
thegronk
Rimersburg, PA
age: 58
|
yeah what they said.
|
| 2/26/2008 5:38:40 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
1bit2spurs
Winnsboro, TX
age: 38
|
Hi i would say that if i will dye and i will end up where the streets are paved with gold and some angels with swords would make shure that i sing the haleluiah ever after i would try to kill my own spirit .
I would trade the heaven gold streets for just walking as spirit (if that is) on a clean grass meadow ,fortunate i can do this while i,m alive.
If you ever touched the leaf of a three or washed your face with clear cristal water out of a creek that comes out of the mountain stone ,you will feel that divinity surrounds us but some people are too blind to see the perfection here on earth therefore they believe they live in hell and heaven is way above.
Poor humans will they forever need a book of some kind to guide them , or maybe some day to realize that the book is writen by the nature that has feed them and provided them with all the divine gifts such as food ,clothing and endless beauty .
Sadly no religion enforces preserving the gift that we are born with ,and the fact that there is divinity in just being human .
So if you still wonder just look at children,to bring life to such beautifull forms of life and watch them grow it is a sign of the human divine existence.
Yet one thing will allways remain after our existence , the nature that dies and reborns itself from death forever and ever again.
|
| 2/27/2008 9:20:13 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
celestialvoid
Bradford, ON
age: 20
|
The Atheist contradicts oneself by naming themself an Atheist. If you dont believe in religion why do you need a religion stating that? To me its all a big hoax to keep us searching for this religion that best suits us so we are less likely to find the universal truths.
|
| 2/27/2008 10:49:46 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
glassygal
Ingram, TX
age: 56
|
I don't know! But I do feel the need to remark on this topic. Didn't religion come to be to help mankind learn how to not be an animal? In the infancy of our intellectual enlightenment, we needed a 'big-daddy' who watched us and punished bad behavior, so that we would stop killing and taking advantage of each other. Then Christ tried to teach us to act from love instead of fear, as our intelligence was evolving. Unfortunately we still don't get it. Many of us have evolved past what organized religions have to offer, but I would rather have people believe in something. Not everyone is able to accept abstract universal truth.
|
| 2/27/2008 11:29:01 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
1bit2spurs
Winnsboro, TX
age: 38
|
I believe that no matter how humans have tryed trough time to justifie their behavior by using religion ....
It just comes down to the fact that some humans do fell the need to hope in something that can solve the spiritual need.
Sadly there are the ones that gain power by using religions of all kinds.
AND this has created too many fanatics that are ready to give their eartly life just to gain the ever after of their spirit .
There is the recipie of how to make your perfect Terorist that for his worthless soul is ready to clear this planet .
|
| 3/12/2008 2:23:07 AM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
darkwriter
Sacramento, CA
age: 39
|
My atheist friend does not believe in any form of religion, or spiritually - or even what he calls the 'hocus pocus shit' - like psychic ability.
He pretty much goes with the you cease to exist utterly when you die route.
I haven't been able to twist his arm to find out WHY he thinks this way, tho' - so far I never heard or or met an atheist who just evolved that way with little outside interference -it usually had to do with having religion crammed down their throat at a young age, and was typically the Christians doing the cramming.
|
| 3/12/2008 4:53:20 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
thegronk
Rimersburg, PA
age: 58
|
i do what i want how i want and when i want to do it. i dont give a crap about any religion or any laws! ha ha ha!
|
| 3/16/2008 12:48:00 PM |
What do Atheists believe? Educate me. |
|
againnothing
Miles City, MT
age: 32
|
i beleive you live you die dont f**king preach to me i am me and thats it.
|